Program, information processing system, and information processing method

Abstract

To easily design a layout that is optimized according to the length of a character string to be printed on the layout in layout design for printing on a printing medium such as a label.SOLUTION: A certain aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a computer to realize: display means for causing a display device to display a printing layout to be the basis of drawing data printed by a printer; object arrangement means for arranging a plurality of objects on the printing layout displayed by the display device; and object setting means for setting an object selected by a user from the plurality of objects to a variable length object in which an object height is variable in a vertical direction of the printing layout.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 12

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Conventionally, in order to use print media such as labels efficiently, it has been common to eliminate the margins of print media. It is known to create drawing data in this way. For example, in Patent Document 1, an acquisition means for acquiring objects corresponding to each of a plurality of items is and a plurality of object regions including objects corresponding to each of the plurality of items, and a plurality of object regions arranged by the arrangement means. and a creating means for creating drawing data based on the above. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-6510 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Incidentally, the layout format of labels attached to food products and the like to be sold at retail stores and the like The file is created by an information processing device such as a computer device and distributed to the site such as a retail store. These layout files are provided to the printer installed in the printer. Even if the label has the same design, specific items (e.g. ingredients) may differ depending on the product. Since the amount of text in the object varies, it is difficult to label products with fewer texts. It is desirable to create a layout file that does not leave any blank space. When the file creator designs the label layout, the printing media is selected according to the amount of text. It is possible to easily set an object whose vertical length is variable (variable length object). It is hoped that this will happen.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention provides a method for designing a layout for printing on a printing medium such as a label. Easily design layouts that are optimized according to the length of the text to be printed on the layout. The purpose is to make it possible. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is Displaying the print layout that is the basis of the drawing data printed by the printer on a display device a display means for displaying the An object for arranging a plurality of objects on the print layout displayed on the display device. object placement means; The object selected by the user from the plurality of objects is Object to be set to a variable length object whose height varies in the vertical direction of the object. object setting means; This is a program that enables a computer to realize the above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, a layout for printing on a print medium such as a label is designed. When printing, the layout is optimized according to the length of the character string to be printed on the layout. It can be easily designed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a system configuration diagram of an information processing system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a project file creation screen of the information processing apparatus according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a print layout. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a procedure for displaying a call table. [Figure 5] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating an operation procedure for setting a variable-length compatible paper for a print layout to be worked on. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an operation procedure when a selected character string object is set to a variable-length object. [Figure 7] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing an operation procedure for setting the relative position of a selected ruled line object with respect to an underlying object. [Figure 8] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing display examples of ruled line objects with different relative positions to a base object; [Figure 9] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an operation procedure for collectively setting the relative positions of selected character string objects with respect to underlying objects. [Figure 10] Figure 10A shows examples of label printing with and without reduced margins in the print layout of the first example, Figure 10B shows examples of label printing with and without reduced margins in the print layout of the second example, and Figure 10C shows examples of label printing according to different string lengths within a specific object in the print layout of the second example. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data configuration of an object table. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of each device of the information processing system according to the embodiment. [Figure 13] 10 is a flowchart showing a variable length setting process. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart showing a relative setting process for a vertical position. [Figure 15]10 is a flowchart showing an object placement process. [Figure 16] 16A and 16B are diagrams for explaining the relative setting of the vertical position and the relative setting of the height for a frame object. [Figure 17] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a setting example in which a frame object includes a character string object. [Figure 18] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a setting example in which a frame object includes a character string object. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a print layout according to a third example. [Figure 20] 20A and 20B are diagrams showing examples of printing labels according to different lengths of character strings within a specific object in a print layout according to the third example. [Figure 21] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an operation procedure of the printer according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] In the following description, an "object" refers to, for example, a predetermined object within the effective print range of a print medium. The area is specified, and at least one of the following items is printed within the specified area: character string, code, and image. When a user decides what to print on a print medium, Preferably, the object is movable within the printable range. When moving within the valid range, any text, code, or image that may be contained in the object is also The object to be printed can be a character string, code, or image. It is not limited to the above, but also includes figures, symbols, marks, etc. Good too.

[0010] The following describes a label issuing system 1, which is an embodiment of an information processing system of the present invention. The description will be given with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 shows the system configuration of a label issuing system 1 according to this embodiment. This is a diagram.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1, the label issuing system 1 of this embodiment uses, for example, the Internet, A computer device 2 (information device) is connected to the network NW such as a LAN (Local Area Network). an example of an information processing device) and one or more printers 3-A, 3-B, 3-C, 3-D, and 3-E , ... are connected to the server 5. In the following explanation, a shared printer is used for one or more printers. When referring to items that have been passed through, we will refer to them as "Printer 3." The printer 3 issues labels (an example of a printing medium) to be attached to the products. For example, the printer 3 is installed in a store, warehouse, factory, etc. that handles products to which labels are attached. , for example but not limited to, a thermal printer. The computer device 2 generates the basic layout design of the labels to be printed by the printer 3. The computer device 2 is provided for designing a design. These include personal computer devices and tablet terminals.

[0012] The computer device 2 stores data on the label layout design as well as the label Create a project file that includes the data for each item in the file, various setting information, etc. a label creation application program (hereinafter referred to as "label creation application" as appropriate) ") is installed. By running the label creation application The created project file is formatted as a file for printer reading. The data is delivered as a file from the computer device 2 to the printer 3 via the server 5. In other words, the format is transmitted from the computer device 2 to the server 5 in response to a predetermined operation by the user. The file is uploaded and downloaded from Server 5 to Printer 3 at a predetermined timing. will be loaded.

[0013] Printer 3 contains a label printing application that prints labels based on a format file. application program (hereinafter referred to as "label printing application") is installed. By running the label printing application, you can create a label layout design. Select the issuing data that identifies the data for each item included in the label, or if necessary You can edit the printing data selected according to the requirements and print labels based on the printing data. . The format file and the issuing data will be described later.

[0014] Next, referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, a user executes a label creation application to create a label. This section explains the screen used to create a design for a card. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a project file creation screen of the computer device 2. As shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a print layout.

