Application Program

Abstract

To provide a technique for reducing the operating labor of a user when a printer is made to print an image in an information processor in which an automatic function is mounted on an operating system.SOLUTION: An operating system (OS) 21 of an electronic device 1 has a connection program 211 for automatically performing an action in response to detection of a trigger, when the procedural data indicating the trigger and the action is registered. A printing application 22 is activated based on user operations or is activated by the connection program 211. When activated based on the user operations, the printer application 22 makes a CPU 11 execute manual output processing. When activated by the connection program 211, the printing application 22 establishes a radio communication with a printer 3, decides data to be printed, and automatically outputs a print job for printing the decided data to be printed to the printer 3 in which the radio communication is established.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The technical field disclosed in this specification relates to an application program that outputs a print job to a printer. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a technique for starting an application program when a predetermined start condition is satisfied. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration of a multifunction peripheral capable of short-distance communication, which starts an application program of an external device according to the state of the external device of the communication partner when short-distance communication is established. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-181934 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent years, an operating system (OS) is equipped with an automatic function that registers procedure data indicating a series of procedures for multiple functions and operations in the OS, and the OS automatically executes the functions and operations according to the registered procedure data. By using this automatic function, the user's work until the desired output is obtained can be automated, so that the user's operational burden can be significantly reduced. However, after starting an application program, for example, an application program that outputs a print job requires operations such as selecting a print target and inputting a print instruction. Even with the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to establish short-distance communication again after the user performs an operation for printing on the application program of the external device. Therefore, there is room for improvement in order to further reduce the user's operational burden.

[0005] This specification discloses a technique for reducing the user's operational burden when causing a printer to print an image in an information processing apparatus having an automatic function installed in its operating system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The application program made for the purpose of solving this problem is an application program executable by a computer of an information processing device, wherein an operating system of the information processing device has an automatic function, and the automatic function is a function of the operating system automatically executing a series of procedures of a plurality of functions or operations in response to satisfaction of a start condition, when procedure data indicating a start condition for starting the series of procedures is registered in the operating system, and the application program is started based on a user operation using a user interface of the information processing device, or based on the automatic function of the operating system, and further, the application program is executed by the computer. When started based on a user operation using the user interface of the information processing device, the information processing device executes a manual output process that accepts a selection of data to be printed using the user interface and outputs a print job based on the selected data to be printed, and further executes the following processes when started based on the automatic function of the operating system: an establishment process that establishes the first wireless communication with a printer equipped with a communication interface that performs a first wireless communication of a predetermined standard, a determination process that determines the data to be printed, and an automatic output process that outputs a print job that prints the data to be printed determined in the determination process to the printer with which the first wireless communication was established in the establishment process, and the information processing device is equipped with a first communication interface that performs the first wireless communication.

[0007] When the application program disclosed in this specification is started based on an automatic function of the OS, it establishes a first wireless communication and determines the data to be printed. Furthermore, the application program automatically outputs a print job to the printer via the first wireless communication, which causes the determined data to be printed to be printed. As a result, the data to be printed is automatically determined and printed by the printer, which reduces the user's effort when printing compared to when an operation to determine the data to be printed or an operation to issue a print instruction is performed on the application program after it has been started.

[0008] An electronic device for implementing the functions of the application program, a control method for implementing the functions of the application program, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing the application program are also novel and useful. Effect of the Invention

[0009] The technology disclosed in this specification realizes a technology that reduces the user's operational effort when causing a printer to print an image in an information processing device having an automatic function installed in the operating system. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] 13 is a flowchart showing a procedure for manual output processing. [Diagram 3] 11 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure of a process performed by a print application when the print application is started by establishing short-distance communication. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a notification in a locked state. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a notification in an unlocked state. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a processing procedure by a printing application for creating a name tag. [Figure 7]FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a name tag production procedure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a program embedded in an electronic device will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. This embodiment discloses an application program (hereinafter, referred to as an "app") embedded in a portable electronic device such as a smartphone or a tablet computer.

[0012] As shown in Fig. 1, the electronic device 1 of this embodiment includes a controller 10 including a CPU 11 and a memory 12. Furthermore, the electronic device 1 includes a user interface (hereinafter referred to as "user IF") 13, a first communication interface (hereinafter referred to as "first communication IF") 14, and a second communication interface (hereinafter referred to as "second communication IF") 15, which are electrically connected to the controller 10. The electronic device 1 is an example of an information processing device. Note that the controller 10 in Fig. 1 is a collective term for hardware and software used to control the electronic device 1, and does not necessarily represent a single piece of hardware actually present in the electronic device 1.

[0013] The CPU 11 executes various processes according to a program read from the memory 12 and based on a user's operation. The CPU 11 is an example of a computer. The memory 12 includes, for example, a ROM, a RAM, a HDD, and a flash memory, and stores various programs and data.

