Information processing device, control method of information processing device, program, and storage medium

Abstract

To solve the problem that a paper feed setting determined automatically may be against a user's intention, and printing against a user's intention may be performed although there has been a technique for automatically determining the paper feed setting according to the contents of a print job at the time of printing when performing printing by using a printing device capable of simultaneously setting roll paper and cut paper.SOLUTION: A print information acquisition section 203 of a PC 100 acquires information on a print job for printing by a printer 110 capable of simultaneously setting roll paper and cut paper (S500), performs control so as to display a setting screen on which a first setting for printing on the roll paper or a second setting for printing on the cut paper as a print setting on the basis of information on the print job acquired by a print setting generation section 204 (S501 to S509), and changes the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen according to a user's operation (S1001 to S1002).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, a control method for an information processing device, a program, and a storage medium. [Background technology]

[0002] There are printing devices that can simultaneously load roll paper and cut paper, and there is also technology that automatically sets paper feed settings according to the contents of a print job when printing (see Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-245804 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In conventional technology, the paper feed setting (cut paper or roll paper) is automatically determined after printing is executed depending on the content of the print job, but the automatically determined paper feed setting may be contrary to the user's intention, and printing may be performed contrary to the user's intention.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a mechanism that can reduce the possibility of printing being performed against the user's intention, while eliminating the need for the user to select cut paper or roll paper when setting up printing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention is an information device capable of communicating with a printing device that can simultaneously set roll paper and cut paper, and is characterized by having a first acquisition means for acquiring information about a print job, a control means for controlling the display of a setting screen in which a first setting for printing on roll paper or a second setting for printing on cut paper is set as a print setting based on the information about the print job acquired by the first acquisition means, and a change means for changing the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen in accordance with user operation. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to eliminate the need for the user to select cut paper or roll paper when setting up printing, and to reduce the possibility that printing will be performed against the user's intention. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the software configuration of the information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of print-related information. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of paper feed setting items included in print settings that need to be set when printing. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a print setting screen display process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a print setting screen displayed on a display device of a PC. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining margin widths of drawing data. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a paper feed setting change process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a printer change process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of processing up to print execution in the first embodiment. [Figure 11]10 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for checking paper feed alignment with a printer according to the second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a warning display displayed on a display device of a PC in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the present invention, and not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the present invention.

[0010] [First embodiment] The overall configuration of the printing system of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a PC 100, which is a host computer, and a printer 110, which is a printing device, are communicatively connected via a communication bus 30 (network) such as a LAN (Local Area Network). Although only one printer is shown in Fig. 1, any number of printers can be connected via the communication bus 30.

[0011] The PC 100 is an example of an information processing device, and has an operating system (hereinafter referred to as "OS") installed on it. The PC 100 is, for example, a personal computer (PC), and includes an interface (I / F) unit 17, a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, a display unit 14, an input unit 15, and an external storage device 16. The PC 100 of this embodiment is not limited to a desktop PC, and may also be a portable terminal such as a notebook PC, a tablet PC, or a smartphone.

[0012] The CPU 11 is a central processing unit that controls each part of the PC 100, and controls system operation by executing control programs such as an OS. The ROM 12 stores control programs and data. The RAM 13 is a random access memory in which the CPU 11 operates. The external storage device 16 stores various control programs such as the OS and applications, as well as various data. The external storage device 16 may be a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), an embedded multimedia card (eMMC), or the like.

[0013] The input unit 15 is an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse for operating the PC 100. The display unit 14 is a display device that displays information input from the input unit 15 for confirmation, or displays user interface screens of the OS and applications, displays messages, etc. The I / F unit 17 is a communication module that transmits and receives data to and from the printer 110.

[0014] The printer 110 is, for example, an inkjet printer, but may be a printer using another printing method such as electrophotography. The printer 110 has an I / F unit 27, a CPU 21, a ROM 22, a RAM 23, a display unit 24, an input unit 25, a print engine 26, etc.

