Information processing device and program

Abstract

There was a risk that user convenience would be reduced when printing using a printer that did not support the OS's standard printing functions. SOLUTION: The print conversion utility acquires paper information for a printing device that cannot interpret print data in a specified format, acquires print setting information set in the OS standard printing software, and issues a warning message if the two do not correspond.

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] Conventionally, there exists a printing environment in which a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC) and a printer are connected. In this printing environment, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for printing using a printing function (hereinafter referred to as an OS standard printing function) that is standardly provided by an operating system (hereinafter referred to as an OS), without requiring printer-specific software provided by a printer vendor. Note that the printer-specific software is sometimes called a printer driver. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Special table 2015-508921 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, Patent Document 1 does not take into consideration information management when a printer that cannot interpret print data in a predetermined format conforming to the OS standard print function is connected to a PC. Therefore, there is a risk that the convenience of the user may decrease when printing using a printer that cannot interpret print data in a predetermined format conforming to the OS standard print function. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The information processing device of the present invention comprises: An information processing apparatus including printing software that receives an instruction from an application and generates first print data in a predetermined format, a first acquisition means for acquiring print setting information of a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format; a receiving means for receiving a print job request from the printing software; A second acquisition means for acquiring print setting information from the print job; a notification means for notifying a warning message when the print setting information of the printing device does not correspond to the print setting information set in the printing software; a generating means for generating second print data that can be interpreted by a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format based on the first print data when print setting information of the printing device corresponds to print setting information set in the printing software; and, a version determination means for determining a version of an operating system (OS) operating on the information processing device; If a printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format is selected, the first print data is sent to the printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format; If the version of the OS matches a predetermined condition, the printing software is notified that print setting information set in the printing software does not correspond to print setting information of the printing device. It is characterized by the above. Effect of the Invention

[0006] The present invention makes it possible to improve the convenience of printing operations using a printer that cannot interpret print data in a predetermined format that conforms to the OS standard print function. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility. [Figure 4] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating a printer list screen and a printer registration screen of the OS printing system. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a print conversion utility guide dialog of the OS printing system. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a processing flow of an installer for a print conversion utility. [Figure 7] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating a printer list screen and a printer registration screen of the OS printing system. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a print setting screen of the OS printing system. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a processing flow of a print conversion utility. [Figure 10] 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility when a warning is displayed. FIG. [Figure 11] 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility when a warning is displayed. FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a processing flow of a print conversion utility. [Figure 14] 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility when a warning is displayed. FIG. [Figure 15] 13 is a diagram showing a printer management screen of the print conversion utility when a warning is displayed. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of an information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the present invention, and not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the present invention.

[0009] <Embodiment 1> FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a printing system according to this embodiment. PC01 and PC02 are connected to a network 04 and can communicate with each other. Here, a LAN (Local Area Network) is assumed as the network, but a WAN (Wide Area Network) may also be used. The network may be connected in a wired or wireless manner, or may be a mixture of both. A printer 03 is connected to PC01 via a USB communication control unit 15, and PC01 controls the printer 03. Here, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) is assumed as the communication interface, but the connection may also be via a network.

[0010] Although not shown in FIG. 1, an OS is built into PC01 and PC02, and the resources of the PC, for example, each block in the PC, are managed by the OS. FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of PC (information processing device) 01 or 02. CPU 301 is a central processing unit for controlling each of the following units. Disk device 302 stores application program 312, database 313, OS, and various files read by CPU 301. External disk reading device 303 is a device for reading information such as files stored in an external storage medium such as an SD card. Memory 304 is composed of RAM, etc., and CPU 301 temporarily stores and buffers data as necessary. Display unit 305 is composed of, for example, an LCD, and displays various information. Operation unit 306 is composed of a keyboard, mouse, etc. for a user to perform various input operations. Network communication unit 307 is connected to a network such as the Internet via network connection unit 308, and performs various communications. The network communication unit 307 supports wired LAN and wireless LAN, and in the case of wired LAN support, the network connection unit 308 is a connector for connecting a wired LAN cable, and in the case of wireless LAN support, the network connection unit 308 is an antenna. The network connection unit 308 may support both wired LAN and wireless LAN. The USB communication unit 310 is connected to various peripheral devices via the USB connection unit 311 and performs various communications. The above-mentioned units are mutually connected by a bus 309. The processing of each flowchart described below is realized by the CPU 301 reading out a program related to the processing of the flowchart from the memory 304 and executing it. In this embodiment, the OS installed in PC01 and PC02 is assumed to be macOS (registered trademark).

