Information processing device, printing device, information processing method and program

Abstract

To provide a technique that can easily eliminate inconsistency between a setting on an application that is operated by a device that instructs a printing device to perform printing and a tape attached to the printing device, according to operation by a user.SOLUTION: An information processing device 100 is provided with: a suggesting unit 112 that suggests change of settings, in response to operation of instructing printing of a label image, when a printing method of a medium to be printed shown by the settings and a printing method of a medium to be printed attached to an attachment part are different from each other; and a setting unit 113 that changes the settings to settings in which the printing method of the medium to be printed attached to the attachment part is shown, in response to operation of receiving change of the settings suggested by the suggesting unit 112.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The disclosure of this specification relates to an information processing device, a printing device, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a printing device that creates labels by printing characters, images, etc. on tape, which is a long, narrow strip-shaped printing medium. To promote the use of this type of printing device, an application program (hereinafter, referred to as a label creation support application) that runs on an information processing device such as a smartphone is provided.

[0003] By using the label creation support application, it is possible to easily create a label image to be printed on a printing medium, and it is also possible to instruct a printing device to print the label image (i.e., create a label) from the label creation support application.

[0004] Patent Document 1 describes that a computer functioning as a label editing device acquires information on the type of tape loaded in a printing device, and sets the tape type based on the acquired information. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-148719 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] It is not desirable for the tape type setting on the label creation support application to be automatically changed without the user's consent. On the other hand, if the tape type set in the device on which the label creation support application runs differs from the tape type loaded in the printing device, there is a risk that printing will not be performed correctly.

[0007] In light of the above-described situation, an object of one aspect of the present invention is to provide technology that, in response to user operation, easily resolves inconsistencies between the settings on an application running on a device that instructs a printing device to print and the tape loaded in the printing device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An information processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a suggestion unit that proposes a change to the settings in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting differs from the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading unit, and a setting unit that changes the setting to a setting indicating the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading unit in response to an operation accepting the change to the setting proposed by the suggestion unit.

[0009] A printing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes an information processing device and a mounting unit in which a print medium is mounted. The information processing device includes a suggestion unit that, when a printing method of the print medium indicated by a setting differs from a printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting unit, suggests a change to the setting in response to an operation to instruct printing of a label image, and a setting unit that, in response to an operation to accept the change to the setting proposed by the suggestion unit, changes the setting to a setting indicating the printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting unit.

[0010] An information processing method according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing method performed by an information processing device, and includes the steps of: when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is different from the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section, in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image, proposing a change to the setting; and, in response to an operation accepting the proposed change to the setting, changing the setting to a setting indicating the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section.

[0011] A program according to one aspect of the present invention causes an information processing device to execute a process of proposing a change to the settings in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the settings is different from the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section, and changing the settings to settings indicating the printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section in response to an operation accepting the proposed change to the settings.

[0012] An information processing device according to another aspect of the present invention includes a suggestion unit that proposes a change to the settings in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image when the type of printing medium indicated by the settings and the type of printing medium loaded in the printing device correspond to different printing methods, and a setting unit that changes the settings to a setting indicating the type of printing medium loaded in the printing device in response to an operation accepting the change to the settings proposed by the suggestion unit. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the above aspect, a technology is provided that easily resolves inconsistencies between the settings on an application running on a device that instructs a printing device to print and the tape loaded in the printing device in response to user operation. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a partial plan view of a printing device according to an embodiment with its cover open. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transport path for a print medium. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 5] 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration related to an information processing method performed by an information processing device. [Figure 6] 1 is an example of an application screen displayed by an information processing device. [Figure 7] 11 is another example of an application screen displayed by the information processing device. [Figure 8] 13 is yet another example of an application screen displayed by the information processing device. [Figure 9] 13 is yet another example of an application screen displayed by the information processing device. [Figure 10] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an information processing method performed by an information processing device. [Figure 11] 13 is an example of a message displayed by the information processing device. [Figure 12] 11 is another example of a message displayed by the information processing device. [Figure 13] 11 is another example of a flowchart illustrating the information processing method performed by the information processing device. [Figure 14] 11 is yet another example of a message displayed by the information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following, an embodiment of the present invention will be described by taking as an example a system including a printing device capable of printing characters, images, etc. on a tape as a printing medium, cutting the printed tape (label), and discharging it to the outside of the device, and an information processing device on which an application (label creation support application) that supports the creation of the label runs.

