Information processor, printing system, and control method for information processor

Abstract

To reduce a print processing time while improving printing visibility through color processing.SOLUTION: By preventing drawing of a character object, a monochromatic object, and a background object where attribute information is matched with positional information on image data for analysis when generating the image data for analysis used in color processing, a printer performs color processing that improves visibility of other objects, thereby improving visibility of a printed matter while also reducing a print processing time.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] In particular, the present invention relates to an information processing device, a printing system, a control method for an information processing device, a program, and a storage medium for improving the visibility of printed matter. [Background technology]

[0002] Various technologies have been proposed to improve the visibility of printed materials, such as by expanding the color gamut. Patent Document 1 discloses a color processing technology in which, at the time of printing, an information processing device uses software (printer driver) to generate analysis image data and transmits it to an image forming device, where the analysis image data is analyzed and color processed. This technology involves generating raster-format analysis image data from received print data in the information processing device, then performing a predetermined color conversion by referring to a color conversion table, and transmitting the data to the image forming device. The image forming device then executes printing based on the color-converted analysis image data. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-211510 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] On the other hand, when generating analysis image data to improve the visibility of printed materials and performing color processing based on that data, color analysis is performed on each individual object, which results in long processing times. Therefore, it is desirable to perform color analysis only when the color processing effect can be achieved. Furthermore, for objects that require stable colors, performing color processing not only increases processing time but may also reduce color stability.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to reduce the printing processing time while improving the visibility of prints produced by color processing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The information processing device of the present invention is an information processing device that forms a printing system together with an image forming device that is capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and instructs the image forming device to print, and is characterized by having an acquisition means that acquires multiple objects included in the print data and attribute information for each of the multiple objects, a generation means that generates data for the color processing for an object selected from the multiple objects according to the effect of the color processing based on the attribute information acquired by the acquisition means, and a transmission means that transmits the data for color processing generated by the generation means and the print data to the image forming device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the print processing time while improving the visibility of prints made by color processing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a host computer and a printing apparatus. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of a host computer. [Figure 3] 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure by a host computer according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a process for determining similarity. [Figure 5] 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a printing process procedure performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6]FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining extraction of an object from analysis image data. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of print data after color conversion. [Figure 8] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating examples of an intermediate file and image data for analysis. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure by a host computer according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] 11 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure by a host computer according to the third embodiment. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a printing process procedure performed by a printing device according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below, and various forms within the scope of the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. Furthermore, each embodiment described below merely represents one embodiment of the present invention, and each embodiment can be combined as appropriate.

[0010] (First embodiment) <Printing system hardware configuration> 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a host computer 101 and a printing device 102 that make up a printing system 100 in this embodiment. The host computer 101 is an example of an information processing device, and in the example of Fig. 1, the printing system 100 has the host computer 101 and the printing device 102. The host computer 101 has an input interface 110, a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, an external storage device 114, an output interface 115, an input / output interface 116, and a network interface (NETIF) 120.

[0011] Input devices such as a keyboard 118 and a pointing device 117 are connected to the input interface 110, and a display device such as a display unit 119 is connected to the output interface 115. The NETIF 120 controls data transfer with external devices via a network. In the example of FIG. 1, the display unit 119, the pointing device 117, and the keyboard 118 are shown as examples of devices separate from the host computer 101, but these may also be included in the host computer 101. The display unit 119 may also be a touch panel display equipped with input / output device functions.

[0012] An initialization program is stored in the ROM 112. Application programs, an operating system (OS), a graphics driver, and various other data are stored in the external storage device 114. The RAM 113 is used as a work memory when the various programs stored in the external storage device 114 are executed, and enables the various programs to run within the host computer 101.

[0013] In this embodiment, the CPU 111 executes processing according to the procedures of a program stored in the ROM 112, thereby executing functions of the host computer 101 described below and processing related to flowcharts described below. The printing device 102 is connected to the host computer 101 via an input / output interface 116. In this embodiment, the host computer 101 and the printing device 102 are configured as separate devices, but they may also be configured as a single information processing device. The host computer 101 may be connected via the input / output interface 116 via a wired or wireless connection. The host computer 101 and the printing device 102 may also be connected via a LAN or a WAN such as the Internet.