[0011] Next, the software configuration of PC01 will be described. PC01 is equipped with an application 10, an OS printing system 11, an OS standard printing control unit 12, a print conversion utility 13, a vendor driver 14, a USB communication control unit 15, and a network (NW) communication control unit 16, and can execute these. The OS printing system 11 including the OS standard printing control unit 12 is a module that the OS includes as standard. In other words, the user does not need to install the OS printing system 11 and the OS standard printing control unit 12 separately, and the OS printing system 11 and the OS standard printing control unit 12 are installed together with the installation of the OS. Therefore, the OS printing system 11 including the OS standard printing control unit 12 is sometimes called OS standard printing software.

[0012] The print conversion utility 13 including the vendor driver 14 is used for printing with a printer that cannot interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function described later, and is installed in the PC01 by the user as necessary. In this embodiment, a printer that cannot interpret print data in a predetermined format conforming to the OS standard print function (a printer that does not support the OS standard print function) is also called an unsupported printer. Also, a printer that can interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function (a printer that supports the OS standard print function) is also called a supported printer. The OS print system 11 sequentially processes print requests from the application 10 of the PC01 as jobs. When a user requests printing of application data created by the application 10 of the PC01, the request is submitted to the OS print system 11 of the PC01 as a print job.

[0013] When a print job is input, the OS print system 11 generates print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function using the OS standard print control unit 12. Here, the printer 03 connected to the PC 01 is assumed to be a printer that cannot interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function. When such a printer 03 is selected by the user and instructed to print, the print conversion utility 13 is used. That is, the OS print system 11 sends the print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function generated by the OS standard print control unit to the print conversion utility 13. Then, the print conversion utility 13 uses the vendor driver 14 to convert the print data sent from the OS print system 11 into print data in a vendor-specific format, and then transmits it to the printer 03 via the USB communication control unit 15. A case will be described where the user selects a printer that can interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function. When such a printer is selected, the print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function generated by the OS standard print control unit 12 is sent to the selected printer without going through the print conversion utility 13. The protocol used at this time is, for example, the Internet Printing Protocol.

[0014] PC02 is composed of an application 20, an OS print system 21, an OS standard print control unit 22, and a network (NW) communication control unit 23. The print conversion utility 13 of PC01 can also be used by other PCs on the network, and the user can use the printer 03 connected to PC01 from PC02 via the print conversion utility 13 of PC01. Similarly, in PC02, the OS print system 21 sequentially processes print requests from the application 20 as jobs. When the user selects the printer 03 and requests printing of application data created by the application 20 of PC02, the request is input to the OS print system 21 of PC02 as a print job. When the OS print system 21 of PC02 receives the print job, it sends it to the print conversion utility 13 of PC01 via the network 04. Subsequent processing is as described above.

[0015] The printer 03 is composed of a USB communication control unit 30, a print control unit 31, and a print unit 32. The print control unit 31 receives print data from the PC 01 via the USB communication control unit 30, and controls the print unit 32 based on the print data to execute printing. The printer 03 has a two-stage cassette paper feed tray, and supports A4, A5, L size, and postcard size paper sizes, and supports plain paper, glossy photo paper, matte photo paper, and postcards paper types. In this embodiment, printing is performed using an inkjet method, but other methods such as electrophotography may be used. The OS print system 11 provides the OS standard print function, and if the supported printer can interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function, the user can print without using the print conversion utility 13. Furthermore, the supported printer has a function to identify the size and type of paper set in its own paper feed tray. When the user specifies a paper size on the print setting screen provided by the OS print system 11 and requests printing, the supported printer feeds paper from the paper feed tray in which the same paper size is set according to the specified paper size. The supported printer then performs printing appropriate to the type of paper fed from that paper feed tray.

[0016] On the other hand, an unsupported printer cannot interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard print function. Furthermore, an unsupported printer does not have a function to identify the paper size and type set by the user in each paper feed tray and respond as response information to the OS standard print function. For this reason, in order for a user to print using an unsupported printer, it is necessary to use the print conversion utility 13. In this embodiment, an unsupported printer cannot identify the paper size and type set in each paper feed tray. Therefore, the user sets the paper size and type set in each paper feed tray of the unsupported printer in advance in the print conversion utility 13. Then, the user requests printing by specifying the paper size on the print setting screen provided by the OS print system 11. In response to this request, the print conversion utility 13 generates print data instructing the printer to feed paper from a paper feed tray set with the same paper size as the specified paper size and to perform printing appropriate to the paper type set in that paper feed tray, and sends the print data to the printer.