[0015] FIG. 2 shows the image displayed on the computer device 2 when the label creation application is executed. 1 is an example of the screen G1 (project file creation screen) that is displayed. On the screen, the label creation application allows the user to design the label layout. It provides a graphical user interface (GUI) for project files. On the label creation screen, the user sets the objects to be placed within the effective printing area of ​​the label. This allows the user to design the labels that will be printed by the printer 3.

[0016] In label creation applications, data is managed by project files. Project files are used to manage the data created by your labeling application. It is a file that indicates the logical unit of the label to be sent to the printer 3 via the server 5. When output by the application, the file is formatted as a printer readable file. This will be the file.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the screen G1 includes a group of instruction buttons 101, a group of object buttons 102, Design window 103, project setting section 104, and object properties The setting unit 105 is included.

[0018] By operating the buttons in the instruction button group 101, the project file is stored in the storage. You can save project files to storage or save them to a folder. It is possible to output the image as a matte file and upload it to the server 5.

[0019] The object button group 102 is used to select an object on the design window 103. This is the part where you can move an object or set a new object. In the object button group 102, the objects are a character string object, a price object, and so on. object, barcode object, date and time object, graphic object, etc. Various settings for the object can be made in the object property setting section 105. It is possible to do this. The design window 103 corresponds to the area for creating and editing labels. The print layout corresponding to the layout data selected by the user from the output data is displayed on the screen. Display it in the G1 design window 103 and add objects to the displayed print layout. The label is designed by placing and moving the objects. The project setting section 104 displays the data contained in the project file in a hierarchical structure. It will be displayed.

[0020] In the project setting section 104, the "call table" is used to set the label printing schedule of the printer 3. This is the basic data when printing labels in an application. "Layout" is used in combination with the call table to print labels on printer 3. The project file contains one or more layout data (Figure 2). In this example, three layout data items are included.

[0021] FIG. 3 shows the first example print layout LT1 displayed in the design window 103 of FIG. As shown in Figure 3, the print layout LT1 in the first example has the Object OBJ1 corresponding to the "Product Code" item, and object OBJ2 corresponding to the "Product Name" item OBJ2, the object corresponding to the "Expiry Date" field, and OBJ4, the object corresponding to the "Amount" field. Object OBJ6, object OBJ8 corresponding to the "Tax included" item, border object Object OBJ9, object OBJ14 corresponding to the "Ingredient Name" field, and a specified string Objects OBJ3, OBJ5, OBJ7, OBJ10 to OBJ13 are placed. are.

[0022] In FIG. 3, the display when object OBJ14 is selected in response to the user's selection operation is An example is shown below. When an object is selected in the design window 103, the selected Multiple resize handles Hd, hd are displayed on the outer frame of the selected object. Among the multiple resize handles, handle Hd indicates the base point of the object. is doing.

[0023] In the following, the vertical and horizontal directions in the print layout are defined as shown in Figure 3. The vertical orientation includes both face-up and face-down print layouts.

[0024] Next, the call table will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a procedure for displaying a call table on the computer device 2. As shown in FIG. The call table is a table for registering data to be printed on the label. An exemplary call table TL1 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the "call table" of the project setting section 104 is operated (for example, (For example, double-click or right-click and select "Open") The output table TL1 is displayed. The call table TL1 contains one or more records identified by a call number. Each record has the following information: "call name", "layout specification", "name", "product name", "raw material Each field after "Name" has a value, such as "Product Name", "Price", and "Barcode". The fields correspond to the item names of the object.

[0025] Each record in the call table TL1 is a label layout for issuing one label. The data for each item name (character string, etc.) is shown below. The data for each record is referred to as " For example, the user can write statements corresponding to each item name in the call table TL1. By entering a string, you can associate the label layout with the string that corresponds to each item name. It is not necessary to provide multiple records in the call table TL1. There may be only one record (i.e., one piece of publication data). In the call table TL1, the print data is specified by the call number. In the label printing application (3), printing data is called up by the call number. .

[0026] In the call table TL1, the value of the "Layout specification" field is This is a value that indicates one or more print layouts created by the printer driver 103 (see Figure 2). In this example, the value of the "Layout specification" field is [1] Single item label 1, [2] Single item label 2 and

[11] When three print layouts for the assortment label have been created, The data indicates which of these three print layouts the print layout corresponds to. do.

[0027] For example, the print layout LT1 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 corresponds to the call number in the call table TL1. The publication data corresponding to the record .:1 (call name: "bread") is displayed. In this example, the "Layout Specification" field of the record corresponding to Call No.:1 is The string in object OBJ2 corresponding to the product name is , corresponds to the value of the "item name" field of the record of call No.:1 in call table TL1 The string in object OBJ6 corresponding to the price is the call string in call table TL1. It corresponds to the value of the "Price" field of the record No.:1. The character string in the object OBJ14 is the record of call No.:1 in the call table TL1. Corresponds to the value of the "Ingredient Name" field (Product 1).

[0028] In this way, the user of the computer device 2 registers data in the call table TL1. By recording, labels with different layouts or labels with the same layout but with different printing details for each item can be printed. Labels can be designed with different capacities.

[0029] Even if the label has the same design, the objects of specific items (such as ingredients) may differ depending on the product. Therefore, the label printing application in one embodiment Design labels that do not leave blank spaces on labels for products with few characters. Below, we will explain how to create labels that do not leave any blank space on the label. When designing labels, the functions provided by the label creation application are The description will be made with reference to FIGS.

[0030] In label printing applications, it is necessary to create a margin on the label for products with few characters. To avoid this, you need to set the layout settings to variable length. As shown in FIG. 5, the layout setting button of the object property setting section 105 is clicked. In the window W1 that appears when you operate it, select "Variable length (backingless label)" or Select "Variable length (journal paper)". The layout setting button is used to set the print layout displayed in the design window 103. If no object on the list is selected, the object property setting section 1 It will be displayed at 05.

