Image forming apparatus and program

Abstract

To provide an image formation apparatus, image formation system and program which can change the printing setting of a rendering engine when executing printing.SOLUTION: An image formation apparatus acquires information on a rendering engine from one image formation apparatus of the plurality of image formation apparatuses that can perform printing using the rendering engine having a plurality of predetermined setting items and are connected to the network, displays the setting item that can be changed out of the setting item of the rendering engine acquired from the one image formation apparatus and the setting item of the rendering engine of the own apparatus, and receives a change in the setting item.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses an image forming device having a storage unit that provides a folder associated with print setting information and an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet, and is characterized by comprising: a transmission means that transmits screen information to an external device to display a screen that accepts the specification of a print file to be linked to the folder and transferred to the image forming device, the screen being capable of accepting temporary settings that are applied in priority over the print setting information pre-stored in the folder; and an execution means that causes the image forming unit to perform image formation based on the print file that has been transferred in connection with the folder in accordance with print settings that have applied the setting items of the temporary settings in priority to the print setting information.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a print system including an information processing device equipped with a virtual printer driver that generates print jobs in an intermediate format that are independent of a printing device, a print server that manages the print jobs, and a printing device, wherein the print server has a storage means that stores the print jobs in the intermediate format received from the information processing device, a setting change receiving means that receives from the printing device an instruction to change print setting information for the print job in the intermediate format stored in the storage means, an update means that updates the print setting information of the print job in accordance with the instruction to change the print setting information, a print request receiving means that receives a print request from the printing device, and a job sending means that generates a print job in a format that can be printed by the printing device based on the print job in the intermediate format and the print setting information updated by the update means in accordance with the print request, and sends the generated print job to the printing device, and the printing device has a selection means that selects a print job, a setting change sending means that sends an instruction to change the print setting information for the print job selected by the selection means, a print request sending means that sends the print request for the print job to the print server, and a print means that prints the print job sent by the job sending means.

[0004] Patent Document 3 discloses an image forming system comprising a data processing device and an image forming device connected to each other via a communication line, in which the image forming device forms an image on paper specified in a print command sent from the data processing device, in accordance with the print command; the image forming device comprises a setting unit that sets paper information including irregular size information indicating the paper size of irregular paper to be used in the image forming device, a communication unit that communicates with the data processing device via the communication line, and a transmission control unit that controls the communication unit to send the paper information to the data processing device; the data processing device comprises a communication unit that communicates with the image forming device via the communication line, a registration unit that registers the paper information received from the image forming device via the communication unit, and a printer driver unit that provides the user with the irregular paper so that they can specify the irregular paper based on the paper information registered in the registration unit, and, when the irregular paper is specified by the user, generates a print command including information about the irregular paper. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-17217 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-094113 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-042977 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] An image forming system has been proposed that allows printing to be performed on any of multiple image forming devices connected to a network. A user can print using a rendering engine included in, for example, one of the multiple image forming devices that is used more frequently. Even in this case, the user can print using another image forming device that is different from the first image forming device. When printing using another image forming device, the other image forming device may have a rendering engine that is different from the rendering engine described above, and the print settings of the rendering engine included in the other image forming device may not be available.

[0007] The present invention aims to provide an image forming apparatus, an image forming system, and a program that can change the print settings of a rendering engine when executing printing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An image forming apparatus according to a first aspect has a processor that acquires rendering engine information from one of a plurality of image forming apparatuses connected to a network, the rendering engine being capable of printing using a rendering engine having a plurality of predetermined setting items, displays changeable setting items from among the setting items of the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming apparatus and the setting items of the rendering engine possessed by the image forming apparatus itself, and accepts changes to the setting items.

[0009] An image forming apparatus according to a second aspect includes a plurality of rendering engines, and the processor is capable of printing by changing the plurality of rendering engines.

[0010] In the image forming device of the third aspect, the processor compares the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming device with the rendering engine selected by the print settings of the print job from the rendering engines possessed by the image forming device itself, and if the result of the comparison shows that a different rendering engine has been selected, the processor notifies the user that continuing printing may result in different print results.