[0014] Next, a description will be given of the hardware configuration of the printing device 102. The printing device 102 is an example of an image forming device, and includes a CPU 151, a ROM 152, a RAM 153, a HDD 154, an operation unit 155, a printer 156, and a communication unit 157.

[0015] The CPU 151 directly or indirectly controls each component (e.g., ROM 152, RAM 153, etc.) connected via the internal bus, and executes a program for realizing the functions of the printing device 102 according to this embodiment. The ROM 152 stores a control program executed by the CPU 151. The RAM 153 is used as a work area for the CPU 151 and as a primary storage area for loading software modules for realizing the functions of the printing device 102.

[0016] The HDD 154 stores the OS, which is basic software, software modules, and the like. The operation unit 155 serves as a user interface. The operation unit 155 is realized, for example, by a touch-operable display, and functions as a display unit for presenting information to the user and a reception unit for receiving operations from the user. The printer 156 is a printer engine that prints print data designated as the target for print processing. For example, the printer 156 executes print processing based on print data received from an external device via the communication unit 157. Note that, although the printing device 102 will be described as an inkjet printer that prints by ejecting ink onto paper, printing may be executed by other methods (for example, electrophotography).

[0017] The communication unit 157 is an interface for connecting to an external device such as the host computer 101. The configuration of the communication unit 157 may be changed as appropriate depending on the type of network to be connected and the communication method to be applied.

[0018] <Software configuration> 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the software configuration of the host computer 101 according to this embodiment. Software other than the spool file 204 is stored in the external storage device 114 shown in FIG. 1, and the necessary programs are loaded into the RAM 113 when printing is executed or when print settings are changed.

[0019] First, the application 201 creates a document and queries the user interface driver 203 about the printer system functions to print the document. After that, when a print instruction is received from the user interface driver 203, the application 201 notifies each component, including the graphic device interface (GDI) 202, which is a drawing module of the OS, of the start of printing. When the GDI 202 receives the print start notification from the application 201, it notifies the user interface driver 203 of a print event indicating the start of printing by the application 201. Furthermore, when the print start notification is received from the application 201, a spool file 204 containing print setting information such as paper type and print format is stored in the RAM 113.

[0020] Next, the application 201 supplies the drawing data of the document to be printed to the GDI 202 to continue the print process. The GDI 202 stores the drawing data together with attribute information and position information of each object contained in the drawing data as an intermediate file 208 in the spool file 204, and issues a print request to the print processor 205. Here, the intermediate file 208 is, for example, EMF (Enhanced Meta File) data. In response to this, the print processor 205 reads the print setting information and drawing data from the spool file 204 on a page-by-page basis, and outputs them to the graphics driver 206, requesting that they be printed one page at a time. Note that the print processor 205 may be provided as an OS module, or may be customized together with the graphics driver 206 by the manufacturer of the printing device.

[0021] When a printing request is received from the print processor 205, the graphics driver 206 uses the GDI drawing engine, which is a drawing function of the GDI 202, to generate raster image data from the drawing data that matches the print resolution of the printing device 102. The raster image data is multi-value data that holds color as multi-level values, and is sent to the printing device 102 as image data for analysis. Note that, because processing an entire page at once would require an extremely large storage capacity, the graphics driver 206 may perform processing in units of rectangular strips (hereinafter referred to as bands).

[0022] Thereafter, the graphics driver 206 adds printer commands and converts the drawing data of the document to be printed into a print data format that can be interpreted by the printing device 102. The language monitor 207 then divides the print data into packets of a specific size and outputs them together with print setting information to the printing device 102. Furthermore, because the printing device 102 is a device that can receive multi-value data, the graphics driver 206 further compresses the volume of the image data for analysis, and the language monitor 207 transmits the compressed image data for analysis to the printing device 102.