[0016] In this specification, a tape is a long, thin, strip-shaped print medium made of plastic, paper, or any other material. The tape typically has an adhesive layer and is attachable. However, the tape does not have to have an adhesive layer. A label is a piece of tape that uses tape as a print medium and has some information printed on it.

[0017] The printing device according to the embodiment is compatible with a plurality of printing methods. The printing device is, for example, a thermal printer that switches between ink ribbon (thermal transfer) printing and thermal printing, and switches the printing method according to the type of tape, which differs depending on the printing method. Note that the printing device is not limited to being a thermal printer, and may also operate as a non-thermal printer such as an inkjet printer or laser printer. That is, in the printing device, the printing method may be arbitrarily switched between a thermal method (ink ribbon type, thermal type) and a non-thermal method (inkjet type, laser printer type).

[0018] Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a partial plan view of a printing device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention with its cover open.

[0019] The system shown in Fig. 1 includes a printing device 1 and an information processing device 100. In the system shown in Fig. 1, the information processing device 100 sends print data of a label image to the printing device 1, which then prints the label image on a tape 13 to create a label on which the label image is printed. The label image is a print image that is printed on a print medium (here, the tape 13) to create a label.

[0020] The information processing device 100 is a device that creates a label image to be printed on the tape 13 by the printing device 1, and a label creation support application runs on it. The information processing device 100 is also a device that instructs the printing device 1 to print by sending print data of the label image to the printing device 1. The information processing device 100 is, for example, a portable tablet terminal as shown in Fig. 1. Note that the information processing device 100 is not limited to a tablet terminal, and may be any mobile terminal such as a smartphone or a notebook terminal, or may be a desktop (stationary) terminal.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 1, the printing device 1 and the information processing device 100 exchange data, for example, by wireless communication. The standard of the wireless communication performed between the printing device 1 and the information processing device 100 is not particularly limited. For example, a wireless LAN standard such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) may be adopted. The information processing device 100 may communicate with the printing device 1 in an ad-hoc mode, or may communicate with the printing device 1 in an infrastructure mode via an access point (not shown). In addition, a short-range wireless communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy (hereinafter referred to as BLE) may be adopted for the wireless communication performed between the printing device 1 and the information processing device 100. In addition, the communication between the printing device 1 and the information processing device 100 is not limited to wireless communication, and may be communication using a wired cable.

[0022] The printer 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a device housing 2 and a lid 4 attached to the device housing 2. The device housing 2 is provided with a concave adapter mounting section 21 for mounting a tape adapter 11. The tape adapter 11 is a container that stores a roll of tape 13 (hereinafter referred to as a "tape roll 12") and supplies the tape 13 to the printer 1. The tape adapter 11 of the printer 1 is an example of a mounting section in which the tape 13, which is a print medium, is mounted. The underlined number "9" in FIGS. 1 and 2 indicates that the width of the tape 13 stored in the tape adapter 11 is 9 mm. The tape 13 is not limited to a 9 mm width, and various widths such as 3.5 mm, 6 mm, 12 mm, 18 mm, 24 mm, and 36 mm can be used.

[0023] The printing device 1 has a detection unit (not shown) that detects the type of tape 13 housed in the tape adapter 11, and switches the printing method depending on the type of tape 13 detected by the detection unit. As one example, the bottom surface of the tape adapter 11 is provided with a different number of pins depending on the type of tape 13 housed therein. When the tape adapter 11 is attached to the adapter attachment unit 21, the detection unit detects the number of pins provided on the tape adapter 11, and detects the type of tape attached to the tape adapter 11 of the printing device 1 based on the detected number of pins.