[0017] 2 and 3 are diagrams showing the printer management screen 40 of the print conversion utility 13. In this embodiment, the print conversion utility 13 has a job monitor area for monitoring the job status of the selected printer and a print paper area for setting the size and type of paper set in the printer's paper feed tray as the paper to be used for printing. The print conversion utility 13 displays in the printer selection menu 42 the names of printers already registered as targets of the print conversion utility 13 and "target printer settings" which is an item for setting addition and deletion of target printers. When the user selects "target printer settings", the print conversion utility 13 opens a target printer setting screen 50. The print conversion utility 13 displays non-supported printers connected to the PC01 in a target printer list 51. The user can set whether or not to register the non-supported printer as a target of the print conversion utility 13 by setting the check box of each printer displayed in the target printer list 51 to be enabled or disabled.

[0018] When the user presses the OK button 52, the print conversion utility 13 closes the target printer setting screen 50. In this embodiment, the user sets the unsupported printer 03 as the operation target of the print conversion utility 13. The print conversion utility 13 responds to the OS print system 11 by adding compatibility information (support information) for the OS standard print function that is generated internally based on the capability information acquired from the unsupported printer, instead of the unsupported printer that is the operation target. By selecting the unsupported printer set as the operation target in the printer selection menu 42, the user can monitor the job status of the unsupported printer and set the paper size and paper type set in the paper feed tray. The user can switch between the job monitor area and the print paper area using the area switching tab 43. When the user selects "job monitor" in the area switching tab 43, the print conversion utility 13 displays the job monitor area 60 shown in FIG. 2. When the user selects "print paper" in the area switching tab 43, the print conversion utility 13 displays the print paper area 70 shown in FIG. 3.

[0019] 2 shows the printer management screen with the job monitor area displayed. The print conversion utility 13 displays the name of the print job being processed by the selected printer 03 and its processing status in a job list 61. The user can delete or reserve a print job selected in the job list 61 by using the delete button 62 or reserve button 63. When the user presses the close button 41, the print conversion utility 13 closes the printer management screen 40 and terminates. However, if a print job is being processed, the print conversion utility 13 notifies the user that a print job is being processed and does not terminate.

[0020] 3 shows the printer management screen 40 on which a print paper area (paper information setting screen) 70 is displayed. The user can select the paper tray for which to set the paper size and paper type from a paper tray list 71. The user can set the paper size and paper type for the paper tray selected in the paper tray list 71 using a paper size selection menu 72 and a paper type selection menu 73. When the user presses the apply button 74, the paper size and paper type for each paper tray set on this screen are applied when the print conversion utility 13 generates print data. Based on the paper size and paper type set by the user here, the print conversion utility 13 converts the print data in a format that complies with the OS standard printing function sent from the OS printing system 11 into print data in a vendor-specific format.

[0021] FIG. 4 shows the printer list screen and printer registration screen of the OS printing system 11 that runs on the PC01. The OS printing system 11 has a printer list screen 80 for adding and deleting printers that can be printed. The OS printing system 11 displays all printers that can be selected when printing in the printer list 81. When the user selects a printer in the printer list 81 and presses the delete button 83, the OS printing system 11 deletes the print queue of the selected printer and also deletes it from the printer list 81. When the user presses the add button 82, the OS printing system 11 displays a printer registration screen 84. The OS printing system 11 displays all printers that are connected to the PC01 and that support the OS standard printing function in the registered printer list 85. The OS printing system 11 acquires capability information, including the name of the connected printer and information on compatibility with the OS standard printing function, and displays the name and connection method of the printer that supports the OS standard printing function in the registered printer list 85. The OS printing system 11 also acquires capability information from the print conversion utility 13. That is, in this embodiment, the printer 03 is set as the operation target of the print conversion utility 13. Therefore, the print conversion utility 13 generates capability information by adding compatibility information for the OS standard printing functions that is generated internally based on the capability information acquired from the printer 03. Then, when a capability information acquisition request is received from the OS printing system 11, the print conversion utility 13 responds with the capability information to which the compatibility information has been added as the capability information of the printer 03. At this time, the print conversion utility 13 responds to the OS printing system 03 with capability information in which "print conversion utility" has been added as specified identification information to the name acquired from the printer 03. Note that the information added as the specified identification information may be other information.

[0022] Based on the capability information acquired from the print conversion utility 13, the OS print system 11 displays the name of the printer 03, "Printer 03 (Print Conversion Utility)" and the connection method, "USB", in the registered printer list 85. By displaying such a printer name, the user can recognize that the printer 03 is an unsupported printer and that the print conversion utility 13 is to be used. If the printer connected to the PC 01 is a supported printer, the name displayed in the registered printer list 85 is the name included in the capability information returned from the printer. Therefore, the print conversion utility is not displayed as the printer name. When the user selects a printer in the registered printer list 85 and presses the registration button 87, the OS print system 11 creates a print queue for the selected printer. Then, the selected printer is displayed in the printer list 81 and the printer registration screen 84 is closed. When the user presses the cancel button 86, the OS print system 11 closes the printer registration screen 84 without registering the printer.

