Program, Storage Medium, and Information Processing Apparatus

Abstract

To provide a printing system capable of supporting a plurality of printable areas for one paper size.SOLUTION: An information processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes: first printing control software; and second printing control software converting first format printing data output by the first printing control software into second format printing data. The information processing device is provided with a program for executing a control method comprising: a first creation step of creating raster data based on the first format printing data; a medium determination step of determining whether or not a print object medium is a medium that needs a margin larger than a standard form size; a margin insertion step of executing margin insertion processing for the raster data created by the first creation step when a determination result of the medium determination step is true; a second creation step of creating the second format printing data based on the raster data into which the margin is inserted in the margin insertion step.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a program and a method for controlling an information processing apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] There is a technology that does not require a printer driver (hereinafter referred to as a proprietary printer driver), which is printer-specific software provided by a printer vendor, and an operating system (hereinafter referred to as an OS) provides a standard printing function (hereinafter referred to as an OS standard printing function). The OS determines, based on the information obtained from the printer, whether the printer supports the OS standard printing function (in other words, whether the printer supports the OS standard printing function). As a result of the determination, if the printer supports the OS standard printing function, the print data created using the OS standard printing function is sent to the printer.

[0003] However, some printers do not support the OS standard printing function and may not be able to interpret the print data created by the OS standard printing function. Also, even if the printer supports the OS standard printing function, there may be a case where printing based on more detailed print settings than the OS standard printing function is desired. As a means to address these cases, there is a known print data conversion utility that makes it possible to use the OS standard printing function by making it appear as if it pseudo-supports the OS standard printing function without installing a proprietary printer driver.

[0004] By the way, among the information handled by a printer, there is size information called a printable area that indicates up to which area on a sheet of paper printing can be performed. For example, for a sheet of A4 size (210 mm × 297 mm), if 3 mm margins are required on the top, bottom, left, and right of the sheet due to the printer mechanism, the printable area of this printer for A4 size becomes 204 mm × 291 mm. The printable area may vary depending on the paper type and the paper feed slot of the printer. In such cases, it is necessary to set multiple printable areas for one paper size. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for solving problems when there are multiple printing paths between an information processing device and a printer and the printable area is different for each printing path.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In the OS standard printing function, there are cases where it is not possible to support multiple printable areas for one paper size. In such cases, even in printing by a print data conversion utility, it is not possible to support multiple printable areas for one paper size. On the other hand, a proprietary printer driver can usually support multiple printable areas for one paper size.

[0007] As described above, there is a problem that the functions supported by a proprietary printer driver cannot be supported by the OS standard printing function, nor can they be supported by a print data conversion utility. Therefore, an embodiment of the present invention aims to provide a printing system that can support multiple printable areas for one paper size without using a proprietary printer driver in view of the above problems.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] An embodiment of the present invention is a program of second print control software different from the first print control software that operates on an information processing apparatus installed with the first print control software, the program causing a computer of the information processing apparatus to function as: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generation unit that generates second print data having set margins based on the first print data acquired by the acquisition unit; and a determination unit that determines whether a paper type set in a drawing application matches a paper type received according to a user instruction in the second print control software, the program being characterized in that when it is determined that the paper types match, the generation unit sets margins in the first print data.

Advantages of the Invention

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present invention, it becomes possible to provide a printing system that can support a plurality of printable areas for one paper size without using a proprietary printer driver.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the present invention according to the claims, and not all combinations of the features described below are essential for solving the problems of the present invention.

[0012] [First Embodiment] [Configuration of the Printing System] Hereinafter, the hardware configuration of the printing system in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 shows a system in which a host computer 11 and a printer 12 are communicably connected via a communication bus 121 such as Ethernet (registered trademark) or USB, as an example of a printing system to which the present embodiment is applicable. In the example of FIG. 1, the printing system has one printer, but the printing system may have a plurality of printers, and any number of printers can be connected to the host computer via the communication bus 121.

[0013] The host computer 11 is an example of an information processing device. An operating system (hereinafter referred to as OS) is installed in the host computer 11. The OS includes an OS standard printing software, the OS standard printing system 202, which will be described later.

[0014] The host computer 11 is, for example, a personal computer (PC), and has a CPU 101, a ROM 102, a RAM 103, a display unit 104, an input unit 105, an external storage device 106, and an interface (hereinafter abbreviated as I / F) unit 107. Note that the host computer 11 to which the present embodiment is applicable is not limited to a desktop PC, and may be a notebook PC, a tablet PC, or a smartphone.