[0014] The user IF 13 includes a configuration having a display function and a configuration having an operation reception function. The user IF 13 is, for example, a touch panel having a display function and a touch reception function. The user IF 13 may include a microphone having a voice input function and a speaker having a voice output function.

[0015] Both the first communication IF 14 and the second communication IF 15 include hardware for performing wireless communication with various external devices. The first communication IF 14 includes hardware for performing wireless communication by a first communication method, and the second communication IF 15 includes hardware for performing wireless communication by a second communication method different from the first communication method.

[0016] The first communication method is a communication method that has a wider communication range (distance over which communication is possible) and a larger data size of communication data that can be communicated than the second communication method. The communication method of the first communication IF 14 is, for example, a communication method according to the Wi-Fi (registered trademark), Bluetooth (registered trademark), or BLE (abbreviation of Bluetooth Low Energy) standard. The communication method of the second communication IF 15 is, for example, a communication method according to the NFC (abbreviation of Near Field Communication) standard, Bluetooth, or BLE standard. The electronic device 1 may further have a communication IF according to another communication method.

[0017] The electronic device 1 may further include a camera with a photographing function and various detectors for detecting various states of the electronic device 1.

[0018] An operating system (hereinafter, referred to as "OS") 21 and various applications are built into the memory 12 of the electronic device 1 of this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1. The OS 21 is a multitasking OS that can process multiple tasks in parallel by managing and switching between multiple tasks, and is, for example, any one of iOS (registered trademark), Android (registered trademark), Windows (registered trademark), macOS (registered trademark), and Linux (registered trademark).

[0019] The OS 21 of the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment incorporates a linking program 211. The linking program 211 is a program that automatically executes a process registered in preregistered procedure data based on the procedure data. The linking program 211 is an example of a program for realizing an automatic function. The linking program 211 is, for example, SiriShortcut that can run on iOS.

[0020] One or more pieces of procedure data can be registered in the linking program 211, and a trigger, which is a condition for starting execution of the procedure, and an action, which is the content of the procedure to be executed, are stored in association with each other in the linking program 211. The linking program 211 constantly detects triggers of the registered procedure data, and when a trigger is detected, starts execution of the action stored corresponding to the trigger. Note that a series of procedures for executing multiple functions or operations in a predetermined order can be registered as the action of the procedure data. A trigger is an example of a condition for starting an automatic function, and an action is an example of a procedure for an automatic function.

[0021] In the data of each procedure of the linking program 211, it is possible to register, as a trigger, for example, acceptance of a predetermined operation to the user IF 13, detection of predetermined information by various detection units included in the electronic device 1, and output of predetermined information by various applications incorporated in the electronic device 1. In addition, in the data of each procedure of the linking program 211, it is possible to register, as an action, for example, output to the user IF 13, acceptance of an operation input, starting or stopping a predetermined application, and output of predetermined information to a predetermined application.

[0022] The electronic device 1 of the present embodiment has a lock function for switching between a locked state and an unlocked state as a display mode of the user IF 13. The electronic device 1 becomes in a locked state, for example, when no operation is received for a predetermined consecutive period of time or more. In the locked state, the electronic device 1 displays, for example, a screen for a predetermined locked state, and restricts some of the operations on the user IF 13.

[0023] In the locked state, the electronic device 1 accepts input of unlocking information for releasing the locked state, and releases the locked state to enter the unlocked state if the accepted input information matches the unlocking information stored in the memory 12. When entering the unlocked state, the electronic device 1 hides the screen for the locked state and displays a screen for the unlocked state that can accept various operations.

[0024] However, even in the locked state, the OS 21 and the linking program 211 judge whether or not the detection by each detection unit or the trigger of the registered procedure data is met. When the linking program 211 judges that a trigger of the registered procedure data is detected, it automatically starts execution of the action corresponding to the detected trigger, even in the locked state.

[0025] Various applications can be incorporated into the electronic device 1, and the electronic device 1 of this embodiment incorporates various applications including at least a print application 22. The print application 22 is a program having a function of generating a print job for causing a printer to execute printing, and sending the generated print job to a specified destination. The destination of the print job may be a printer directly connected to the electronic device 1, or may be a server shared with a printer that is not directly connected. The print application 22 is an example of an application program. Details of the operation of the print application 22 will be described later.

[0026] The print application 22 may be a dedicated program for a specific model of printer, or a general-purpose program for various printers. The print application 22 may be a program for a printer that prints on standard size paper such as A4, or a program for a printer that prints on label paper to create labels, or a program that can do both.

[0027] The printer 3 of this embodiment is a device equipped with a printing unit 31 including a print head and a communication IF 32 of a predetermined standard, and capable of receiving a print job and printing based on the print job. The printer 3 is capable of wireless communication with the electronic device 1 by a first communication method via the communication IF 32 and the first communication IF 14 of the electronic device 1. The wireless communication between the communication IF 32 of the printer 3 and the first communication IF 14 of the electronic device 1 is an example of the first wireless communication. The printer 3 is an example of a specific printer.