[0024] Although an example has been shown in which the detection unit detects the type of tape 13 based on the shape of the container that holds the tape 13 (the number of pins in this example), the detection unit of the printing device 1 is not limited to one that detects the type of tape 13 based on the shape of the container. For example, the detection unit may be configured using a hall sensor that detects a magnet attached to the tape adapter 11. Also, the detection unit may be configured using a reader device that reads an IC tag (RF tag, RFID tag) attached to the tape adapter 11.

[0025] In this embodiment, the detection unit of the printing device 1 distinguishes between whether an ink ribbon type tape or a thermal type tape is attached and detects this. The printing device 1 is configured to switch between the ink ribbon type and the thermal type depending on the type of tape 13. That is, the detection unit of the printing device 1 is an example of a detection unit that detects the printing method of the printing device 1 that the tape 13 corresponds to (hereinafter simply referred to as the printing method of the tape 13), and detects the printing method of the tape 13 based on the shape of the container, for example.

[0026] The adapter mounting section 21 of the device housing 2 communicates with an outlet 22 provided on a side surface of the device housing 2. The printing device 1 transports the tape 13 pulled out from the tape adapter 11 mounted in the adapter mounting section 21 along a transport path provided in the device housing 2, and discharges the tape 13 from the outlet 22. In the device housing 2, a platen roller (transport roller) 6 that transports the tape 13 pulled out from the tape adapter 11, a printing unit 7 that prints on the tape 13, and a cutting unit 8 that cuts the tape 13 are arranged.

[0027] The lid 4 is attached to the device housing 2 so that the adapter mounting section 21 in the device housing 2 can be opened and closed. In the printing device 1, a keyboard 3 is provided in an area of ​​the device housing 2 that does not interfere with the lid 4 in the closed position, and a display 5 is provided on the surface of the lid 4. The keyboard 3 is an input device having a number of keys for inputting and selecting various pieces of information related to the operation of the printing device 1. The display 5 is a display device that displays various pieces of information input or selected using the keyboard 3.

[0028] 1 and 2 show an example in which the printing device 1 is equipped with the keyboard 3 and the display 5, but the printing device 1 does not have to be equipped with the keyboard 3 and the display 5. The printing device 1 only needs to have at least a configuration for executing a printing process in response to a printing instruction from the information processing device 100.

[0029] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transport path of a print medium, in which the transport path of the tape 13 in the printing device 1 is shown as a straight path.

[0030] The tape 13 that is unwound from the tape roll 12 and supplied to the printing device 1 passes between the platen roller 6 and the thermal head 71 of the printing unit 7, and is transported along a transport path that leads to the discharge outlet 22 of the device housing 2. For example, when the lid 4 moves to the closed position, the tape 13 is sandwiched between the circumferential surface of the platen roller 6 and the thermal head 71, and is transported along the transport path as the platen roller 6 rotates.

[0031] The platen roller 6 in the printing device 1 of this embodiment sends out the tape 13 toward the discharge opening 22 by the power of a motor (not shown). The thermal head 71 prints on the tape 13 by applying heat to the tape 13 being transported. The tape 13 transported along the transport path is cut by a first cutter 81 at a full cut position between a printing position on the transport path where the tape 13 and the thermal head 71 come into contact with each other, and a discharge position corresponding to the discharge opening 22 of the device housing 2. The tape 13 transported along the transport path is cut by a second cutter 82 at a half cut position between the full cut position and the discharge position.

[0032] The first cutter 81 is a full cutter that cuts the entire tape 13 at a cut line of the tape 13 at the full cut position to separate it into two pieces. For example, if the tape 13 is a print medium including a substrate that is an adhesive tape layer and a separator that is a protective layer that protects the adhesive tape layer, the first cutter 81 cuts both the substrate and the separator to separate each of the substrate and the separator into two pieces.

[0033] The second cutter 82 is a half cutter that cuts the tape 13 so that when the tape 13 is cut at a cut line of the tape 13 at the half-cut position, both sides of the cut line remain integral due to the uncut portions. For example, if the tape 13 is a print medium including a substrate that is an adhesive tape layer and a separator that is a protective layer that protects the adhesive tape layer, the second cutter 82 cuts, for example, only the substrate and does not cut the separator. Note that the second cutter 82 may be a cutter that cuts the tape 13 so that a perforation is formed in the tape 13.