[0011] In the image forming apparatus according to a fourth aspect, if the processor does not accept the user's request to execute printing after the notification, the processor cancels the printing.

[0012] In an image forming apparatus according to a fifth aspect, the changeable setting items are setting items that, when changed, enable printing using the selected rendering engine.

[0013] In an image forming apparatus according to a sixth aspect, the changeable setting item is a setting item that, when changed, allows printing using a rendering engine different from the selected rendering engine.

[0014] In an image forming device according to a seventh aspect, if the processor accepts a change to the setting item and the rendering engine is changed from the selected rendering engine, the processor performs printing using the changed rendering engine.

[0015] An image forming device according to an eighth aspect includes a case where the setting items of the rendering engine of the one image forming device and the rendering engine of the own device are the same, but there is a possibility that the print results may differ.

[0016] In an image forming apparatus according to a ninth aspect, the rendering engine is a rendering engine that handles PDF.

[0017] In the image forming apparatus according to the tenth aspect, printing by the image forming apparatus itself is performed by PDF direct printing.

[0018] A program according to an eleventh aspect causes a computer to acquire rendering engine information from one of a plurality of image forming devices connected to a network that is capable of printing using a rendering engine having a predetermined plurality of setting items, display changeable setting items from the setting items of the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming device and the setting items of the rendering engine possessed by the image forming device itself, and execute a process to accept changes to the setting items. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] According to the first aspect, there is an effect that the print settings of the rendering engine can be changed when printing is executed.

[0020] The second aspect has the effect of increasing the possibility of obtaining the print result desired by the user, compared to when the rendering engine cannot be changed.

[0021] According to the third aspect, the user can be informed that the rendering engine selected by the user may cause differences in the print results.

[0022] According to the fourth aspect, there is an advantage that printing can be canceled as a result of the possibility that the print result may differ.

[0023] According to the fifth aspect, there is an effect that the setting items can be changed without changing the rendering engine.

[0024] According to the sixth aspect, it is possible to select all setting items that can be set in rendering engines of the own device other than the selected rendering engine.

[0025] According to the seventh aspect, there is an effect that, depending on the changed setting item, printing can be performed using a rendering engine different from the selected rendering engine.

[0026] According to the eighth aspect, when printing is executed, it is possible to change the setting item to the same setting item of another rendering engine.

[0027] According to the ninth aspect, there is an effect that when printing a PDF, it is possible to change the print settings of the rendering engine that handles the PDF.

[0028] According to the tenth aspect, there is an effect that, when PDF direct printing is performed, it is possible to change the print settings of the rendering engine that handles PDF.

[0029] According to the eleventh aspect, it is possible to provide a program that can change the print settings of the rendering engine when executing printing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0030] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic block diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a PDF engine provided in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an operation of the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of the image forming apparatus, following FIG. 5. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a display on a display unit of the image forming apparatus when changing settings according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus when changing settings according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] (Embodiment) An example of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to designate identical or equivalent components and parts. The dimensional proportions of the drawings are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from the actual proportions.

[0032] An example of an image forming system 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of an image forming system 10 according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, in an image forming system 10 according to this embodiment, a plurality of image forming apparatuses 20 and 30 are connected via a network N. This network N may be, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), or the Internet. A PC (Personal Computer) 50 is also connected to the image forming system 10 via the network N. While Fig. 1 shows a case where there is one PC 50, the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of PCs may be connected to the network N.

[0033] The image forming devices 20 and 30 have various functions such as a printing function, a copying function, a facsimile function, and a scanning function. In this embodiment, the multiple image forming apparatuses 20 and 30 are in a predetermined relationship. Specifically, the predetermined relationship is, for example, a relationship in which one of the multiple image forming apparatuses 20 and 30, the image forming apparatus 20 in this embodiment, is set as a parent apparatus, and the other image forming apparatus 30 is set as a child apparatus. The parent apparatus is, for example, an image forming apparatus in which a print job is stored when using a print function. Note that print jobs are not limited to being stored in the parent apparatus, but may also be stored in a child apparatus or in one of the image forming apparatuses. Furthermore, the parent apparatus may be set as an image forming apparatus common to all users, or a different image forming apparatus may be set for each user.