[0028] The printer 3 of this embodiment is, for example, a so-called label printer that stores rolled label paper, prints on the label paper, and transports the label paper to create labels. The printer 3 of this embodiment can detect the label width of the stored label paper, and can return information indicating the label width of the stored label paper in response to an inquiry from the electronic device 1 or the like. The label width is the size of the label paper in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction by the printer 3. The printer 3 may also be a device that prints on plain paper or the like using an electrophotographic method or an inkjet method.

[0029] The device 4 in this embodiment is a device that includes a communication IF 41 and stored information 42, and has a short-range communication function. The device 4 is capable of wireless communication with the electronic device 1 by a second communication method, i.e., short-range communication, via the communication IF 41 and the second communication IF 15 of the electronic device 1. The wireless communication between the communication IF 41 of the device 4 and the second communication IF 15 of the electronic device 1 is an example of the second wireless communication. The device 4 is an example of a specific device. The device 4 may be a part of the printer 3.

[0030] The device 4 can, for example, periodically transmit a detection signal and receive a response, and when the response is received, the device 4 can establish short-distance communication with the device that transmitted the response. The electronic device 1 of this embodiment also has a function of establishing short-distance communication with the device 4 via the second communication IF 15. That is, when the electronic device 1 is located within a predetermined distance range from the device 4, the electronic device 1 can transmit a response signal to the device 4 when the electronic device 1 receives a detection signal transmitted from the device 4.

[0031] After establishing short-distance communication with the electronic device 1, the device 4 can transmit the retained information 42 in response to a request from the electronic device 1. The retained information 42 includes printer information 421 used to connect to the printer 3. The printer information 421 includes, for example, information for identifying the printer 3 and connection information for connecting to the printer 3. The connection information includes, for example, authentication information for establishing wireless communication via the communication IF 32 included in the printer 3.

[0032] The retained information 42 of the device 4 may further include data information 422 indicating data to be printed. The data information 422 is, for example, information on a character string to be included in an image to be printed, or information specifying a template to be used. The retained information 42 included in the device 4 is stored in advance in the device 4 by a user of the device 4.

[0033] Next, an example of the operation of the print application 22 will be described with reference to a sequence diagram, etc. Note that the following processes and each processing step basically indicate the processing of the CPU 11 according to the instructions written in each program. The processing by the CPU 11 also includes hardware control using the API of the OS 21 of the electronic device 1. In this specification, the operation of the program will be described without describing the OS 21.

[0034] First, the procedure of manual output processing, which is processing of the print application 22 when it is manually launched based on a user operation, will be described with reference to the flowchart in Fig. 2. The manual output processing is executed by the CPU 11 of the electronic device 1 based on the print application 22 when the print application 22 is specified and launched based on a user operation on the user IF 13, for example, by the user operating an application icon.

[0035] In the manual output process, the CPU 11 displays a pre-prepared top screen (S101) and accepts user operations. The CPU 11 accepts the selection of data to be printed and printing parameters based on the user operations (S102). If a printer has not been selected, the CPU 11 also accepts the selection of a printer. The CPU 11 then determines whether or not a print execution instruction has been accepted (S103), and if not (S103: NO), accepts further user operations.

[0036] When it is determined that a print command has been received (S103: YES), the CPU 11 generates a print job (S104) and transmits the generated print job to a specified destination (S105). The destination of the print job may be a printer 3 connected to the electronic device 1, or a server shared with an unconnected printer.

[0037] After transmitting the print job, the print application 22 in this embodiment stores a print log (S106). The print log stores information indicating the data to be printed, information indicating the printer that is the device that will print, and information indicating the date and time when the printing was performed, all of which are associated with one another. The print log may also include information indicating print parameters. Furthermore, the information indicating the data to be printed may also include information indicating the color of the coloring material to be used to print the data.

[0038] Furthermore, the CPU 11 judges whether or not an instruction to end the print application 22 by a user operation has been accepted (S107). If the instruction to end has not been accepted (S107: NO), the CPU 11 returns to displaying, for example, a top screen, and accepts further user operation. If it is judged that an instruction to end has been accepted by a user operation (S107: YES), the CPU 11 ends the print application 22.

[0039] The print application 22 of this embodiment may be started by a procedure different from the user's operation. In the electronic device 1 of this embodiment, one or more procedure data whose action includes a procedure for starting the print application 22 are registered. The print application 22 is automatically started by the linking program 211 when a trigger of the registered procedure data is detected. The action of the procedure data whose action includes a procedure for starting the print application 22 includes a procedure for passing input information including start-up information, which is information on the trigger of the procedure data, to the started print application 22.