[0034] 3, the printing device 1 may be provided with a pair of discharge rollers 91 and 92 that sandwich the tape 13 between the half-cut position and the discharge position on the conveying path and assist in conveying the tape 13. For example, when the tape 13 is cut by the first cutter 81, the discharge rollers 91 and 92 operate so that the tape 13 located downstream of the full-cut position is conveyed.

[0035] 2 and 3, the printing procedure is described when the tape 13 is a tape compatible with the heat-sensitive type (thermal tape), but the printer 1 can also use a tape compatible with the ink ribbon type. When the tape 13 is a tape compatible with the ink ribbon type, the printer 1 performs printing using the ink ribbon type. In the ink ribbon type, the ink ribbon is transported to the thermal head 71 together with the tape 13, and then the ink ribbon is collected via a different transport path from the tape 13. In other respects, the printing process is performed in the same way as in the case of a tape compatible with the heat-sensitive type.

[0036] The printing device 1 configured as described above, for example, when it receives printing data of a label image from the information processing device 100, performs a process (operation) such as printing the label image on the tape 13 using a printing method corresponding to the type of tape 13, and creates a label.

[0037] 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device 100 according to an embodiment. Although not particularly limited, the information processing device 100 includes, for example, a processor 110, a storage device 120, an input / output device 130, and a communication device 140, as shown in FIG.

[0038] The processor 110 is an example of a control unit of the information processing device 100. The processor 110 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and executes a program 121 stored in the storage device 120. The processor 110 may include any electric circuit such as a GPU (Graphics processing unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor).

[0039] The storage device 120 is a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as any semiconductor memory. The one or more storage devices 120 include volatile memory, such as Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), non-volatile memory, such as flash memory, etc. The storage devices 120 may also include magnetic storage devices, optical storage devices, and other types of storage devices.

[0040] The storage device 120 stores a program 121 and data 122. The program 121 is, for example, an application (label creation support application) that supports label creation using an information processing method described below. The data 122 includes, for example, information on the setting of the tape type on the label creation support application.

[0041] The input / output device 130 is, for example, a touch panel display, etc. The communication device 140 is, for example, a unit compatible with wireless communication such as WiFi (registered trademark) or BLE.

[0042] In the system configured as above, the information processing device 100 can create a label image by having the user input the necessary information on the label creation support application executed by the processor 110. Furthermore, by sending print data of the label image created by the information processing device 100 to the printing device 1, the information processing device 100 can instruct the printing device 1 to print, and cause the printing device 1 to create a label on which the label image is printed.

[0043] Furthermore, the printer 1 can print using a printing method that corresponds to the type of tape 13 that is attached to the printer 1 (tape adapter 11). For example, if the tape 13 attached to the printer 1 is a thermal tape, the printer 1 can print using a thermal method. Also, if the tape 13 attached to the printer 1 is a tape with an ink ribbon, the printer 1 can print using an ink ribbon method.

[0044] Furthermore, by setting the type of tape on the label creation assistance application to match the type of tape 13 attached to the printer 1, the information processing device 100 can create appropriate print data according to the printing method supported by the tape 13. This allows the information processing device 100 to cause the printer 1 to print using appropriate print data according to the printing method.

[0045] When an operation to instruct printing is detected in a case where the type of tape 13 mounted on the printing device 1 and the type of tape 13 set on the label creation support application correspond to different printing methods, the information processing device 100 is configured to propose a setting change. This makes it possible to prevent printing from being performed with an incorrect setting that is not intended by the user. Furthermore, the information processing device 100 is configured to change the setting of the type of tape 13 when an operation to accept the setting change proposal is detected. This makes it possible to eliminate the trouble of a user who has received a proposed setting change returning to the setting screen and changing the setting of the tape type and instructing printing again. Furthermore, since the information processing device 100 is configured to propose a setting change without automatically changing the setting, the user can freely select whether to change the setting of the label creation support application or to change the type of tape mounted on the printing device 1. Therefore, according to the information processing device 100, it is possible to easily resolve an inconsistency between the setting on the application running on the information processing device 100 that instructs the printing device 1 to print and the tape mounted on the printing device 1 in response to the user's operation.