[0023] In this embodiment, it is assumed that the print conversion utility 13 has already been installed in PC01, but if it has not yet been installed, the user is prompted to install the print conversion utility as necessary, as shown in Figures 5 and 6. In the installation process, a print queue is created that prints using the OS standard print function via the print conversion utility 13. An example of this is described below.

[0024] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a guide dialog 90 displayed by the OS printing system 11. If the OS printing system 11 determines that an unsupported printer is connected to PC01 when the user presses the Add button 82 on the printer list screen 80 shown in Fig. 4, the OS printing system 11 displays the guide dialog 90 before displaying the printer registration screen 84 shown in Fig. 4. When the user presses an OK button 91, the OS printing system 11 closes this dialog and then opens the printer registration screen 84 shown in Fig. 4.

[0025] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the process flow of a program (hereinafter referred to as an installer) that installs the print conversion utility 13. Although not shown in the figure, the installer is downloaded from a specific Web server to the PC01 by the user. When the user starts the installer, the process proceeds to S01 and starts. In S02, the installer installs the print conversion utility 13 to the PC01. In S03, the installer starts the print conversion utility 13, and in S04, the target printer setting screen 50 of the print conversion utility 13 is opened. In S05, the installer accepts the selection of a printer on the target printer setting screen 50 by the user and the operation of the OK button 52. Thereafter, the print conversion utility 13 adds the support information for the OS standard printing function, which is generated internally based on the capability information acquired from the target printer selected by the user, to the capability information acquired from the target printer. When the print conversion utility 13 receives a capability information acquisition request from the OS printing system 11, it responds with the capability information to which the support information has been added.

[0026] If the installer determines in S06 that there is a target printer, it requests the OS printing system 11 to create a print queue for the printer set by the user as the target printer in S07. Here, the OS printing system 11 creates a print queue for printing using the OS standard printing function via the print conversion utility 13 based on the capability information returned by the print conversion utility 13. The installer then proceeds to S08 and ends the process. If the installer determines in S06 that there is no target printer, it proceeds to S08 and ends the process.

[0027] That is, the print queue for the target printer selected as the operation target of the print conversion utility 13 may be generated using the screen of FIG. 4, or may be generated by the installer.

[0028] 7 shows the printer list screen and printer registration screen of the OS printing system 21 running on PC02. The print conversion utility 13 running on PC01 can also send capability information to the OS printing system 21 of PC02 via the network 04, the capability information being added with information on compatibility with OS standard printing functions that has been internally generated based on capability information acquired from the printer 03. The OS printing system 21 of PC02 displays the printer 03, which is the target printer of the print conversion utility 13 running on PC01, on the printer registration screen 104. When the user selects the printer 03 and presses the registration button 107, the OS printing system 21 of PC02 creates a print queue for the selected printer and displays the printer 03 in the printer list 101.

[0029] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a print setting screen of the OS printing system 11. Here, the OS printing system 11 operating on PC01 will be described as an example, but the OS printing system 21 operating on PC02 also has a similar screen. Each OS printing system 11 has a print setting screen 110 for printing data created by the application 10. In other words, when a user selects the print menu in the application 10, the print setting screen 110 in FIG. 8 is displayed by the OS printing system 11. The user can set the printer to print from the printer selection menu 111. The OS printing system 11 displays the printers that can be printed and that were added on the printer list screen 80 in FIG. 4 as selectable printers in the printer selection menu 111. In other words, the printer for which a print queue has been generated is displayed in the printer selection menu 111.

[0030] The user can set the number of copies to be printed in the number of copies setting field 112. The user can set the pages to be printed in the page setting radio button 113 and the page specification text field 114. The user can set the paper size to be printed in the paper size menu 115. The user can set the paper size that the printer can print on, A4, A5, L size, or postcard. The user can set the paper type to be printed on in the paper type setting menu 116. The user can set the paper type that the printer can print on, plain paper, glossy photo paper, matte photo paper, or postcard. It is also possible not to specify a specific paper type by setting automatic. In this case, if the same paper size as that set in the paper size menu 115 is set in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13, the paper type set together with that paper size is applied.

[0031] The user can set the tray from which print paper is fed using the paper feed tray setting menu 117. The user can set either cassette 1 or cassette 2, whichever paper feed tray the printer can feed from. It is also possible to not specify a specific paper feed tray by setting "Automatic." In this case, if the same paper size as that set in the paper size menu 115 is set in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13, the paper feed tray set with that paper size is applied. When the user presses the print button 119, a print job based on the settings on this screen is submitted to the OS printing system 11. When the user presses the cancel button 118, the print job is not submitted.