[0034] In addition, one of the multiple image forming apparatuses 20, 30, in this embodiment, image forming apparatus 20, is an example of one image forming apparatus, and will be described as being set as the image forming apparatus 20 that the user primarily uses. The primarily used image forming apparatus 20 is the image forming apparatus 20 that the user selects from the multiple image forming apparatuses 20, 30 because it is close to the user's desk, for example.

[0035] Next, a description will be given of the hardware configuration of the multiple image forming apparatuses 20 and 30. Since the multiple image forming apparatuses 20 and 30 have a common hardware configuration, the overlapping parts will be described using the image forming apparatus 20, which is an example of one image processing apparatus, as an example.

[0036] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 according to this embodiment. 2, the image forming apparatus 20 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, which is an example of a processor, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103, a storage 104, an input unit 105, a display unit 106, a document reading unit 107, an image forming unit 108, a communication unit 109, and an IC card reader 110. Each component is connected to each other via a bus 111 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0037] The CPU 101 is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each component. That is, the CPU 101 reads programs from the ROM 102 or the storage 104 and executes the programs using the RAM 103 as a work area. The CPU 101 controls the above components and performs various arithmetic processing in accordance with the programs recorded in the ROM 102 or the storage 104. In this embodiment, the programs are stored in the ROM 102 or the storage 104.

[0038] The ROM 102 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 103 temporarily stores programs or data as a working area. The storage 104 is configured with an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive) and stores various programs including an operating system and various data.

[0039] The storage 104 also stores a PDF engine, which is a rendering engine that handles PDF (Portable Document Format). The PDF engine (also referred to as a "PDF print engine") is an example of a rendering engine. The rendering engine is not limited to the PDF engine and may be a rendering engine for file formats other than PDF. The PDF engine allows the user to set setting items 200 used when printing a PDF. As shown in FIG. 3, the setting items 200 of the PDF engine include "Number of Copies," "Paper Size," "Color Mode," "Double-Sided Printing," "Sort," "Print Mode," "Layout," "Password," "Image Quality Correction Function 1," and "Image Quality Correction Function 2." Here, "Number of Copies" is an item for setting the number of copies to be printed, e.g., "1 copy" or "2 copies." "Paper Size" is an item for setting the size of the paper to be printed, e.g., "Automatic," "A4," etc. "Color Mode" is an item for setting the color to be printed, e.g., "Automatic," "Black and White," or "Color." "Double-Sided Printing" is an item for setting double-sided printing, e.g., "Off," "Long-Edge Binding," or "Short-Edge Binding." "Image quality correction function 1" is an item for setting image quality correction 1, for example, to "off" or "on." "Image quality correction function 2" is an item for setting image quality correction 2, which is different from image quality correction 1, to, for example, "off" or "on." Note that the setting items 200 that can be set in the PDF engine are not limited to those shown in FIG. 3, and it is not necessary for the PDF engine to have all of those shown in FIG. 3.

[0040] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a case will be described in which the image forming apparatus 20, which is a parent device, is equipped with a PDF engine A, and the image forming apparatus 30, which is a child device, is equipped with a PDF engine A and a PDF engine B. Here, PDF engine A is capable of setting the setting items 200 of "number of copies," "paper size," "color mode," and "image quality correction function 1." PDF engine B is capable of setting the setting items 200 of "number of copies," "paper size," "color mode," "double-sided printing," "image quality correction function 1," and "image quality correction function 2." In FIG. 3, "◯" indicates that the setting item 200 can be set, and "X" indicates that the setting item 200 cannot be set.