[0046] The following describes in detail the suggestion function that suggests changes to settings of the information processing device 100 and the information processing method performed by the information processing device 100 to realize the suggestion function.

[0047] 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration related to an information processing method performed by the information processing device 100. The processor 110 includes an acquisition unit 111, a proposal unit 112, a setting unit 113, and a data generation unit 114, which are realized by the processor 110 executing a program 121.

[0048] The acquisition unit 111 acquires information on the type (printing method) of the tape 13, which is a print medium attached to the printing device 1 (tape adapter 11). The detection unit 30 of the printing device 1 detects the type (printing method) of the tape 13 attached to the printing device 1 (tape adapter 11), and the acquisition unit 111 acquires the information on the type (printing method) of the tape 13 detected by the detection unit 30 from the printing device 1. Note that, as described above, the detection unit 30 may detect the type (printing method) of the tape 13 based on, for example, the shape of a container (tape adapter 11) that contains the tape 13.

[0049] The suggestion unit 112 proposes a change in settings in response to an operation by a user to instruct printing of a label image when the type of tape 13 indicated by the settings and the type of tape 13 attached to the printing device 1 (tape adapter 11) correspond to different printing methods, more specifically, when the printing method of the tape 13 indicated by the settings and the printing method of the tape 13 attached to the tape adapter 11 differ from each other. For example, when an operation to instruct printing is performed, if the type of tape 13 set on the label creation support application indicates a tape corresponding to an ink ribbon type and the type of tape 13 based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 111 indicates a tape corresponding to a thermal type, the suggestion unit 112 proposes a change in settings to a setting indicating a tape type corresponding to a thermal type, in other words, a change in settings to a setting indicating the thermal type which is a printing method. Furthermore, for example, when an operation to instruct printing is performed and the type of tape 13 set on the label creation support application indicates a tape corresponding to the thermal type, and the type of tape 13 based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 111 indicates a tape corresponding to the ink ribbon type, the suggestion unit 112 suggests changing the setting to a setting indicating a type of tape corresponding to the ink ribbon type, in other words, changing the setting to a setting indicating the ink ribbon type, which is the printing method.

[0050] In response to an operation to accept the change in the settings proposed by the suggestion unit 112, the setting unit 113 changes the settings to settings indicating the type of tape 13 attached to the printing device 1, in other words, to settings indicating the printing method of the tape 13 attached to the tape adapter 11.

[0051] The data generating unit 114 generates print data based on the label image and the setting of the type (printing method) of the tape 13. That is, the data generating unit 114 generates print data according to the setting of the type of the tape 13, in other words, the setting of the printing method of the tape 13. In detail, the data generating unit 114 generates print data with a different number of gradations when the printing method corresponding to the type of the tape 13 indicated by the setting of the type of the tape 13 is an ink ribbon type or a thermal type. More specifically, the print data includes information in which one of the gradations in a predetermined number of gradations is set for each pixel in the label image, and the data generating unit 114 generates print data with a different number of gradations when the printing method of the printing medium indicated by the setting is an ink ribbon type or a thermal type. In this case, the data generating unit 114 may set one of the gradations in the predetermined number of gradations for each pixel based on the brightness of each pixel in the label image and the predetermined number of gradations. Specifically, for example, when the predetermined number of gradations is eight, the data generating unit 114 may set the gradation of each pixel by comparing the brightness of each pixel with seven preset thresholds for brightness. Note that when setting the gradation, the luminance of each pixel in the label image may be used instead of the brightness of each pixel in the label image, or any other pixel value may be used.