[0015] The host computer 11 transmits instructions, print data, setting commands, etc. for controlling the printer 12 to the printer 12. The CPU 101 is a central processing unit that controls each part of the host computer 11, and executes various control programs such as the OS and a print data conversion utility 203 described later. The OS and the like are stored in the ROM 102. The RAM 103 is used as a work area for the CPU 101. Various control programs such as application programs and the print data conversion utility 203 are stored in the external storage device 106.

[0016] The input unit 105 is an input device including an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse for operating the host computer 11. The display unit 104 is a display device that performs display for the user to confirm information input via the input unit 105, display of the graphical user interface screen of the OS and applications, display of messages, and the like. The I / F unit 107 is a communication module that transmits and receives data to and from the printer 12.

[0017] The printer 12, which is a printing device, is, for example, an inkjet printer. The printer 12 includes a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, a print engine 114, and an I / F unit 115. The CPU 111 is a central processing unit that controls each part of the printer 12. The ROM 112 is a read-only memory. A program for controlling the print engine 114 is stored in the ROM 112. Programs necessary for the operation of the print engine 114, set value data received from the host computer 11, and the like are temporarily stored in the RAM 113.

[0018] The print engine 114 forms an image on a medium (for example, recording paper, also called a media) by executing printing based on the print data sent from the host computer 11. The I / F unit 115 transmits and receives data to and from the host computer 11, receives a print job from the host computer 11, or transmits the status information of the printer 12 to the host computer 11. The status information here is information representing the current state of the printer 12 that can be transmitted by the printer 12 as a response to a request from the host computer 11 connected via the I / F unit 115. The status information is, for example, information for notifying an external device such as the host computer 11 of the operating state of the printer 12 such as "printing" or "standby state", or the error state of the printer 12 such as "paper out", "cover open", or "no ink remaining".

[0019] <Software Configuration> Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of the host computer 11 in the present embodiment. The host computer 11 is operably equipped with an OS standard printing software, the OS standard printing system 202, and a printing control software, the print data conversion utility 203. Further, the host computer 11 is equipped with a drawing application 201.

[0020] The drawing application 201 is software that creates drawing data based on a user instruction. The application here is software that operates on the OS, which is the basic software of the host computer 11. The drawing application 201 has a function of printing based on the created drawing data. Examples of the drawing application 201 include word processing software for document creation, image editing software, and New Year's card creation software. The drawing data created by the drawing application 201 is, for example, data in the PDF (Portable Document Format).

[0021] After creating the drawing data, the drawing application 201 makes a printing request to the OS standard printing system 202 based on a user instruction. When a printing request is made, regarding the printing settings, instructions regarding the printing settings from the user may be received via a graphical user interface screen for settings (hereinafter referred to as the GUI screen) provided by the print data conversion utility 203. When a printing request is made from the OS standard printing system 202, a print job including information regarding the printing settings created by the print data conversion utility 203 and the drawing data created by the drawing application 201 is passed to the OS standard printing system 202. The information regarding the printing settings includes information such as paper size, paper type, and which print queue to print on.

[0022] The OS standard printing system 202 is OS standard printing software with standard functions necessary for creating print data. It spools the drawing data created by the drawing application 201 and creates print data in a predetermined format (also called standard format print data). Further, the OS standard printing system 202 performs a process of outputting the created standard format print data to the print data conversion utility 203. Alternatively, the OS standard printing system 202 performs a process of directly outputting the standard format print data to the print communication unit 204 without outputting it to the print data conversion utility 203 in order to directly transmit the data to the printer 12. Also, the OS standard printing system 202 acquires identification information such as the model information of the printer 12 via the print communication unit 204 in order to determine whether the printer 12 supports the OS standard printing system 202. Note that the information acquired for support determination is not limited to the model information of the printer 12, and may be the capability information of the printer 12 or the like. Various processes in the OS standard printing system 202 are performed under the control of the system control unit 211 within the OS standard printing system 202.

[0023] The print data conversion utility 203 is software that converts the standard format print data output by the OS standard printing system 202 into print data in a printer vendor-specific format (also called proprietary format print data).

[0024] Here, the printer 12 will be described as not supporting the OS standard printing system 202. A printer 12 that does not support the OS standard printing system 202 cannot interpret the received print data in the standard format created by the OS standard printing system 202 even if it receives the print data. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the host computer 11 is equipped with a print data conversion utility 203. The print data conversion utility 203 converts the print data in the standard format into print data in a printer vendor-specific format (hereinafter also referred to as "individual format") that can be interpreted by the printer 12. As a result, even for a printer 12 that does not support the OS standard printing system 202, it becomes possible to perform printing using the standard functions of the OS standard printing system 202.