[0015] The CPU 21 is a central processing unit that controls the following components. The ROM 22 is a read-only memory that stores a program for controlling the print engine 26. The RAM 23 is a memory that can be written to and read at any time, and temporarily stores the program required for the operation of the print engine 26, setting values ​​received from the PC 100, and the like.

[0016] The input unit 25 is a button or the like for operating the printer 110. The display unit 24 is a display device that displays information input from the input unit 25 for confirmation, or displays status messages of the printer 110. The print engine 26 prints on a recording medium (such as roll paper or cut paper) based on the print data sent from the PC 100. The printer 110 is a printing device that can simultaneously load roll paper and cut paper.

[0017] The I / F unit 27 is a communications module that receives print data from the PC 100, and has functions such as transmitting current status information of the printer 110 from the printer 110 to the PC 100. The status information here refers to status data that indicates the state of the printer 110, which the printer 110 can return in response to a request from the PC 100 connected via the I / F unit 27. The status data is information that indicates the operating state of the printer 110, such as "printing" or "standby," or an error state of the printer 110, such as "out of paper," "cover open," or "out of ink."

[0018] Next, the software configuration of the information processing apparatus of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the information processing apparatus according to this embodiment. The PC 100 includes, as software, an application 200, an OS standard printing system 210, and a communication control unit 220. The software configuration shown in Fig. 2 is stored as a program in the external storage device 16 of the PC 100, and functions when the CPU 11 reads it into the RAM 13 and executes it. The PC 100 also includes other programs not shown.

[0019] The application 200 includes an application display unit 201 , an application input unit 202 , a print information acquisition unit 203 , and a print setting generation unit 204 . The application 200 has a function for printing created data. The application 200 issues a print request to the OS standard printing system 210. When a print request is issued, a print job including print settings and drawing data is passed from the application 200 to the OS standard printing system 210. The print settings include information such as paper size, paper type, paper feed settings, and which print queue to use for printing. Paper feed settings will be explained in detail later in FIG. 4. The application here refers to software that runs on the OS, which is the basic software of the PC 100.

[0020] The OS-standard printing system 210 generates print data in a data format that can be interpreted by the printer 110 based on the drawing data sent from the application 200. The OS-standard printing system 210 also passes the print settings passed from the application 200 to a subsequent processing unit.

[0021] The communication control unit 220 controls printing by transmitting print data and print settings generated by the OS standard print system 210 to the printer 110. The communication control unit 220 also acquires data such as status transmitted from the printer 110.

[0022] Each unit included in the application 200 will be described below. The application display unit 201 generates a screen (for example, a print setting screen) that the application 200 displays to the user, and displays the generated screen on the display unit 14 of the PC 100. The screen displayed on the display unit 14 is changed by the application display unit 201 while the application 200 is running.

[0023] The application input unit 202 provides the function of the input part of the screen displayed on the application display unit 201, and accepts input made by the user from the input unit 15 of the PC 100. For example, the application input unit 202 accepts pressing of a button displayed by the application display unit 201 and input into an input space displayed by the application display unit 201.

[0024] The print information acquisition unit 203 acquires print-related information from the OS standard print system 210 and drawing data for printing that can be acquired by the application 200 from the application 200 . The print setting generation unit 204 determines paper feed settings and generates print settings according to the drawing data based on the information acquired by the print information acquisition unit 203. The print-related information acquired by the print information acquisition unit 203 will be described with reference to FIG. The detailed processing contents of the print information acquisition unit 203 and the print setting generation unit 204 will be explained later with reference to FIGS. 5, 8, 9, and 10. FIG.

[0025] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of print-related information acquired by the print information acquisition unit 203. As shown in FIG. Specifically, the print-related information is a list of printers registered in the PC 100, a list of capability information of the printers registered in the PC 100, a default printer, and a list of default print setting information.

[0026] FIG. 3A shows an example of a list of printers registered in the PC 100. In FIG. FIG. 3B shows an example of a list of printer capability information registered in the PC 100. In FIG. FIG. 3(c) shows an example of a default printer. FIG. 3D shows an example of a list of default print setting information.

[0027] The list of printers registered in the PC 100 is a list of printers that the user can select as the target printer for printing from the OS standard printing system 210, and is, for example, as shown in FIG. 3(a).

