First server system, system, control method thereof, and program

Abstract

To solve the problem in which in cloud printing, even if a real printer is not associated with a virtual printer, a client can send a job to the virtual printer, but when the real printer is subsequently associated and actual printing is performed, there may be a mismatch between the print job and the capabilities of the real printer, and as a result, a print result desired by a user cannot be obtained.SOLUTION: A first server system that provides a first cloud print service that provides print data to a printer registers the first cloud print service as a destination printer with respect to a second server system that provides a second cloud print service, acquires print data from the second server system that has registered the first cloud print service as the destination printer by using an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation, and provides print data based on the acquired print data to the printer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a first server system, a system, a control method thereof, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Cloud print services have been popular for some time, allowing users to print documents from mobile devices such as laptops and smartphones even when they are far from the printer. Generally, when using a cloud print service, users must register the printer with the cloud print service and add the printer information registered with the cloud print service to their mobile device. When registering a printer with a cloud print service, users can register not only an actual printer but also a virtual printer. To distinguish between virtual printers and actual printers, actual printers are referred to as "real printers." By creating a virtual printer and associating it with a real printer, users can print using the real printer. In this case, there does not need to be a one-to-one correspondence between the virtual printer and the real printer.

[0003] By associating multiple real printers with a virtual printer, when a user sends a print job to a virtual printer, the cloud print service can determine the real printer appropriate for the print job and request printing from that real printer. Furthermore, a standby printer associated with the virtual printer can acquire the print job and print it by itself, enabling efficient printing using multiple printers.

[0004] On the other hand, a virtual printer can be created even when there is no real printer. For example, a virtual printer can be created first, and then when the real printer is recognized in advance on the client terminal, the real printer can be registered to the virtual printer. Also, when replacing a real printer, if the real printer is disassociated from the virtual printer, it is possible that there will no longer be a real printer associated with the virtual printer.

[0005] Patent Document 1 describes a method that allows a user to easily specify desired print attributes in an environment where there is no dependency between a client computer and a virtual printer on a server computer. With this method, if there is a difference between the print attributes of a print job and the capabilities of the printer, the print attributes are changed to match the printer before printing. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-5927 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] If a virtual printer does not have a real printer associated with it, when a client terminal sends a print job to the virtual printer, the print job is saved on the client terminal or cloud server, but is not actually printed. If a real printer is then associated with the virtual printer, the saved print job is sent to the associated real printer for printing. However, if there is a mismatch between the capabilities of the virtual printer and the real printer, the client terminal may create a print job that the real printer cannot execute. In this case, printing is performed based on the capabilities of the real printer, which may result in the user not obtaining the desired print results or being unable to print at all.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to solve at least one of the problems of the above-mentioned prior art.

[0009] The object of the present invention is to provide a technology that, when generating a virtual printer, prevents a situation in which the user is unable to obtain the desired print result by setting predetermined capability information if the virtual printer printing device is not associated with the virtual printer. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to achieve the above object, a first server system according to one aspect of the present invention has the following configuration: Send print data to the printer send A first server system that provides a first cloud print service, Send print data to the printer a second server system that provides a second cloud print service; Server System as a destination printer; The first Server System an acquisition means for acquiring print data from the second server system registered as a destination printer by using an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation; To the printer that requested the print data, acquired The aforementioned Print data based on the print data send do send The present invention is characterized by having a means. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, when a virtual printer is generated, if the virtual printer printing device is not associated, predetermined capability information can be set, and a print job that conforms to the capability information can be submitted to the virtual printer.