[0025] Note that even when the printer supports the OS standard printing system (that is, even when the printer can interpret the print data in the standard format), the print data conversion utility 203 may be used. By using the print data conversion utility 203, the printing system can provide more functions. For example, the standard functions provided by the OS standard printing system 202 do not include a stamp function or a detailed print quality setting function. This is because the OS standard printing system 202 supports more printers, so it cannot support functions that only a limited number of printers have. Therefore, by using the print data conversion utility 203, the printing system can provide functions equivalent to those of a printer vendor-specific printer driver (proprietary printer driver).

[0026] The print data conversion utility 203 has a data conversion unit 212 and a printer driver unit 213. It receives print data in a standard format and print setting information from the OS standard print system 202 and performs processing necessary for print control. Specifically, the print data conversion utility 203 first acquires model information from the printer 12 via the print communication unit 204 and determines whether the printer 12 supports the OS standard print system 202. Note that the information acquired for the support determination is not limited to the model information of the printer 12, and may be the capability information of the printer 12 or the like.

[0027] When the print data conversion utility 203 determines that the printer 12 does not support the OS standard print system 202, it performs virtual printer creation processing for virtually treating the printer 12 as if it supports the OS standard print system 202. As described above, even if the printer supports the OS standard print system 202, this virtual printer creation processing may be executed when it is necessary to provide functions equivalent to those of a printer driver specific to the printer vendor. Further, the print data conversion utility 203 performs processing to convert the print data in the standard format and the print setting information received from the OS standard print system 202 into print data in an individual format using the data conversion unit 212 and the printer driver unit 213. By using the printer driver unit 213 to convert the data, it is possible to provide functions equivalent to those of a printer driver specific to the printer vendor even when the functions provided by the OS standard print system 202 are few. Note that the OS standard print system 202 in the present embodiment exchanges data with the print data conversion utility 203 using the IPP (Internet Printing Protocol), which is a standard print protocol.

[0028] The print communication unit 204 is a communication module that transmits the standard format print data output by the OS standard print system 202 or the individual format print data output by the print data conversion utility 203 to the printer 12. The print communication unit 204 also performs data reception (data acquisition) such as status information transmitted from the printer 12.

[0029] <Overview of Print Data Conversion Utility> Hereinafter, the overview of the print data conversion utility 203 in the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 shows a GUI screen provided by the print data conversion utility 203. Inside the main window 31, there is a registered printer list display section 32 where the printer list registered in the print data conversion utility 203 is displayed. When a printer is selected from the list in the registered printer list display section 32, there is a selected printer information display section 33 that displays the information of the selected printer. Further, a printer print setting menu 34 that is the print setting menu of the selected printer, and a paper size menu 35 and a paper type menu 36 as detailed print setting menus are displayed. The user selects the paper size and paper type actually set in the printer 12 in the paper size menu 35 and the paper type menu 36. Note that in a printer having a plurality of paper feed ports, the settings of the paper size menu 35 and the paper type menu 36 exist for the number of the paper feed ports. Also, the GUI screen provided by the print data conversion utility 203 includes a print job management window 37 for managing the print job and displaying the job status when a print job is input to the print data conversion utility 203. In the print job management window 37, there are a print job progress status confirmation section 38 that represents the progress status of the print job and a job status display section 39 that represents the status of the print job.

[0030] <Print Settings in Drawing Application> FIG. 4 shows an example of a print dialog 41 provided by the drawing application 201. The print dialog 41 is a screen that is displayed when the user creates drawing data using the drawing application 201 and then instructs printing on the screen of the drawing application. The print dialog 41 has a printer menu 42 for selecting a printer to execute printing, a print preview area 43, a print button 44 for instructing execution of printing, and a cancel button 45 for closing the print dialog 41 and returning to control by the drawing application. Further, the print dialog 41 also has a paper size menu 46 and a number of copies setting item 47 for instructing print settings, and a detailed settings menu 48 for performing other detailed settings. Among the detailed settings menu, there is a menu such as a paper type menu 49. Note that among these menus, the paper size menu 46, the number of copies setting item 47, and the paper type menu 49 are provided by the OS standard print system 202 instead of the drawing application 201.