[0031] [Variable length object settings] Next, the object placed in the print layout LT1 in the design window 103 is In the object, an object containing a string (hereinafter referred to as a "string object") is Figure 6 shows an example in which a string object for the ingredient name has been selected. In the design window 103, the character string object is a label editor. The outer edge of the object is displayed as a line so that it can be recognized by the user. is not printed on the label. It is enough to recognize the outer edge of the object, so the line is displayed. Alternatively, the inside of the object's range (field) may be displayed in a different color or pattern from the outside.

[0032] The object property setting unit 105 sets the property of the selected character string object. Various settings can be made. For example, the item name ( In this example, the layout design in the design window 103 is The items to be used within the system are set. You can select "Fixed" or "At time of issue" as the input method. If "Fixed" is selected as the input method, the value set in the "Data" column When "When issued" is selected as the input method, The initial value set in the "Data" field is used in the label printing application for Printer 3. This indicates that the value can be changed.

[0033] The object property setting unit 105 further stores the characters included in the character string object. Drop-down menus for changing and selecting font, spacing, and size of columns, as well as various Buttons b1 to b4 are displayed. Buttons b1 to b3 are the characters in the object. Button b4: Enables left, center, or right alignment of the column. sets (on) the selected string object to a variable length object, or The button is for releasing (turning off) the It is displayed as: A variable length object is an object whose size varies depending on the length of the string contained within it. It is a variable length object whose length varies in the vertical direction of the label.

[0034] As shown in Figure 6, the selected string object can be changed by operating button b4. When set to a long object, the string object (item name is "raw material name") You can see that the size of the object) has been minimized and set to a string object. When a user designs a label in a label creation application, the text object To set the object to a variable length object, turn on button b4 (an example of an operation target). This can be easily set visually. In one embodiment, in window W1 (see FIG. 5), a “Variable Length (Linerless Label) " and "Variable length (journal paper)" are selected, button b4 is turned on. It is prohibited to make it a state.

[0035] In the first example of the print layout LT1, the item name is "Ingredient Name." Label printing example when a string object is not set as a variable length object (left) and an example of a label printed when the setting is enabled (right). By setting it to a variable length object, if the length of the string corresponding to the raw material name is short, Whitespace is removed.

[0036] In the label creation application, the vertical length of the string included in the variable-length object is It may be possible to set a minimum number of rows in each direction. The string object has a string that must be displayed vertically (required string) and a label attached. If the string contains a variable-length string that varies in length depending on the product to which it is attached, It is preferable to set the minimum number of lines of the required text. The character string "Ingredient Name" is written horizontally, and the variable length character string is written horizontally. If the string is a string indicating It is recommended to set it to 4 lines. This allows you to Even if the product is not listed, the required string ("Ingredient Name") can always be displayed.

[0037] [Relative setting of vertical position of object] In a label printing application, you can select from the objects placed in the print layout. The vertical position of the selected object (i.e., the vertical position of the label) is relative to other objects. It is set relative to a reference object (hereinafter referred to as the "reference object"). This setting is called the "relative vertical position setting process" for the object. As mentioned above, variable-length objects have a length that increases according to the length of the string. Therefore, if the variable length object is located downstream in the vertical direction of the label, the Set the vertical position relative to the object above, and set the position of the object. It changes according to the variable length object. When one or more objects are placed next to the variable length object, This makes it possible to avoid leaving blank spaces on the labels for products with fewer rows.

[0038] In FIG. 7, the second example of the print layout LT2 in the design window 103 is displayed. An example is shown in which the ruled line object OBJ18 is selected. In this case, the object properties The property setting section 105 allows various settings to be made for the selected ruled line object. Cut. As shown in FIG. 7, the detailed setting button displayed in the object property setting section 105 When you operate b10, window W2 is displayed. In window W2, the selected border You can set the relative vertical position of the line object. The object to be displayed and the distance from the reference object can be set. The selected object is one of multiple objects placed in the print layout LT2. The object is determined from among the objects other than the object (in this example, object OBJ18).

[0039] In the example shown in window W2 in Figure 7, the vertical position of the base point of the ruled line object OBJ18 is Between the reference position of the reference object (the object whose item name is "raw material name") and the The reference position of the reference object can be set arbitrarily. It can be set to, for example, the bottom edge of the reference object. The distance from the reference position is determined by the vertical position of the base point of the target object. When the object is below the reference position, the value is positive, and when it is above the reference position, the value is negative. is the value.

[0040] Figure 8 shows the print layout LT2 when the interval between reference objects is short and long. An example display is shown. In Figure 8, the object for which the relative vertical position is set is the ruled line object OBJ. 18, and the reference object is object OBJ17. To emphasize the reference position (bottom edge) of object OBJ17, the bottom edge of object OBJ17 is drawn in a thick line, for example. However, this is not a limitation, and the bottom edge may be displayed in a different color from the other edges. As shown in FIG. 8, in one embodiment, the object OBJ17 is moved from the reference position to the border object OBJ18. The distance to the object OBJ18 is indicated by the arrowed line AR1. The user can intuitively grasp the distance from the reference object by the distance. .

[0041] The arrowhead line indicates the vertical relationship between the reference position of the reference object and the reference position of the selected object. The indicator showing the relative position in the vertical direction is not limited to an arrowed line. Instead, the value indicating the relative position may be directly displayed.

[0042] In Figures 7 and 8, the object to be set relative to the vertical position is a ruled line object. The relative vertical position setting is also applicable to text objects. This can also be done for other types of objects such as objects.

[0043] Relative vertical position setting for two or more objects below a variable length object When performing the above, two or more objects may be selected in turn and the operation shown in FIG. 7 may be performed. However, it can also be done for two or more objects at once. This reduces the editing burden of label design. Figure 9 shows an example of how to set the relative vertical positions of two or more objects at once. As shown in Figure 9, two or more objects placed in the print layout LT2 are If you select all the items and then click the Advanced Settings button b11, window W3 will appear. In window W3, you can set the relative vertical positions of two or more selected objects. can be done.