[0023] As described above, when the application 201 issues a print request with the color processing function enabled, the host computer 101 generates image data for analysis and transmits the image data for analysis to the printing device 102. At this time, if the storage capacity of the printing device 102 is small, the image data for analysis is reduced to a low resolution before being transmitted.

[0024] When analysis image data is generated for the purpose of improving the visibility of printed matter and color processing is performed based on that data, color analysis is performed on each individual object, which results in long processing times. Therefore, in this embodiment, analysis image data is generated by limiting it to objects that can benefit from color processing, and the following objects are excluded from the analysis image data:

[0025] In the case of a single-color object, color processing has almost no effect and the processing time is unnecessarily long. Therefore, in this embodiment, single-color objects are excluded from the analysis image data.

[0026] Furthermore, when an object used as a background in a presentation template, for example, exists across multiple pages, the color analysis results for the background object may differ from page to page. This is because different objects exist around the background object on each page, and the color analysis results differ depending on the color and shape of the area recognized as the object. If the color analysis results differ from page to page, the color of the background object will also differ from page to page, reducing color stability. Therefore, objects that meet conditions such as background are also excluded from the analysis image data.

[0027] Furthermore, in the case of text objects, there are gaps between characters, which can cause the results of color processing to vary between characters. Furthermore, if a single character is divided into objects, the results of color processing can vary even within that character. Therefore, text objects are also excluded from the analysis image data.

[0028] <Image drawing processing by the host computer 101> Next, the image drawing process by the graphics driver 206 will be described. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure by the host computer 101 in this embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 3 is realized by loading a program stored in the external storage device 114 into the RAM 113 and executing it by the CPU 111. When a print command is received from the GDI 202, the graphics driver 206 is started, thereby starting the processing in Fig. 3.

[0029] First, in S301, the print processor 205 acquires print setting information from the spool file 204. Then, in S302, the print processor 205 acquires the intermediate file 208 from the spool file 204. Next, in S303, the print processor 205 acquires from the intermediate file 208 objects for which it has not yet determined whether or not to perform color processing, and sends these objects to the graphics driver 206.

[0030] In S304, the graphics driver 206 determines whether the object acquired in S303 is a character based on the attribute information of the object. In this embodiment, when determining whether the object is a character, the function name of a DDI (Device Driver Interface) drawing function from the intermediate file 208 is used as attribute information. Note that other information may be used as attribute information instead of the function name of the DDI drawing function. If the result of this determination is that the object is a character, the process proceeds to S311; if not, the process proceeds to S305.

[0031] In S305, the graphics driver 206 determines whether the object acquired in S303 is monochrome. At this time, when determining whether the object is monochrome, the color information of the object is used as attribute information from the intermediate file 208. If the result of this determination is that the object is monochrome, the process proceeds to S311; if not, the process proceeds to S306.

[0032] In S306, the graphics driver 206 determines whether there is a comparison object in the intermediate file 208 acquired in S302 that has not been determined to be similar to the object to be processed. The comparison object here refers to all objects included in the drawing data. For example, an object used as a background in a presentation template or the like is the same object across multiple pages. Therefore, since it is undesirable for the color of such an object to differ from page to page, it is excluded from the color processing target. If this determination shows that there is a comparison object that has not been determined to be similar, the process proceeds to S307; otherwise, the process proceeds to S311. Note that the determination of similarity refers to the processing of S308 (and S309) described below.

[0033] In S307, the graphics driver 206 acquires a comparison object from the intermediate file 208 for which a similarity determination has not been performed. Then, in S308, the graphics driver 206 determines whether the attribute information of the object to be processed and the comparison object acquired in S307 are the same. At this time, attribute information such as the function name, size, and color information of the DDI drawing function is used. Then, if this attribute information matches, it is determined that the attribute information is the same. If the result of this determination is that the attribute information is the same, the process proceeds to S309; ​​if not, the process returns to S306.

[0034] In S309, the graphics driver 206 acquires position information for each object and determines whether the position information is the same for the object to be processed and the comparison object acquired in S307. The object position information includes information indicating the drawing position, such as Bounds (start and end coordinates) and Width / Height (vertical and horizontal dimensions of the drawing), and if this information matches, it is determined that the position information is the same. If the result of this determination is that the position information is the same, proceed to S311; if not, return to S306.