[0028] The capability information list of printers registered in PC 100 is a list showing, for each printer, the print setting information that can be set from the OS standard printing system 210, and is, for example, as shown in Figure 3(b). The capability information of printers registered in PC 100 is obtained from the printer by the OS standard printing system 210 when the printer is registered in PC 100.

[0029] The default printer is the printer that is preset when the print setting screen is displayed, such as the one shown in Figure 3(c). The default printer is determined by the OS standard print system 210. The default print setting information list refers to the print settings that are preset when the print setting screen is displayed, and is, for example, as shown in Figure 3(d). The default print setting information may be determined by software provided by the printer vendor when the printer is registered in the PC 100, or may be determined by the OS standard print system 210.

[0030] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating paper feed setting items included in print settings that must be set when printing. Fig. 4(a) shows an example of a list of paper feed setting items that can be set as print settings. The "list of configurable paper feed setting items" shown in Fig. 4(a) refers to the "configurable paper feed settings" of printer 110 in the printer capability information list registered in PC 100 in Fig. 3(b).

[0031] 4(b) shows an example of the width and height that the printer 110 can support for the configurable paper feed setting items (the performance of the printer 110 according to the paper feed setting items). The "performance of the printer 110 according to the paper feed setting items" shown in FIG. 4(b) refers to the "printer performance according to the paper feed setting" of the printer 110 in the list of printer capability information registered in the PC 100 in FIG. 3(b).

[0032] "Cut paper" here refers to paper with a fixed width and height for printing. Typical paper sizes include A4 size, which is 210 mm wide and 297 mm high, as specified by the International Standard ISO and the Japanese Industrial Standard JIS, and letter size, which is 216 mm wide and 279 mm high, as specified by the International Standard ISO. The "roll paper" referred to here is paper that has a fixed width, but whose height is set according to the height of the print data specified at the time of printing. Whether or not the printer can support the configurable paper feed settings depends on the printer's capabilities.

[0033] Explaining this with reference to Figure 4, the printer 110 supports cut paper and roll paper. The printer 110 can specify and print a paper size of 100 to 594 mm in width and 203.2 to 841 mm in height as the cut paper size. The printer 110 can also specify a width of 203.2 to 917 mm as the roll paper size, and print data with a height of 203.2 to 18,000 mm.

[0034] Hereinafter, the print setting screen display process performed by the print information acquisition unit 203 and the print setting generation unit 204 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the process (print setting screen display process) up to the display of the print setting screen of application 200 executed by PC 100. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 5 is realized by CPU 11 loading a program recorded in external storage device 16 into RAM 13 and executing it. This process is started when a user operation that triggers the print setting screen display process is performed on a screen displayed by application display unit 201 (for example, a screen such as that shown in Fig. 6).

[0035] First, in S500, print information acquisition unit 203 acquires print-related information from OS standard print system 210. This print-related information includes a list of printers registered in PC 100, a list of capability information for the printers registered in PC 100, a default printer, and a list of default print setting information. Then, print setting generation unit 204 holds the default printer indicated by the default printer information acquired by print information acquisition unit 203 as the selected printer. Note that when application input unit 202 detects pressing of printer change button 611 arranged in FIG. 6(a) or 6(b), in S500, print setting generation unit 204 acquires the selected printer from application input unit 202 and holds it as the selected printer. After S500, the print setting generation unit 204 executes the process of S501.

[0036] In S501, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether the paper feed settings that can be set for the selected printer include "roll paper" and "cut paper" based on the list of printer capability information registered in the PC 100 obtained in S500. Here, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the selectable paper feed settings for the selected printer include both "roll paper" and "cut paper" (Yes in S501), the process proceeds to S502. On the other hand, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the available paper feed settings for the selected printer do not include either "roll paper" or "cut paper," the process proceeds to S509. The process from S509 onward will be described later.