[0044] In Figure 10B, the vertical position relative setting is not configured in the print layout LT2. Label print example (or preview screen example) (left) and when the relative vertical position is set The label print example (or preview screen example) (right) is shown. In the example on the right, the item name is " The string object "raw material name" is used as the base object, and the The vertical position is set relative to the objects placed below the object. Therefore, the reference object is set to a variable length object, and the If the string is relatively short, the spaces between the reference object and the above objects are deleted. will be done.

[0045] In FIG. 10C, in the print layout LT2, the relative setting of the vertical position is the same as in the right side of FIG. 10B. When the item name is set as "raw material name", the A label print example (or preview screen example) (left) with a relatively short string of characters, and Example of label printing (or preview screen example) with a relatively long string of characters included in the object (right ) The positions of the objects placed below the character string object are as follows: Strings contained in the string object (reference object) whose item name is "Ingredient Name" The blank space between the reference object and the above objects is deleted. In other words, by setting the relative vertical position, the strings included in the string object It is possible to print the optimal size label depending on the length of the

[0046] Figure 11 shows the various properties for each object placed in the print layout. An example of the configuration of an object table is shown below. The object table is provided in association with the print layout. Each record in the table is a collection of multiple objects arranged in an associated print layout. It corresponds to either one. As shown in Figure 11, each record contains the "type" and "item name" of the corresponding object. Values ​​in the "Base point", "Variable length setting", "Relative vertical position setting", and "Base data" fields Includes. The value of the "Type" field can be, for example, text, ruled line, table, graphic, barcode, etc. , a value indicating the type of the corresponding object. The value of the "Item Name" field is the item name of the target object (for example, "Ingredient Name" ), which is the value that indicates the object when it is selected in the print layout. The property setting section 105 displays the property information (see FIG. 6, for example). The value in the "Base point" field is the coordinate (X,Y) value of the base point position of the corresponding object. The X and Y coordinate values ​​are calculated with the specified position of the label print layout as the origin. The horizontal direction is the X axis and the vertical direction is the Y axis. The value in the "Variable Length Setting" field indicates whether the corresponding object is set to a variable length object. The value indicates whether the setting is enabled ("Enabled") or disabled ("Disabled"). be. The value in the "Relative vertical position" field specifies the relative vertical position for the corresponding object. A value indicating whether the setting is set ("Yes") or not ("No") When the vertical position is set relative to the reference object, It includes a value indicating the distance (mm) between the lines. The value of the "Basic Data" field indicates the basic data of the corresponding object. For example, you can change the font, size, number of lines, character spacing, left alignment, center alignment, Contains values ​​such as any of the settings for right justification.

[0047] Next, referring to FIG. 12, the computer device 2, printer, and printer included in the label issuing system 1 are The configurations of the printer 3 and the server 5 will be explained in order.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 12, the computer device 2 includes a control unit 21, a storage 22, an operation input The device includes a unit 23, a display unit 24, and a communication unit 25.

[0049] The control unit 21 is mainly composed of a microprocessor and controls the entire computer device 2. For example, the microprocessor included in the control unit 21 controls the label creation application. The application program (label creation application) is executed, and the execution result is displayed on the display unit 24. . The storage 22 is a non-volatile memory, for example, a SSD (Solid State Drive) such as a flash memory. The storage 22 runs the label creation application. A project file can be one or more Layout data, call table TL1 (Fig. 4), and object table (Fig. 1 1) is included.

[0050] The operation input unit 23 is, for example, an input device such as a pointing device or a touch panel. When the display unit 24 is provided with a touch panel input display panel, the display unit 24 It constitutes a part of the input unit 23. The display unit 24 includes, for example, a liquid crystal display panel, and displays the execution result of the label creation application. Display. The communication unit 25 is a communication interface for communicating with the server 5.

[0051] The microprocessor included in the control unit 21 executes the label creation application. As a result, at least one of the following means is realized. (i) A display unit for displaying a print layout that is the basis of the drawing data printed by the printer 3. Display method to be displayed on 24 (ii) An option for arranging a plurality of objects on the print layout displayed on the display unit 24. Object placement method (iii) The object selected by the user from among the plurality of objects is printed in the print layout. The option to set for a variable length object whose height varies in the vertical direction of the Object setting method (iv) Selected objects selected by the user from among multiple objects The base object is determined from among the multiple objects other than the selected object. an object position determining means for determining a vertical relative position of the quasi-object;

[0052] The object position determining means determines whether the plurality of objects are character string objects including character strings. and line objects, including lines for ruled line objects, frame line objects, table objects, etc. If the line object contains a variable length object, the vertical height of the line object is It may be changed in accordance with the change in the height of the set character string object. In the example in Figure 8, the selected object is the ruled line object OBJ18 (line object). The base object is a string object whose item name is "Ingredient Name". The OBJ17.

[0053] In one embodiment, the object position determining means may be implemented as shown in window W2 of FIG. The vertical distance between the reference position of the reference object and the reference position of the selected object is Moves the selected object vertically to the value set by the user.

[0054] In one embodiment, the object position determining means may determine the position of a plurality of objects, as illustrated in FIG. The reference object is selected for two or more selected objects selected by the user from the object. Determines the vertical position relative to the object.

[0055] Referring again to FIG. 12, the printer 3 includes a control unit 31, a storage 32, an operation input unit 33, and a 3, a display unit 34, a conveying unit 35, a printing unit 36, and a communication unit 37.

[0056] The control unit 31 is mainly composed of a microprocessor and controls the entire printer 3. The storage 32 is a non-volatile memory, for example, an SSD such as a flash memory. be. For example, the microprocessor included in the control unit 31 controls firmware and label issuing. Run the application program. The control unit 31 requests the server 5 to transmit a format file, and in response to the request, The control unit 31 receives the format file transmitted via the communication unit 37. The timing for requesting Server 5 to send the format file is not limited. However, for example, when the printer 3 is started, at a predetermined time every day, or when the user of the printer 3 For example, the timing is when a predetermined download operation is performed. If you download the format file from Server 5, The format file is stored in the storage 32 .

[0057] The display unit 34 has a display panel and a display drive circuit (not shown), and displays a label on the display panel. The execution result of the issuing application is displayed. The operation input unit 33 is provided on the display panel. It includes a touch panel input and its input circuit.