[0040] The registration of the procedure data is performed automatically or based on a user's selection when the print application 22 is installed, for example, by using a registration file provided together with the print application 22. Also, a registration application for registering the procedure data may be provided as an application separate from the print application 22. In this case, the registration application is executed based on the user's selection, and the selected procedure data is registered in the electronic device 1.

[0041] When the print application 22 is started based on the procedure data by the function of the linking program 211, the print application 22 receives input information input from the linking program 211 and determines a processing procedure after the start based on the received input information. For example, the determination procedure for determining the data to be printed differs for each start information included in the input information.

[0042] The print application 22 of this embodiment does not receive input information when it is manually started based on a normal user operation without going through the linking program 211. When the print application 22 does not receive input information at the time of starting, the print application 22 executes the manual output process described above. The print application 22 of this embodiment executes different operations when it is manually started based on a user operation, i.e., when it does not receive input information at the time of starting, and when it is automatically started by the linking program 211, i.e., when it receives input information at the time of starting.

[0043] Next, an example of the operation of the print application 22 when it is automatically started by the link program 211 based on the procedure data registered in the electronic device 1 will be described.

[0044] In the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment, procedure data (hereinafter, referred to as "proximity procedure data") including the establishment of short-distance communication by the second communication IF 15 as a trigger is registered. The proximity procedure data is an example of specific procedure data. The trigger of the proximity procedure data of the present embodiment is the establishment of short-distance communication, and the action of the proximity procedure data includes the start of the print application 22 and a procedure of passing information acquired by the short-distance communication to the print application 22 as input information. The short-distance communication is, for example, communication by NFC or BLE, and is established by the OS 21 when the electronic device 1 approaches a device compatible with short-distance communication, such as the device 4, as described above. The trigger of the proximity procedure data is, specifically, when the user brings the electronic device 1 close to a device waiting for short-distance communication.

[0045] The operation of the print application 22 when started by the linking program 211 based on the proximity procedure data will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of Fig. 3. A specific example of printing using the proximity procedure data will be described later. The following processes are executed by the CPU 11 of the electronic device 1 based on programs such as the print application 22. In Fig. 3, the processes by the linking program 211 are also shown as processes by the OS 21.

[0046] In this embodiment, the device 4 is in a state of waiting for short-distance communication. When the electronic device 1 is brought within a predetermined distance range by a user from the device 4 (S201), the electronic device 1 automatically establishes short-distance communication with the device 4 (S202).

[0047] When the linking program 211 detects the establishment of short-distance communication by the OS21, it judges whether or not the trigger of the procedure data registered in the electronic device 1 is satisfied (S205). Since the proximity procedure data is registered in the electronic device 1 of this embodiment, the linking program 211 of the OS21 judges that the trigger of the proximity procedure data is satisfied (alt:[trigger]) and starts the action of the proximity procedure data. Note that if the proximity procedure data is not registered, the electronic device 1 does not execute the operation shown in FIG. 3.

[0048] The connection program 211 acquires the retained information 42 (see FIG. 1) from the device 4 by short-range communication as an action of the proximity procedure data (S206). In response to a request from the connection program 211, the device 4 transmits the stored retained information 42.

[0049] The linking program 211 executes S206 if execution of S206 is registered in the action of the proximity procedure data. In other words, if execution of S206 is not registered in the action of the proximity procedure data, the linking program 211 does not execute S206. The linking program 211 may acquire information equivalent to the printer information 421 and the data information 422, for example, based on information that can be acquired when short-range communication is established in S202 or information stored in the memory 12 of the electronic device 1. In the action of the proximity procedure data, a process for acquiring information is registered according to the storage location of the information.

[0050] The linking program 211 starts the print application 22 (S207) and passes input information including the retained information 42 acquired from the device 4 or the like to the print application 22 (S208). This causes the print application 22 to start, and the print application 22 acquires the input information from the linking program 211. S208 is an example of an acquisition process. After S208, the linking program 211 ends the action of the proximity procedure data.

[0051] Since the retained information 42 includes the printer information 421, the print application 22 can acquire the printer information 421 from the input information received at the time of startup. The print application 22 attempts to establish wireless communication with the printer 3 via the first communication IF 14 using the acquired printer information 421 (S211). S211 is an example of the establishment process. The wireless communication established in S211 has a wider communication range than the wireless communication established in S202.

[0052] For example, if the short-range communication established in S202 is NFC communication, the wireless communication established in S211 is Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or BLE communication. Also, if the short-range communication established in S202 is Bluetooth or BLE communication, the wireless communication established in S211 is Wi-Fi communication. After the wireless communication is established in S211, the user can move the electronic device 1 away from the device 4 and check the notification displayed on the user IF 13, for example.