[0037] In S502, the print information acquisition unit 203 acquires drawing data from the application 200. The drawing data is data that can be acquired by the application 200. The drawing data may be data created by the application 200, or may be data that can be acquired by the application 200 and is stored on the PC 100. After S502, the print setting generation unit 204 executes the process of S503.

[0038] In S503, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether the cut paper size exceeds the size that the selected printer can handle, based on the drawing data acquired in S502 and the list of printer capability information registered in the PC 100 acquired in S500.

[0039] Here, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the width of the acquired drawing data exceeds the maximum width when the selected printer is set to cut paper, or that the height of the acquired drawing data exceeds the maximum height when the selected printer is set to cut paper (Yes in S503), the print setting generation unit 204 proceeds to S504. In S504, the print setting generation unit 204 sets the paper feed setting to "roll paper" and displays the print setting screen 610 on the application display unit 201, as shown in Figure 6(a), with "roll paper" set as the paper feed setting, and terminates the processing of this flowchart.

[0040] On the other hand, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the width of the acquired drawing data does not exceed the maximum width when the selected printer is set to cut paper, and that the height of the acquired drawing data does not exceed the maximum height when the selected printer is set to cut paper (No in S503), the print setting generation unit 204 proceeds to S505.

[0041] In S505, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether the size of the acquired drawing data exceeds the default paper size (prescribed size) of the selected printer based on the drawing data 300 acquired in S502 above, the default print setting information list acquired in S500 above, and the selected printer. If the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the size of the acquired drawing data does not exceed the default paper size of the selected printer, it determines the paper feed setting to be "cut paper" because sizes within the default paper size are often used for cut paper, which is relatively easy to load.

[0042] If it is determined that the size of the acquired drawing data does not exceed the default paper size of the selected printer (Yes in S505), the print setting generation unit 204 advances the process to S507. In S507, the print setting generation unit 204 sets the paper feed setting to "cut paper", and displays the print setting screen 620 on the application display unit 201 with "cut paper" set as the paper feed setting, as shown in Figure 6(b), and ends the processing of this flowchart. In S505, the default paper size is described as the threshold paper size that displays the print setting screen with the paper feed setting set to "cut paper," but the threshold paper size does not have to be the default paper size as long as it is a paper size that can be fed as cut paper.

[0043] On the other hand, if it is determined that the size of the acquired drawing data exceeds the default paper size of the selected printer (No in S505), the print setting generation unit 204 advances the process to S506.

[0044] In S506, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether the drawing data includes multiple pages based on the drawing data acquired in S502. If the acquired drawing data includes multiple pages, the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the paper feed setting is "cut paper" because multiple pages of data are often document data and many users want to feed paper from cut sheets.

[0045] If the print setting generating unit 204 determines that the acquired drawing data includes multiple pages (Yes in S506), the process proceeds to S507. On the other hand, if the print setting generating unit 204 determines that the acquired drawing data is for a single page (No in S506), the process proceeds to S508.

[0046] In S508, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether all four sides have margins of a predetermined size or more (here, "15 mm or more") based on the drawing data acquired in S502. The print setting generation unit 204 determines that drawing data with margins of 15 mm or more on all four sides, as shown in Fig. 7(a), is document data, and determines the paper feed setting to "cut paper." 7A and 7B are diagrams illustrating margin widths of drawing data. Fig. 7A shows an example of drawing data with margins of 15 mm or more on all four sides, and Fig. 7B shows an example of drawing data with a margin of less than 15 mm on at least one of the four sides. Although the predetermined margin width is described as 15 mm in FIGS. 5 and 7, the margin width does not have to be 15 mm.

[0047] Here, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that there is no printing area within 15 mm of any of the four sides of the acquired drawing data (all four sides have a margin of 15 mm or more) (Yes in S508), it proceeds to S507.

[0048] On the other hand, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the print area is within 15 mm of at least one of the four sides of the acquired drawing data (the margin of at least one of the four sides is less than 15 mm) (No in S508), it proceeds to S509.