[0031] In the printer menu 42, in addition to printers supported by the OS standard print system 202, the aforementioned virtual printer created by the print data conversion utility 203 can be selected. At this time, when the virtual printer is selected in the printer menu 42, various print settings supported by the virtual printer are displayed. This print setting is displayed by the print data conversion utility 203 transmitting print setting information to the OS standard print system 202. Among them, in the paper size menu 46, among the standard sizes with the same outer shape, those with different printable areas are individually displayed. For example, when the outer size is A4 size, in addition to the normal A4 size, an A4 borderless size with a margin amount of 0 and a printable area = outer size is displayed. In printing in the OS standard print system 202, there may be a case where only up to two printable areas can be supported for one outer size. In this case, a third size that can be supported by printing with a proprietary printer driver, that is, a size with a larger margin than the normal standard size (hereinafter referred to as "large margin size") cannot be supported and is not displayed in the paper size menu 46.

[0032] <Data conversion process by print data conversion utility> The following describes the processing when a print instruction is given via the print dialog 41 provided by the drawing application 201. The drawing application 201 passes standard-form print data and print setting information based on the print settings on the print dialog 41, including the paper size menu 46, to the print data conversion utility 203 via the OS standard print system 202. FIG. 5 shows an example of the print setting information. The print setting information shown in FIG. 5 is represented using IPP as one example of an implementation according to the OS standard protocol. FIG. 5 is an example when the A4 regular size is selected in the paper size menu 46 and "automatic selection" is selected in the paper type menu 49. Paper width information 51, paper height information 52, paper margin information 53, and paper type information 54 are set as the print setting information. First, the print data conversion utility 203 compares the setting contents of the paper size menu 35 and the paper type menu 36 in the main window 31 with the setting contents of the paper width information 51, the paper height information 52, the paper margin information 53, and the paper type information 54. When comparing, since information such as the outer shape corresponding to the size set in the paper size menu 35 is stored in the model information database held by the printer driver unit 213, this information is acquired from the model information database. If the comparison result indicates that both print settings match, the print data conversion utility 203 performs a print data creation process based on these two print settings. Specifically, the print data conversion utility 203 uses the data conversion unit 212 and the printer driver unit 213 to perform a process of converting standard-form print data into individual-form print data. On the other hand, if the comparison result indicates that both print settings do not match, the print data conversion utility 203 displays an error indicating the setting mismatch on the print job management window 37 and interrupts the printing. Note that when the setting information (setting value) of the paper type information 54 is "auto", the print data conversion utility 203 does not perform a comparison process between the setting information of the paper type information 54 and the setting information of the paper type menu 36 and operates based on the setting of the paper type menu 36. At this time, in the paper type menu 36, there may be a case where a paper type is selected for which the desired print result cannot be obtained unless the large margin size is selected.In this case, by executing a process of adding a desired margin during the conversion process to individual format print data using the data conversion unit 212 and the printer driver unit 213, a desired print result can be obtained.

[0033] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of each process executed by the print data conversion utility 203. The following flow starts when the user gives a print instruction on the drawing application 201.

[0034] In step S601, the data conversion unit 212 acquires the standard format print data created by the drawing application 201 and the print setting information. Hereinafter, "step S~" will be abbreviated as "S~".

[0035] In S602, the data conversion unit 212 acquires the print setting information set via the main window 31, specifically, the print setting information such as the paper size menu 35 and the paper type menu 36.

[0036] In S603, the data conversion unit 212 determines whether the content of the print setting information acquired in S601 matches the content of the print setting information acquired in S602. If the determination result of this match determination step is true, the process proceeds to S604, while if the determination result is false, the process proceeds to S605.

[0037] First, the case where the determination result of S603 is false (NO in S603) will be described. In this case, in S605, the print data conversion utility 203 displays a message on the print job management window 37 indicating that the content of the print setting information acquired in S601 does not match the content of the print setting information acquired in S602. After this step, the series of processes by the print data conversion utility 203 ends.

[0038] Next, the case where the determination result of S603 is true (YES in S603) will be described. In this case, in S604, the data conversion unit 212 executes the conversion process of the print data. This conversion process is a process of creating raster data that can be read by the printer driver unit 213 based on the print data in the standard format acquired in S601 and the print setting information.

[0039] In S606, the data conversion unit 212 determines whether the medium to be printed requires data in a large margin size that is larger than the normal fixed-size margin during printing, based on the setting content of the paper type among the print setting information acquired in S601 and S602. This medium determination process is performed by acquiring information on whether data in the large margin size for each paper type, which is stored in the model information database held by the printer driver unit 213, is required. Here, an example of the data table stored in the model information database is shown in FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 7, information on whether data in the large margin size is required for each paper type and the required margin amount are managed, and it is possible to make a determination according to the setting of the paper type. If the determination result of this step is true, the process proceeds to S607, while if the determination result is false, the process proceeds to S608.