[0035] Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining the processing from S306 to S309 in Fig. 3. In Fig. 4, images 401 and 402 show examples of print images of pages 1 and 2, respectively. Image 401 includes objects 403 and 404, and image 402 includes objects 405 and 406.

[0036] For example, suppose that objects 404 to 406 are all comparison objects, and object 403 in image 401 is the object to be processed. Objects 404 and 406 have different attribute information, but object 405 in image 402 has the same attribute information and position information as object 403 to be processed. For this reason, object 403 is determined not to undergo color processing in S311, which will be described later.

[0037] In S310, the graphics driver 206 determines to perform color processing on the object acquired in S303. On the other hand, in S311, the graphics driver 206 determines not to perform color processing on the object acquired in S303.

[0038] In S312, the graphics driver 206 converts the object acquired in S303 into raster image data and adds it to the image data for analysis. At this time, if the printing device 102 has limited storage capacity, the raster image data may be generated at a resolution lower than the printing resolution of the printing device 102.

[0039] In S313, the graphics driver 206 determines whether or not there is an object for which a determination as to whether or not to perform color processing has not been made in the intermediate file 208. If the result of this determination is that there is still an object for which a determination as to whether or not to perform color processing has not been made, the process returns to S303; otherwise, the process proceeds to S314.

[0040] In S314, the graphics driver 206 determines the analysis image data in which the objects have been drawn as data to be transmitted. Then, in S315, the language monitor 207 transmits the analysis image data to the printing device 102. Furthermore, in S316, the graphics driver 206 generates print data from the intermediate file 208 in a format that can be read by the printing device 102. Then, the language monitor 207 divides the print data into packets of a specific size, outputs them to the printing device 102 together with print setting information, and ends the processing of this flowchart. When generating the print data, all objects included in the intermediate file 208 are drawn in the print data.

[0041] <Printing Process by Printing Device 102> The printing process by the printing device 102 will be described below. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the printing process procedure by the printing device 102 in this embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 5 is implemented by loading a program stored in ROM 152 into RAM 153 and executing it by CPU 151. The processing in Fig. 5 is started when the printing device 102 receives print data, image data for analysis, and the like from the host computer 101 via communication unit 157.

[0042] First, in S501, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 acquires print setting information from the information received from the host computer 101. Then, in S502, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 acquires image data for analysis from the information received from the host computer 101 via the communication unit 157.

[0043] Next, in S503, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 extracts objects by identifying areas in the analysis image data where pixels that are not white (RGB values ​​= 255, 255, 255) are connected. Note that in this process, all objects are extracted from the analysis image data.

[0044] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating object extraction. FIG. 6(a) shows an example in which one object is included. In the example of FIG. 6(a), there is an area in the upper part of the image where non-white pixels are connected by light and dark areas, and this is extracted as an individual object 601. FIG. 6(b) shows an example in which two objects are included. In the example of FIG. 6(b), there are two areas in the upper and lower parts of the image where non-white pixels are connected by light and dark areas, and these are extracted as individual objects 604 and 605, respectively.

[0045] Next, in S504, the CPU 151 of the printing apparatus 102 performs color analysis on each object extracted in S503. In this embodiment, the color analysis involves calculating the minimum and maximum values ​​of each RGB value.

[0046] Next, in S505, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 determines the color of each object based on the color analysis result of S504. In this embodiment, the color is determined so as to expand the color gamut of the object in order to improve the distinguishability of the object. Specifically, the color of the object is determined so as to increase the difference between the minimum and maximum RGB values. This makes it easier to distinguish colors within the object, improving the visibility of the object. Note that other color determination methods may be used as long as they improve the visibility of the object.

[0047] Next, in S506, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 acquires print data from the information received from the host computer 101. Then, in S507, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 performs color conversion on the objects in the print data that were extracted from the analysis image data in S503 to the colors determined in S505. Next, in S508, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 prints the print data and ends the process. At this time, the objects included in the analysis image data are printed in the colors converted in S507, and the other objects are printed in the colors of the print data without color conversion.