[0049] In S509, the print setting generation unit 204 displays a print setting screen on the application display unit 201 with the default settings of the selected printer set from the default paper setting list acquired in S500. That is, if the default paper feed setting is "cut paper," the print setting screen with "cut paper" set as the paper feed setting is displayed on the application display unit 201. On the other hand, if the default paper feed setting is "roll paper," the print setting screen with "roll paper" set as the paper feed setting is displayed on the application display unit 201. After the process of S509, the print setting generation unit 204 ends the process of this flowchart.

[0050] As an example, the processes of S503, S505, S506, and S508 have been explained in the order of the flow in Fig. 5, but not all of the determination processes are required, and it is possible to use only some of the determination processes. Furthermore, the order in which the determination processes are performed is not important, and the order in which the determinations are performed is arbitrary.

[0051] 6 is a diagram showing an example of a print setting screen of the application 200 displayed on the display unit 14 of the PC 100. The print setting screen of the application 200 is a screen for setting print settings that is always displayed when printing is executed, and the settings can be changed by selecting print settings that can be set for the target printer.

[0052] Figure 6(a) shows an example of the print settings screen when roll paper is loaded, and Figure 6(b) shows an example of the print settings screen when cut paper is loaded. The buttons shown in Figures 6(a) and 6(b) are all the same. The example print settings screen shows a change printer button 611 for changing the target printer, a change paper size button 612, a change paper feed settings button 613, a change number of copies button 614, and a print button 615. The print settings screen may display all of the changeable print settings as a list on the screen, or it may display only some of the print settings.

[0053] Hereinafter, the paper feed setting change process performed by the print setting generation unit 204 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the process (paper feed setting change process) for changing the paper feed settings on the paper feed setting screen of application 200 executed by PC 100. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 8 is realized by CPU 11 loading a program recorded in external storage device 16 into RAM 13 and executing it. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 8 is started when application input unit 202 detects that paper feed setting change button 613 arranged in Fig. 6(a) and Fig. 6(b) has been pressed.

[0054] In S801, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether "cut paper" has been selected based on the print setting screen displayed on the application display unit 201 and the print settings selected on the application input unit 202. Note that the print setting generation unit 204 determines that "cut paper" has been selected when the screen displayed on the application display unit 201 is 610 and "cut paper" has been selected from the paper feed setting change button 613. On the other hand, the print setting generation unit 204 determines that "roll paper" has been selected when the screen displayed on the application display unit 201 is 620 and "roll paper" has been selected from the paper feed setting change button 613.

[0055] Here, if "cut paper" is selected as the paper feed setting (Yes in S801), the print setting generation unit 204 advances the process to S802. In S802, the print setting generation unit 204 displays the print setting screen 620 on the application display unit 201 with the paper feed setting set to "cut paper" as shown in Figure 6(b), and ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0056] On the other hand, if "roll paper" is selected as the paper feed setting (Yes in S801), the print setting generation unit 204 advances the process to S803. In S803, the print setting generation unit 204 displays the print setting screen 610 with roll paper set as shown in Figure 6(a) on the application display unit 201 with the paper feed setting "roll paper" set, and ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0057] Hereinafter, the printer change process performed by the print setting generation unit 204 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing the process of changing the target printer on the paper feed setting screen of application 200 executed by PC 100 (printer change process). The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 9 is realized by CPU 11 loading a program recorded in external storage device 16 into RAM 13 and executing it. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 9 is started when application input unit 202 detects that printer change button 611 arranged in Fig. 6(a) and Fig. 6(b) has been pressed.

[0058] In S900, the print setting generation unit 204 acquires the selected printer from the application input unit 202. After S900, the print setting generation unit 204 proceeds to S501. Since the subsequent steps S501 to S509 are the same as the steps in FIG. 5, a description thereof will be omitted.

[0059] Hereinafter, the printer change process performed by the print setting generation unit 204 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the processing up to printing execution of application 200 executed by PC 100. Specifically, the processing shown in the flowchart in FIG. 10 calls and executes the print setting screen display processing of FIG. 5, then executes the paper feed setting change processing of FIG. 8 in response to user input, and transmits drawing data and print settings to OS standard printing system 210. Note that the processing shown in the flowchart in FIG. 10 is realized by CPU 11 loading a program recorded in external storage device 16 into RAM 13 and executing it. Also, the processing shown in the flowchart in FIG. 10 is started when a user operation that triggers the print setting screen display processing is performed on a screen displayed by application 200. Note that the same step numbers are assigned to steps that are the same as those in FIG. 5.

