Application program, control method, and information processing device.

Abstract

The objective is to provide a mechanism that allows an image forming apparatus to be instructed to print a grayscale image with adjusted color tones after the grayscale image has been converted from a color image. [Solution] The extended application 204 causes the computer to perform a display control step that displays a detailed settings screen (settings acceptance screen) 300C that accepts settings for grayscale conversion to convert a color image to a grayscale image, and an instruction step that instructs the printing device 102 to perform grayscale conversion based on the settings accepted on the detailed settings screen 300C. The settings acceptance screen includes a method selection unit (control 315) for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting for grayscale conversion.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an application program, a control method, and an information processing apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] A host computer (information processing apparatus) capable of processing information with a printing apparatus is communicably connected to the printing apparatus that performs printing. As control software for controlling the printing apparatus, for example, a printer driver installed from the printing apparatus to the host computer is used. With this printer driver, a printing instruction can be given from the host computer to the printing apparatus. An operating system (hereinafter referred to as "OS"), which is basic software, is pre-installed on the host computer. The printer driver has a configuration conforming to the specifications defined by the OS and can be called from the OS to operate. Also, such a printer driver is different for each vendor that supplies the printing apparatus, that is, a printer driver specific to a model suitable for each printing apparatus.

[0003] In recent years, Windows® has provided a standard class driver (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "standard driver") that can be used in common even for printing devices supplied by multiple different vendors. Such standard drivers are pre-installed in the OS. By connecting any printing device to a host computer with an OS that has the standard driver installed, the standard driver can be used. This eliminates the need to install the model-specific printer driver. Furthermore, the standard driver can be used by specifying the printing functions of the printing device according to the Print Device Capabilities (hereinafter referred to as "PDC") generated based on information obtained from the printing device. This allows printing functions to be specified for each printing device with a single standard driver. Functionality extension applications (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "extension applications") that extend the functionality can be associated with the standard driver. Extension applications are provided by each vendor. Therefore, it is difficult to execute the functions of extension applications with the standard driver alone.

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses an extension application that expands the functionality of a vendor's proprietary color printing, poster printing, bookbinding printing, and other printing capabilities. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-33526 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] As mentioned earlier, printer drivers differ depending on the vendor supplying the printing device; in other words, they are model-specific printer drivers suited to each printing device. These printer drivers allow the printing device to perform vendor-specific color printing. Standard drivers allow the printing device to perform general (standard) color printing that is not vendor-specific. However, standard drivers have the problem that they cannot convert color images to grayscale images and then print those grayscale images with adjusted color tones.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems. The object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism that can instruct an image forming apparatus to print a grayscale image with adjusted color tones when the grayscale image is converted from a color image. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To achieve the above objective, the application program of the present invention is a standard driver provided by an operating system provider, and is an application program that supports a standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, and causes a computer to perform a display control step of displaying a setting reception screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion to convert a color image to a grayscale image, and an instruction step of instructing an image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings accepted on the setting reception screen, wherein the setting reception screen includes a method selection unit for selecting the method of the grayscale conversion as the setting. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, an image forming apparatus can be instructed to print a grayscale image with adjusted color tones when the grayscale image is converted from a color image. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printing system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the software configuration of a printing system. [Figure 3A] This figure shows an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a printing system. [Figure 3B] This figure shows an example of a table used to explain the effects of grayscale conversion methods. [Figure 3C] This is an illustrative diagram showing the effect of the grayscale conversion method. [Figure 4] This flowchart shows the process by which the print function extension unit edits print function information. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of a list of printing device capability information. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of a list of printing functions supported by the extended application. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of a list of capability information for general-purpose printing software. [Figure 8] This is a sequence diagram showing the processes that occur between the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extension applications, and printing device after the drawing application accepts the print settings. [Figure 9] This is a block diagram showing the software configuration of the printing system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10A] This flowchart shows the process by which the print function extension unit edits print function information. [Figure 10B] This is a sequence diagram showing the processes that occur between the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extension applications, and printing device after the drawing application accepts the print settings. [Figure 11] This is a block diagram showing the software configuration of the printing system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 12] This flowchart shows the process by which the print function extension unit edits print function information. [Figure 13] It is a diagram showing an example of a list of ability information. [Figure 14] It is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the printing system. [Figure 15] It is a graph as an example of a LUT (Look-Up Table) used in the "darken" process. [Figure 16] It is an image diagram showing the effect of gray conversion processing other than the gray conversion method. [Figure 17] It is an image diagram showing the effect of the "differentiate" process. [Figure 18] It is a sequence diagram showing the processes executed among the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extended application, and printing device after the drawing application accepts the print settings.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, each embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the configurations described in the following embodiments are merely examples, and the scope of the present invention is not limited by the configurations described in each embodiment. For example, each part constituting the present invention can be replaced with any configuration that can exhibit the same function. Also, any component may be added. Further, any two or more configurations (features) in each embodiment can be combined.

[0012] <First Embodiment> Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8.

[0013] <Hardware Configuration of the Printing System> Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printing system according to the first embodiment. As shown in Figure 1, the printing system 1000 includes a host computer 101, a printing device 102, a pointing device 117, a keyboard 118, and a display unit 119, which are connected to each other in a communicative manner. The host computer 101 is an information processing device and includes an input interface 110, a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, an external storage device (storage medium) 114, an output interface 115, an input / output interface 116, and a NET interface 120. The host computer 101 can be, for example, a desktop personal computer, but is not limited to this; for example, a notebook personal computer, a tablet terminal, a smartphone, etc., can also be used.

[0014] The CPU 111 is a computer that executes programs stored in the ROM 112 and the external storage device 114. This allows the CPU 111 to execute each process (control method) described later. The ROM 112 stores the initialization program. The external storage device 114 stores application programs, the operating system (OS), print data generation software, and various other data. In this embodiment, Microsoft's Windows 11 is installed on the host computer 101 as the OS. The RAM 113 is used as work memory for executing various programs stored in the external storage device 114, allowing various programs to run within the host computer 101. The input interface 110 is connected to input devices such as the pointing device 117 and the keyboard 118. The output interface 115 is connected to the display unit 119 as a display device. The display unit 119 displays, for example, the print settings screen 300A and the detailed settings screen 300C described later. The NET interface 120 is a network interface that controls data transfer to and from external devices via the network. The printer 102 is connected to the input / output interface 116. This allows the host computer 101 to communicate with printers 102 from multiple manufacturers, regardless of the manufacturer of the printer 102, meaning that information can be processed between printers 102 from multiple manufacturers.

[0015] The printing device 102 can be, for example, an image forming apparatus such as a multi-function peripheral (MFP) that has multiple functions such as copying, printing, and faxing, but is not limited to this. Also, the printing performed by the printing device 102 is electrophotographic printing in this embodiment, but is not limited to this, and could be inkjet printing, for example. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the host computer 101 and the printing device 102 are configured as separate devices, but is not limited to this. For example, the host computer 101 and the printing device 102 may be configured as an integrated device.

[0016] <Configuration of a software-centric printing system> Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of a printing system. Figure 2(a) shows a typical configuration when the extended application (application program) 204 is not associated with the general-purpose printing software (standard driver) 202 and the printing device 102. Figure 2(b) shows a configuration when the extended application 204 is associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102. The general-purpose printing software 202 is a standard driver provided by the OS provider. The standard driver is a class driver (general-purpose program) that can be used in common, for example, during printing, for printing devices from multiple manufacturers. The standard driver is pre-installed (built into) the OS, that is, it is provided as one of the functions in the OS package. The standard driver can perform processing for various printing devices by utilizing a standardized printing method. As a result, the standard driver can generate and output instructions that can be interpreted by printing devices from multiple manufacturers. The general-purpose printing software 202 uses a program that operates based on IPP (Internet Printing Protocol). The extension application 204 is a program that supports, or assists, the general-purpose printing software 202. In this embodiment, the extension application 204 is an extension program (a program that executes control methods) that can extend functions that the general-purpose printing software 202 cannot perform on the printing device 102, but is not limited to this. For example, the extension application 204 may be a program that improves the convenience of the functions that the general-purpose printing software 202 can perform on the printing device 102. The extension application 204 is stored in the external storage device 114 together with the OS (general-purpose printing software 202), for example. As a result, the host computer 101 has the general-purpose printing software 202 and the extension application 204.

[0017] <If no extension application is associated> First, referring to Figure 2(a), we will describe the configuration when the extended application 204 is not associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102. The drawing application 201 is software that creates content (print data) to be printed by the printing device 102. The drawing application 201 is not particularly limited and can include, for example, a word processing application or a spreadsheet application. The drawing application 201 issues a print command to the OS upon receiving a print request from the user, for example via the keyboard 118. The print command includes print setting information to instruct the operation of the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102. The print setting information is also called a "Print Ticket (PT)". In addition, the drawing application 201 can display a print setting screen 300A (see Figure 3A(a)) provided by the general-purpose printing software 202, the OS, or the drawing application 201 on the display unit 119 in order to output the print setting information. Furthermore, by operating (pressing) the control 305 within the print settings screen 300A, the detailed settings screen 300B (see Figure 3A(b)) or the detailed settings screen 300C (see Figure 3A(c)) can be displayed on the display unit 119. The print settings screens 300A to the detailed settings screens 300C will be described later. The print settings screen 300A includes setting items that indicate the printable printing functions and control items that indicate the setting values, according to the capability information obtained from the general-purpose printing software 202, that is, the information that can be set as print settings. The capability information is capability information related to the printing device 102's ability to perform printing, and is also called Print Capabilities (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "PC"). It is also possible to determine whether or not this capability information contains information that enables the display of the detailed settings screen 300C. If, as a result of this determination, it is determined that the information that enables the display of the detailed settings screen 300C is contained, the detailed settings screen 300C can be displayed. On the other hand, if it is determined that the information necessary to display the detailed settings screen 300C is not included, the detailed settings screen 300C will not be displayed.In this way, the extended application 204 can switch whether or not to display the detailed settings screen 300C depending on the capabilities information of the printing device 102.