[0048] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of print data after color conversion in S507. The example in FIG. 7(a) includes three objects 701 to 703, and object 701 is the same object as object 601 included in the analysis image data in FIG. 6(a). Compared to the analysis image data in FIG. 6(a), object 701 has undergone color conversion to make light and dark regions more easily distinguishable. On the other hand, objects 702 and 703 are both monochromatic objects and are not depicted in the color analysis image data in FIG. 6(a). Therefore, color conversion is not performed on objects 702 and 703. Furthermore, the example in FIG. 7(b) includes two objects 704 and 705, which are the same objects as objects 604 and 605 included in the analysis image data in FIG. 6(b). Compared to the analysis image data in FIG. 6(b), objects 704 and 705 have undergone color conversion to make light and dark regions more easily distinguishable.

[0049] As described above, according to this embodiment, first, when generating analysis image data used for color processing, text objects are not drawn in the analysis image data. This makes it possible to suppress differences in color between text and characters when printing print data containing text objects. Furthermore, objects made up of a single color are also not drawn in the analysis image data. This makes it possible to shorten the time required for color analysis and color conversion when printing print data containing objects made up of a single color, thereby shortening the print processing time.

[0050] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, when generating analysis image data used in color processing, objects that are drawn across multiple pages, such as backgrounds, are not drawn in the analysis image data.

[0051] 8A and 8B are diagrams showing examples of an intermediate file and analysis image data according to this embodiment. FIGS. 8A and 8B show examples of an intermediate file and analysis image data for different pages. Objects 801 and 802 in the intermediate file are both background objects, and object 803 in the intermediate file is a box-shaped object. Due to the processing procedure in FIG. 3, background objects 801 and 802 are not drawn in the analysis image data.

[0052] As described above, by not rendering background objects in the analysis image data, when printing print data in which background objects exist on multiple pages, it is possible to prevent differences in the color of the background objects from occurring between pages. Furthermore, it is possible to shorten the time required for color analysis and color conversion in the printing device 102, thereby shortening the printing processing time.

[0053] In this embodiment, if the attribute information and position information match in the similarity determination in Fig. 3, it is determined in S311 that color processing will not be performed on the object to be processed. On the other hand, if the comparison object is an object that has not yet been acquired in S303, it may also be determined in S311 that color processing will not be performed on the comparison object. This allows the processes in S303 to S309 for the comparison object to be omitted, thereby shortening the processing time.

[0054] In addition, in this embodiment, an example has been described in which a single-color object is excluded from the analysis image data, but objects that do not have matching RGB values ​​but are composed of almost the same color may also be excluded. In this case, if the difference between the maximum and minimum values ​​of each of the R, G, and B values ​​is equal to or less than a threshold, the object is considered to be a single-color object and is excluded from the analysis image data. This can further reduce the printing process time.

[0055] (Second embodiment) In the first embodiment, when generating analysis image data, text objects, solid-color objects, and objects whose attribute information and position information are the same are not drawn in the analysis image data. In this embodiment, an example will be described in which, in addition to these objects, watermark objects are also excluded. Note that the internal configurations of the host computer and printing device that make up the printing system according to this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore will not be described here. Only the differences from the first embodiment will be described below.

[0056] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure by the host computer 101 in this embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 9 is realized by loading a program stored in the external storage device 114 into the RAM 113 and executing it with the CPU 111. When a print command is received from the GDI 202, the graphics driver 206 is started, thereby starting the processing in Fig. 9.

[0057] Steps S301 to S303 in FIG. 9 are the same as steps S301 to S303 in FIG. 3, respectively. In step S901, the graphics driver 206 determines whether the object acquired in step S303 is a watermark based on the object's attribute information. In this embodiment, when determining whether the object is a watermark, the function name of the DDI rendering function from the intermediate file 208 is used as attribute information. Note that other information that can identify the object as a watermark may also be used in addition to the function name of the DDI rendering function. If the result of this determination is that the object is a watermark, the process proceeds to step S311; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S304. Steps S304 to S316 in FIG. 9 are the same as steps S304 to S316 in FIG. 3, respectively.