[0060] In S1001, the print setting generation unit 204 checks whether it has detected the pressing of the paper feed setting change button 613 on the print setting screen until the application input unit 202 detects the pressing of the print button 615 on the print setting screen displayed on the application display unit 201.

[0061] Here, if the application input unit 202 detects that the paper feed setting change button 613 on the print setting screen is pressed before detecting the press of the print button 615 on the print setting screen (Yes in S1001), the print setting generation unit 204 proceeds to S1002. On the other hand, if the application input unit 202 does not detect the pressing of the paper feed setting change button 613 on the print setting screen before detecting the pressing of the print button 615 on the print setting screen (No in S1001), the print setting generation unit 204 proceeds to S1003.

[0062] In S1002, the print setting generation unit 204 calls and executes the paper feed setting change process of FIG. 8, and the process proceeds to S1003. In S1003, the print setting generation unit 204 transmits the print settings set on the print setting screen and the drawing data acquired in S502 to the OS standard print system 210, and the process of this flowchart ends.

[0063] As described above, according to the first embodiment, by automatically setting the paper feed setting defaults when printing, it is possible to eliminate the need for the user to select cut paper or roll paper for each print job. Furthermore, the automatically set paper feed setting can be checked on the print setting screen before printing. If the automatically set paper feed setting is not what the user intended, the user can change the paper feed setting on the print setting screen before printing. This eliminates the need for the user to select cut paper or roll paper for each print job, while also reducing the possibility of printing being performed against the user's intention.

[0064] Second Embodiment In the first embodiment described above, a method for automatically setting default paper feed settings without communicating with the printer 110 was described. In the second embodiment, a configuration in which the PC 100 communicates with the printer 110 and displays a warning if there is a difference between the paper feed settings set at the time the print settings are opened and the paper feed settings of the printer 110 is different will be described using Figures 11 and 12. Note that, hereinafter, descriptions of the same parts as in the first embodiment will be omitted, and only the differences will be described.

[0065] Hereinafter, the detailed processing content of the paper feed alignment confirmation processing by the print setting generation unit 204 will be described with reference to FIG. Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for checking paper feed alignment with a printer in the second embodiment. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 10 is realized by the CPU 11 loading a program recorded in the external storage device 16 into the RAM 13 and executing it. The process shown in the flowchart in Fig. 11 is started after the print setting screen display process in Fig. 5 is executed.

[0066] In S1101, the print setting generation unit 204 uses the communication control unit 220 to acquire paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 from the printer 110, and the process proceeds to S1102. In S1102, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether there is a difference in the paper feed setting based on the paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 acquired in S1101 above and the current paper feed setting information held by the print setting generation unit 204.

[0067] Here, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that there is no difference between the paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 and the current paper feed setting information held by the print setting generation unit 204 (No in S1102), it terminates the processing of this flowchart. On the other hand, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that there is a difference between the paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 and the current paper feed setting information held by the print setting generation unit 204 (Yes in S1102), the process proceeds to S1103.

[0068] In S1103, the application display unit 201 displays a paper feed setting inconsistency warning screen 1200 as shown in FIG. 12, which indicates that there is a difference between the paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 and the current paper feed setting information. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a warning display screen displayed on the display device of the PC in the second embodiment. After S1103, the print setting generation unit 204 executes the process of S1104.

[0069] In S1104, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether the application input unit 202 has detected a press of either the paper feed setting change disallow button 1210 or the paper feed setting change allow button 1220 arranged on the paper feed setting inconsistency warning screen 1200.

[0070] Here, if the application input unit 202 detects that the paper feed setting change disallow button 1210 on the paper feed setting inconsistency warning screen 1200 has been pressed (No in S1104), the print setting generation unit 204 ends the processing of this flowchart. On the other hand, if the application input unit 202 detects that the paper feed setting change permission button 1220 on the paper feed setting inconsistency warning screen 1200 has been pressed (Yes in S1104), the print setting generation unit 204 advances the process to S1105.