[0052] For example, in the ink ribbon type, each pixel is expressed in two gradations, black and white, whereas in the thermal type, each pixel can be expressed in three or more gradations including gray (e.g., eight gradations). For this reason, the data generating unit 114 may generate print data with a predetermined number of gradations in two gradations when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is the ink ribbon type, and may generate print data with a predetermined number of gradations in three or more gradations when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is the thermal type. Specifically, when printing of a label image including a photograph is instructed, the data generating unit 114 may generate print data (one bit data per pixel) in which the photographic portion is expressed in two gradations, black and white, when the printing method indicated by the setting is the ink ribbon type, whereas it may generate print data (three bits data per pixel) in which the photographic portion is expressed in eight gradations when the printing method indicated by the setting is the thermal type. This allows the printing device 1 to maximize its capabilities in each printing method. Note that print data with a different number of gradations is not limited to data in which the entire label image represented by the print data is expressed with a different number of gradations, but may be data in which at least a portion of the label image, such as the photographic portion described above, is expressed with a different number of gradations.

[0053] The data generation unit 114 may generate print data in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image when the type of tape 13 indicated by the settings and the type of print medium loaded in the printer 1 correspond to the same printing method, that is, when the printing method of the tape 13 indicated by the settings and the printing method of the print medium loaded in the printer 1 correspond (for example, they are the same). That is, in the printer 1, if the settings and the tape actually loaded in the printer 1, i.e., the printing method, are consistent, print data is generated in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image, and if they are not consistent, a change in the settings is proposed. Then, if the proposal is accepted, the settings may be changed and print data may be generated with the changed settings.

[0054] The print data generated by the data generation unit 114 is sent to the print unit 40 of the printer 1, and printing based on the print data is performed by the print unit 40. As a result, print data corresponding to the type of tape 13 attached to the printer 1 is sent from the information processing device 100 to the printer 1, so that the information processing device 100 can cause the printer 1 to print using appropriate print data corresponding to the printing method.

[0055] Each of Fig. 6 to Fig. 9 is an example of an application screen displayed by the information processing device 100. Fig. 10 is an example of a flowchart explaining an information processing method performed by the information processing device 100. Each of Fig. 11 to Fig. 13 is an example of a message displayed by the information processing device 100. Below, a specific example of the information processing method performed by the information processing device 100 will be described with reference to Fig. 6 to Fig. 13.

[0056] When the processor 110 executes the program 121 to start the label creation support application, the process shown in Fig. 10 starts and the application screen shown in Fig. 6 is displayed on the touch panel display 101. The application screen shown in Fig. 6 is the top screen of the label creation support application, and includes a display area R1 and a display area R2.

[0057] A number of icons are lined up in display area R1. When an icon on the right edge of display area R1 is selected, the application screen shown in Fig. 7 is displayed. The application screen shown in Fig. 7 is a setting screen for a label creation assistance application, and includes display area R1 and display area R3.

[0058] In display area R3, the model of the connected printing device 1, the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1, and other print settings can be configured. Here, the tape type in display area R3 is set by the user in the label creation support application according to the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1. The information processing device 100 generates print data for the label data according to the tape type set here, regardless of the type of tape actually loaded in the printing device 1 (tape adapter 11).

[0059] When the portion of display area R3 in which the tape type is described is selected, an application screen shown in Fig. 8 is displayed. The application screen shown in Fig. 8 is a tape type setting screen, and includes display area R1 and display area R4.

[0060] In the display area R4, options for the tape type that can be set are displayed together with a description of the tape type. When the user selects a tape type in the display area R4, the information processing device 100 changes the setting of the tape type. In Fig. 8, the state where the ink ribbon type (thermal transfer type) has been selected as the tape type is shown.

[0061] When creating a label image on the label creation support application, the user simply selects an option according to the purpose of the label to be created from the menu displayed in display area R2 of the application screen shown in Fig. 6. The application screen shown in Fig. 9 is a label editing screen, and includes display area R5 and display area R6.

[0062] Display area R5 is an area for editing the label image. For example, a preselected label design is initially displayed in display area R5 as an editable label image. The label image displayed in display area R5 is saved in the information processing device 100 as a created label image by pressing a save button R at the top of the screen. Display area R6 is an area for other settings, and allows the user to set the label orientation (vertical writing, horizontal writing), frame selection, text information arrangement, margin size, etc.