[0041] It is desirable that each of the image forming apparatuses 20 and 30 be provided with a plurality of PDF engines, but this is not limited to this. Also, the image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent apparatus, may be provided with a plurality of PDF engines, and the image forming apparatus 30, which is the child apparatus, may be provided with one PDF engine. Also, three or more PDF engines may be provided.

[0042] The input unit 105 includes a pointing device such as a mouse and a keyboard, and is used to perform various inputs. As will be described later, the input unit 105 is used to set the PDF engine setting items 200 and to execute functions such as issuing an instruction to start printing. In this embodiment, the touch panel display unit 106 functions as the input unit 105.

[0043] The display unit 106 is, for example, a liquid crystal display. The display unit 106 displays various information under the control of the CPU 101. The display unit 106 also functions as the input unit 105 by adopting a touch panel system.

[0044] The document reading unit 107 takes in documents placed on a paper feed tray of an automatic feeder (not shown) provided above the image forming apparatus 20, one by one, and optically reads the documents to obtain image information. Alternatively, the document reading unit 107 optically reads a document placed on a tray such as a platen glass to obtain image information.

[0045] Here, the image information of the document read by the document reading unit 107 is stored in the storage 104 of the image forming device 20, printed by the image forming unit 108 described later, or transmitted to another image forming device having a FAX (Facsimile) function by the communication unit 109 described later.

[0046] The image forming unit 108 forms, i.e., prints, on a recording medium such as paper, an image based on the print data contained in the print job obtained from the PC 50 connected via the network N or the image information obtained by reading by the document reading unit 107.

[0047] The communication unit 109 is connected to the network N, and allows the image forming apparatus 20 to communicate with other devices such as another image forming apparatus 30 and the PC 50. Furthermore, the communication unit 109 connects the image forming apparatus 20 to a public line, and transmits and receives image information obtained by reading by the document reading unit 107 to and from other image forming apparatuses having a FAX function.

[0048] The IC card reader 110 is for reading information stored in an IC (Integrated Circuit) card, such as a user ID. After reading the information stored in the IC card with the IC card reader 110 and identifying the user, the functions of the image forming apparatus 20 can be executed.

[0049] It is necessary that an IC card storing a user ID and other authentication information for authenticating the user be distributed to the user of the image forming apparatus 20.

[0050] Furthermore, the method of identifying a user is not limited to reading an IC card with IC card reader 110, but may also be such that the user inputs his or her own ID using input unit 105 without using IC card reader 110, or the authentication information may be registered in advance in image forming device 20, a list of the registered authentication information may be called up and displayed on display unit 106, and the user may be identified by selecting his or her own authentication information from the authentication information displayed on display unit 106.

[0051] Next, the operation of the image forming system 10 will be described.

[0052] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing an outline of an example of the operation of the image forming system 10 when printing a PDF file (data in PDF format).

[0053] 4, a user accesses image forming apparatus 20 to be set as a parent machine using PC 50 connected to network N. Then, image forming apparatus 20 is set as a parent machine. CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 20 that has received the parent machine setting stores setting information for the parent machine.

[0054] Here, the setting of the parent machine is not limited to being performed using the PC 50 connected to the network N, but may be performed using the input unit 105 of the parent image forming apparatus 20 or the child image forming apparatus 30. Also, in this embodiment, the image forming apparatus 30 is not set as a child machine, and an image forming apparatus 30 other than the parent machine is configured to be a child machine, but this is not limiting. The image forming apparatus 30 set as a child machine may be accessed and set as a child machine.

[0055] In step S102, a user transmits a PDF file to be printed as a print job from a PC 50 connected to the network N. In this embodiment, when transmitting a print job, the PDF file is sent to the image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent device, using a PDF direct print function. The PDF direct print function transmits and prints a PDF file to the image forming apparatus 20 using an lpr command or a dedicated application without using a printer driver. When transmitting a print job using the lpr command, a setting item 200 such as "double-sided printing" is set by the user using the input unit 105 of the image forming apparatus 20 when printing is performed by the image forming unit 108. When transmitting a print job using a dedicated application, the setting item 200 such as "double-sided printing" is set in the dedicated application, and then the setting item 200 can be changed using the input unit 105 of the image forming apparatus 20 when printing is performed by the image forming unit 108.