[0058] As described above, according to this embodiment, the watermark object is not drawn in the analysis image data, which reduces the emphasis on the watermark due to color processing.

[0059] In this embodiment, an example has been described in which watermark objects are excluded from the analysis image data, but other objects may also be excluded if they do not require improved visibility. For example, monochrome objects may be excluded. In this case, the user may be able to operate the pointing device 117 or keyboard 118 to select objects to be excluded from the analysis image data from a setting screen.

[0060] (Third embodiment) In the second embodiment, when generating analysis image data, watermarks, text, solid-color objects, and objects with the same attribute information and position information are not drawn in the analysis image data. However, depending on the content of the print data, no objects may be drawn in the analysis image data, and in such cases, processing such as extracting objects on the printing device side becomes unnecessary. Therefore, in this embodiment, an example is described in which there are no objects to be drawn in the analysis image data. Note that the internal configurations of the host computer and printing device that make up the printing system according to this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. Below, only differences from the first embodiment are described.

[0061] Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure by the host computer 101 in this embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 10 is implemented by loading a program stored in the external storage device 114 into the RAM 113 and executing it with the CPU 111. When a print command is received from the GDI 202, the graphics driver 206 is started, thereby starting the processing in Fig. 10.

[0062] S301 to S314 in FIG. 10 are the same as S301 to S314 in FIG. 3, respectively, and S901 in FIG. 10 is the same as S901 in FIG. 9. In S1001, the graphics driver 206 determines whether the analysis image data finalized in S314 is data in which no objects are drawn. If the result of this determination is that the data is data in which no objects are drawn, the process proceeds to S316; otherwise, the process proceeds to S315. S315 and S316 in FIG. 10 are the same as S315 and S316 in FIG. 3, respectively. As such, in this embodiment, if no objects exist in the analysis image data, the analysis image data is not sent to the printing device 102.

[0063] Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a print processing procedure by the printing device 102 in this embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 11 is realized by loading a program stored in ROM 152 into RAM 153 and executing it by CPU 151. The processing in Fig. 11 starts when the printing device 102 receives print data and the like from the host computer 101 via the communication unit 157.

[0064] S501 in Fig. 11 is the same as S501 in Fig. 5. In S1101, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 determines whether or not analysis image data has been received from the host computer 101 via the communication unit 157. If the result of this determination is that analysis image data has been received, the process proceeds to S502, and if not, the process proceeds to S1102. S502 to S508 in Fig. 11 are the same as S502 to S508 in Fig. 5, respectively.

[0065] 11, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 acquires print data. In S1103, the CPU 151 of the printing device 102 prints the print data and ends the process. Note that in S1103, printing is performed on all objects in the colors of the print data.

[0066] As described above, according to this embodiment, if the analysis image data does not contain any objects, the analysis image data is not sent to the printing device 102. This makes it possible to omit processes such as object extraction and color analysis on the printing device side, thereby shortening the printing processing time.

[0067] (Other embodiments) The various controls described above as being performed by the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 may be performed by a single piece of hardware, or the entire device may be controlled by a plurality of pieces of hardware (e.g., a plurality of processors or circuits) sharing the processing. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, a desktop personal computer (PC) is used as the information processing device, but this is not limited to this example. For example, any device capable of generating image data for analysis and transmitting it to a printing device together with print data is applicable. In other words, the information processing device according to the present invention is also applicable to tablet terminals, smartphones, notebook PCs, and the like.

[0068] The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and having one or more processors in the 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 realizes one or more functions.

[0069] The disclosure of the present embodiment includes the following configuration, system, method, program, and storage medium.

[0070] (Configuration 1) An information processing device that configures a printing system together with an image forming device that is capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and instructs the image forming device to print, an acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating means for generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired by the acquiring means; a transmitting unit that transmits the data for color processing generated by the generating unit and the print data to the image forming device; An information processing device comprising:

[0071] (Configuration 2) 2. The information processing apparatus according to configuration 1, wherein the generating means generates data including the selected object as data for the color processing and having a lower resolution than the print data. (Configuration 3) 3. The information processing device according to configuration 1 or 2, further comprising a selection unit that selects, from the plurality of objects, an object related to the data for color processing generated by the generation unit based on the attribute information.