[0058] The control unit 31 executes the firmware to convert the issued data into a bitmap for printing. The line data, which is the data for each line of the drawing data, is converted into Next, the line data is sent to the printing unit 36. The conveying unit 35 and the printing unit 36 Printing is performed based on the above. The conveying unit 35 includes a platen roller, a motor drive circuit, and a stepping motor (not shown). This includes the above, and transports the continuous paper in the printer 3. For example, a transport request by firmware Based on this, a motor drive circuit drives a stepping motor that controls the rotation of the platen roller. The continuous paper is transported by moving the roller. The printing unit 36 ​​includes a thermal head and a head drive circuit (not shown). By selectively passing current through each heating element of the thermal head 46 based on the line data, , and printing is performed on the continuous paper label. The communication unit 37 is a communication interface for communicating with the server 5.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 12, the server 5 includes a control unit 51, a storage unit 52, and a communication unit 53. Prepare. The control unit 51 is mainly composed of a microprocessor and controls the entire server 5. The control unit 51 transmits a format file in response to a request from the printer 3, for example. The communication unit 53 is controlled so as to The storage 52 is a large-capacity storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD). The format file transmitted (uploaded) from the computer device 2 is stored. The communication unit 53 is a communication interface for communicating with the computer device 2 and the printer 3. It is a base.

[0060] Next, the control unit 21 of the computer device 2 executes the label creation application. The processes performed by this are variable length setting process, relative vertical position setting process, and object The object placement process will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.

[0061] [Variable length setting process] (Figure 13) The variable length setting process is a process for setting a character string object to a variable length object. Referring to FIG. 13, the control unit 21 determines whether a variable length paper has been selected (step In the example shown in Figure 5, the variable length paper is selected as shown in Figure 5. This corresponds to the selection of either "Variable Length (Journal Paper)" or "Variable Length (Journal Paper)" and is used for label or This means that the paper length is set to vary depending on the print content. Variable length paper is selected. This is a prerequisite for setting a string object to a variable length object. .

[0062] When variable length paper is selected, the control unit 21 It is determined whether or not a character string object is selected (step S4). At least one of the items arranged in the design window 103 (see FIG. 6) via the input unit 23 This is done by performing a selection operation on one of the string objects. The object will appear with multiple resize handles around its outer border, as shown in Figure 6. At this time, the control unit 21 displays the selected character string object on the screen as a variable length object. The object to be changed to (for example, button b4 in Figure 6; variable length button) is displayed. Then, depending on the operation on the operation target (step S6: YES), the selected character string Specifically, the control unit 21 performs a process of setting the object to a variable length object. In the object table (see Figure 11), variable length settings for the object to be processed is changed to "Yes" and recorded (step S8).

[0063] [Vertical position relative setting process] (Figure 14) The relative vertical position setting process is performed by selecting from the objects placed in the print layout. The vertical position of the selected object (i.e., the vertical position of the label) is calculated relative to the reference object. This is a process of setting the value relatively. The prerequisite for setting the relative vertical position of an object is that variable length paper has been selected. Therefore, in the flowchart of FIG. 14, the control unit 21 selects the variable length paper. If the selection has been completed (step S10: YES), the process proceeds to step S12 and thereafter. The control unit 21 controls the printing of any of the objects arranged in the print layout in response to a user operation. When an object is selected (step S12: YES) and an operation is performed on the relative setting of the vertical position, If the setting is made (step S14), the process according to the setting content is executed. If multiple objects are selected at once, the process is performed on the two or more objects. It can be done.

[0064] Specifically, the control unit 21 controls the camera 10 to adjust the vertical position as shown in the window W2 of FIG. By operating the pair setting, you can input the reference object and the distance from the reference object. When the object table is received (step S16), the object table is updated (step S18 ) In other words, the relative vertical position of the object to be processed in the object table. The setting is set to "Yes", and the reference object and the interval are recorded based on the input in step S16. do. Furthermore, the control unit 21 determines the object to be processed based on the reference object and the interval. For example, in the object table shown in FIG. For object OBJ14, reference object: OBJ13, spacing: 1.05mm If recorded, the Y value of the origin of object OBJ14 is the same as that of the reference object, The Y value of object OBJ13 (11.20 mm) plus 1.05 mm (12.2 5mm).

[0065] In step S14, the control unit 21 adjusts the vertical position by the operation for the relative setting of the vertical position. If the relative setting is canceled, the relative setting for the vertical position of the object being processed will be "None" The object table is updated accordingly (step S18).

[0066] [Object placement processing] (Figure 15) The object placement process places one or more objects into the print layout based on the contents of the call table. This is a process for placing objects. In the object placement process, the user's object In addition to the operations on the object, the setting status of the variable length object and the vertical position of the object can also be displayed. The objects are arranged based on the pair setting state. The object placement process is performed, for example, on a preview screen in a label creation application. This is executed when a face display command is received. Referring to FIG. 15, the control unit 21 reads the call table from, for example, the storage 22. Next, the control unit 21 outputs the object to be processed as follows (step S30). In either case, the object to be processed is placed in the print layout. The positions are based on the table origin value.

[0067] If the object to be processed is a character string object (step S32: YES), If it is a variable-length object (step S34: YES), the control unit 21 The object is arranged in the print layout (step S36). In step S30, the call table read out is referenced, and the item of the object to be processed is The control unit 21 calculates the vertical length according to the length of the character string that has been obtained. An example of a variable length object is shown in Figure 8. The object is OBJ17.

[0068] If the object to be processed is a character string object (step S32: YES), If the object is not a variable-length object (step S34: NO), the control unit 21 The object is arranged in the print layout (step S38). The call table read in step S30 is referenced, and the item corresponding to the object to be processed is The control unit 21 then creates a fixed-length object containing the acquired character string. Place it in the print layout. An example of a fixed-length object is object OBJ3 in Figure 3. OBJ11~OBJ13, etc. Regarding the size of fixed-length objects, The table is referenced.