[0018] The general-purpose printing software 202 determines the PC based on the printing function information 203. The printing function information 203 is data indicating the printing functions, which includes all configurable printing functions, their settings, and mutual exclusion relationships between the settings. The printing function information 203 is also called PDC (Print Device Capabilities). The printing function information 203 is included in the configuration file of the general-purpose printing software 202 and is placed on the external storage device 114 as an immutable file. Alternatively, the printing function information 203 is dynamically generated by the general-purpose printing software 202. Specifically, the general-purpose printing software 202 obtains attribute data of the printing device 102 from the printing device 102. The general-purpose printing software 202 generates the printing function information 203 according to the attribute information in this attribute data. When the printing function information 203 is dynamically generated in this way, it is possible to edit the printing function information 203. Furthermore, the attribute data of the printer 102 is the response obtained by issuing the IPP "Get-Printer-Attributes" operation to the printer 102. The response includes attribute information indicating the functions that can be specified by the printer 102, i.e., the capabilities of the printer 102, and setting values ​​related to that attribute information. The response is also stored in RAM 113.

[0019] With this configuration, the general-purpose printing software 202 allows the user to specify the printing functions available on the printing device 102, depending on the printing device 102 connected to the general-purpose printing software 202. This makes it possible to specify the printing functions available on the printing device regardless of the printing device 102 connected to the general-purpose printing software 202, that is, even when a printing device with different functions or a printing device developed by a different printer manufacturer is connected. In this embodiment, the general-purpose printing software 202 is assumed to be configured to use the "IPP Class Driver" included in Windows® 11. The "IPP Class Driver" is a printer driver that performs printing processing according to the specifications of a standard printing protocol called IPP, and is included in the OS package. The "IPP Class Driver" is not a specific printer driver for each model of printing device 102, but a standard class driver that can be used in common with printing devices 102 from each printer manufacturer, regardless of the printer manufacturer. The "IPP Class Driver" also acquires capability information of the printing device 102 and generates printing function information 203 based on that information.

[0020] Furthermore, an extension application 204 can be associated with the general-purpose printing software 202. This allows the general-purpose printing software 202 to perform functions that are not present in the general-purpose printing software 202. For example, the IPP ClassDriver (general-purpose printing software 202) cannot perform the function of accepting settings to convert color images to grayscale images (hereinafter referred to as "grayscale conversion settings"). This is because the grayscale conversion settings function is a function that is uniquely performed by the printing device 102 manufactured by a given printer manufacturer. The extension application 204 can extend the grayscale conversion settings function that the IPP ClassDriver cannot perform to enable it to perform. In this embodiment, the IPP ClassDriver cannot perform the grayscale conversion settings function, and the extension application 204 can extend that grayscale conversion settings function to enable it to perform, but it is not limited to this. For example, the IPP ClassDriver may be able to perform a part of the grayscale conversion settings function, and the extension application 204 may supplement the missing parts of that grayscale conversion settings function to further extend its execution range.

[0021] The OS generates intermediate data (sometimes called "input data") based on the print command output from the drawing application 201 and sends it to the general-purpose printing software 202. The data output by the drawing application 201 for printing is not particularly limited, but for example, XML Paper Specification (XPS) format data is preferred. Alternatively, the data output by the drawing application 201 for printing may be Graphic Device Interface (GDI) format data. When using the IPP Class Driver as the general-purpose printing software 202, if the data output by the drawing application 201 is in GDI format, the OS converts the GDI format data to XPS format data. The OS then sends this converted XPS format data to the general-purpose printing software 202 as intermediate data. The intermediate data includes drawing data, which is information such as characters and figures to be formed on the print medium, and print setting information set by the user.

[0022] The general-purpose printing software 202 converts the intermediate data into printable data (image data) that can be processed by the printing device 102, i.e., printable, and transmits it to the printing device 102. In this embodiment, "print data" refers to Page Description Language (PDL) data equivalent to IPP. PDL data is, for example, data in PDF (Portable Document Format) or PWG-Raster format. The print data includes drawing data, which is information such as characters and figures formed on the printing paper (printing medium), and print setting attribute information, which is generated based on print setting information set by the user and specifies the print settings. The print setting attribute information includes attribute information indicating the functions that can be specified by the printing device 102, i.e., the capabilities of the printing device 102, and setting values ​​related to said attribute information.

[0023] The printing device 102 prints on the paper based on the print data sent from the general-purpose printing software 202. At this time, the printing device 102 can form the drawing data contained in the print data on the paper by performing operations according to the print setting attribute information contained in the print data. The print setting attribute information includes, for example, print quality such as image quality priority or speed priority, attribute information for specifying double-sided printing or single-sided printing, and the setting values ​​of said attribute information. For example, if the print setting attribute information includes attribute information for specifying double-sided printing, the printing device 102 can perform double-sided printing.

[0024] <If an extended application is associated> Referring to Figure 2(b), the configuration when the extended application 204 is associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102 will be described. As shown in Figure 2(b), unlike Figure 2(a), the extended application 204 is added. That is, the host computer 101 has the drawing application 201, the general-purpose printing software 202, the printing function information 203, and further has the extended application 204. The extended application 204 is software for extending the functionality of the general-purpose printing software 202. Note that the extended application 204 is software that is not pre-included (not bundled) with the OS. Therefore, the extended application 204 is downloaded from a server (not shown) via the Internet by the user operating the host computer 101 and installed on the host computer 101. Alternatively, the extended application 204 may be automatically installed on the host computer 101 based on the connection when the printing device 102 is connected to the host computer 101. Specifically, when the printing device 102 is connected to the host computer 101, the OS obtains device identification information from the printing device 102. The OS may download and install the extended application 204 corresponding to this device identification information from a server via the internet. As a result, the host computer 101 will maintain the general-purpose printing software 202 and the extended application 204 as separate control programs. The general-purpose printing software 202 and the extended application 204 may be updated and upgraded. In this case, the update process for the general-purpose printing software 202 and the update process for the extended application 204 may occur at the same time or at different times. Also, the trigger for the host computer 101 to acquire the general-purpose printing software 202 and the trigger for acquiring the extended application 204 may be the same trigger or different triggers. Furthermore, when the extended application 204 is installed, the OS associates the extended application 204 with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102.

[0025] As shown in Figure 2(b), the extended application 204 can exchange information (send and receive information) with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102, respectively. That is, the extended application 204 is associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 102. In this embodiment, the extended application 204 has a print settings screen extension unit 205, a print function extension unit 206, an intermediate data editing unit 207, and a notification unit 209. The extended application 204 also has shared information 208 that can be accessed from each of the units: the print settings screen extension unit 205, the print function extension unit 206, the intermediate data editing unit 207, and the notification unit 209. The shared information 208 is a file stored in the external storage device 114 or information stored in the RAM 113. The extended application 204 can write to and read the shared information 208 by using the API (Application Program Interface) provided by the OS.

[0026] Furthermore, the extended application 204 may terminate its operation as a whole when the processing of each unit from the print settings screen extended unit 205 to the notification unit 209 is completed. In this case, the OS will start the extended application 204 each time it receives a processing execution request for each unit. Also, the OS will terminate the operation of the extended application 204 as a whole, for example, when the processing of the print settings screen extended unit 205 is completed. In addition, the extended application 204 may cancel the processing of each unit from the print settings screen extended unit 205 to the notification unit 209 while it is in progress. In this case, the OS will delete the jobs currently being processed on the print queue. As mentioned above, the drawing application 201 issues a print command to the OS upon receiving a print request from the user. The drawing application 201 can also display the print settings screen. In the configuration shown in Figure 2(b), the drawing application 201 can display the print settings screen 300A (detailed settings screen 300C) provided by the print settings screen extended unit 205 (extended application 204). Furthermore, the print settings screen extension unit 205 can save the detailed settings configured by the user to the shared information 208.

[0027] The intermediate data editing unit 207 acquires intermediate data from the general-purpose printing software 202. The intermediate data editing unit 207 then converts the intermediate data into print data and transmits the print data to the printing device 102. The intermediate data editing unit 207 also acquires detailed setting information from the shared information 208 and adds the detailed settings to the print data. The printing device 102 prints on the paper based on the print data from the intermediate data editing unit 207. The extended application 204 may also be configured to acquire the print data generated by the general-purpose printing software 202 and add the detailed settings to the print data. Furthermore, even in the configuration shown in Figure 2(b), the grayscale conversion setting may not be performed. In this case, the general-purpose printing software 202 may transmit the print data to the printing device 102 without going through the extended application 204.