[0071] In S1105, the print setting generation unit 204 determines whether "cut paper" is set based on the paper feed setting information set in the printer 110 acquired in S1101. Here, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the paper feed setting set in the printer 110 acquired in S1101 above is "cut paper" (Yes in S1105), the process proceeds to S1106. In S1106, the print setting generation unit 204 displays the print setting screen 620 with cut paper set as shown in Figure 6(b) on the application display unit 201 with the paper feed setting "cut paper" set, and ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0072] On the other hand, if the print setting generation unit 204 determines that the paper feed setting set in the printer 110 acquired in S1101 is "roll paper" (No in S1105), the process proceeds to S1107. In S1107, the print setting generation unit 204 displays the print setting screen 610 with roll paper set as shown in Figure 6(a) on the application display unit 201 with the paper feed setting "roll paper" set, and ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0073] As described above, according to the second embodiment, by checking the consistency between the printer 110 and the paper feed settings when the print setting screen is displayed, even if the printer 110 is a printer that cannot automatically switch paper feeds, printing can be performed without causing an error in the printer 110. In addition, the paper feed settings set on the print setting screen can be checked before printing is performed. Then, by checking the printer's paper feed settings in advance, if the paper feed settings expected by the user differ from the paper feed settings of the printer 110, it can be confirmed that the settings need to be changed in the printer 110. This allows the user to check the paper feed settings set at the time of printing and the paper feed settings of the printer 110 before printing is performed, thereby reducing the possibility of printing being performed with paper feed settings that are contrary to the user's intentions.

[0074] According to each of the above embodiments, by automatically setting the default paper feed settings when setting up printing and allowing the user to check and change them, the user is saved the trouble of having to select cut paper or roll paper when setting up the paper feed, and the possibility of printing occurring against the user's intentions is reduced.

[0075] The various controls described above as being performed by CPU 11 may be performed by a single piece of hardware, or the entire device may be controlled by multiple pieces of hardware (e.g., multiple processors or circuits) sharing the processing. Furthermore, although the present invention has been described in detail based on preferred embodiments thereof, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various forms within the scope of the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. Furthermore, each of the above-described embodiments merely represents one embodiment of the present invention, and each embodiment can be combined as appropriate.

[0076] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to an information processing device, but the present invention is not limited to this example and can be applied to any device that has a display unit on which print settings can be checked and an input unit on which the print settings can be changed, and has the function of generating print data and print settings, transmitting them to printer 110, and controlling printing. In other words, the present invention can also be applied to personal computers, PDAs, mobile phone terminals, portable image viewers, devices with displays, digital photo frames, e-book readers, and the like, as long as they have the above-described functions.

[0077] It goes without saying that the configurations and contents of the various data described above are not limited to those described above, and that the data may be configured in various configurations and contents depending on the application and purpose. Although one embodiment has been described above, the present invention can be embodied as, for example, a system, an apparatus, a method, a program, a storage medium, etc. Specifically, the present invention may be applied to a system made up of multiple devices, or may be applied to an apparatus made up of a single device. Furthermore, the present invention also includes any combination of the above embodiments.

[0078] Other Embodiments The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that implements one or more of the 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. In this case, the program and the storage medium storing the program constitute the present invention. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions. Furthermore, the present invention may be applied to a system made up of multiple devices, or to an apparatus made up of a single device. The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications (including organic combinations of the embodiments) are possible based on the spirit of the present invention, and these modifications are not excluded from the scope of the present invention. In other words, all configurations that combine the above-described embodiments and their modifications are included in the present invention.