[0072] (Configuration 4) 4. The information processing apparatus according to configuration 3, wherein the selection means prevents a character object from being selected from among the plurality of objects. (Configuration 5) 5. The information processing device according to configuration 3 or 4, wherein the selection means prevents a single-color object from being selected from among the plurality of objects. (Configuration 6) the acquiring means further acquires position information of each of the plurality of objects; 6. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 3 to 5, wherein the selection means does not select, from among the plurality of objects, an object whose attribute information and position information match each other.

[0073] (Configuration 7) 7. The information processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 3 to 6, wherein the selection means does not select a watermark object from among the plurality of objects. (Configuration 8) The information processing device according to any one of configurations 3 to 7, characterized in that, when there is no object selected by the selection means, the transmission means does not transmit the data for color processing generated by the generation means to the image forming device.

[0074] (system) A printing system having an image forming apparatus capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and an information processing apparatus that instructs the image forming apparatus to print, The information processing device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating means for generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired by the acquiring means; a transmitting unit that transmits the data for color processing generated by the generating unit and the print data to the image forming device; and the image forming apparatus, a receiving means for receiving the data for color processing and the print data; a color processing unit that performs color processing on an object related to the data for color processing among a plurality of objects included in the print data; a printing means for printing the print data that has been color processed by the color processing means; A printing system comprising:

[0075] (method) A control method for an information processing device that configures a printing system together with an image forming device that is capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and instructs the image forming device to print, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating step of generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired in the acquiring step; a transmitting step of transmitting the data for color processing generated in the generating step and the print data to the image forming device; 1. A method for controlling an information processing device, comprising: (program) A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 8. (storage medium) A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 8. [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 206 Graphics driver, 207 Language monitor

Claims

1. An information processing device that configures a printing system together with an image forming device that is capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and instructs the image forming device to print, an acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating means for generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired by the acquiring means; a transmitting unit that transmits the data for color processing generated by the generating unit and the print data to the image forming device; An information processing device comprising:

2. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said generating means generates data including the selected object as the data for color processing and having a lower resolution than the print data.

3. 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a selection unit that selects, from the plurality of objects, an object related to the data for color processing generated by the generation unit based on the attribute information.

4. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the selection means prevents a character object from being selected from among the plurality of objects.

5. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the selection means prevents a single-color object from being selected from among the plurality of objects.

6. the acquiring means further acquires position information of each of the plurality of objects; 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the selection means does not select any object of which the attribute information and the position information match each other from among the plurality of objects.

7. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the selection means does not select a watermark object from among the plurality of objects.

8. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein, when the object selected by the selection means does not exist, the transmission means does not transmit the data for color processing generated by the generation means to the image forming apparatus.

9. A printing system having an image forming apparatus capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and an information processing apparatus that instructs the image forming apparatus to print, The information processing device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating means for generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired by the acquiring means; a transmitting unit that transmits the data for color processing generated by the generating unit and the print data to the image forming device; and the image forming apparatus, a receiving means for receiving the data for color processing and the print data; a color processing unit that performs color processing on an object related to the data for color processing among a plurality of objects included in the print data; a printing means for printing the print data that has been color processed by the color processing means; A printing system comprising:

10. A control method for an information processing device that configures a printing system together with an image forming device that is capable of performing color processing on objects included in print data and printing, and instructs the image forming device to print, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring a plurality of objects included in the print data and attribute information of each of the plurality of objects; a generating step of generating data for the color processing for an object selected from the plurality of objects according to the effect of the color processing, based on the attribute information acquired in the acquiring step; a transmitting step of transmitting the data for color processing generated in the generating step and the print data to the image forming device; 1. A method for controlling an information processing device, comprising:

11. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

12. 2. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

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