[0032] 9 is a diagram showing the processing flow of the print conversion utility 13. When the print conversion utility 13 receives a print job from the OS printing system 11, the process proceeds to S11 and starts processing the print job. At S12, the print conversion utility 13 receives a print job request. At S13, the print conversion utility 13 acquires print setting information including the paper size, paper type, and paper feed tray to be printed. These are included in the print job request and correspond to the contents set in FIG. 8 described above. At S14, the print conversion utility 13 acquires the paper size and type of each paper feed tray of the printer set in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13 as the paper loaded in the printer by the user.

[0033] In S15, the print conversion utility 13 judges whether or not it is necessary to notify the user of the paper settings. Specifically, the print conversion utility 13 judges whether the paper size, paper type, and paper feed tray specified in the print setting screen 110 and included in the print job request are included in the information set in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13. That is, the print conversion utility 13 executes the judgment process of S15 based on the values ​​acquired in S13 and S14. The judgment process of S15 will be explained. For example, when A4, plain paper, and cassette 2 are set in the print job request, the print conversion utility 13 compares the paper size and paper type set in cassette 2 in the information acquired in S14 with the paper size and paper type acquired in S13. If the two match, S15 is judged as Yes and S16 is executed. On the other hand, if the two do not match, S15 is judged as No and S20 is executed. Also, if the paper feed tray acquired in S13 is set to automatic, the print conversion utility 13 compares the set of paper size and paper type of each tray acquired in S14 with the information acquired in S13. Here, if the information acquired in S13 matches the paper size and paper type set in at least one tray in S14, S15 is determined as Yes. In this case, the print conversion utility 13 applies the tray information determined to match among the setting information of each tray acquired in S14. For example, if the information acquired in S13 is L size, glossy photo paper, automatic, the print conversion utility 13 determines that it matches the information of cassette 1 in the print paper area 70. Therefore, the print conversion utility 13 applies cassette 1 to the paper feed tray. On the other hand, if the information acquired in S13 does not match the paper size and paper type of each tray in S14, S15 is determined as No. Furthermore, if the paper type and paper feed tray obtained in S13 are set to automatic, the print conversion utility 13 compares the paper size of each tray obtained in S14 with the paper size obtained in S13. If the paper size obtained in S13 matches the paper size set for at least one tray in S14, S15 is determined as Yes.In this case, the print conversion utility 13 applies the tray information determined to match among the setting information of each tray acquired in S14. For example, if the information acquired in S13 is L size, automatic, automatic, the print conversion utility 13 determines that it matches the information of cassette 1 in the print paper area 70. Therefore, the print conversion utility 13 applies glossy photo paper to the paper type and cassette 1 to the paper feed tray. On the other hand, if the paper size acquired in S13 does not match the paper size of each tray in S14, S15 is determined to be No. In other words, if the paper type and paper feed tray are set to automatic on the print setting screen 110, the print conversion utility 13 does not determine the setting status of the paper type and paper feed tray.

[0034] If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S15 that the user does not need to be notified about the paper settings, it receives print data from the OS printing system 11 (S16). In S17, the print conversion utility 13 converts the received print data in a format conforming to the OS standard printing function into print data in a vendor-specific format. In S18, the print conversion utility 13 sends the converted print data to the printer. In S19, the print conversion utility 13 determines whether it has received the end of the print data from the OS printing system 11. If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S19 that it has not received the end of the print data, it returns to S16 and receives subsequent print data from the OS printing system 11. If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S19 that it has received the end of the print data, it proceeds to S30 and ends processing of the print job.

[0035] If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S15 that the user needs to be notified about the paper settings, the process proceeds to S20. In S20 to S24, the print conversion utility 13 notifies the user of the improper settings of the print paper area 70 and notifies the user to check the paper settings. However, the print conversion utility 13 cannot notify the user of the paper settings, which is not provided with the print conversion utility, as shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, even if the improper settings of the print paper area 70 are detected during processing of a print job from PC02, the notification cannot be made on PC02, and the user of PC02 cannot immediately notice that an improper paper setting has occurred. In consideration of this, if the print job requester is a user of PC01 (hereinafter referred to as a local user), the print conversion utility 13 temporarily stops processing the print job, including subsequent print jobs. On the other hand, if the print job requester is a user other than PC01 (hereinafter referred to as a remote user), the print conversion utility 13 puts the print job being processed on hold and processes the subsequent print job. In this way, it is possible to prevent jobs of the local user or other remote users from being left unprocessed while the remote user is unaware of an inappropriate paper setting.