[0028] The print function extension unit 206 can edit the print function information 203 (PDC) generated by the general-purpose printing software 202 or the OS. This allows for the addition of functions provided by the extension application 204. It can also add functions that are executable on the printing device 102 but not on the general-purpose printing software 202 (e.g., grayscale conversion function), and add mutual exclusion relationships between print function settings. The OS starts the print function extension unit 206 when the extension application 204 is first associated with the printing device 102 and the general-purpose printing software 202. The OS may also start the print function extension unit 206 at other times (e.g., when the OS starts). With such startup, even if printing-related functions are extended later, the print function extension unit 206 can detect the extension and add it to the print function information 203. An example of later extensions to printing-related functions is the addition of optional devices (e.g., a finisher) to the printing device 102.

[0029] The notification unit 209 can notify the user when an error occurs in the printer 102. For example, if a paper out error occurs in the printer 102, the general-purpose printing software 202 detects this error. The OS uses a notification function called toast notification, which is one of the functions of the OS, to display the paper out error detected by the general-purpose printing software 202 as a message on the display unit 119. When the user interacts with the toast notification, the notification unit 209 is called by the OS and the user interface screen (UI screen) of the notification unit 209 is displayed. The user interface screen can display, for example, detailed messages regarding the paper out error and instructions on how to load paper.

[0030] As described above, in this embodiment, the extended application 204 can be said to have the following four functions. The first function is to display a settings screen. This function is performed by the print settings screen extension unit 205. The second function is to edit intermediate data, convert it into print data, and add detailed settings to the print data. This function is performed by the intermediate data editing unit 207. The third function is to extend the functions that can be specified in the print data generation software. This function is performed by the print function extension unit 206. The fourth function is to display a screen in response to an error occurring in the printer 102. This function is performed by the notification unit 209. Note that the configuration of the extended application 204 is not limited to a configuration having these four functions, and a configuration having at least one function is preferable, and a configuration having other functions is also possible. Furthermore, once the extended application 204 has sent print data to the printer 102, it is not possible to display screens such as guides associated with the print data during the processing of each unit.

[0031] <Example of print settings screen / advanced settings screen> Figure 3A shows an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a printing system. Figure 3A(a) is the print settings screen displayed by the drawing application 201. Figure 3A(b) is the detailed settings screen displayed when the extended application 204 is not associated. Figures 3A(c) and 3A(d) are the detailed settings screens displayed when the extended application 204 is associated. Note that the units and modules that display each screen are not particularly limited. For example, the print settings screen extension unit 205 may be configured only to generate the display screen. In that case, the print settings screen extension unit 205 sends the generated display screen to the drawing application 201 via the general-purpose printing software 202. The drawing application 201 may be configured to display the acquired display screen.

[0032] The print settings screen 300A shown in Figure 3A(a) is a screen where printing conditions related to printing on the printer 102 can be set. This print settings screen 300A includes controls (buttons) 301, 302, 303, 304, and 305. Control 301 allows you to set the printer 102 to be used for printing, the orientation of printing on the printer 102, the number of copies to print on the printer 102, and the output color. For example, if "Color (CL)" is selected in control 301, the output will be in gray using CMYK, and if "Monochrome (BW)" is selected, the output will be in black (K) only. In Figure 3A(a), as an example, the printer 102 used for printing is set to "Printer 200a", the number of copies to print on the printer 102 is set to "1", the orientation of printing on the printer 102 is set to "Portrait", and the output color is set to "Auto". Control 302 displays a preview screen. Control 303 can be used to instruct the printer 102 to start printing. Control 304 can be used to instruct the printer 102 to cancel printing. Control 305 allows for detailed settings to be configured.

[0033] In configurations where the extended application 204 is not associated, operating control 305 displays the detailed settings screen 300B shown in Figure 3A(b). The detailed settings screen 300B includes controls 306, 307, 308, and 309. Controls 306 to 308 are arranged vertically at the top of the detailed settings screen 300B. Control 309 is located at the bottom of the detailed settings screen 300B. Control 306 allows you to select and set the type of paper used for printing with the printer 102. In Figure 3A(b), "plain paper" is selected as an example. Control 307 allows you to select and set the paper size used for printing with the printer 102. In Figure 3A(b), "A4" is selected as an example. Control 308 allows you to select the paper feed slot used for printing with the printer 102. In Figure 3A(b), "automatic" is selected as an example. Control 309 allows you to exit the settings made in controls 306 through 308. Operating control 309 also returns you to the print settings screen 300A shown in Figure 3A(a).

[0034] When the extended application 204 is associated with the system, pressing (operating) control 305 displays the detailed settings screen (settings acceptance screen) 300C shown in Figure 3A(c) (display control process). The detailed settings screen 300C is displayed together with the print settings screen 300A, but its display mode is not particularly limited. For example, the detailed settings screen 300C may be displayed overlaid on the print settings screen 300A, or it may be displayed adjacent to the print settings screen 300A, or the print settings screen 300A may disappear before the detailed settings screen 300C is displayed. The detailed settings screen 300C is a screen that can accept grayscale conversion settings. The detailed settings screen 300C includes controls 306 to 309, similar to the detailed settings screen 300B. In addition, the detailed settings screen 300C includes controls 310, 312, and 313 as grayscale conversion settings. Control 310 is a setting selection unit for selecting whether to enable or disable the grayscale conversion setting. By pressing Control 310, a list 311 is displayed which includes "Enable" (indicating that the grayscale conversion setting is enabled) and "Disable" (indicating that the grayscale conversion setting is disabled). The user can then select the desired option from "Enable" or "Disable". Figure 3A(c) shows an example where "Enable" is selected. Control 312 is an operation unit for displaying the detailed settings screen (settings reception screen) 300D (see Figure 3A(d)) for detailed settings of the grayscale conversion setting. By pressing Control 312, the detailed settings screen 300D is displayed. The display manner of the detailed settings screen 300D is not particularly limited. For example, the detailed settings screen 300D may be displayed overlaid on the detailed settings screen 300C, or it may be displayed adjacent to the detailed settings screen 300C, or the detailed settings screen 300C may disappear before the detailed settings screen 300D is displayed. Control 313 is a forced restoration unit that forcibly restores the detailed settings of the grayscale conversion settings configured on the detailed settings screen 300D to their initial state.This allows you to, for example, reconfigure the detailed settings for grayscale conversion in the detailed settings screen 300D.

[0035] The detailed settings screen 300D includes controls 315, 330, and 331. Control 315 is a method selection unit for selecting the grayscale conversion method. Pressing control 315 displays a list 316 containing a list of selectable grayscale conversion methods. In this embodiment, list 316 includes, but is not limited to, three conversion methods: conversion method 1, conversion method 2, and conversion method 3. Conversion methods 1 to 3 will be described later. Figure 3A(c) shows, as an example, the state when "conversion method 1" is selected. Control 330 allows the user to save the settings from the detailed settings screen 300D to the external storage device 114 and exit. Control 331 allows the user to exit without saving the settings from the detailed settings screen 300D.

[0036] <How to convert to grayscale> An example of a grayscale conversion method is described below. Figure 3B is a diagram showing an example of a table illustrating the effect of the grayscale conversion method. Figure 3C is an image illustrating the effect of the grayscale conversion method. Conversion method 1 is represented by the following equation (1), conversion method 2 is represented by the following equation (2), and conversion method 3 is represented by the following equation (3). Equations (1) to (3) have different weighting coefficients when converting from RGB to grayscale. In equations (1) to (3), "0" represents black and "255" represents white. Gray1=Red×0.299+Green×0.587+Blue×0.114...(1) Gray2=Red×0.2126+Green×0.7152+Blue×0.0722...(2) Gray3=(Red+Green+Blue) / 3...(3)

[0037] Conversion method 1 is a general conversion method that yields gray to match the brightness. Compared to this general conversion method, if you want to emphasize a specific color, that is, represent it more intensely, then conversion method 2 or conversion method 3 is selected. For example, cyan (C) in a color image is represented as (R,G,B)=(0,255,255). When converting this cyan to grayscale, one of equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (1). As a result, Gray1 = 178.75 ≈ 179 (see "C" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This cyan is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1301 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 200.73 ≈ 201 (see "C" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This cyan is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1307 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 169.98 ≈ 170 (see "C" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This cyan is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1313 in Figure 3C(c). Of the values ​​obtained from equations (1) to (3), the smaller the magnitude, the more intensely (emphasized) the cyan will be represented.

[0038] In a color image, magenta (M) is represented by (R,G,B)=(255,0,255). When converting this magenta to grayscale, one of equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (1). As a result, Gray1 = 105.31 ≈ 105 (see "M" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This magenta is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1302 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 72.57 ≈ 73 (see "M" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This magenta is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1308 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 169.98 ≈ 170 (see "M" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This magenta is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1314 in Figure 3C(c). The smaller the value obtained from equations (1) to (3), the darker the magenta will be represented.