[0012] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which the same or similar elements are designated by the same reference numerals. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a printing system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a server that provides a CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of a software module that operates on the CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating an example of the flow of operations for creating a virtual printer on a setting screen of a CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5A] 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an example of a screen and an operation flow for managing registered devices registered in the CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5B] 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an example of a screen and an operation flow for managing registered devices registered in the CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of processing for registering a virtual printer registered in the CPS in an external CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 5 is a diagram showing an example of registration information for registering a virtual printer registered in the CPS to an external CPS according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 8] 4 is a diagram showing an example of a registered destination URL of an external CPS stored in a setting DB of the CPS according to the first embodiment and a communication protocol to be used. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of virtual printer capability settings stored in a setting DB of the CPS according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10]FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a processing flow when an image forming apparatus that is a real printer is assigned to a virtual printer in the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a processing flow when the external CPS according to the first embodiment receives a print job from a client terminal and prints it. [Figure 12] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating a comparison example between the attributes of a print job submitted from a client terminal and the attributes of the print job at the time of submission to an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a processing flow when a print process is executed via a CPS using a client terminal in the first embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 5B is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a process for deleting a print job shown on a screen 504 in FIG. 5A and a screen 508 in FIG. 5B. [Figure 15A] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of a screen and an operation flow for managing registered devices registered in a CPS according to the second embodiment. [Figure 15B] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of a screen and an operation flow for managing registered devices registered in a CPS according to the second embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of settings of virtual printer capability information stored in a setting DB of a CPS according to the second embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a virtual printer capability selection screen provided by a CPS according to the third embodiment. [Figure 18] 13 is a diagram showing an example of setting of virtual printer capability information stored in the setting DB of the CPS according to the third embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] 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 scope of the invention claimed. Although multiple features are described in the embodiments, not all of these multiple features are necessarily essential to the invention, and multiple features may be combined arbitrarily. Furthermore, in the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals are used to designate the same or similar components, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0015] [Embodiment 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a printing system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Client terminals 101 and 102 submit print jobs to each cloud print service (hereinafter, referred to as CPS). CPS 104 receives print jobs from client terminal 101 and acquires print jobs from external CPS 105. External CPS 105 receives print jobs from client terminal 102 and stores them. Here, CPS 104 has a tenant name of "CompanyA.example1.co.jp," and external CPS 105 has a tenant name of "CompanyA.example2.co.jp." Image forming devices 107 to 110 are image forming devices (printing devices) that acquire print jobs from CPS 104 and execute print processing. In this embodiment, it is assumed that CPS 104 and CPS 105 are different types of cloud print services provided by different service providers. Furthermore, CPS 104 and CPS 105 provide cloud print services to multiple different tenants. A tenant is an organizational unit that provides services on a cloud platform and manages resources.

[0017] The above components are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via a network 100. The network 100 is, for example, a LAN such as the Internet, a WAN, a mobile communication network such as LTE or 5G, or a communication network realized by a combination of these. The network 100 may be any network as long as it is capable of transmitting and receiving data.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of a server (information processing device) that provides the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment.

[0019] The CPU 201 directly or indirectly controls each connected device (ROM, RAM, etc.) and executes a program for realizing the functions according to the first embodiment. The ROM 202 stores a boot program, BIOS, etc. The RAM (main storage device) 203 is used as a work area for the CPU 201 and as a primary storage unit for loading software modules for realizing the functions according to the first embodiment. The auxiliary storage unit 204 is an HDD (hard disk drive) or SSD (solid state drive) that stores basic software such as an OS and software modules. The input unit 205 includes a keyboard, a pointing device, etc. The output unit 206 has, for example, a display unit. Note that this display unit may have a touch panel function. The input unit 205 and the output unit 206 do not necessarily need to be directly connected, but may be connected via a network via an I / F (interface) 207 (described later). The I / F 207 is an interface for connecting to the network 100. In this way, the hardware such as the CPU 201, ROM 202, RAM 203, etc. constitute a so-called computer. Note that this server may further include an ASIC that renders print data. For the sake of explanation, the first embodiment illustrates a case in which one CPU 201 uses one memory (RAM 203) to execute each process shown in the flowcharts described below, but other aspects are also possible. For example, each process shown in the flowcharts described below can be executed by using multiple processors, RAMs, ROMs, and storages in cooperation with each other. Furthermore, each process can also be executed using multiple server computers. Note that technologies such as virtualization and containers may be used as appropriate to achieve appropriate resource management for multiple tenants.

[0020] 3 is a functional block diagram illustrating the configuration of software modules that operate on the CPS 104 according to embodiment 1. Each software module is stored in the auxiliary storage unit 204, and the CPU 201 deploys the software module in the RAM 203 and executes it to realize the functions shown in this block diagram.

[0021] The transmission / reception unit 301 processes communications between the CPS and the web browser of the client terminal 101 or the image forming apparatus 107, and transmits and receives data. The control unit 302 executes processing according to a request received by the transmission / reception unit 301. The page generation unit 303 generates a web page for returning a response to the web browser. The setting management unit 304 stores various setting information related to the CPS 104, information about the linked external CPS 105, and information about the image forming apparatuses registered in the CPS 104 in a setting DB (database) 307, and also controls the retrieval of such information. The authentication unit 305 uses an authentication DB 308 that stores user account information for each CPS to authenticate users who have made login requests to the CPS 104 and control user authentication requests to the external CPS. The print management unit 306 controls the storage of print jobs received from the client terminal 101 or acquired from the external CPS in a print job DB 309, and performs image processing such as rendering for print jobs. The CPS 104 manages a setting DB 307, an authentication DB 308, a job DB 308, and a print job DB 309 for each tenant. Therefore, a user who belongs to the tenant of Company A can use resources (e.g., a printer) managed by the tenant of Company A. However, a user who belongs to the tenant of Company A cannot use resources (e.g., a printer) managed by a different tenant (e.g., a tenant of a different organization such as Company B).