[0036] In S20, the print conversion utility 13 acquires the user name of the print job included in the print job request, and in S21, acquires the login user name of PC01. In S22, the print conversion utility 13 judges whether the requester of the print job is a remote user or not based on the user name of the print job and the login user name of PC01. That is, if the user name acquired in S20 and the user name acquired in S21 match, the print conversion utility 13 judges No in S22, and if they do not match, the print conversion utility 13 judges Yes in S22. In this embodiment, the print job requester is judged whether the requester of the print job is a remote user or not based on the user name included in the print job and the login user name of PC01, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be judged whether the requester of the print job is a remote user or not based on, for example, the PC name. Therefore, in other words, S22 judges whether the print instruction to the printer 03 is issued by an external device (PC02) connected to PC01 via a network. The determination process using the user name and the PC name is an example, and the user identification information for identifying the user and the PC identification information for identifying the PC may be used. At least one of these determination processes may be executed. If the result of S22 is No, the process of the print conversion utility 13 proceeds to S23 and executes a hold process for temporarily stopping the process of the print job. In S24, the print conversion utility 13 displays the screen of FIG. 10(a) to prompt the user to check the setting state of the print paper area 70. As shown in FIG. 10(a), the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 120 on the print paper area and a message 121 to prompt the user to check and change the paper setting. That is, as shown in FIG. 10(a) and FIG. 3, in a situation where L size and glossy photo paper are set in the cassette 1 and A4 and plain paper are set in the cassette 2, the user sets A4 and photo paper using the print setting screen 110. Therefore, in FIG. 10(a), the printer is prompted to set the A4 and photo paper set using the print setting screen 110. Note that a message different from that shown in FIG. 10(a) may be displayed.For example, in S24, one of the paper information set in cassette 1 and the paper information set in cassette 2 may be selected, and the print conversion utility 13 may generate print data using the paper information of the selected cassette. That is, the print conversion utility 13 receives print data in which A4 and photo paper are set from the OS printing system 11. Then, the print conversion utility 13 may generate vendor-specific print data using the paper information of the selected cassette (e.g., A4 and plain paper in cassette 2).

[0037] Also, the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 122 in the job monitor area as shown in FIG. 10B, and a warning message 123 as the job processing status. In S25 to S27, if the error notification function of the OS printing system 11 is sufficient, the print conversion utility 13 also uses the error notification function of the OS printing system 11 to notify the user that the print job processing is paused. The OS printing system 11 has a function to notify the user when an error occurs during the print job processing. Therefore, by notifying the user that the print job processing is paused not only by the print conversion utility 13 but also by the OS printing system 11, the user can be made to notice the paper setting error more easily. However, when the user should be prompted to check the setting state of the print conversion utility 13, depending on the version of the OS, there is a risk that the OS printing system 11 will prompt the user to check the state of the printer 03. In consideration of this, the print conversion utility 13 notifies the OS printing system 11 that the print job processing is paused only when the error notification function of the OS printing system is appropriate.

[0038] In S25, the print conversion utility 13 obtains the version of the OS built into PC01, and in S26, determines whether the error notification function of the OS printing system 11 is appropriate based on the OS version. That is, in S26, the print conversion utility 13 executes an OS version determination process. If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S26 that the OS error notification function is appropriate (if the OS version matches a predetermined condition), the process proceeds to S27, where it notifies the OS printing system 11 that the print job processing has been paused. If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S26 that the OS error notification function is not appropriate, the process proceeds to S28.

[0039] When the user resets the paper size and paper type for each paper feed tray in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13 in S28, the print conversion utility 13 returns to S14, acquires the reset paper size and paper type, and executes S15 again.

[0040] If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S22 that the print job requester is a remote user, the process proceeds to S29 and puts the print job on hold. At this time, the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 124 in the job monitor area and a warning message 125 as the job processing status, as shown in FIG. 11. Then, the print conversion utility 13 ends the print job processing. If the print conversion utility 13 receives a request for a subsequent print job after S29, the process starts again from S12. On the other hand, if a request for a subsequent print job is received while the print job processing is paused in S23, the print conversion utility 13 waits to process the subsequent print job until the processing for the print job that is stopped in S23 is completed.

[0041] When the user selects a suspended job in the job list 61, the print conversion utility 13 displays a resume button 126 instead of the hold button 63 (FIG. 11). The user can resume the selected job by using the resume button 126. In this embodiment, the print conversion utility 13 pauses the processing of the print job, including the subsequent print job, if the requester of the print job is a local user. However, even if the requester is a local user, the print job may be suspended to process the subsequent print job. In this case, the print conversion utility 13 holds the print job in S23, and terminates after notifying the user of an inadequacy of the paper settings in S24 to S27. After that, the user resets the paper size and paper type of each paper feed tray in the print paper area 70 of the print conversion utility 13, and instructs the job monitor area to resume the suspended print job. In response to this instruction, the print conversion utility 13 receives the resumed print job from the OS print system 11 and executes the flow of FIG. 9 again. By the above processing, even if the sender of the print job is a local user, the print conversion utility 13 can process any subsequent print job that can be printed.