[0039] In a color image, yellow (Y) is represented by (R,G,B)=(255,255,0). When converting this yellow to grayscale, one of equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "255" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue". As a result, Gray1 = 225.93 ≈ 226 (see "Y" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This yellow is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1303 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "255" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 236.58 ≈ 237 (see "Y" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This yellow is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1309 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "255" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 169.98 ≈ 170 (see "Y" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This yellow is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1315 in Figure 3C(c). The smaller the value obtained from equations (1) to (3), the darker the yellow will be represented.

[0040] In a color image, red (R) is represented by (R,G,B)=(255,0,0). When converting this red to grayscale, one of equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (1). As a result, Gray1 = 76.25 ≈ 76 (see "R" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This red is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1304 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 54.21 ≈ 54 (see "R" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This red is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1310 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "255" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 84.998 ≈ 85 (see "R" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This red is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1316 in Figure 3C(c). The smaller the magnitude of the value obtained from equations (1) to (3), the darker the red will be represented.

[0041] In a color image, green (G) is represented by (R,G,B)=(0,255,0). When converting this green to grayscale, one of equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (1). As a result, Gray1 = 149.69 ≈ 150 (see "G" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This green is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1305 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 182.38 ≈ 182 (see "G" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This green is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1311 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "0" for "Red", "255" for "Green", and "0" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 84.99 ≈ 85 (see "G" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This green is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1317 in Figure 3C(c). The smaller the value obtained from equations (1) to (3), the darker the green will be represented.

[0042] In a color image, blue (B) is represented by (R,G,B)=(0,0,255). When converting this blue to grayscale, one of the following equations (1) to (3) can be used. When using equation (1), substitute "0" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (1). As a result, Gray1 = 29.07 ≈ 29 (see "B" in "Conversion Method 1" in Figure 3B). This blue is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1306 in Figure 3C(a). When using equation (2), substitute "0" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (2). As a result, Gray2 = 18.36 ≈ 18 (see "B" in "Conversion Method 2" in Figure 3B). This blue is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1312 in Figure 3C(b). When using equation (3), substitute "0" for "Red", "0" for "Green", and "255" for "Blue" in equation (3). As a result, Gray3 = 84.99 ≈ 85 (see "B" in "Conversion Method 3" in Figure 3B). This blue is represented as the image indicated by the symbol 1318 in Figure 3C(c). The smaller the value obtained from equations (1) to (3), the darker the blue will be represented.

[0043] As described above, the color components used in each of the conversion methods 1 to 3 are different; that is, the proportions of each RGB color component are different. This allows the user to select the appropriate method from conversion methods 1 to 3 depending on the color they want to express more intensely in the image. In this embodiment, the data is converted to one channel of Gray, but the system is not limited to this. For example, gray can be represented by using three RGB channels to achieve the same gray value as (R,G,B)=(Gray1,Gray1,Gray1). Furthermore, the grayscale conversion process may be performed by the CPU 111 (extension application 204) of the host computer 101, or by the CPU of the printing device 102.

[0044] Here, we will explain why the items included in the detailed settings screen 300B shown in Figure 3A(b) and the items included in the detailed settings screen 300C shown in Figure 3A(c) are different. Detailed settings screens 300B and 300C are each generated based on print function information (capability information). As mentioned above, the general-purpose printing software 202 does not support the execution of grayscale conversion settings. In other words, the function of displaying control 315 (method selection section) on the detailed settings screen 300C is a function that cannot be executed by the general-purpose printing software 202. Therefore, the general-purpose printing software 202 alone cannot add the grayscale conversion setting function to the print function information. Furthermore, even if the grayscale conversion setting function was originally included in the print function information, the general-purpose printing software 202 cannot interpret the grayscale conversion setting function included in the print function information. Therefore, it is not possible to display the grayscale conversion setting on the detailed settings screen. To address this, the print function expansion unit 206 adds information regarding the grayscale conversion setting to the print function information 203. Then, the print settings screen extension unit 205 refers to the capability information and displays the detailed settings screen 300C. This allows the extension application 204 to display the grayscale conversion settings on the detailed settings screen.

[0045] <Flowchart for editing print function information on the print function extension unit> Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the process by which the printing function extension unit edits printing function information. The program based on the flowchart shown in Figure 4 is executed by the CPU 111 controlling the printing function extension unit 206. Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of a list of capabilities information for the printing device. Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of a list of printing functions supported by the extension application. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of a list of capabilities information for general-purpose printing software. As shown in Figure 4, in step S401, the printing function extension unit 206 acquires capability information from the printing device 102 prior to the display control step described above (acquisition step). Capability information is information about the printing device 102's ability to perform printing, and in this embodiment, it is a setting value included in the response obtained by issuing the IPP "Get-Printer-Attributes" operation to the printing device 102. The setting value is attribute information that indicates the functions that can be specified by the printing device 102, and related to that attribute information. Table 501 shown in Figure 5 shows a list of capability information for the printing device 102. Capability information includes, for example, information about the paper size used for printing with the printing device 102. Other information includes the type of paper (media) used for printing with the printing device 102, the paper feed slot for the paper used for printing with the printing device 102, and the grayscale conversion function that can be performed with the printing device 102.

[0046] In step S402, the print function extension unit 206 retrieves the print functions supported by the extension application 204 from the shared information 208. The shared information 208 stores a list of print functions supported by the extension application 204. This list includes all print functions that the extension application 204 can process, and their settings. Table 601, shown in Figure 6, contains information on the paper sizes supported by the extension application 204 as print functions. Other information includes information on the types of paper supported by the extension application 204, information on the paper feed slots supported by the extension application 204, and information on the grayscale conversion function supported by the extension application 204. In addition, the print functions supported by the extension application 204 may be updated through updates to the extension application 204, etc.

[0047] In step S403, the print function extension unit 206 obtains print function information 203 created by the general-purpose print software 202 from the OS. The print function information 203 is created based on the capability information (see Table 501) obtained by the general-purpose print software 202 from the printing device 102. The print function information 203 (PDC) created by the general-purpose print software 202 includes only the print functions that the general-purpose print software 202 supports from the capability information obtained from the printing device 102. For example, Table 601 shown in Figure 6 includes "7x10 inches" and "Western style No. 6" as paper sizes, but Table 701 shown in Figure 7 shows that the general-purpose print software 202 does not support these paper sizes. Therefore, the print function information 203 does not include these paper sizes. Also, Table 601 shown in Figure 6 includes information on the grayscale conversion function, but Table 701 shown in Figure 7 shows that the general-purpose print software 202 does not support the grayscale conversion function. Therefore, the print function information 203 does not include a grayscale conversion function. The print function extension unit 206 adds functions and options to the print function information 203, allowing the extension application 204 to compensate for the lack of functionality in the general-purpose printing software 202. The print function extension unit 206 can also remove unnecessary functions and options from the print function information 203 created by the general-purpose printing software 202.

[0048] Steps S404, S405, and S406 are repeated processes for the list of functions contained in the capability information obtained from the printing device 102 in step S401. In this embodiment, steps S404, S405, and S406 are repeated for all 19 options included in Table 501.

[0049] In step S404, the print function extension unit 206 determines whether the function or option currently being processed exists in the print function information 203 generated by the general-purpose printing software 202. If the determination in step S404 determines that it exists in the print function information 203, the processing terminates if the last item among the options is being processed. Alternatively, if the last item among the options is not being processed, the next item among the options is selected and step S404 is executed again. On the other hand, if the determination in step S404 determines that it does not exist in the print function information 203, the process proceeds to step S405. For example, in this embodiment, Table 501 includes the paper size "A4", and Table 701 also includes the paper size "A4". In this case, step S404 determines that the function or option currently being processed exists in the print function information 203. In contrast, Table 501 includes "Grayscale Conversion Method", but Table 701 does not include "Grayscale Conversion Method". In this case, step S404 determines that the function or option currently being processed does not exist in the print function information 203.

[0050] In step S405, the print function extension unit 206 determines whether the currently processed function (option) exists among the functions (options) supported by the extension application 204. If the determination in step S405 is made to determine that the currently processed function exists, the process proceeds to step S406. On the other hand, if the determination in step S405 is made to determine that the currently processed function does not exist, the process ends if the last item among the options is being processed, similar to when "Yes" was determined in step S404. Alternatively, if the last item among the options is not being processed, the next item among the options is selected and step S404 is executed again. For example, in this embodiment, if the currently processed function is the "grayscale conversion function," then the "grayscale conversion function (grayscale conversion method)" also exists in Table 601. Therefore, in step S405, it is determined that the currently processed function exists.

[0051] In step S406, the print function extension unit 206 adds the currently processed function (option) to the print function information 203. After step S406 is executed, if the last item among the options is being processed, the process is terminated, as in the case where "Yes" was determined in step S404. Alternatively, if the last item among the options is not being processed, the next item among the options is selected and step S404 is executed again.

[0052] As described above, the extended application 204 can add functions (options) to the print function information 203 that are not supported by the general-purpose printing software 202, are supported by the printing device 102, and are also supported by the extended application 204. Based on the print function information 203 edited through this addition process, capability information (PC) is generated. The print setting screen extension unit 205 generates a display screen based on this capability information, thereby extending the functions not supported by the general-purpose printing software 202 and displaying the detailed settings screen 300C.