[0053] The printer information 421 identifies the printer 3 with which wireless communication is to be established, eliminating the need for the user to select the printer 3. If the device 4 is included in the printer 3, the printer information 421 is obtained from the printer 3 that is the output destination of the print job, further simplifying the configuration of this embodiment.

[0054] Note that the printer information 421 may indicate the short-distance communication established by the OS 21 in S202. In this case, the print application 22 communicates with the printer 3 using the already established short-distance communication, rather than establishing new wireless communication in S211. On the other hand, if the printer information 421 indicates another connection method other than short-distance communication, the print application 22 disconnects the short-distance communication with the device 4, and attempts to establish new wireless communication with the printer 3 based on the printer information 421.

[0055] If the wireless communication is successfully established in S211, the print application 22 acquires device information from the connection partner (S212). The device information is information indicating the type of the connection partner, and the print application 22 can use the acquired device information to check whether the connection partner is a device equipped with a printing function such as the printer 3. The print application 22 may acquire device information by short-range communication.

[0056] If the print application 22 fails to establish wireless communication in S211, or if it determines that the device information acquired in S212 is not information indicating a printer, the print application 22 proceeds to S251 and terminates itself. For example, if the user starts an action of the proximity procedure data by bringing the electronic device 1 close to a device other than the device 4, there is a possibility that the electronic device 1 may be connected to a device other than the printer 3. Since a print job cannot be executed unless the connection destination is a printer, it is possible to avoid unnecessary communication by checking whether the connection destination is a printer and not outputting the print job if it is not a printer.

[0057] When wireless communication with the printer 3 is established (alt: [connected to printer]), the print application 22 determines, based on the input information received from the connection program 211, whether or not further data is required to determine the print target.

[0058] If data information 422 (see FIG. 1) indicating the data to be printed is set in advance in the device 4 and the input information includes the data information 422, the print application 22 can determine the data to be printed based on the data information 422 included in the input information. If the data to be printed is prepared in the device 4 in advance, the linking program 211 can also obtain information on the data to be printed from the device 4 by a simple operation of connecting to the device 4. In this case, the print application 22 can obtain information on the data to be printed as input information from the linking program 211, further simplifying the processing of the print application 22.

[0059] The data information 422 may be the text or image of the print target itself, or may be data indicating the address (URL) where the data to be printed is stored. When receiving the address information where the data to be printed is stored, the print application 22 can access the address and read the data to be printed.

[0060] On the other hand, if the input information does not include data information 422 indicating the print target, or if it is determined that additional data is needed (alt: [data needed]), the print application 22 acquires the additional data. The data to be printed is specified by the input information received from the linking program 211, i.e., the information acquired by the linking program 211 from the device 4 in S206, and the print application 22 can determine whether or not further data to be printed is needed based on the input information.

[0061] The print application 22, for example, requests data from the printer 3 and acquires the data from the printer 3 (S213). By acquiring data information from the printer 3 through wireless communication that is not short-range communication, it becomes possible to acquire even relatively large data such as image data.

[0062] Furthermore, the print application 22 may request data from the OS 21 and obtain the data from the OS 21 (S214). When obtaining data from the OS 21, the data obtained by the print application 22 may be data registered in advance in the OS 21, such as information indicating the user of the electronic device 1, or may be data that the OS 21 can obtain based on a request from the print application 22, such as location information of the electronic device 1.

[0063] Then, the printing application 22 uses the data information 422 included in the input information and additional data acquired from the printer 3 or the OS 21 to determine the data to be printed (S216). S216 is an example of the determination process. The printing application 22 may further use data managed by itself to determine the data to be printed. For example, if the data information 422 includes information specifying a template, the printing application 22 may read out an image of the specified template and combine the image of the template with the characters to be printed, etc., to determine the data to be printed.

[0064] Next, the print application 22 inquires of the OS 21 whether the electronic device 1 is in a locked state and obtains a response (S221). If the electronic device 1 is in a locked state (alt: [locked state]), the print application 22 passes an instruction to the OS 21 to display a notification on the user IF 13 (S222). S222 is an example of notification processing in a locked state. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the print application 22 displays on the user IF a message notifying that printing is possible on the printer 3 and that the locked state must be released in order to execute printing.

[0065] When the OS21 receives any operation on the displayed notification screen, the OS21 displays an unlock screen for receiving input of unlock information for unlocking the locked state on the user IF13 and receives the unlock information (S223). The user inputs the unlock information for unlocking the locked state on the unlock screen (S224). The OS21 determines whether the input unlock information is appropriate, and if it determines that the input is not appropriate, the OS21 displays the unlock screen again and maintains the locked state until it receives input of appropriate unlock information. On the other hand, if it determines that appropriate unlock information has been input, the OS21 releases the locked state and becomes unlocked.