[0042] As described above, in this embodiment, when the print conversion utility detects an error in the paper settings, it notifies the user of the error, thereby improving the convenience of the print process. Also, if the sender of the job is a local user, the print job processing including the subsequent print jobs is temporarily stopped to prompt the user to check the paper settings, and if the sender of the job is a remote user, only the print job in which the paper settings were incorrect is put on hold and the subsequent print jobs are processed. By switching the processing in this way, the convenience of the print process can be improved.

[0043] In FIG. 9, the process of S15 is performed using the paper information (paper size, paper type), but other print setting information may be used. For example, the user can further set double-sided printing or single-sided printing using the print setting screen 110 in FIG. 8. Also, the user can set double-sided printing or single-sided printing for each paper feed tray using the screen in FIG. 3, and single-sided printing is set for cassette 2 here. In this situation, if A4, plain paper, cassette 2, and double-sided printing are set in the print job request, the print conversion utility 13 compares the information set for cassette 2 in the information acquired in S14 with the information acquired in S13. As a result, the print conversion utility 13 determines that the paper size and paper type match, but the double-sided printing designation does not match, and determines No in S15. In this way, information other than the paper information may be used.

[0044] 9, the print conversion utility 13 receives the print job request and the print data in different steps, but they may receive them in the same step. For example, the OS printing system 11 transmits a print job including print setting information and print data in S12. As a result, the print conversion utility 13 performs the processes of S13-S15 using the print setting information included in the print job, and if the result of S15 is Yes, the print conversion utility 13 may perform a conversion process of the print data included in the print job.

[0045] <Embodiment 2> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the printer does not have a function for identifying the size and type of paper set, and the size and type of paper are set by the print conversion utility 13. If the print conversion utility 13 detects an error in the paper settings, it notifies the user.

[0046] In the second embodiment, the printer has a function for detecting the size and type of paper set, but cannot interpret print data in a format conforming to the OS standard printing function. Therefore, the print conversion utility 13 obtains the size and type of paper set in each paper feed tray from the printer. The print conversion utility 13 generates print data that instructs the printer to feed paper from a paper feed tray set with the same size as the paper size obtained from the OS printing system 11, and to perform printing appropriate to the paper type set in that paper feed tray.

[0047] Since the present embodiment is similar to the first embodiment except for the printer management screens shown in FIGS. 3 and 10-11 and the processing flow of the print conversion utility 13 shown in FIG. 9, a description thereof will be omitted.

[0048] 12 shows the print paper area of ​​the printer management screen of this embodiment. The user can check the paper size and paper type set in the printer on the printer paper list 130. The print conversion utility 13 acquires the paper size and paper type set in the paper feed tray from the printer for each print job processing, and displays them on the printer paper list 130. The print conversion utility 13 generates print data that instructs the printer to feed paper from a paper feed tray set with the same paper size as the paper size acquired from the OS printing system 11, and to perform printing appropriate to the paper type in that paper feed tray.

[0049] 13 is a diagram showing a process flow of a print job of the print conversion utility 13. S41 to S43, S47 to S54, and S56 to S58 are similar to S11 to S13, S16 to S23, and S25 to S27 in FIG. 9 of the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. In S44, the print conversion utility 13 acquires the paper size and paper type set in each paper feed tray from the printer 03. When paper is set in each paper feed tray, the printer 03 detects and stores the paper size and paper type, and responds to an inquiry from the print conversion utility 13 with the paper size and paper type set in each paper feed tray.

[0050] In S45, the print conversion utility 13 updates the display of the printer paper list 130 in the print paper area based on the paper size and paper type acquired from the printer 03. In S46, the print conversion utility 13 determines whether the paper size and paper type specified in the print setting screen 110 are set in the paper feed tray of the specified printer based on the values ​​acquired in S43 and S44. In other words, the print conversion utility 13 determines whether or not it is necessary to notify the user to check the paper set in the printer. Note that the determination method in S46 is basically the same as the determination method in S15 in FIG. 9, so a detailed description will be omitted. Note that the difference between the determination methods in S15 and S46 in FIG. 9 is that in S15 in FIG. 9, the print conversion utility 13 uses information set in the print paper area 70, but in S46, it uses information acquired from the printer.