[0053] <Processing after the drawing application accepts the print settings> Figure 8 is a sequence diagram showing the processing performed between the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extended application, and printing device after the drawing application receives print settings. Processing in the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, and extended application is executed by the CPU 111 of the host computer 101. This processing program is stored in the external storage device 114. The CPU 111 then reads the processing program from the external storage device 114 into the RAM 113 and executes it. Processing in the printing device 102 is executed by the CPU (not shown) of the printing device 102. The software configuration of the printing system 1000 is shown in Figure 2(b).

[0054] As shown in Figure 8, in step S801, the drawing application 201 accepts print settings from the user. The user can, for example, operate the pointing device 117 or the keyboard 118 to instruct the drawing application 201 on print settings.

[0055] In step S802, the drawing application 201 displays the print settings screen 300A shown in Figure 3A(a) on the display unit 119.

[0056] In step S803, the drawing application 201 accepts detailed setting instructions from the user. The user can provide detailed settings, for example, by operating the pointing device 117 or keyboard 118 to select control 305 on the print settings screen 300A.

[0057] In step S804, the drawing application 201 requests the general-purpose printing software 202 to display the detailed settings.

[0058] In step S805, the general-purpose printing software 202 requests the extended application 204 to display the detailed settings.

[0059] In step S806, the print settings screen extension unit 205 of the extended application 204 displays the detailed settings screen 300C shown in Figure 3A(c). As mentioned above, the print function extension unit 206 adds the grayscale conversion (grayscale conversion method) setting to the print function information 203 (PDC). The print settings screen extension unit 205 can display the detailed settings screen 300C by referring to the capability information (PC) generated based on this added print function information 203.

[0060] In step S807, the print settings screen extension unit 205 accepts the user's detailed settings on the detailed settings screen 300C. Here, as an example, it is assumed that on the detailed settings screen 300C, the paper type "Plain Paper" is selected in control 306, the paper size "A4" is selected in control 307, and the paper feed slot "Automatic" is selected in control 308 (see Figure 3A(c)). It is also assumed that grayscale conversion "Enable" is selected in control 310 (see Figure 3A(c)). With these settings (selections), the print settings screen extension unit 205 accepts that the user has operated control 309 on the detailed settings screen 300C. As a result, the detailed settings screen 300D shown in Figure 3A(d) is displayed. The print settings screen extension unit 205 then accepts the user's detailed settings on the detailed settings screen 300D. Here, as an example, it is assumed that on the detailed settings screen 300D, the grayscale conversion method "Conversion Method 1" is selected in control 315. In this configuration, the print settings screen extension unit 205 receives notification that the user has operated the control 330 on the detailed settings screen 300D. This completes the detailed settings process. The user can also signal the end of the detailed settings process by, for example, operating the pointing device 117 or keyboard 118 to select the control 330.

[0061] In step S808, the extended application 204 sends detailed setting completion information to the general-purpose printing software 202, indicating that the detailed settings in step S807 have been completed.

[0062] In step S809, the general-purpose printing software 202 receives the detailed settings completion information sent from the extended application 204 in step S808. The general-purpose printing software 202 then sends this detailed settings completion information to the drawing application 201.

[0063] In step S810, the drawing application 201 accepts a print command from the user. The user can issue a print command, for example, by operating the pointing device 117 or keyboard 118 and selecting control 303 on the print settings screen 300A (see Figure 3A(a)).

[0064] In step S811, the drawing application 201 sends the print command received in step S811 to the general-purpose printing software 202.

[0065] In step S812, the general-purpose printing software 202 uses the OS module to generate intermediate data based on the print instructions in step S812.

[0066] In step S813, the general-purpose printing software 202 saves the print settings information (PT) based on the print instruction in step S812 to the shared information 208.

[0067] In step S814, the general-purpose printing software 202 sends the drawing data (image data) from the intermediate data generated in step S813 to the extended application 204.

[0068] In step S815, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 204 retrieves the print settings information saved in step S813 from the shared information 208.

[0069] In step S816, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 204 generates print data using the drawing data transmitted in step S814 and the print setting information acquired in step S815. This print data includes the grayscale conversion method "Conversion Method 1" received in step S807.

[0070] In step S817, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 204 sends the print data generated in step S816 to the printing device 102 (transmission step). As mentioned above, the print data includes the grayscale conversion method "conversion method 1" received in step S807. This transmission also instructs the printing device 102 to perform printing with grayscale conversion based on conversion method 1 (instruction step).

[0071] In step S818, the printing device 102 receives the print data transmitted in step S817. The printing device 102 interprets the print data and performs the necessary image processing on it. The image processing here involves grayscale conversion of the print data using conversion method 1 (a predetermined conversion method).

[0072] In step S819, the printing device 102 prints the print data that has undergone image processing in step S819. As a result, the printed material is a print of the print data that has been converted to grayscale.

[0073] As described above, even if the general-purpose printing software 202 of the printing system 1000 does not support grayscale conversion settings, the extended application 204 can display the detailed settings screen 300C shown in Figure 3A(c). This detailed settings screen 300C allows the printing device 102 to perform grayscale conversion. As a result, grayscale conversion is performed using, for example, a conversion method selected from conversion methods 1 to 3, and a printed document with the desired color tone of the grayscale image is printed from the printing device 102. In this embodiment, the grayscale conversion method may be specified according to attributes such as text and graphics.

[0074] Furthermore, in the explanation referring to Figure 8, the software configuration of the printing system 1000 is assumed to be the software configuration shown in Figure 2(b), and the detailed settings screen 300C shown in Figure 3A(c) is displayed, but it is not limited to this. For example, if a request to display detailed settings is made to the general-purpose printing software 202 in step S804, the general-purpose printing software 202 displays the detailed settings screen 300B shown in Figure 3A(b). In this case, after the operation of the control 309 on the detailed settings screen 300B, the general-purpose printing software 202 requests the extended application 204 to display an additional detailed settings screen. The extended application 204 may then display an additional detailed settings screen that allows for thickness adjustment settings. Also, in this embodiment, the extended application 204 generates print data from the intermediate data generated by the general-purpose printing software 202, but it is not limited to this, and for example, the extended application 204 itself may generate the intermediate data.

[0075] <Second Embodiment> The second embodiment will be described below with reference to Figures 9 to 10B, focusing on the differences from the previously described embodiment, and omitting explanations of similar matters. In the first embodiment, the extended application 204, together with the general-purpose printing software 202, generates print data including grayscale conversion settings. This print data is sent to the printing device 102. The printing device 102 can interpret the print data including grayscale conversion settings and perform grayscale conversion. Thus, in the first embodiment, the extended application 204, together with the general-purpose printing software 202, causes the printing device 102 to perform grayscale conversion.

[0076] However, some printing devices 102 are incapable of performing grayscale conversion. In this case, even if the extended application 204 generates print data including grayscale conversion settings, it is not possible to make the printing device 102 perform the grayscale conversion. If grayscale conversion is not possible on the printing device 102, it is preferable for the extended application 204 to generate print data with grayscale conversion already performed and send it to the printing device 102.

[0077] Therefore, in this embodiment, it is determined whether or not grayscale conversion can be performed on the printing device 102 based on the capabilities information of the printing device 102. If it is determined that grayscale conversion can be performed on the printing device 102 as a result of this determination, the extended application 204 generates print data including grayscale conversion settings and sends it to the printing device 102. On the other hand, if it is determined that grayscale conversion cannot be performed on the printing device 102, the extended application 204 generates print data with grayscale conversion already performed on the drawing data and sends it to the printing device 102. This makes it possible to provide grayscale conversion to the user even when grayscale conversion cannot be performed on the printing device 102. This embodiment is the same as the first embodiment except that the configuration of the printing system 1000 when the extended application 204 is associated, the editing process of the PDC, and the processing after the drawing application 201 receives the print settings are different.

[0078] <Configuration of a software-centric printing system> Figure 9 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of a printing system according to the second embodiment. The block diagram shown in Figure 9 shows the configuration when the extended application 902 is associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 901. As shown in Figure 9, the host computer 101 has a drawing application 201, general-purpose printing software 202, printing function information 203, and the extended application 902. The extended application 902 is also connected to the printing device 901 in a communicative manner. Unlike the printing device 102 in the first embodiment, the printing device 901 is a printing device that cannot perform grayscale conversion. The extended application 902 has a print setting screen extension unit 205, an intermediate data editing unit 207, shared information 208, a notification unit 209, a printing function extension unit 903, and a gray conversion processing unit (grayscale conversion processing unit) 904. The printing function extension unit 903 can add information related to grayscale conversion to the printing function information 203 even if it is determined that grayscale conversion cannot be performed on the printing device 102 based on capability information obtained from the printing device 901. The grayscale conversion processing unit 904 performs grayscale conversion on the intermediate data received from the general-purpose printing software 202 based on the grayscale conversion settings.

[0079] <Flowchart for editing print function information on the print function extension unit> Figure 10A is a flowchart showing the process by which the print function extension unit edits print function information. The program based on the flowchart shown in Figure 10A is executed by the CPU 111 controlling the print function extension unit 903. Furthermore, the flowchart shown in Figure 10A is the same as the flowchart shown in Figure 4, but with steps S1001 and S1002 added. As shown in Figure 10A, when the iterative processing of steps S404 to S406 is completed, the process proceeds to step S1001. As mentioned above, this is a printing device incapable of performing grayscale conversion. Therefore, grayscale conversion is not added to the print function information 203 after the processing of steps S404 to S406 is completed.