[0069] If the object to be processed is not a character string object (step S32: NO), The control unit 21 arranges the object to be processed in the print layout (step S36). At this time, the control unit 21 refers to the call table read out in step S30 and Place the object in the print layout. Examples are ruled objects, table objects, graphic objects, etc.

[0070] If there are multiple objects to be placed in the print layout, The series of steps S32 to S44 are repeated with the object as the processing target. When the process for all objects to be placed is completed, the control unit 21 The object placement process ends.

[0071] As described above, in the label issuing system of one embodiment, the user can select the label design. When setting a string object to a variable length object, the label creation action The GUI provided by the application allows for easy visual configuration. In addition, in the label issuing system of one embodiment, a selection object selected by a user is The reference object when another object is used as the reference object. Therefore, the reference object can be changed. When set to a long object, the length of the string contained in the variable-length object is The vertical position of the selected object can be adjusted accordingly, eliminating unnecessary blank spaces. is prevented.

[0072] Next, another feature of the label creation application of one embodiment will be described. When designing a label, you may want to surround a text object with a border object. The length of the string contained in the string object varies depending on the product to which the label is applied. Therefore, as mentioned above, the string object is set to a variable length object. In this case, the label creation application uses the vertical height of the string object. The height of the frame object surrounding the character string object can be changed accordingly. That is, in one embodiment, the object position determining means determines whether a character string object is a When the frame object surrounding the character string object is placed in the print layout, , the vertical height of the border object is set to the string object set to the variable length object. The character string object changes its height accordingly. Regardless of the length of the column, the border object will not create unnecessary white space in the text object. As a result, the length of the character string to be printed on the layout can be It is easy to design a layout that is optimized according to the size.

[0073] The following describes the settings for surrounding a text object with a border object, as shown in Figure 16. 18 for further explanation. FIG. 16A shows a character string object as part of the print layout on the design window 103. 1 shows a character string object ST and a frame object F that surrounds the character string object ST. In FIG. 16A, the frame object F is in a selected state. In the label creation application, the placement of the border object F is determined by the position of other objects. As a way to set the relative position, the vertical position relative setting and the height relative setting are mentioned above. be.

[0074] As shown in FIG. 16B, the detailed setting button displayed in the object property setting section 105 When you operate button b12, window W4 will be displayed. You can set the relative vertical position of the frame object F. You can set the reference object and the distance from the reference object. It is Noh. In the relative vertical position setting, the reference position of the reference object and the reference position of the frame object F The entire frame object F moves so that the distance (for example, the bottom edge) is the set interval. (Shift)

[0075] [Relative Height Settings] As shown in FIG. 16B, button b1 displayed in the object property setting section 105 When you operate 3 ("Relative Height Setting"), window W5 will be displayed. Window W5 You can set the relative height of the selected border object F. The setting is the reference object (reference object) and the distance from the reference object. It is possible to set:

[0076] In the example of settings shown in window W5 in FIG. 16B, the vertical reference position of frame object F is (bottom) and the reference object, the string object ST (item name is "raw material name" This indicates that the distance between the reference position of the object and the reference point is 1.000 mm. The reference position of the quasi-object can be set arbitrarily. For example, is. The distance from the reference position is the reference position of the object that is the target of the relative vertical position setting. (bottom) is a positive value when it is below the reference position of the reference object, It is a negative value when the That is, in one embodiment, the object position determining means determines the position of the character string object. The vertical distance between the reference position and the reference position of the border object is set by the user. Change the vertical height of the frame object so that In one embodiment, the reference object is drawn in a manner similar to the arrowed line AR1 shown in FIG. The reference position (bottom edge) of the string object is the border of the line object. It is preferable to display a line with an arrow indicating the vertical distance from the reference position (bottom end) of the object. This allows the user to intuitively grasp the distance from the reference object to the frame object. Can be grasped.

[0077] Unlike the relative vertical position setting, the relative height setting uses the reference position of the reference object (Figure 1 In 6, the reference position of the bottom edge STL of the string object ST and the border object F (for example Only the reference position of the frame object F is set so that the distance FL (for example, the bottom edge) is the set interval. Therefore, if the string contained in the string object ST is long, Even if the bottom STL of the string object ST moves downward, the border line The bottom edge of object F also moves downward while maintaining the distance FL. As a result, the string No unnecessary whitespace is created whether the string contained in the object ST is short or long. The frame object F can surround the character string object ST without any border.

[0078] Although a flowchart for executing the relative height setting process is not shown, the relative vertical position This is the same as the setting process flowchart (FIG. 14). In the flowchart of FIG. 14, Step S14 can be set as "relative height setting". In this case, the object table ( Figure 11) has a "Relative height setting" field (with "Reference object" as a subfield) The "Relative Height Setting" field is set according to the user's operation. The object table is updated as the values ​​of the fields are determined.

[0079] The objects that can be set relative to the height are not limited to frame objects, but also include rule objects. It may be other line objects such as line objects, table objects, etc. That is, in one embodiment, the object position determining means determines the base position of the reference object. The vertical distance between the reference position and the line object's reference position is set by the user. The vertical height of the line object can also be changed so that

[0080] Surrounding a string object with other objects creates gaps around the string object. It is not limited to completely surrounding the object, but can also be partially surrounded by a vertical ruled line object (for example, both That is, referring to Figs. 17 and 18, The above explanation about surrounding a text object with a border object is the same as the case of surrounding a text object with a vertical border object. This can also be applied to the case where the object is partially enclosed by the object.

[0081] Next, create two or more text objects and a border object that surrounds the two or more text objects. See Figure 17 for the first setting method when objects are placed in the print layout. This will be explained in light of the above. In FIG. 17, a frame object F is shown as an example that surrounds three character string objects ST1 to ST3. In FIG. 17, the bottom ends of the character string objects ST1 to ST3 in the vertical direction are indicated by P1 to P2. P3, and the vertical bottom edge of frame object F is PF. Three character string objects ST1 to ST3 are all set to variable length objects, and each string object The vertical height of the varies depending on the length of the string applied to each string object.