[0051] If it is determined in S46 that there is no need to notify the user of the paper loaded in the printer, the process proceeds to S47, and the print conversion utility 13 executes S47-S50. On the other hand, if it is determined in S46 that there is a need to notify the user of the paper loaded in the printer, the process proceeds to S51-S53. If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S53 that the print job requester is not a remote user, the process proceeds to S54 and temporarily halts the print job processing. In S55, the print conversion utility 13 displays FIG. 14 to prompt the user to check the paper loaded in the printer. As shown in FIG. 14(a), the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 140 in the print paper area and a message 141 to prompt the user to check the paper loaded in the printer and replace the paper. Also, as shown in FIG. 14(b), the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 143 in the job monitor area and a warning message 144 as the job processing status. When the user presses the OK button 142 in the print paper area of ​​the print conversion utility 13 in S59, the print conversion utility 13 returns to S44 and resumes the process.

[0052] If the print conversion utility 13 determines in S53 that the print job requester is a remote user, the process proceeds to S60 and places the print job on hold. At this time, the print conversion utility 13 displays a warning icon 145 in the job monitor area and a warning message 146 as the job processing status, as shown in Fig. 15. Then, the print conversion utility 13 ends the processing of the print job.

[0053] As described above, in this embodiment, the print conversion utility 13 obtains from the printer the paper size and paper type set in each paper feed tray, and notifies the user if an error in the paper setting is detected. This improves user convenience. Also, if the job sender is a local user, the processing of the print job, including subsequent print jobs, is temporarily stopped to prompt the user to check the printer's paper, and if the job sender is a remote user, only the print job in which the paper setting error occurred is put on hold and the subsequent print job is processed. By switching between processes in this way, the convenience of the print process can be improved. <Other embodiments> The present invention can also be realized by supplying software (programs) that realize the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or various storage media, and having the computer of the system or device read and execute the programs. In this case, the programs and the storage media storing the programs constitute the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 11 OS Printing System 12 OS standard printing control unit 13 Print conversion utilities

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus including printing software that receives an instruction from an application and generates first print data in a predetermined format, a first acquisition means for acquiring print setting information of a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format; a receiving means for receiving a print job request from the printing software; A second acquisition means for acquiring print setting information from the print job; a notification means for notifying a warning message when the print setting information of the printing device does not correspond to the print setting information set in the printing software; a generating means for generating second print data that can be interpreted by a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format based on the first print data when print setting information of the printing device corresponds to print setting information set in the printing software; a version determination means for determining a version of an operating system (OS) operating on the information processing device; If a printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format is selected, the first print data is sent to the printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format; When the version of the OS matches a predetermined condition, the information processing apparatus notifies the printing software that print setting information set in the printing software does not correspond to print setting information of the printing device.

2. An information processing apparatus including printing software that receives an instruction from an application and generates first print data in a predetermined format, a first acquisition means for acquiring print setting information of a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format; a receiving means for receiving a print job request from the printing software; A second acquisition means for acquiring print setting information from the print job; a notification means for notifying a warning message when the print setting information of the printing device does not correspond to the print setting information set in the printing software; a generating means for generating second print data that can be interpreted by a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format based on the first print data when print setting information of the printing device corresponds to print setting information set in the printing software; a determination unit that determines whether a print instruction to a printing device that cannot interpret the print data in the predetermined format has been issued by an external device connected to the information processing device via a network; If a printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format is selected, the first print data is sent to the printing device capable of interpreting the print data in the predetermined format; When it is determined that the print instruction has been issued by an external device connected to the information processing device via a network, the process based on the print instruction is suspended without notifying the warning message; When it is not determined that the print instruction has been issued by an external device connected to the information processing device via a network, the information processing device notifies the user of the warning message and executes a process of suspending processing based on the print instruction.

3. The information processing device further includes a version determination unit for determining a version of an operating system (OS) that operates on the information processing device, 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, when the version of the OS matches a predetermined condition, the printing software is notified that the print setting information set in the printing software does not correspond to the print setting information of the printing device.

4. An information processing device as described in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that if the user identification information that issued the print instruction does not match the user identification information logged in to the information processing device, it is determined that the print instruction was issued by an external device connected to the information processing device via a network.

5. An information processing device as described in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that if the identification information of the device that issued the print instruction does not match the identification information of the information processing device, it is determined that the print instruction was issued by an external device connected to the information processing device via a network.

6. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an execution unit that executes a process of determining whether or not print setting information of the printing device corresponds to print setting information set in the printing software.

7. 7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print setting information of the printing apparatus is input via a setting screen.

8. 7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print setting information of the printing device is acquired from a printing device that cannot interpret print data in the predetermined format.

9. 9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the first print data is transmitted to a printing device capable of interpreting print data in the predetermined format, the first print data is transmitted based on the Internet Printing Protocol.

10. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a sending unit that adds predetermined identification information to a name of a printing device that cannot interpret the print data in the predetermined format and sends the name to the printing software.

11. 11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print setting information of the printing apparatus is at least one of a paper size and a paper type.

12. 12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing software is standard printing software for an OS.

13. A program for causing at least one computer to function as each of the means of an information processing device described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

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