[0063] When the print button P at the bottom of the application screen shown in Fig. 9 is pressed, the processor 110 detects the operation as a print instruction (step S1 YES in Fig. 10). After that, the processor 110 acquires the tape type set in the label creation support application (step S2). In step S2, the tape type selected in the display area R4 shown in Fig. 8 is acquired.

[0064] Furthermore, the processor 110 acquires the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1 (step S3). Here, the processor 110 acquires the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1 detected by the detection unit 30 of the printing device 1.

[0065] When the type of tape set in the label creation support application and the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1 are acquired, the processor 110 compares these tape types to determine whether the printing method is compatible (step S4).

[0066] If it is determined that the two printing methods are compatible (YES in step S4), the processor 110 generates print data corresponding to the set tape type and outputs it to the printer 1 (step S5).

[0067] For example, if both tape types are compatible with the ink ribbon system and it is determined in step S4 that the printing method is compatible, then in step S5 the processor 110 generates print data for a label image consisting of two levels of black and white that are compatible with the ink ribbon system, and sends it to the printer 1. As a result, the printer 1 prints using the printing method (ink ribbon system in this example) that is compatible with the type of tape loaded in the printer 1 based on the received print data, and as a result, a label on which the label image is printed is properly created.

[0068] On the other hand, if it is determined that the two printing methods are not compatible, that is, that they correspond to different printing methods (step S4 NO), the processor 110 proposes changing the settings (step S6). Here, the processor 110 displays a message and an option to change the settings or not on the touch panel display 101, thereby proposing to the user to change the settings of the label creation assistance application to settings that indicate the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1.

[0069] Message M1 shown in Figure 11 is an example of a message that is displayed when the tape type set in the label creation support application is a tape that corresponds to the ink ribbon type, and the tape type loaded in the printing device 1 is a tape that corresponds to the thermal type (thermal tape).

[0070] Thereafter, when the user rejects the proposal to change the settings, for example by selecting the “Cancel” button in response to message M1 shown in FIG. 11 (step S7 NO), processor 110 ends the process shown in FIG.

[0071] On the other hand, when the user performs an operation to accept the proposed setting change, for example by selecting the "Yes" button in response to message M1 shown in Fig. 11 (step S7: YES), the processor 110 responds to the operation by changing the setting of the label creation support application to a setting indicating the type of tape 13 loaded in the printing device 1, and further notifies the user of the setting change (step S8). In step S8, for example, message M2 shown in Fig. 12 is displayed on the touch panel display 101.

[0072] 10 shows an example in which the process is terminated after the setting change in step S8, but after the setting change in step S8, print data may be generated with the changed settings and output to the printer 1. That is, the information processing device 100 may perform the process of step S5 after the setting change in step S8. Also, after the setting change in step S8, the information processing device 100 may generate print data with the changed settings and display a preview of the generated print data. When the user issues a print instruction on the preview display screen, the information processing device 100 may output the print data to the printer 1.

[0073] The above-mentioned embodiment shows a specific example to facilitate understanding of the invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and should be understood as including various modified forms and alternative forms of the above-mentioned embodiment. For example, it will be understood that the above-mentioned embodiment can be embodied by modifying the components within the scope of the gist. It will also be understood that various embodiments can be implemented by appropriately combining multiple components disclosed in the above-mentioned embodiment. Furthermore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various embodiments can be implemented by deleting some components from all the components shown in the embodiment, or by adding some components to the components shown in the embodiment. That is, the above-mentioned information processing device, information processing method, and program can be variously modified and changed within the scope of the claims.

[0074] Fig. 13 is another example of a flowchart explaining an information processing method performed by an information processing device. Fig. 14 is yet another example of a message displayed by an information processing device. In the above-described embodiment, an example has been shown in which the setting change is performed when the type of tape set in the label creation assistance application and the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1 correspond to different printing methods and the user agrees to the setting change, but further conditions may be attached to the setting change.