[0082] Here, the height of the frame object F is changed according to the vertical height of each string object. To change this, set it as follows: That is, in the relative setting of the vertical position of the character string object ST2, is set as the character string object ST1, and the vertical distance between the character string object ST1 and the character string object ST2 is indicated by an arrow. The length is indicated by the line AR2. In the relative setting of the vertical position of the character string object ST3, The reference object is the character string object ST2, and the vertical direction of the character string object ST2 is The distance between the two lines is the length indicated by the arrowed line AR3. In this case, the reference object is a character string object ST3, and the character string object ST3 The relative setting interval (PF to P3) of the height is the length indicated by the arrowed line H1.

[0083] By setting it in this way, as shown in Figure 17, the character string objects ST1 and ST2 Even if the strings included in the string objects ST1 to ST3 are long, the The spacing between adjacent objects is maintained at the set value. Even if the string in ST3 is long, the bottom edge PF of the frame object F and the string The distance between the object ST3 and the bottom end P3 is maintained at the set distance. As a result, even if the strings contained in the string objects ST1 to ST3 are short, Even if you want to use a border object F without creating unnecessary white space, you can use a text object ST1~ It can be placed in a state where it surrounds ST3.

[0084] Next, create two or more text objects and a border object that surrounds the two or more text objects. See Figure 18 for the second setting method when objects are placed in the print layout. This will be explained in light of the above. The print layout shown in FIG. 18 has a frame object F and a character string object S below it. It differs from FIG. 17 in that T4 is provided.

[0085] Here, the height of the frame object F is changed according to the vertical height of each string object. While changing the position of the frame object F, the vertical positional relationship between the frame object F and the character string object ST4 is maintained. To do this, you can set it as follows: That is, in the relative setting of the vertical position of the character string object ST2, is set as the character string object ST1, and the vertical distance between the character string object ST1 and the character string object ST2 is indicated by an arrow. The length is indicated by the line AR2. In the relative setting of the vertical position of the character string object ST3, The reference object is the character string object ST2, and the vertical direction of the character string object ST2 is The vertical spacing of the character string object ST4 is the length indicated by the arrowed line AR3. In the pair setting, the reference object is the string object ST3, and the string object The vertical distance between the gate ST3 and the gate ST4 is the length indicated by the arrowed line AR4. In the relative height setting of the frame object F, the reference object is set to the string object. The relative height setting interval (PF~P4) between the character string object ST4 and the character string object ST5 is set as an arrow. The length is indicated by the marked line H2. In this case, the relative height setting interval is a negative value. .

[0086] By setting it in this way, the character string objects ST1 and ST2 are created as shown in Figure 18. Even if the strings included in ST3 are long, the string objects ST1 to ST The spacing between adjacent objects in the vertical direction of 4 is maintained at the set value. The strings contained in the column objects ST1, ST2, and ST3 are longer, and the string objects Even if the frame object ST4 moves downward significantly, the bottom edge PF of the frame object F and the character The distance between the column object ST4 and the bottom end P4 is maintained at the set distance. As a result, even if the strings contained in the string objects ST1 to ST3 are short, Even if you want to use a border object F without creating unnecessary white space, you can use a text object ST1~ The frame object F can be placed below the frame object ST3. The distance to the character string object ST4 can be maintained.

[0087] Next, a third example print layout LT3 will be described with reference to FIG. The third example, print layout LT3, is a label design for assorted products that contain multiple products. The print layout LT3 contains multiple objects OBJ31 to OBJ52. As shown in Figure 19, the string objects OBJ32, OB J33 is placed in a 1x2 table object T1, and string objects OBJ34~O BJ36 is placed inside the frame object F1, and text objects OBJ37 to OBJ 44 is placed within the 4x2 table object T2. The text objects OBJ34 to OBJ36 placed within the frame object F1 are: It is set to a variable length object.

[0088] Here, the border object is set according to the vertical height of the string objects OBJ34 to OBJ36. While changing the height of object F1, the frame object F1 and the frame object F1 To maintain the vertical positional relationship with the objects below, use the same setting method as in Figure 18. Just adopt the law. In Figure 18, there is only one object below the border object F (the text In the print layout LT3 in Figure 19, the column object ST4 is used. There are multiple objects below the frame object F1. The reference object is then assigned to all objects underneath it at once. Set the relative vertical position of the string object OBJ34 to BJ37. Even if the string included in ~OBJ36 is long, each The relative positions of the objects are maintained.

[0089] In the print layout LT3 of the third example, each character string object has a character string The following shows an example of a label printout (or a preview screen) with the above data entered. For example, in Figure 19, String object OBJ34 (Product 1: Ingredient name) and OBJ3 in print layout LT3 5 (Product 2: Ingredients) and OBJ36 (Product 3: Ingredients) Depending on the length, a border object is created to surround the string objects OBJ34 to OBJ36. It can be seen that the vertical height of F1 has been set. Two or more character string objects and a border object that surrounds the two or more character string objects. The label design in which the object and the print layout are arranged is shown in FIG. 20A. This is useful for labels that are affixed to assorted items containing several items.

[0090] FIG. 20B shows the character string object OBJ35 in the print layout LT3 of FIG. The string data of OBJ36 (Product 2: Ingredient name) and OBJ37 (Product 3: Ingredient name) is called Example of label printing (or preview screen) when not written to Bull TL1 (Figure 4) In this case, the string objects OBJ35 and OBJ36 have no string data. It is essentially removed and no unnecessary white space is generated.

[0091] As described above, in one embodiment, the object position determining means determines the position of a frame object. The vertical height of the object is set to two or more string objects set to variable length objects. The height of each string object is changed accordingly. Whether the string is short or long, two or more string objects are unnecessary, and border objects are unnecessary. You can design labels to fit properly without unnecessary white space. As shown in 16, this can be achieved with simple operations, so the length of the character string to be printed on the layout can be It is easy to design a layout that is optimized according to the size.