[0080] As shown in Figure 10A, in step S1001, the printing function extension unit 903 determines whether or not the extension application 902 has a grayscale conversion processing unit 904, that is, whether or not the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 exists. If the determination in step S1001 determines that the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 exists, the process proceeds to step S1002. On the other hand, if the determination in step S1001 determines that the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 does not exist, the process ends. As mentioned above, the extension application 902 has a grayscale conversion processing unit 904, so the process proceeds to step S1002.

[0081] In step S1002, the print function extension unit 903 adds information regarding grayscale conversion and conversion methods 1 to 3 (grayscale conversion methods) to the print function information 203.

[0082] As described above, the extended application 902 can add functions (options) to the printing function information 203 that are not supported by the general-purpose printing software 202, are supported by the printing device 102, and are supported by the extended application 204. The extended application 902 then determines whether or not there is a grayscale conversion processing unit 904. If the result of this determination is that there is a grayscale conversion processing unit 904, grayscale conversion is added to the printing function information 203. Due to this additional processing, even if the printing device 901 is unable to perform grayscale conversion, capability information is generated based on the printing function information 203 with grayscale conversion added. Based on this capability information, the extended application 902 can generate a display screen and display the detailed settings screen 300C shown in Figure 3A(c).

[0083] <Processing after the drawing application accepts the print settings> Figure 10B is a sequence diagram showing the processes that occur between the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extended application, and printing device after the drawing application accepts the print settings. Unlike the sequence diagram in Figure 8, in the sequence diagram shown in Figure 10B, steps S1201 to S1210 are executed in order instead of steps S812 to S819. As shown in Figure 10B, after step S811 is executed, the process proceeds to step S1201.

[0084] In step S1201, the general-purpose printing software 202 uses the OS module to generate intermediate data based on the print instructions in step S1201.

[0085] In step S1202, the general-purpose printing software 202 saves the print settings information based on the print command in step S1201 to the shared information 208.

[0086] In step S1203, the general-purpose printing software 202 sends the drawing data from the intermediate data generated in step S1201 to the extended application 204.

[0087] In step S1204, the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 of the extended application 902 retrieves the print settings information saved in step S1202 from the shared information 208. Furthermore, the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 retrieves information regarding the grayscale conversion settings from the print settings information.

[0088] In step S1205, the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 obtains the capability information of the printing device 901 from the shared information 208. If the capability information of the printing device 901 is not stored in the shared information 208, the printing function expansion unit 903 can request the capability information from the printing device 901 and save that information in the shared information 208.

[0089] In step S1206, the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 determines whether the printing device 901 has a grayscale conversion function based on the capability information acquired in step S1205 (determination step). In this embodiment, the printing device 901 does not have a grayscale conversion function. Therefore, in step S1206, it is determined that the printing device 901 does not have a grayscale conversion function. If it is determined in step S1206 that the printing device 901 does have a grayscale conversion function, the process skips step S1207 and proceeds to step S1208. At that time, the printing device 901 is instructed to perform grayscale conversion (instruction step). This grayscale conversion is performed based on the grayscale conversion settings received on the detailed settings screen 300C or the detailed settings screen 300D.

[0090] In step S1207, the grayscale conversion processing unit 904 performs grayscale conversion on the print data based on the grayscale conversion settings information obtained in step S1204. The grayscale converted print data is saved in the shared information 208. The grayscale conversion processing unit 904 also edits the grayscale conversion setting in the print settings information to "0" or deletes the grayscale conversion setting from the print settings information.

[0091] In step S1208, the intermediate data editing unit 207 generates printable print data (generation control step). This print data is generated using the grayscale-converted print data stored in the shared information 208 in step S1207 and the print setting information acquired in step S1204.

[0092] In step S1209, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 204 sends the print data generated in step S1208 to the printing device 901 (transmission step).

[0093] In step S1210, the printing device 901 interprets the print data transmitted in step S1209, performs the necessary image processing on the print data, and then prints. As a result, the printed material is a print of the print data that has been converted to grayscale.

[0094] <Third Embodiment> The third embodiment will be described below with reference to Figures 13 to 20, focusing on the differences from the previously described embodiment, and similar matters will be omitted. There are various types of grayscale conversion. These various types of grayscale conversion include, for example, image processing that darkens relatively light-colored objects in an image when a color image is converted to a grayscale image, and image processing that makes objects distinguishable. The objects are not particularly limited and can include, for example, text, graphics, images, etc. For example, to darken relatively light gray, one method is to increase the density by gamma processing after converting from a color image to a grayscale image (hereinafter referred to as "darkening"). Other methods include increasing the density by making all color objects solid black (R,G,B)=(0,0,0) (hereinafter referred to as "making them solid black"). Furthermore, to distinguish objects, methods include emphasizing the difference in gray density (hereinafter referred to as "distinguishing by density") and emphasizing the boundaries of objects, i.e., edges (hereinafter referred to as "distinguishing by edges"). Other color conversion methods include those that output only the K plate when converting a color image to a grayscale image and then to a color plate in the printing device 901, and those that combine multiple color plates, such as CMY color plates, to represent and output gray. The printing device 901 can be either a device capable of performing all of these processes or a device capable of performing only some of them. In this embodiment, the image processing to convert a color image to a grayscale image is performed in the extended application 902, and the subsequent image processing to convert to a color plate is performed in the printing device 901.

[0095] <Configuration of a software-centric printing system> Figure 11 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of a printing system according to the third embodiment. The block diagram shown in Figure 11 shows the configuration when the extended application 902 is associated with the general-purpose printing software 202 and the printing device 901. As shown in Figure 11, the extended application 902 includes a print settings screen extension unit 205, an intermediate data editing unit 207, shared information 208, a notification unit 209, and a print function extension unit 903. The extended application 902 also includes a gray conversion processing unit (grayscale conversion processing unit) 1701. The processing performed by the gray conversion processing unit 1701 will be described later.

[0096] <Flowchart for editing print function information on the print function extension unit> Figure 12 is a flowchart showing the process by which the printing function extension unit edits the printing function information. Figure 13 is a diagram showing an example of a list of capability information. As shown in Table 1801 in Figure 13, the only grayscale conversion process that can be performed by the printing device 901 is the process of printing in black (K) monochrome. The flowchart shown in Figure 12 is a flowchart for the case where the only grayscale conversion process that can be performed by the printing device 901 is the process of printing in black (K) monochrome. As shown in Figure 12, when the repeated processing from steps S404 to S406 is completed, the "print in black (K) monochrome" function that can be performed by the printing device 901 is added to the printing function information 203. Note that the printing function information 203 does not include the functions that can be performed by the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701, such as "grayscale conversion method," "make darker," "make solid black," "distinguish by density," and "distinguish by edge." After the repeated processing from steps S404 to S406 is completed, the process proceeds to step S1001. In step S1101, the printing function extension unit 903 determines whether or not the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is present in the extension application 902. If the determination in step S1101 is made to show that the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is present, the process proceeds to step S1102. On the other hand, if the determination in step S1101 is made to show that the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is absent, the process ends. As mentioned above, the extension application 902 has a grayscale conversion processing unit 1701, so the process proceeds to step S1102.

[0097] In step S1102, the print function extension unit 903 adds gray conversion processing that can be performed by the gray conversion processing unit 1701 to the print function information 203. These added gray conversion processing methods include "grayscale conversion method," "make darker," "make black," "distinguish by density," and "distinguish by edge," as shown in Table 1802 in Figure 13.

[0098] As described above, the print function extension unit 903 can add functions to the print function information 203 that are not supported by the general-purpose printing software 202 but are supported by the printing device 901. Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is present in the extension application 204. If it is determined that the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is present, the functions "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make black," "Distinguish by density," and "Distinguish by edge" are added to the print function information 203. As a result, the print setting screen extension unit 205 can display the grayscale conversion processing that the printing device 901 and the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 can perform, based on the PC generated by the print function information 203.

[0099] <Grayscale conversion processes other than grayscale conversion methods> Figure 14 shows an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the printing system. As shown in Figure 14, the detailed settings screen 1400 includes controls 315, 330, and 331, similar to the detailed settings screen 300D. The detailed settings screen 1400 also includes checkboxes (element selection section) 317 to 319, controls 320, 322, 324, 326, and 328. When checkbox 317 is checked, the grayscale conversion target is set to "text" (selected). When checkbox 318 is checked, the grayscale conversion target is set to "graphics". When checkbox 319 is checked, the grayscale conversion target is set to "image".

[0100] Control 320 is an execution instruction unit that instructs the execution of a "darken" process as a gray conversion process, that is, a density adjustment unit that gives instructions to adjust the density of a grayscale image. By pressing Control 320, a list (setting selection unit) 321 is displayed that includes "Enable" indicating that the "darken" process is enabled and "Disable" indicating that the "darken" process is disabled. Then, the desired option can be selected from "Enable" and "Disable". Figure 14 shows an example where "Disable" is selected. Control 322 is an execution instruction unit that instructs the execution of a "make black" process as a gray conversion process, that is, a black representation unit that gives instructions to represent a grayscale image using black pigment. By pressing Control 322, a list 323 is displayed that includes "Enable" indicating that the "make black" process is enabled and "Disable" indicating that the "make black" process is disabled. Then, the desired option can be selected from "Enable" and "Disable". Figure 14 shows an example where "Disable" is selected.