[0056] In this embodiment, the print job is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent machine, as described above. The image forming apparatus 20 receives the print job and stores it. In addition to the print data, the print job also contains authentication information for authenticating the user who uses the PC 50, allowing the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 20, 30 to recognize the user who transmitted the print job.

[0057] In step S104, the user reads the IC card using IC card reader 110 of image forming apparatus 30. Here, the image forming apparatus 30 from which the user reads the IC card is the image forming apparatus that the user has moved from his / her desk or the like to the installation location in order to print the print job. CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 that has received the IC card performs a login process to image forming apparatus 30.

[0058] In step S106, the user uses input unit 105 of image forming apparatus 30 to perform an operation to display a list of print jobs.

[0059] In step S108, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 requests image forming apparatus 20 to send a print job whose authentication information matches the authentication information registered in the read IC card. Then, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 20 transmits the print job. Upon receiving the print job, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 displays a list of print jobs on display unit 106.

[0060] In step S110, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 requests information on setting items 200 of the PDF engine of image forming apparatus 20 from image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent machine. The request for information on setting items 200 of the PDF engine is not limited to the timing of step S110, and may be made before the user issues a print instruction. CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 20 then transmits the information on setting items 200 of the PDF engine.

[0061] In step S112, the user changes the setting item 200 using the input unit 105 of the image forming apparatus 30.

[0062] In step S114, the user issues a print instruction using input unit 105 of image forming apparatus 30. For example, the user selects a job to be printed from the list of print jobs displayed, and operates a print execution switch.

[0063] In step S116, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 executes the print job using setting item 200 changed in step S112, that is, causes image forming unit 108 to output a printed matter such as paper.

[0064] 5 and 6, a process flow for printing a print job using the image forming apparatuses 20 and 30 will be described. In this example, a case will be described in which the user travels to the location where the image forming apparatus 30 is installed and instructs the image forming apparatus 30 to print, but this is not limiting. The user may also travel to the location where the image forming apparatus 20 set as the parent machine is installed and instruct the image forming apparatus 20 to print.

[0065] 5, when the user reads an IC card using IC card reader 110 of image forming apparatus 30, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 performs a login process for the user. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S202.

[0066] In step S202, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 acquires a print job whose authentication information matches the authentication information registered in the read IC card from image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent apparatus in which the print job is stored. Note that if the image forming apparatus from which the user has read the IC card is the image forming apparatus 20 set as the parent apparatus, this process is not performed. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S204.

[0067] In step S204, the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 displays a list of print jobs on the display unit 106. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S206.

[0068] In step S206, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 accepts the user's selection of a print job to be printed and an instruction to print the selected print job. Specifically, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 accepts that the user has used input unit 105 to select a print job to be printed from the list of print jobs displayed on display unit 106 and operated a switch to execute printing. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S208.

[0069] In step S208, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 determines whether the print job instructed to be printed is a PDF file. If it is not determined to be a PDF file, the process proceeds to the next step S210.

[0070] In step S210, the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 executes printing of the print job, that is, forms an image on paper, and then ends the process.

[0071] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S208 above that the file is a PDF file, the process proceeds to the next step S300.

[0072] In step S300, the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 acquires information on the PDF engine setting items 200 from the image forming apparatus 20, which is the parent machine. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S302.

[0073] In step S302, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 selects a PDF engine from among the PDF engines included in image forming apparatus 30 based on the print settings of the print job acquired in step S202. This PDF engine is selected by selecting the PDF engine determined to be the most appropriate based on the content of the print job. For example, if the print job includes color data, a PDF engine having setting items 200 that enable color printing is selected. Note that the PDF engine is not limited to being selected based on the print job. For example, if the image forming apparatus 30 has the same PDF engine as the parent machine, the same PDF engine as the parent machine may be selected, or a predetermined PDF engine may be selected. Then, the process proceeds to step S304.