[0092] In one embodiment, the microprocessor included in the control unit 21 controls the label creation application. By executing this option, two or more statements in the frame object F1 are A correspondence means is implemented that corresponds a character string to each of the string objects individually. For example, As shown in the record of call No. 100 in the call table TL1 in Figure 4, the item name is The two or more items will be referred to as "Product 1: Ingredients", "Product 2: Ingredients", and "Product 3: Ingredients". The above data can be registered individually, allowing for flexible label design.

[0093] The relative settings of the vertical position and height of the object mentioned above are How to reduce the margins based on the position of an object relative to other objects ( This is called the "relative margin reduction method." In contrast, the printing data is When expanding the data to a printable format, the margins in the print data are compressed in the paper feed direction ("absolute"). Although a method called "absolute margin reduction" is known, the above embodiment appropriately uses absolute margin reduction. It is also possible to apply this to the method.

[0094] As mentioned above, a user of the label creation application on the computing device 2 may A number of objects are arranged on the character layout, and various types of By configuring the settings, you can edit the label design. As a result, the label creation application This creates one or more layout data, a call table TL1 (FIG. 4), and an object A project file containing the output table (Figure 11) will be created. The project file can be created by operating the output button in the instruction button group 101 shown in FIG. Then, it can be uploaded to the server 5 as a format file.

[0095] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing the operating procedure when printing a label using the printer 3. Referring to FIG. 21, the procedure for printing a label in printer 3 is as follows: is. First, start the label printing application on Printer 3 and copy the format file The operation to download from the server 5 is performed. Next, as shown in the printer screen g1 of FIG. From the downloaded format file, select the label you want to print. Select "Food Data" as the corresponding format file.

[0096] The printer screen g2 that is then displayed is the one that is called up in the selected format file. The call number entered here is , which corresponds to the call number in the call table TL1 (see Figure 4) in the format file. For example, if you enter call number 001 in the input box bx1, the call number in Figure 4 will be The issuing data of the record corresponding to call number 1 in the issuing table TL1 is called, The printer screen g3 is displayed. On the printer screen g3, each item of printing data corresponding to call No.:1 as the initial value The value is displayed in the print data display section 206. On the printer screen g3, the print button pb A label is printed by operating 3.

[0097] The above is an embodiment of the program, information processing system, and information processing method of the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. Various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, variable length settings and relative vertical position settings implemented by label creation applications. The relative height setting and the relative setting of the label are applicable whether the label printing direction is from the beginning or the end. It is possible to respond.

[0098] In the label issuing system 1 described above, the format file is downloaded to a computer via the server 5. Although an example in which the data is distributed from the computer device 2 to the printer 3 has been shown, this is not limitative. Alternatively, the information may be directly distributed from the computer device 2 to each printer 3 without the need for the computer device 2. In this case, the format file is stored in the storage 22 of the computer device 2. Then, the printer 3 is ready to receive the format file. [Explanation of symbols]

[0099] 1...Label issuing system 2...Computer equipment 21...Control unit 22…Storage 23...Operation input section 24...Display section 25…Communications Department 3. Printer 31...Control unit 32…Storage 33...Operation input section 34…Display section 35...Transportation section 36...Printing section 37…Communications Department 5...Server 51...Control unit 52…Storage 53…Communications Department 101...Instruction buttons 102...Object setting buttons 103...Design Window 104...Project Setting Department 105...Object property setting section 206...Printing data display section LT1~LT3...Print layout b1~b4, b10~b11, pb1... buttons bx1...input box g1~g3...Printer screen F, F1...Border object HD,hd...size change handle OBJ1~OBJ52...Objects ST, ST1 to ST4...String objects T1~T2...Table objects TL1...Call Table W1~W5...Window

Claims

1. Displaying the print layout that is the basis of the drawing data printed by the printer on a display device a display means for displaying the An object for arranging a plurality of objects on the print layout displayed on the display device. a project placement means; The object selected by the user from the plurality of objects is Object to be set to a variable length object whose height varies in the vertical direction of the object. object setting means; A program to make the above happen on a computer.

2. The selected object selected by the user from among the plurality of objects is selected. The object is determined from among the plurality of objects other than the selected object. an object position determining means for determining the relative position of the object in the vertical direction with respect to a reference object; To realize this on a computer, 2. The program according to claim 1.

3. The object position determining means determines the reference position of the reference object and the selected object. The vertical distance between the reference position of the object and the target position is set by the user. moving the selected object in the vertical direction; 3. The program according to claim 2.

4. The display means displays a reference position of the reference object and a reference position of the selected object. and including in the print layout an indicator indicating the relative position in the vertical direction with respect to the 4. The program according to claim 2 or 3.

5. The object position determining means allows a user to collectively select from the plurality of objects. The vertical direction of the two or more selected objects relative to the reference object is Determine the relative position of the direction, 5. The program according to claim 2.

6. The object setting means sets an object selected by a user from among the plurality of objects. If the object is a string object containing a string, the string object is made mutable. an operation object for instructing the setting of the long object on the display device; The character string object is converted into a variable-length object in response to a user's operation on the operation target. Set to 6. The program according to claim 1.

7. The object setting means sets the vertical direction of the character string included in the variable-length object. including setting a minimum number of lines in 7. The program according to claim 6.

8. An information processing system including an information processing device and a printer capable of communicating with the information processing device And, The information processing device includes: A display unit; Editing a print layout that is the basis of the drawing data to be printed by the printer a processor for providing a user interface for The processor: The print layout is displayed on the display unit, and the previous image displayed on the display unit is Place multiple objects on the print layout, The object selected by the user from the plurality of objects is printed on the print layer. The height of the object is set to a variable length object in the vertical direction of the window. The printer The information processing device transmits data relating to the print layout and the plurality of objects. a data acquisition unit for acquiring data; The print layout and the plurality of objects acquired by the data acquisition unit a data generating unit that generates the drawing data based on the Information processing system.

9. An information processing method executed in an information processing device having a display unit, The display unit displays a print layout that is the basis of the drawing data to be printed by the printer. and A step of arranging a plurality of objects on the print layout displayed on the display unit. Pu and, The object selected by the user from the plurality of objects is The state to be set for a variable length object where the length of the object changes in the vertical direction of the object. and, Information processing methods.

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