[0101] Control 324 is an execution instruction unit that instructs the execution of a "distinguish by density" process as a grayscale conversion process, that is, a density enhancement unit that instructs the unit to emphasize the differences in shades of gray in a grayscale image. By pressing Control 324, a list 325 is displayed that includes "Enable" indicating that the "distinguish by density" process is enabled, and "Disable" indicating that the "distinguish by density" process is disabled. The desired option can then be selected from "Enable" and "Disable". Figure 14 shows an example where "Disable" is selected. Control 326 is an execution instruction unit that instructs the execution of a "distinguish by edge" process as a grayscale conversion process, that is, an edge enhancement unit that instructs the unit to emphasize the outlines of objects (components) that make up a grayscale image. By pressing Control 326, a list 327 is displayed that includes "Enable" indicating that the "distinguish by edge" process is enabled, and "Disable" indicating that the "distinguish by edge" process is disabled. The desired option can then be selected from "Enable" and "Disable". Figure 14 shows an example where "Do not do" is selected.

[0102] Control 328 is an execution instruction unit that instructs the execution of the "print in K monochrome" process as a grayscale conversion process. By pressing Control 328, a list 329 is displayed which includes "Enable" indicating that the "print in K monochrome" process is enabled, and "Disable" indicating that the "print in K monochrome" process is disabled. The desired option can then be selected from "Enable" and "Disable". Figure 14 shows an example where "Disable" is selected. In this embodiment, the detailed settings screen 1400 includes controls 320, 322, 324, 326, and 328, but is not limited to these. The detailed settings screen 1400 only needs to include at least one of these controls (settings). In addition, the detailed settings screen 1400 may include other controls, such as a black representation unit that instructs the representation of a grayscale image in black using multiple colorants. This allows you to choose whether to use any of the CMYK color components to represent black, or to use only the K color component (control 322). By selecting one of these options, you can prevent certain colors from becoming faded when, for example, a color image is converted to a grayscale image.

[0103] This section explains grayscale conversion processes other than the grayscale conversion method. Figure 15 is a graph showing an example of a LUT (Lookup Table) used in the "Darken" process. Figure 16 is an illustrative diagram showing the effects of grayscale conversion processes other than the grayscale conversion method. Figure 17 is an illustrative diagram showing the effects of the "Distinguish" process. The "Darken" process applies the downward-convex LUT shown in Figure 15 to the input image after converting from color to grayscale. As a result, for example, the image shown in Figure 3C(a) becomes the image shown in Figure 16(a). In the image shown in Figure 16(a), the cyan, magenta, yellow, red, green, and blue texts are darker overall than in the image shown in Figure 3C(a). The "Black" process sets Gray=0 when converting from color to grayscale. As a result, for example, the image shown in Figure 3C(a) becomes the image shown in Figure 16(b). In the image shown in Figure 16(b), the cyan, magenta, yellow, red, green, and blue texts become black.

[0104] The "distinguishing by density" process involves sorting the gray values ​​on a page and widening the spacing to increase the density differences during the color-to-gray conversion. As a result, the image shown in Figure 17(a) becomes the image shown in Figure 17(b). In the image shown in Figure 17(b), the objects are more easily distinguishable than in the image shown in Figure 17(a). The "distinguishing by edge" process involves emphasizing the edges where different colors are adjacent on a page before converting from color to gray. As a result, the image shown in Figure 17(a) becomes the image shown in Figure 17(c). In the image shown in Figure 17(c), the boundaries of each object are more emphasized than in the image shown in Figure 17(a), making it easier to distinguish each object. The "printing in black (K) monochrome" process involves outputting (representing) gray in black (K) instead of CMYK after the color-to-gray conversion. For example, if you check checkbox 317 on the detailed settings screen 1400 (see Figure 14), you can output text using only the K element. This prevents CMY colors from appearing at the edges of the text due to color shifts, thus allowing for clear text to be displayed in gray. Alternatively, if you check checkbox 319 on the detailed settings screen 1400 and select "Do not use" in list 329, you can display text using CMY. This results in a deeper and smoother image than text displayed using only the K element.

[0105] <Processing after the drawing application accepts the print settings> Figure 18 is a sequence diagram showing the processes executed between the drawing application, general-purpose printing software, extended application, and printing device after the drawing application accepts the print settings. Unlike the sequence diagram shown in Figure 10B, the sequence diagram in Figure 18 executes steps S1901 to S1912 instead of steps S1206 to S1210. Depending on the acceptance of detailed settings in step S807, the sequence is divided into three. The first sequence is when the image processing performed by the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 is selected during the detailed setting of grayscale conversion, and steps 1902 to S1904 enclosed in rectangle [a] in Figure 18 are executed. The second sequence is when the image processing performed by the printing device 901 is selected during the detailed setting of grayscale conversion, and steps 1905 to S1907 enclosed in rectangle [b] are executed. The third sequence is the sequence in which steps 1908 to S1911, enclosed in a rectangle [c], are executed when both image processing in the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 and image processing in the printing device 901 are selected during the detailed settings for grayscale conversion.

[0106] First, let's explain the first sequence. Assume that in the detailed settings for grayscale conversion, one of the following is selected: "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make solid black," "Distinguish by density," or "Distinguish by edge." In this case, steps 1901 to S1904 and step 1912 are executed in order. As shown in Figure 18, in step S1901, the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 determines from the capability information acquired in step S1205 that the printing device 901 does not have the "Print in black (K) monochrome" option in the grayscale conversion process. Now, assume that one of the following is set as the detailed setting received in step S807: "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make solid black," "Distinguish by density," or "Distinguish by edge." In this case, the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 determines that it will process this setting, and the process proceeds to step S1902.

[0107] In step S1902, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 902 generates print data using the drawing data and print setting information. Here, grayscale conversion processing is performed on the print data based on the grayscale conversion processing setting in step S1204 (one of the following: "Grayscale conversion method", "Make darker", "Make solid black", "Distinguish by density", or "Distinguish by edge"). The result of this processing is saved in shared information 208. In addition, the grayscale conversion processing setting in the print setting information is edited to "Do not use", or the grayscale conversion processing setting is removed from the print setting information.

[0108] In step S1903, the intermediate data editing unit 207 generates print data using the drawing data and print setting information stored in the shared information 208.

[0109] In step S1904, the intermediate data editing unit 207 sends the print data generated in step S1903 to the printing device 901.

[0110] In step S1912, the printing device 901 receives the print data from step S1903. The printing device 901 then performs image processing such as color processing and dithering necessary for outputting the print data and then prints.

[0111] Next, let's explain the second sequence. Assume that "Print in monochrome black (K)" is selected in the detailed settings for grayscale conversion. In this case, steps 1901, steps S1905 to S1907, and step 1912 are executed in order. In step S1901, the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 of the extended application 902 determines from the capability information obtained in step S1205 that the printer 901 does not have a process for "Print in monochrome black (K)" in the grayscale conversion process. Now, let's assume that "Print in monochrome black (K)" is set as the detailed setting accepted in step S807. In this case, the printer 901 determines that this process is possible, and the process proceeds to step S1905.

[0112] In step S1905, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 902 generates print data using the drawing data and print setting information stored in the shared information 208.

[0113] In step S1906, the intermediate data editing unit 207 sends the print data generated in step S1905 to the printing device 901.

[0114] In step S1907, the printer 901 receives the print data from step S1906. The printer 901 then performs a color conversion process on the print data based on the setting "Print in black (K) monochrome".

[0115] In step S1912, the printing device 901 performs image processing such as color processing and dithering necessary to output the print data that has been color-converted in step S1907, and then prints.

[0116] Next, let's explain the third sequence. Assume that in the detailed settings for grayscale conversion, one of the following is selected: "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make solid black," "Distinguish by density," or "Distinguish by edge," along with "Print in monochrome black (K)." In this case, steps 1901, S1908 to S1911 are executed in order. In step S1901, the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 of the extended application 902 determines from the capability information acquired in step S1205 that the printing device 901 does not have a process for "Print in monochrome black (K)" in the grayscale conversion process. Assume that the detailed settings accepted in step S807 are: one of the following: "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make solid black," "Distinguish by density," or "Distinguish by edge," along with "Print in monochrome black (K)." In this case, the grayscale conversion processing unit 1701 determines that any of the following settings will be processed: "Grayscale conversion method," "Increase density," "Make it solid black," "Distinguish by density," or "Distinguish by edge." Also, the printer 901 determines that "Print in black (K) monochrome" will be processed. Then the process proceeds to step S1908.

[0117] In step S1908, the intermediate data editing unit 207 of the extended application 902 generates print data using the drawing data and print setting information. Here, grayscale conversion processing is performed on the print data based on the grayscale conversion processing settings in step S1204 (one of the following: "Grayscale conversion method", "Make darker", "Make solid black", "Distinguish by density", or "Distinguish by edge"). The result of this processing is saved in shared information 208. In addition, grayscale conversion processing settings other than "Print in black (K) monochrome" in the print setting information are edited to "Do not use", or grayscale conversion processing settings other than "Print in black (K) monochrome" are deleted from the print setting information.