[0074] In step S304, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 determines whether there is a difference between the PDF engine of the parent machine acquired in step S300 described above and the PDF engine selected in step S302 described above. Whether there is a difference between the PDF engines is determined based on the names of the PDF engines, the types of setting items, etc. If it is determined that there is no difference between the PDF engines, the process proceeds to the next step, S306.

[0075] In step S306, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 displays a setting screen (list of setting items 200) as shown in Fig. 7 on display unit 106. An example of the display shown in Fig. 7 will be described later. This display allows the user to change the setting items 200. Then, the process proceeds to the next step, S310.

[0076] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S304 that there is a difference in the PDF engine, the process proceeds to the next step S308, where CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 displays a warning message M and a setting screen (list of setting items 200) as shown in Fig. 8 on display unit 106. This display allows the user to determine whether to continue printing as is or to change the setting items 200 and then print. An example of the display shown in Fig. 8 will be described later. The process then proceeds to the next step S310.

[0077] In step S310, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 determines whether the user has changed setting item 200 that requires a change in PDF engine. Whether or not the setting item 200 that requires a change in PDF engine has been changed is determined by whether or not the setting item 200 has been changed to a setting item 200 other than the setting item 200 that can be set with the PDF engine selected in step S302. If it is determined that the setting item 200 that requires a change in PDF engine has been changed, the process returns to step S302 described above. On the other hand, if it is not determined that the setting item 200 that requires a change in PDF engine has been changed, the process proceeds to the next step S312.

[0078] In step S312, the process waits for a print instruction, and determines whether or not a print instruction has been received from the user. If it is determined that a print instruction has been received from the user, the process proceeds to the next step, S314.

[0079] In step S314, CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 executes printing of the print job that reflects setting item 200. Then, the process ends.

[0080] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S312 that a print instruction has not been issued, the process proceeds to the next step S316, where printing is canceled if a print instruction has not been issued for a predetermined period of time, and the process then ends.

[0081] Next, the setting items 200 displayed on the display unit 106 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0082] 7 is an example of the display of the setting items 200 when the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 selects the same PDF engine A as the PDF engine A of the parent machine. As shown in FIG. 7, the setting items 200 are displayed on the display unit 106 so that the setting items 200 are arranged vertically. The user can set the setting items 200 using the input unit 105. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, if the initial setting for the "color mode" of the setting item 200 is "color," the user can change the setting to "monochrome" by touching the area where the "color" word is displayed with a finger. Note that the initial setting of the setting item 200 is not limited to the manner shown in FIG. 7.

[0083] Here, the display of the setting items 200 shows all the setting items 200 of the PDF engine A and the PDF engine B of the slave image forming device 30. In other words, when the setting items 200 are changed by the user, the setting items 200 that can be printed are also displayed so that they can be changed to a PDF engine (in this example, PDF engine B) different from the selected PDF engine (in this example, PDF engine A).

[0084] The display of the setting items 200 is not limited to the case where all of the setting items 200 for the PDF engine A and the PDF engine B of the slave image forming device 30 are displayed. Alternatively, only the setting items 200 that can be printed using the selected PDF engine may be displayed. When only the setting items 200 that can be printed using the selected PDF engine are displayed, the PDF engine will not be changed even if the setting items 200 are changed by the user.

[0085] 8, from the state shown in FIG. 7, the user can change the setting item 200 for "Image Quality Correction Function 1" from the default setting of "Apply" to "None," and change the setting item 200 for "Image Quality Correction Function 2" from the default setting of "None" to "Apply," thereby setting the image quality correction function 2 to be used. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, since PDF engine A does not have the setting item 200 for "Image Quality Correction Function 2," CPU 101 of image forming apparatus 30 changes the PDF engine from PDF engine A to PDF engine B. As a result, PDF engine B, which is different from PDF engine A of the parent machine, is selected. As a result, a warning message M, such as "Caution: The print result on the parent machine may differ from the output result," is displayed on display unit 106 to notify the user that printing may be performed using a PDF engine (PDF engine B in this example) different from the PDF engine used in the parent machine (PDF engine A in this example). When a user sees this notification, they can choose to either continue printing as is, or change the setting for image quality correction function 2 from "apply" to "none," thereby avoiding the use of image quality correction function 2 and instead using the same PDF engine as the parent machine (PDF engine A in this example).