[0075] For example, as shown in Fig. 13, even if the user accepts the setting change, if the tape width set on the label creation assistance application is not applicable to the tape type after the setting change (step S11 YES), the setting change may not be made, and a message M3 shown in Fig. 14 may be displayed on the touch panel display 101 to notify the user of the failure of the setting change (step S12). Specifically, if the tape width of the label image (i.e., the set tape width) is greater than 24 mm when the tape width of the thermal type is limited to 24 mm, the information processing device 100 may not make the setting change and may notify the user of the failure of the setting change.

[0076] In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which the information processing device 100 that generates print data is a device different from the printing device 1, but the information processing device 100 may be the same device as the printing device 1. That is, the information processing device 100 may be a so-called stand-alone printing device equipped with an input unit and a display unit, and may include the printing device 1 equipped with the detection unit 30 and printing unit 40 shown in Fig. 5. In this case as well, inconsistencies between the settings on the application and the tape loaded in the printing device can be easily resolved in response to a user's operation.

[0077] In the above embodiment, an example has been shown in which the information processing device 100 proposes a setting change in response to a user's operation to instruct printing of a label image, but the proposal of the setting change may be made in response to any operation other than the operation to instruct printing, as long as the type of tape loaded in the printing device 1 can be obtained. For example, the information processing device 100 may propose a setting change in response to a user's operation to establish a connection with the printing device 1 that outputs print data. [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1:Printing device 11: Tape adapter 13: Tape 30: Detection section 40:Printing Department 100: Information processing device 101: Touch panel display 110: Processor 111: Acquisition Department 112: Proposal Department 113: Setting section 114: Data Generation Unit 121: Program M1~M3: Message

Claims

1. a suggestion unit that, when a printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting differs from a printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading unit, suggests changing the setting in response to an operation to instruct printing of a label image; a setting unit that changes the setting to a setting indicating a printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting unit in response to an operation of accepting the change of the setting proposed by the suggestion unit; 23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

2. 2. The information processing device according to claim 1, further comprising: a data generating unit that generates print data based on the label image and the settings, the print data includes information in which any one of a predetermined number of gradations is set for each pixel in the label image, The data generating unit generates print data having different predetermined numbers of gradations depending on whether the printing method for the print medium indicated by the setting is an ink ribbon printing method or a thermal printing method.

23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

3. 3. The information processing device according to claim 2, The data generating unit generates the print data in which the predetermined number of gradations is two when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is an ink ribbon type, and generates the print data in which the predetermined number of gradations is three or more when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is a thermal type.

23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

4. 3. The information processing device according to claim 2, The data generating unit sets each pixel to one of the predetermined number of gradations based on the brightness of each pixel in the label image and the predetermined number of gradations.

23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

5. 3. The information processing device according to claim 2, The data generating unit generates the print data in response to an operation instructing printing of the label image when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting corresponds to the printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting unit.

23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

6. An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5; A mounting portion in which a print medium is mounted. A printing device comprising:

7. 7. The printing device according to claim 6, further comprising: A detection unit for detecting a printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting unit. A printing device comprising:

8. 8. The printing device according to claim 7, The detection unit detects a printing method of the print medium based on a shape of a container that contains the print medium. A printing device comprising:

9. An information processing method performed by an information processing device, a step of suggesting a change to the setting in response to an operation for instructing printing of a label image when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting differs from the printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting portion; and in response to an operation of accepting the proposed change of the setting, changing the setting to a setting indicating a printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section.

23. An information processing method comprising:

10. In the information processing device, when the printing method of the print medium indicated by the setting is different from the printing method of the print medium mounted in the mounting portion, in response to an operation instructing printing of a label image, suggesting a change to the setting; In response to an operation to accept the proposed change of the setting, the setting is changed to a setting indicating a printing method of the print medium loaded in the loading section. A program characterized by executing a process.

11. a suggestion unit that suggests changing the setting in response to an operation to print a label image when the type of print medium indicated by the setting and the type of print medium loaded in the printing device correspond to different printing methods; a setting unit that changes the setting to a setting indicating a type of print medium loaded in the printing device in response to an operation to accept the change of the setting proposed by the suggestion unit; 23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

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