[0040] In S607, the data conversion unit 212 executes a process of inserting the necessary margin into the print data. The margin amount inserted in S607 can be obtained by referring to the data table shown in FIG. 7. Incidentally, if the result in S606 is NO, that is, if printing is possible without problems with the normal fixed-size margin, the process of S607 is skipped.

[0041] In S608, the printer driver unit 213 performs a print data conversion process of creating print data in an individual format based on the raster data and the print setting information, and completes the data conversion.

[0042] Finally, in S609, the print communication unit 204 transmits the print data obtained as a result of S608 to the printer 12, and a series of processes ends.

[0043] <Margin Specification Process> In addition, when the data conversion unit adds margins to the print data created in S604 in S607, the user may be allowed to select how to add the margins. As shown in FIG. 8, as methods of adding margins, there are a method 82 of deleting the data in the margin area from the original data 81 and a method 83 of securing the margin area and fitting the image data within the printing area. Which of these two methods results in the desired printing result may vary depending on the user, and allowing the user to select in advance makes it easier to obtain the desired result. In that case, for example, it is conceivable to present a GUI screen such as a margin specification screen 84 to the user. Through the margin specification screen 84, which is a GUI screen provided by the print data conversion utility 203, the user can select either a forced margin addition mode 85 or a fitting mode 86. When the user selects the forced margin addition mode 85, the printing result will be as per the method 82 of deleting the data in the margin area. When the user selects the fitting mode 86, the printing result will be as per the method 83 of securing the margin area and fitting the data within the printing area. Note that the module for inserting margins into the print data may be the printer driver unit 213 instead of the data conversion unit 212.

[0044] <Guiding the User about the Printing Result> Before the data conversion unit adds margins to the print data created in S604 in S607, the printer 12 may perform display control to display a preview of the printing result when margins are added on the print job management window 37. Also, the printer 12 may inform the user in advance on the print job management window 37 that part of the image of the original data will be missing when printing with margins added. In the printing result, it is possible that part of the image is missing unintentionally or the layout has changed, which may not be as desired by the user. By presenting information about the printing result to the user in advance, the user can confirm whether the desired result will be obtained before printing.

[0045] Fig. 9(a) shows an example of a print result preview, and Fig. 9(b) shows an example of a warning message indicating that the print result is missing. The print result preview screen 91 displays a print result preview image 92 with margins added to the print data on the print job management window 37. The user views the print result preview screen 91 and checks if it is okay to print as is. When the user presses the OK button 93, the printing process starts. On the other hand, if the print result is not the desired result and the user wants to cancel the print, the user can cancel the print by pressing the cancel button 94.

[0046] The print result confirmation message screen 95 shown in Fig. 9(b) is a GUI screen that presents a message to the user on the print job management window 37 indicating that the print result may be missing or reduced when margins are added to the print data. Similar to the aforementioned print result preview screen 91, the user views the print result confirmation message screen 95 and checks if it is okay to print as is. When the user presses the OK button 97, the printing process starts. On the other hand, if the print result is not the desired result and the user wants to cancel the print, the user can cancel the print by pressing the cancel button 96.

[0047] <Skip of the margin insertion process according to the actual margin amount of the print data> Furthermore, when the data conversion unit inserts margins into the print data in S607, a form of deriving the actual margin amount itself in the standard format print data created by the drawing application 201 and determining if it is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold can be considered. If the derived margin amount is sufficient, i.e., equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold, the margin insertion process in S607 may be skipped. The reason for this is that some users may create data with margins ensured in advance on the drawing application 201, in which case the margin insertion step is unnecessary.

[0048] [Second Embodiment] In the first embodiment, the margin insertion process for print data was executed by the print data conversion utility. In contrast, in this embodiment, instead of executing the margin insertion process in the print data conversion utility, margin information is added to the print data as print setting information so that the necessary margins can be inserted during the printing process by the printer 12. Note that hereinafter, descriptions of content common to the first embodiment will be omitted as appropriate, and differences will be mainly described.

[0049] FIG. 10 shows a flowchart illustrating the processing of the print data conversion utility 203 in this embodiment. Since the flow from S601 to S606 in FIG. 10 is the same as that in the first embodiment, descriptions of these respective processes will be omitted (see FIG. 6).