[0086] Also, for example, a message such as "Changing this setting item will change the PDF engine" may be displayed on the display unit 106 to notify the user that the PDF engine will be changed when the user performs an operation to change the setting item 200. Furthermore, the display of a setting item 200 that will change the PDF engine when changed may be changed from the display of other setting items 200, so that the user is notified that the PDF engine will be changed when the setting item 200 is changed before the user performs an operation to change the setting item 200.

[0087] Note that different PDF engines may produce different print results even if the settings in the setting items 200 are the same. That is, if the PDF engine selected by the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 is different from the PDF engine of the parent machine, the print results may differ even if the setting items 200 are the same. For example, even if the "color mode" is set to the same "color," the color tone of the printed paper may differ between when PDF engine A is used and when PDF engine B is used. Therefore, even if the setting items 200 of the PDF engine selected by the CPU 101 of the image forming apparatus 30 correspond to the settings in the PDF engine of the parent machine, a warning message M indicating that the print results may differ, such as "Caution: The print results on the parent machine may differ from the output results," may be displayed on the display unit 106 to notify the user.

[0088] (Variation) The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and applications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0089] In the above embodiment, the program is pre-stored (installed) in the ROM 102 or the memory unit (storage) 104, but the present invention is not limited to this. The program may be provided in a form recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk Read Only Memory), or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory. The program may also be downloaded from an external device via the network N.

[0090] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic device, etc.).

[0091] Furthermore, the operations of the processors in the above-described embodiments may not only be performed by a single processor, but may also be performed by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processors is not limited to the order described in the above-described embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0092] 10. Image forming system 20, 30 Image forming device 50 PC 200 setting items M Warning Message

Claims

1. a processor; The processor: acquiring rendering engine information from one of a plurality of image forming apparatuses connected to a network, the rendering engine having a plurality of predetermined setting items being capable of printing; displaying changeable setting items among the setting items of the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming apparatus and the setting items of the rendering engine of the image forming apparatus itself; The rendering engine is provided in plurality, An image forming apparatus that accepts changes to the setting items.

2. The processor, The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein printing can be performed by changing the rendering engine from one of the plurality of rendering engines.

3. The processor: comparing the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming apparatus with the rendering engine selected from the rendering engines of the image forming apparatus itself according to the print settings of the print job; The image forming apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein if the comparison shows that a different rendering engine is selected, a notification is given that continuing printing may result in a different print result.

4. The processor: The image forming apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein if the user's request to execute printing is not accepted after the notification, the image forming apparatus cancels the printing.

5. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the changeable setting items are setting items that, when changed, enable printing using the selected rendering engine.

6. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the changeable setting item is a setting item that, when changed, enables printing using a rendering engine different from the selected rendering engine.

7. The processor: The image forming apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein, when the rendering engine is changed from the selected rendering engine as a result of accepting the change in the setting item, printing is performed using the changed rendering engine.

8. An image forming device described in any one of claims 1 to 7, including cases where the setting items of the rendering engine of the one image forming device and the rendering engine of the own device are the same, and where there is a possibility that differences may occur in the print results.

9. 9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rendering engine is a rendering engine that handles PDF.

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein printing by the apparatus itself is performed by PDF direct printing.

11. On the computer, acquiring rendering engine information from one of a plurality of image forming apparatuses connected to a network, the rendering engine having a plurality of predetermined setting items being capable of printing; displaying changeable setting items among the setting items of the rendering engine acquired from the one image forming apparatus and the setting items of the rendering engine of the image forming apparatus itself; A program for executing a process for accepting changes to the setting items that can be changed in the plurality of rendering engines provided.

Images