[0066] When the OS 21 is put into the unlocked state by the user's operation, the OS 21 passes information indicating that the state has been unlocked to the printing application 22. This causes the printing application 22 to proceed to the next operation. Note that the printing application 22 may end if a predetermined time has passed without receiving information indicating that the state has been unlocked after the notification in S222.

[0067] If the print application 22 receives a response that the data is not in a locked state in S221, or receives information that the data is in an unlocked state after S222, the print application 22 displays a notification for accepting a selection on the user IF 13 (S231). The notification in S231 has different notification content from the notification in S222. S231 is an example of a notification process in an unlocked state. The print application 22 displays a selection screen for requesting a user selection on the user IF, which includes, for example, an image showing the data to be printed, a button for accepting an instruction to print, and a button for accepting an instruction not to print, as shown in FIG. 5. Note that the selection screen does not need to include information showing the data to be printed.

[0068] Then, the print application 22 accepts the user's selection on the displayed selection screen. The process of accepting the selection on the screen displayed in S231 is an example of a reception process. If the print application 22 accepts a selection not to execute printing, the print application 22 may proceed to S251 and end.

[0069] The print application 22 does not have to accept a user's selection as to whether or not to print. For example, when the print application 22 is started from the link program 211, the print application 22 may automatically generate a print job and output it to the printer 3 regardless of whether or not it is in a locked state, or in response to the lock being released. However, by accepting a user's selection, unwanted printing can be avoided.

[0070] Furthermore, it is not necessary to determine whether the electronic device 1 is in a locked state. The print application 22 may be able to accept a print instruction even in a locked state. However, since the display content is limited in a locked state compared to an unlocked state, if different notifications are sent in the locked and unlocked states, notifications appropriate for each state can be sent.

[0071] When a user's selection to execute printing is accepted (S232), the print application 22 requests capability information from the printer 3 and acquires the capability information indicating printing capabilities from the printer 3 (S235). S235 is an example of a capability acquisition process. The capability information includes, for example, information on the label width of the label paper contained in the printer 3. The print application 22 adjusts the data to be printed determined in S216 based on the acquired capability information (S236).

[0072] In S236, the print application 22 adjusts the data to be printed so that it becomes appropriate for the capabilities of the printer 3. For example, if the capability information includes label width information, the print application 22 enlarges or reduces the data to be printed so that the width of the data to be printed matches the label width. Also, for example, if the capability information indicates that only monochrome printing is possible and the data to be printed is a multi-color image including color information, the print application 22 deletes the color information from the data to be printed to make it a grayscale image. By outputting a print job adjusted according to the capabilities of the printer 3, the possibility of an inappropriate printout can be reduced.

[0073] The timing of acquiring the capability information is not limited to after the instruction to execute printing is accepted, but may be any time after wireless communication is established with the printer 3. The capability information may be included in the device information acquired in S212, for example.

[0074] Furthermore, the printing application 22 generates a print job based on the adjusted data to be printed (S237), and outputs the generated print job to the printer 3 (S238). S238 is an example of an automatic output process. The printer 3 executes printing using the printing unit 31 (see FIG. 1) based on the received print job (S241). This results in the generation of a printed matter. After transmitting the print job, the printing application 22 terminates itself (S251). The printing application 22 may disconnect from the printer 3 before terminating.

[0075] Next, a specific application example of printing using the proximity procedure data will be described. An example of creating a name tag with the name of the user of the electronic device 1 written thereon using the proximity procedure data will be described below with reference to the sequence diagram of Fig. 6 and the explanatory diagram of Fig. 7. Note that, in the following, the same reference numerals are used for the steps corresponding to those shown in Fig. 3, and the description will be simplified.

[0076] In this application example, the printer 3 is, for example, a dedicated printer arranged at the reception desk of an event or conference. The organizer of the event or conference prepares a registration file for registering the proximity procedure data in advance and distributes it to those who wish to attend. The attendees use the distributed registration file to install the proximity procedure data in their own electronic device 1 such as a smartphone, and bring the installed electronic device 1 with them. That is, at the start of the procedure shown in FIG. 6, the proximity procedure data and the print application 22 are registered in the electronic device 1. Note that, in this example, the print application 22 may be a dedicated application for creating a name tag using the proximity procedure data. Also, it is assumed that the name information of the user of the electronic device 1 is registered in the electronic device 1 in advance.

[0077] Assume that the printer 3 is, for example, a printer equipped with at least a BLE function. The device 4 is a part of the printer 3, and the printer 3 is in a state of waiting for short-distance communication by BLE (S301). As shown in Fig. 7(A), when an attendee of an event or meeting approaches the reception desk with the electronic device 1, short-distance communication by BLE is established between the electronic device 1 and the printer 3 (S202).