[0050] If the determination result of S606 is true, that is, if data of the large margin size is required, in S1001, the data conversion unit 212 adds margin information as print setting information in the print data.

[0051] FIG. 11 shows an example of print data in this embodiment. The print data 1101 in this embodiment is assumed to be composed of a print setting unit 1102 and an image data unit 1103. Margin information 1104 is described in the print setting unit 1102. Based on this margin information 1104, the printer 12 performs a process of adding margins to the received print data. Also, this margin information 1104 is obtained and set based on the necessary margin amounts for each type of paper stored in the model information database (see FIG. 7). The printer driver unit 213 converts the print data 1101 including the print setting unit 1102 in which the margin information 1104 is described into individual format print data in S608. Then, in S609, the print data conversion utility 203 transmits the individual format print data to the printer 12 via the print communication unit 204. As a result, the printer 12 can refer to the margin information 1104 and add margins during printing.

[0052] [Third Embodiment] As described above, in the OS standard printing function, printing can be performed based on setting information regarding custom paper (hereinafter referred to as custom paper setting information) created by the user. Therefore, the user can create custom paper setting information in advance on the drawing application 201. However, even when creating custom paper setting information with a printable area different from the standard size, if the outer size is the same, the OS standard printing function may recognize it as the printable area of the normal standard size. This embodiment is for dealing with such a case. In the following, descriptions of the content common to the first embodiment will be omitted as appropriate, and the differences will be mainly described.

[0053] <Creation of Custom Paper Setting Information> Hereinafter, the creation function of custom paper setting information as the OS standard printing function will be described with reference to FIG. 12. FIG. 12 shows a menu screen for creating custom paper setting information in this embodiment. On the screen of the drawing application 201, it is possible to open a dialog 1201. On the dialog 1201, there are a custom paper list 1202, a custom paper addition button 1203, a custom paper deletion button 1204, and a setting information copy button 1205. The custom paper list 1202 is a list in which custom papers for which custom paper setting information has been created so far are displayed in a list. The custom paper addition button 1203 is a button for creating new custom paper setting information. The custom paper deletion button 1204 is a button for deleting the created custom paper setting information. The setting information copy button 1205 is a button for copying the created custom paper setting information and creating new custom paper setting information.

[0054] Also, on the dialog 1201, there are a custom paper width menu 1206, a custom paper height menu 1207, and a custom paper margin menu 1208 as custom paper setting menus. The custom paper width menu 1206 is a menu for inputting the width of the paper. The custom paper height menu 1207 is a menu for inputting the height of the paper. The custom paper margin menu 1208 is a menu for inputting the margin of the custom paper. When newly creating custom paper setting information, default values are input into these custom paper setting menus. The user creates custom paper setting information by inputting arbitrary width, height, and margin and performing the desired custom paper settings. Also, when the user selects a custom paper for which the custom paper setting information has already been created from the custom paper list 1202, the width, height, and margin of the selected custom paper can be confirmed on the screen. When the creation of the custom paper setting information is completed, the user presses the OK button 1209 to close the dialog 1201.

[0055] In addition, Fig. 12 shows a state where custom paper setting information for a custom paper of the same size as the A4 size (210 mm × 297 mm) but with a different size for the margin only from the standard size (hereinafter referred to as "custom A4 large margin size") is created and the custom A4 large margin size is selected. At this time, assume that the margins above, below, left, and right for the A4 standard size are each, for example, 5 mm, while for the custom A4 large margin size, the margins above and below are each, for example, 20 mm, and the margins left and right are each 5 mm.

[0056] <Printing process when a custom paper is selected> When custom paper setting information is created by the user, it is possible to select the custom paper in the paper size menu 46 (see FIG. 4) and execute printing for the selected custom paper. Here, consider the case where the above-mentioned custom A4 large margin size is selected in the paper size menu 46 and printing is executed. In this case, the drawing application 201 outputs standard format print data and print setting information for the custom A4 large margin size based on the print settings of the paper size menu 46. It is the expected operation that this standard format print data and print setting information are passed to the print data conversion utility 203 via the OS standard print system 202.

[0057] However, the OS standard print system 202 may pass the same standard format print data and print setting information as when the A4 regular size is selected in the paper size menu 46 to the print data conversion utility 203. In this case, the print data conversion utility 203 cannot determine whether the A4 regular size or the custom A4 large margin size is selected in the paper size menu 46.