[0118] In step S1909, the intermediate data editing unit 207 generates print data using the drawing data and print setting information stored in the shared information 208.

[0119] In step S1910, the intermediate data editing unit 207 sends the print data generated in step S1909 to the printing device 901.

[0120] In step S1911, the printer 901 receives the print data from step S1910. The printer 901 then performs a color conversion process on the print data based on the setting "Print in black (K) monochrome".

[0121] In step S1912, the printing device 901 performs image processing such as color processing and dithering necessary to output the print data that has been color-converted in step S1911, and then prints.

[0122] As described above, the grayscale conversion setting has two settings in the printing device 901 based on the grayscale conversion setting. The first setting is the first setting which allows printing to be performed by the printing device 901. An example of the first setting is "Print in black (K) monochrome". The second setting is the second setting which does not allow printing to be performed by the printing device 901. An example of the second setting is "Make darker", "Make solid black", "Distinguish by density", and "Distinguish by edge". When the grayscale conversion setting is the first setting, the printing device 901 can be instructed to perform printing based on the first setting (instruction process). On the other hand, when the grayscale conversion setting is the second setting, print data based on the second setting is generated (generation control process), and then the print data is sent to the printing device 901 (transmission process). With this configuration, the printing device 901 can be made to perform printing according to the type of grayscale conversion setting.

[0123] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of its gist. The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of the above embodiments to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and by having one or more processors in the computer of that system or device read and execute the program. Furthermore, the present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

[0124] Each embodiment of the disclosure includes the following programs, methods, and configurations. (Program 1) A standard driver provided by the provider of the operating system, which is an application program that supports the standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, On the computer, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, An instruction step is performed to instruct the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The application program is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. (Program 2) A standard driver provided by the provider of the operating system, which is an application program that supports the standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, On the computer, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process involves a transmission step of transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The application program is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. (Program 3) The computer, Prior to the display control step, an acquisition step is performed to acquire capability information relating to the printing capability of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus, An application program according to Program 2, characterized by causing the program to perform a determination step of determining whether the capability information acquired in the acquisition step includes information that enables the execution of grayscale conversion based on the settings. (Program 4) If the determination in the determination step determines that the program contains information that enables the execution of grayscale conversion based on the settings, the program instructs the computer to execute an instruction step that instructs the image forming apparatus to execute grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen. The application program according to Program 3, characterized in that, if it is determined that the program does not contain information that would enable the execution of grayscale conversion based on the above settings, the computer is instructed to sequentially execute the generation control step and the transmission step. (Program 5) The above setting includes a first setting that enables the image forming apparatus to perform grayscale conversion based on the setting, and a second setting that prevents the image forming apparatus from performing grayscale conversion based on the setting. If the setting is the first setting, the computer is instructed to perform an instruction step that instructs the image forming apparatus to perform a grayscale conversion based on the first setting. The application program according to program 2 or 3, characterized in that, when the setting is the second setting, the computer is instructed to sequentially execute the generation control step and the transmission step. (Program 6) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 5, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a setting selection unit for selecting whether to enable or disable the setting. (Program 7) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 6, characterized in that the method selection unit lists a plurality of selectable grayscale conversion methods. (Program 8) An application program according to Program 7, characterized in that each of the grayscale conversion methods has a different proportion of each RGB color component. (Program 9) An application program according to Program 7, characterized in that each grayscale conversion method has different color components used in the method. (Program 10) An application program according to Program 9, characterized in that when representing black, it is selected whether to use any of the CMYK color components or to use only the K color component. (Program 11) The color image includes a plurality of components that constitute the color image, The application program according to any one of programs 1 to 10, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes an element selection unit for selecting the element to be subjected to the grayscale conversion from among the plurality of elements as a setting. (Program 12) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 11, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes at least one setting from among: a density adjustment unit for adjusting the density of the grayscale image; a black representation unit for representing the grayscale image in black using multiple colorants; a black representation unit for representing the grayscale image using black colorants; a density enhancement unit for emphasizing the differences in shades of the grayscale image; and a contour enhancement unit for emphasizing the contours of the constituent elements that make up the grayscale image. (Program 13) An application program according to Program 12, characterized in that it includes a setting selection unit that selects whether to enable or disable at least one of the settings. (Program 14) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 13, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a forced restore unit that forcibly restores the setting to its initial state as the setting. (Program 15) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 14, characterized in that the function of displaying the method selection section on the setting reception screen is a function that cannot be executed by the standard driver. (Program 16) An application program according to any one of Programs 1 to 15, characterized in that it is stored on a storage medium. (Method 1) A method for performing control that supports a standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, which is a standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, The process includes an instruction step of instructing the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The control method is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. (Method 2) A method for performing control that supports a standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, which is a standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process includes a transmission step for transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The control method is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. (Configuration 1) An information processing device comprising a standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, which is pre-installed in the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver, The application program is installed on the computer of the information processing device. A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, An instruction step is performed to instruct the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The information processing device is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection unit for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. (Configuration 2) An information processing device comprising a standard driver provided by the provider of the operating system, which is pre-installed in the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver, The application program is installed on the computer of the information processing device. A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process involves a transmission step of transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The information processing device is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection unit for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting. [Explanation of symbols]

[0125] 101 Host computer 102 Printing device 202 General-purpose printing software 204 Extended Applications 300C detailed setting screen 315 Control

Claims

1. A standard driver provided by the provider of the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver pre-installed in the said operating system, On the computer, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, An instruction step is performed to instruct the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The application program is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

2. A standard driver provided by the provider of the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver pre-installed in the said operating system, On the computer, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process involves a transmission step of transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The application program is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

3. To the aforementioned computer, Prior to the display control step, an acquisition step is performed to acquire capability information relating to the printing capability of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus, The application program according to claim 2, characterized in that it performs a determination step of determining whether the capability information acquired in the acquisition step includes information that enables the execution of grayscale conversion based on the settings.

4. If, as a result of the determination in the determination step, it is determined that the information that enables the execution of grayscale conversion based on the settings is included, the computer is instructed to execute an instruction step that instructs the image forming apparatus to execute grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen. The application program according to claim 3, characterized in that if it is determined that the program does not contain information that would enable the execution of grayscale conversion based on the above settings, the computer is instructed to sequentially execute the generation control step and the transmission step.

5. The aforementioned settings include a first setting that enables the image forming apparatus to perform grayscale conversion based on the aforementioned settings, and a second setting that prevents the image forming apparatus from performing grayscale conversion based on the aforementioned settings. If the setting is the first setting, the computer is instructed to perform an instruction step that instructs the image forming apparatus to perform a grayscale conversion based on the first setting. The application program according to claim 2, characterized in that, if the setting is the second setting, the computer is instructed to sequentially execute the generation control step and the transmission step.

6. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a setting selection section for selecting whether to enable or disable the setting.

7. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method selection unit lists a plurality of selectable grayscale conversion methods.

8. The application program according to claim 7, characterized in that each of the grayscale conversion methods has a different proportion of each RGB color component.

9. The application program according to claim 7, characterized in that each of the grayscale conversion methods uses different color components.

10. The application program according to claim 9, characterized in that, when representing black, it is possible to select whether to use any of the CMYK color components or to use only the K color component.

11. The aforementioned color image includes a plurality of components that constitute the color image, The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes an element selection unit for selecting the element to be subjected to grayscale conversion from among the plurality of elements as a setting.

12. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes at least one of the following settings: a density adjustment unit for adjusting the density of the grayscale image; a black representation unit for representing the grayscale image in black using multiple colorants; a black representation unit for representing the grayscale image using a black colorant; a density enhancement unit for emphasizing the difference in shades of the grayscale image; and a contour enhancement unit for emphasizing the contours of the constituent elements that make up the grayscale image.

13. The application program according to claim 12, characterized in that it includes a setting selection unit that selects whether to enable or disable at least one of the settings.

14. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a forced restore unit that forcibly restores the setting to its initial state as the setting.

15. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the function of displaying the method selection section on the setting reception screen is a function that cannot be executed by the standard driver.

16. The application program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is stored on a storage medium.

17. A standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, and a method for performing control that supports a standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, The process includes an instruction step of instructing the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The control method is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

18. A standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, and a method for performing control that supports a standard driver pre-installed in the operating system, A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process includes a transmission step for transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The control method is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection section for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

19. An information processing device comprising a standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, which is pre-installed in the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver, The application program is installed on the computer of the information processing device. A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, An instruction step is performed to instruct the image forming apparatus to perform the grayscale conversion based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The information processing device is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection unit for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

20. An information processing device comprising a standard driver provided by the provider of an operating system, which is pre-installed in the operating system, and an application program that supports the standard driver, The application program is installed on the computer of the information processing device. A display control process that displays a setting acceptance screen that accepts settings for grayscale conversion, which converts a color image to a grayscale image, A generation control step that generates grayscale converted image data based on the settings received on the setting reception screen, The process involves a transmission step of transmitting the image data generated in the generation control step to an image forming apparatus, The information processing device is characterized in that the setting reception screen includes a method selection unit for selecting the grayscale conversion method as a setting.

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