[0078] Since the electronic device 1 has the proximity procedure data registered therein, the connection program 211 starts the print application 22 (S207) and passes the input information including the information indicating that the short-distance communication with the printer 3 has been established to the print application 22 (S208). The BLE communication is capable of transmitting data of a relatively large size, and does not require handover. If the established short-distance communication is NFC communication, the print application 22 may perform handover to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, BLE communication, or the like, based on the information 42 held by the printer 3.

[0079] The print application 22 acquires information on the user's name, which is data to be printed, from the OS 21 (S214). Note that the data to be printed does not have to be information on the user's name of the electronic device 1. For example, the data may be information that is registered in advance in the proximity procedure data, or may be information included in an email or the like received by the electronic device 1. The print application 22 then places the acquired information in a predetermined template to generate data to be printed.

[0080] 7B, the print application 22 displays a notification for accepting the selection of printing on the user IF 13 (S231) and accepts the user's operation (S232). When the user bringing the electronic device 1 simply stops by the reception desk, the print application 22 is started based on the proximity procedure data and accepts an instruction to print the name tag. The print application 22 may also accept an instruction to modify or add data to be printed.

[0081] When a print execution instruction from the user is received, the print application 22 generates a print job (S237) and outputs the generated print job to the printer 3 (S238). The printer 3 that receives the print job executes printing (S241), as shown in Fig. 7(C). This creates a name tag as a printed matter.

[0082] After outputting the print job, the print application 22 disconnects the connection with the printer 3 (S302) and terminates itself (S251). Instead of disconnecting the connection, the print application 22 may display a message on the user IF 13 instructing the user to move the electronic device 1 away from the printer 3. After communication with the electronic device 1 is disconnected, the printer 3 goes into standby mode again at a predetermined timing.

[0083] As described above in detail, when the printing application 22 described in this specification is started by the connection program 211 based on the proximity procedure data, it establishes wireless communication with the printer 3 via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or the like, and determines the data to be printed. Furthermore, the printing application 22 outputs a print job for printing the determined data to be printed to the printer 3 via the established wireless communication, so that the data to be printed is automatically determined and printed by the printer. Therefore, compared to the case where an operation for determining the data to be printed or an operation for issuing a print instruction is performed after starting the printing application 22, the user's effort in printing can be reduced.

[0084] It should be noted that the present embodiment is merely an example and does not limit the present invention in any way. Therefore, the present invention can be modified and improved in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, the printer 3 connected to the electronic device 1 is not limited to a printer with a single function, but may be a multifunction machine, a copier, a fax machine, or any other device that has both a communication function and a printing function.

[0085] In addition, in this embodiment, only the procedure based on the proximity procedure data has been described, but other procedure data may be registered in the electronic device 1. If there is further procedure data including a procedure for starting the print application 22 as an action, the print application 22 may execute a process different from that of this embodiment based on the input information based on the procedure data.

[0086] In addition, in this embodiment, the printer information 421 indicating the printer 3 is acquired by the OS 21 through short-distance communication with the device 4, and then acquired by the print application 22 via the OS 21, but this is not limited thereto. For example, the printer information 421 may be registered in advance in the proximity procedure data or the print application 22, or may be acquired by the print application 22 from the device 4 through short-distance communication after the print application 22 is started.

[0087] In addition, in the present embodiment, the data information 422 indicating the data to be printed is acquired by the OS 21 through short-distance communication with the device 4, and then acquired by the print application 22 via the OS 21, but this is not limited thereto. For example, the data information 422 may be registered in advance in the short-distance procedure data or the print application 22, or may be acquired by the print application 22 from the device 4 or the printer 3 after being started.

[0088] Also, for example, the template information is included in the data information 422 of the printer 3, but this is not limiting. The template information may be registered in advance in the print application 22, or may be selected by the user. Also, a template need not be used. Also, in this embodiment, the capability information is acquired from the printer 3 to adjust the data to be printed, but this is not necessary. Also, in this embodiment, handover is not necessary if the short-range communication is BLE, but handover may be performed.

[0089] In addition, in this embodiment, when the print application 22 is started based on the procedure data, it is assumed that the print application 22 terminates itself when the processing is completed, but it does not have to terminate.

[0090] In addition, in any of the flowcharts disclosed in the embodiments, the order of execution of multiple processes in any of the steps can be arbitrarily changed or the processes can be executed in parallel as long as no contradiction occurs in the process content.