[0058] <Reference to Custom Paper Setting Information> Therefore, in this embodiment, the OS standard print system 202 refers to the custom paper setting information stored in the system, and the print data conversion utility 203 performs processing based on the custom paper setting information. FIG. 13 shows the custom paper setting information file 1301 stored in the OS standard print system 202. As shown in FIG. 13, for the custom paper setting information created via the dialog 1201, the width information 1302, the height information 1303, and the margin information 1304 are stored in the custom paper setting information file 1301. Note that this custom paper information is described in a markup language.

[0059] The information in the custom paper setting information file 1301 is used when displaying the size and margin information of custom paper in the paper size menu 46 and the dialog 1201. Also, the information in the custom paper setting information file 1301 is used when the OS standard printing system 202 passes the standard format printing data and printing setting information to the printing data conversion utility 203.

[0060] In this embodiment, regarding the standard format printing data and printing setting information transmitted to the printing data conversion utility 203, it is impossible to distinguish whether the A4 standard size is selected in the paper size menu 46 or the A4 custom large margin size is selected. In other words, regardless of which size is selected, the printing setting information of the A4 standard size shown in FIG. 5 is transmitted to the printing data conversion utility 203. When the printing data and printing setting information of the standard size are transmitted to the printing data conversion utility 203, it is determined whether a paper type is selected in the paper type menu 36 such that the desired printing result cannot be obtained unless a large margin size with a larger margin than the normal standard size is selected. This determination is made, as in the first embodiment, by the printing data conversion utility 203 acquiring the necessary information from the data table stored in the model information database shown in FIG. 7. Next, the printing data conversion utility 203 refers to the custom paper setting information file 1301 and checks whether there is information on a custom paper of the same type as the standard size. If there is information on a custom paper of the same type as the standard size in the custom paper setting information file 1301, it is highly likely that the custom A4 large margin size was selected in the paper size menu 46. Therefore, the printing data conversion utility 203 instructs the data conversion unit 212 and the printer driver unit 213 to perform processing based on the information on the custom paper of the same type as the standard size described in the custom paper setting information file 1301.

[0061] FIG. 14 shows a flowchart illustrating the processing of the print data conversion utility 203 in the present embodiment. Since the flow from S601 to S606 in FIG. 14 is the same as that in the first embodiment, descriptions of these respective processes are omitted (see FIG. 6).

[0062] If the determination result of S606 is true, that is, when data of a large margin size is required, in S1401, the data conversion unit 212 determines whether the paper size information in the current print setting information indicates a standard size. If the determination result of this step is true, the process proceeds to S1402; on the other hand, if the determination result is false, the process proceeds to S608.

[0063] First, the case where the determination result of S1401 is false (NO in S1401), that is, when print settings for a custom paper are made, will be described. In this case, by performing printing as per the print settings for the custom paper, printing as input via the paper size menu 46 can be executed. Therefore, without performing special processing, the process proceeds to S608, and in S609, the print communication unit 204 transmits the print data to the printer 12.

[0064] Subsequently, the case where the determination result of S1401 is true (YES in S1401), that is, when print settings for a standard size paper are made, will be described. In this case, although a custom paper is selected by the user in the paper size menu 46, there is a possibility that the OS standard print system 202 has made the paper size information indicate a standard size. Therefore, in S1402, the data conversion unit 212 refers to the custom paper setting information file 1301 and acquires the information stored in the custom paper setting information file 1301.

[0065] In S1403, based on the information acquired in S1402 and the current print setting information, the data conversion unit 212 determines whether information on a custom paper having the same outer shape size as the size indicated by the paper size information in the print setting information exists in the custom paper setting information file 1301.

[0066] The fact that the determination result of S1403 is false simply means that a standard size has been selected in the paper size menu 46. Printing cannot be performed in a combination of the selected standard size and a paper type for which a desired printing result cannot be obtained unless a custom paper with a larger margin than the normal standard size is selected. Therefore, in this case, in S1404, the print data conversion utility 203 displays a setting error on the print job management window 37, and a series of processes ends.

[0067] On the other hand, when the determination result of S1403 is true (when YES in S1403), it can be determined that the OS standard printing system 202 has treated the paper size information as equivalent to a standard size even though a custom paper of the same type as the standard size has been selected in the paper size menu 46. Therefore, in S1405, the data conversion unit 212 performs a process of inserting margins into the print data based on the custom paper setting information acquired from the custom paper setting information file 1101.

[0068] Thereafter, the processes proceed to S608 and S609, the print data is sent to the printer, and a series of processes ends.