[0079] The disclosure of this embodiment includes the following configuration, method, program, and storage medium. (Configuration 1) An information device capable of communicating with a printing device in which roll paper and cut paper can be set at the same time, a first acquisition means for acquiring information about a print job; a control means for controlling the display of a setting screen in which a first setting for printing on roll paper or a second setting for printing on cut paper is set as a print setting based on the print job information acquired by the first acquisition means; a change means for changing the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen in response to a user operation; An information processing device comprising: (Configuration 2) The information processing device according to configuration 1, wherein the control means displays the setting screen as the first setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the size of the drawing data exceeds the size of the cut paper that can be fed. (Configuration 3) The information processing device according to configuration 1 or 2, characterized in that the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the size of the drawing data does not exceed a specified size. (Configuration 4) The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 3, wherein the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the drawing data is multiple pages. (Configuration 5) The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, characterized in that the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that all four sides of the drawing data have margins of a predetermined size or more. (Configuration 6) The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 5, wherein the control means displays the setting screen with a predetermined setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that at least one of the four sides of the drawing data does not have a margin of a predetermined size or more. (Configuration 7) a second acquisition means for acquiring a paper feed setting of the printing device from the printing device; The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 6, characterized in that, when the paper feed settings set on the setting screen by controlling the setting screen differ from the paper feed settings of the printing device acquired by the second acquisition means, the information processing device is controlled to display a warning indicating that the paper feed settings of the printing device differ from the paper feed settings on the setting screen. (Configuration 8) a selection means for selecting, in response to the warning, whether to match the paper feed setting on the setting screen with the paper feed setting of the printing device in accordance with a user operation; The information processing device according to configuration 7, wherein the control means controls the display of a setting screen in which the same paper feed settings as those of the printing device are set when the selection means selects to match the paper feed settings of the printing device. (Method 1) A control method for an information device that can communicate with a printing device that can simultaneously load roll paper and cut paper, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring information about a print job; a control step of controlling to display a setting screen on which a first setting for printing on roll paper or a second setting for printing on cut paper is set as a print setting based on the print job information acquired in the acquisition step; a changing step of changing the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen in response to a user operation; 1. A method for controlling an information processing device, comprising: (Program 1) A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device described in any one of configurations 1 to 8. (Storage medium 1) A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device described in any one of configurations 1 to 8. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 100 PC 110 Printer 200 applications

Claims

1. An information device capable of communicating with a printing device in which roll paper and cut paper can be set at the same time, a first acquisition means for acquiring information about a print job; a control means for controlling the display of a setting screen in which a first setting for printing on roll paper or a second setting for printing on cut paper is set as a print setting based on the print job information acquired by the first acquisition means; and a change unit that changes the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen in response to a user operation; An information processing device comprising:

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means displays the setting screen as the first setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the size of the drawing data exceeds the size of the cut paper that can be fed.

3. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the size of the drawing data does not exceed a specified size.

4. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the print job information acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that the drawing data is for multiple pages.

5. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means displays the setting screen as the second setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that all four sides of the drawing data have margins of a predetermined size or more.

6. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means displays the setting screen with a predetermined setting when the information of the print job acquired by the first acquisition means indicates that at least one of the four sides of the drawing data does not have a margin of a predetermined size or more.

7. a second acquisition unit that acquires a paper feed setting of the printing device from the printing device; An information processing device as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that if the paper feed settings set on the setting screen by controlling the setting screen differ from the paper feed settings of the printing device acquired by the second acquisition means, the information processing device is controlled to display a warning indicating that the paper feed settings of the printing device differ from the paper feed settings on the setting screen.

8. a selection means for selecting, in response to the warning, whether to match the paper feed setting on the setting screen with the paper feed setting of the printing device in accordance with a user operation; The information processing device according to claim 7, characterized in that the control means controls to display a setting screen in which the same paper feed settings as the paper feed settings of the printing device are set when the selection means selects to match the paper feed settings of the printing device.

9. A control method for an information device that can communicate with a printing device that can simultaneously load roll paper and cut paper, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring information about a print job; a control step of controlling to display a setting screen on which a first setting for printing on roll paper or a second setting for printing on cut paper is set as a print setting based on the print job information acquired in the acquisition step; a changing step of changing the first setting or the second setting displayed on the setting screen in response to a user operation; 1. A method for controlling an information processing device, comprising:

10. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

11. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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