[0091] The processes disclosed in the embodiments may be executed by a single CPU, multiple CPUs, hardware such as ASIC, or a combination of these. The processes disclosed in the embodiments may be realized in various forms, such as a recording medium having a program for executing the processes recorded thereon, or a method. [Explanation of symbols]

[0092] 1. Electronic Devices 3. Printer 4 Devices 11 CPU 13 User Interface 14 First communication interface 15 Second communication interface 32 Communication Interface

Claims

1. An application program executable by a computer of an information processing device, wherein an operating system of the information processing device has an automatic function, and the automatic function is a function in which, when procedure data indicating a series of procedures of a plurality of functions or operations and a start condition that is a condition for starting the series of procedures is registered in the operating system, the operating system automatically executes the series of procedures in response to the start condition being satisfied, the application program may be started based on a user operation using a user interface of the information processing device, or may be started based on an automatic function of the operating system; Furthermore, the application program The computer includes: execute a manual output process, when the process is started based on a user operation using the user interface of the information processing device, to accept a selection of data to be printed using the user interface, and to output a print job based on the selected data to be printed; The computer further comprises: when started based on the automatic function of the operating system, the information processing device executes an establishment process for establishing the first wireless communication with a printer having a communication interface that performs first wireless communication of a predetermined standard, a determination process for determining data to be printed, and an automatic output process for outputting a print job for printing the data to be printed determined in the determination process to the printer with which the first wireless communication has been established in the establishment process, the information processing device being equipped with a first communication interface that performs the first wireless communication; 1. An application program comprising:

2. 2. The application program according to claim 1, The computer includes: when the operating system is started based on the automatic function of the operating system, the first wireless communication is established with the printer in the establishment process, and then the determination process is executed; In the determination process, acquiring data information from the printer via the first wireless communication, and determining the data to be printed based on the acquired data information; 1. An application program comprising:

3. 2. The application program according to claim 1, The computer includes: When the operating system is started based on the automatic function of the operating system, an acquisition process is executed to acquire input information input from the operating system at the time of startup, the operating system identifies data information by satisfying the startup condition included in the registered procedure data, and when the operating system starts the application program by the automatic function in response to the startup condition included in the registered procedure data being satisfied, the operating system passes the input information including the identified data information to the application program; In the determination process, determining the data to be printed based on the data information included in the input information acquired in the acquisition process; 1. An application program comprising:

4. 4. The application program according to claim 3, In the acquisition process, The input information including data information stored in a specific device capable of second wireless communication is acquired, the information processing device is equipped with a second communication interface for performing the second wireless communication having a narrower communication range than the first wireless communication, and the information processing device receives the data information from the specific device by establishing the second wireless communication with the specific device, specific procedure data having the establishment of the second wireless communication as the startup condition is registered in the operating system, and when starting the application program by the automatic function in response to the establishment of the second wireless communication based on the specific procedure data, the operating system passes the input information including the data information received from the specific device to the application program.

1. An application program comprising:

5. 5. The application program according to claim 4, The second wireless communication is communication using a communication method conforming to the Near Field Communication (NFC) standard.

1. An application program comprising:

6. 5. The application program according to claim 4, The second wireless communication is communication using a communication method conforming to the BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) standard.

1. An application program comprising:

7. 7. The application program according to claim 4, In the acquisition process, the input information including printer information that identifies the printer to be connected is acquired, the information processing device receives the data information and the printer information from the specific device capable of the second wireless communication by establishing the second wireless communication with the specific device, and the operating system, based on the specific procedure data, passes the input information including the data information and the printer information received from the specific device to the application program when starting the application program by the automatic function in response to the establishment of the second wireless communication; In the establishment process, establishing the first wireless communication with the printer identified by the printer information included in the input information acquired in the acquisition process; 1. An application program comprising:

8. 8. The application program according to claim 7, the specific device is a printer that is also capable of the first wireless communication, In the automatic output process, outputting the print job for printing the data to be printed determined in the determination process to the printer, which is the specific device with which the first wireless communication has been established with the information processing device in the establishment process; 1. An application program comprising:

9. 9. The application program according to claim 1, The computer further comprises: executing a capability acquisition process for acquiring capability information from the printer with which the first wireless communication has been established in the establishment process when the printer is started based on the automatic function of the operating system; In the automatic output process, adjusting the data to be printed determined in the determination process based on the capability information acquired in the capability acquisition process, and outputting the print job for printing the adjusted data to the printer with which the first wireless communication has been established in the establishment process.

1. An application program comprising:

10. 10. The application program according to claim 1, The computer includes: when started based on the automatic function of the operating system, a notification process is executed to cause the user interface of the information processing device to provide a notification regarding printing, the display state of the user interface of the information processing device includes a locked state in which some input through the user interface is restricted, and an unlocked state which is not the locked state, and the notification content by the notification process in the locked state is different from that in the unlocked state; 1. An application program comprising:

11. 11. The application program according to claim 10, The computer includes: when the notification process is executed based on the automatic function of the operating system, after the determination process and before the automatic output process, In the notification process, As the notification, a notification is given requesting a selection of whether or not to perform printing based on the data to be printed determined by the determination process; The computer includes: After the notification process, a reception process is executed to receive a selection of whether or not to perform printing based on the data to be printed determined by the determination process, and the automatic output process is executed on the condition that a selection of performing printing has been received in the reception process.

1. An application program comprising:

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