[0069] <Process considering multiple custom papers of the same type> In addition, in S1403, when the plurality of custom paper setting information stored in the custom paper setting information file 1301 matches the print setting information, the user may be allowed to select which custom paper setting information to use for printing on the print job management window 37. This is because when there are multiple custom papers with the same outer shape but different margins, the custom paper setting information to be used cannot be uniquely determined. By having the user select which custom paper to use, it becomes possible to provide a desired printing result.

[0070] FIG. 15 shows an example of a custom paper selection dialog. In the custom paper selection dialog 1501 on the print job management window 37, there is a list 1502 of candidate custom papers for selection. After the user selects the custom paper to be used for printing from the list and presses the OK button 1503, the printing process using the selected custom paper information is started.

[0071] <Processing considering the margin amount of custom paper> Also, in S1403, even when the custom paper setting information stored in the custom paper setting information file 1301 matches the print setting information, there may be a case where custom paper setting information with insufficient margin amount is created. Specifically, the required margin amount for the selected paper type is obtained from the data table (see FIG. 7) stored in the model information database, and as a result of comparing the margin amount of the custom paper with the required margin amount, the margin amount of the custom paper may be less than the required margin amount. In this case, since the desired printing result cannot ultimately be obtained, a process of excluding it from the candidates of the custom paper to be used may be performed.

[0072] [Other Embodiments] The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the foregoing embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and having one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions. Note that the elements of the foregoing embodiments may be used in appropriate combinations.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0073] 11 Host computer 12 Printer 101 CPU 201 Application 202 OS standard printing system 203 Print data conversion utility 211 System control unit 212 Data Conversion Unit 213 Printer Driver Unit

Claims

1. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; a determination means for determining whether or not a paper type in a print setting set in a drawing application coincides with a paper type received in response to a user instruction in the second print control software; A program for causing the device to function as a a program for generating a print data including a margin set in the first print data by the generating means when it is determined that the paper types match.

2. The program described in claim 1, characterized in that the generation means sets margins for the first print data based on a method specified by a user from among a first method in which part of the data to be printed is deleted by the margins to be set, and a second method in which the data to be printed is reduced so that part of the data to be printed is not deleted by the margins to be set.

3. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; A program for causing the device to function as a The program is characterized in that the generation means sets margins for the first print data based on a method specified by a user from among a first method in which part of the data to be printed is deleted by the margins to be set, and a second method in which the data to be printed is reduced so that part of the data to be printed is not deleted by the margins to be set.

4. The program described in claim 2 or 3, further characterized in that the computer functions as a first display control means for controlling a display device to display a screen for allowing the user to select either the first method or the second method.

5. A program described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the computer further functions as a second display control means for controlling a display device to display a preview of the printing result based on second printing data in which margins are set.

6. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; a second display control means for controlling a display device to display a preview of a print result based on the second print data in which a margin is set; A program to function as a

7. 7. The program according to claim 1, wherein the generating means does not set margins for the print data in the second format when the amount of margin of the print data generated by the drawing application is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.

8. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; A program for causing the device to function as a The generating means is configured to not set margins for print data in a second format when the amount of margins in the print data generated by a drawing application is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.

9. 9. The program according to claim 1, wherein the first print control software is software provided by an operating system installed in the information processing apparatus.

10. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; A program for causing the device to function as a The program, wherein the first print control software is software provided by an operating system installed in the information processing device.

11. A program according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the second printing control software is software provided by a vendor of a printing device that is connected to the information processing device and performs printing based on the second print data.

12. A program of second print control software different from the first print control software, which operates on an information processing device in which a first print control software is installed, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires first print data generated by the first print control software; a generating unit that generates second print data having a set margin based on the first print data acquired by the acquiring unit; A program for causing the device to function as a The program, wherein the second print control software is software provided by a vendor of a printing device that is connected to the information processing device and that performs printing based on the second print data.

13. A program as described in any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the generation means sets margins for the first print data generated by the first print control software, and converts the first print data with the margins set into the second print data.

14. 14. The program according to claim 1, wherein the first print data is print data in a raster format.

15. A program as described in any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the computer is further made to function as a third display control means for controlling a display device to display a message warning that the print result based on print data of a second format in which margins have been set may differ from the print result based on the print data before the margins were set.

16. 16. The computer-readable medium according to claim 1, wherein the second print data is sent to a printing device that cannot interpret the first print data.

17. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. An information processing device in which a first print control software and a second print control software different from the first print control software are installed, 17. An information processing apparatus comprising each of the means of the program according to claim 1.

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