[0022] 4 is a diagram illustrating the flow of operations for creating a virtual printer on the setting screen of the CPS according to embodiment 1. Here, the flow of operations for creating a virtual printer to which no real printer is assigned and then adding the virtual printer will be described.

[0023] First, the tenant administrator makes an access request to the URL of the web server of CPS 104 from the web browser of client terminal 101. Hereinafter, the tenant administrator will be simply referred to as the administrator. Upon receiving this access request, transmission / reception unit 301 of CPS 104 transfers the access request received from the web browser of client terminal 101 to control unit 302. Control unit 302 interprets the access request, generates response data in page generation unit 303, and transmits a login screen 401, which is the response data, to client terminal 101 via transmission / reception unit 301.

[0024] The administrator inputs user information including the administrator user name, password, etc., which have been registered in advance in CPS 104, via login screen 401. This user information is compared with the user information stored in authentication DB 308 by authentication unit 305 of CPS 104, and a decision is made as to whether authentication based on the user information is successful. If authentication is successful, registered device list screen 402 of CPS 104 is displayed.

[0025] The administrator can change the settings of the CPS 104 and operate the registration process for the external CPS 105 via the screen 402. The CPS 104 is controlled by the setting management unit 304 while updating the contents stored in the setting DB 307.

[0026] In the example of screen 402, it is assumed that the image forming devices 107 to 110 are already registered in the CPS 104. In other words, if the client terminal is compatible with the CPS 104, it can submit a print job to the image forming devices 107 to 110 via the CPS 104. The "Name" on screen 402 is the device name (color MFP or BW-MFP) of the image forming devices 107 to 110 registered in the CPS 104, and is the name displayed on the client terminal 101 when searching for a printer from the client terminal 101. The "External CPS Registration" field is a field that indicates whether the image forming device has been registered in the external CPS. In this example, all of the image forming devices 107 to 110 are not registered in the external CPS.

[0027] Next, if the administrator wishes to create a virtual printer, he or she selects "Virtual Printer Settings" 410 on screen 402. This displays virtual printer settings screen 403. This virtual printer settings screen 403 is a screen for setting the virtual printer to be created, and sets the name of the virtual printer and which image forming device (real printer) to assign to that virtual printer. On this virtual printer settings screen 403, it is assumed that no image forming device is assigned to the virtual printer, and the name of the virtual printer is set to "Color MFP Series." If "OK" is selected here, the virtual printer set on screen 403 is created, and setting management unit 304 saves information about the virtual printer in setting DB 307, and the screen transitions to screen 404.

[0028] On screen 404, the virtual printer created on virtual printer setting screen 403 is registered under the name "Color MFP Series," and "Unassigned" is displayed, indicating that no real printer (image forming device) is assigned to the virtual printer.

[0029] Next, to reassign an image forming device to this virtual printer, select the radio button corresponding to "Color MFP Series" in the registered device list on screen 404 and select "Virtual Printer Settings" 411. This displays a virtual printer setting screen (same as screen 403) displaying the settings for the "Color MFP Series." At this time, the settings stored in the setting DB 307 are referenced, and a screen equivalent to the virtual printer setting screen 403 described above is displayed. The administrator then selects the image forming device to be assigned to the "Color MFP Series" virtual printer. Here, if the color MFPs 107 to 109 corresponding to the image forming devices 107 to 109 are selected, a screen like screen 405 is displayed. If "OK" is selected in this state, the virtual printer is reconfigured as configured on the virtual printer setting screen 405, and the setting management unit 304 saves the virtual printer information in the setting DB 307, and the screen transitions to screen 406. On the virtual printer setting screen 405, the image forming devices 107 to 109 are assigned to the "Color MFP Series" virtual printer.

[0030] The screen 406 displays that the image forming devices 107 to 109, which are color MFPs, are assigned to the "Color MFP Series" virtual printer whose settings were changed on the screen 405.

[0031] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating a screen and an operation flow for managing registered devices registered in the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment.

[0032] Screen 502 in FIG. 5A is the same screen as screen 404 in FIG. 4. When the administrator selects "Edit" 521 on this screen 502, the screen transitions to device edit screen 503, where the administrator can edit registered device information. Here, for example, the device name, installation location, etc. can be edited. Although not shown, device information such as settings for users who are permitted to access may also be edited on device edit screen 503.

[0033] Furthermore, when the administrator selects a specific device on screen 502 and then selects "Delete" 522 on screen 502, the screen transitions to device deletion confirmation screen 504. This device deletion confirmation screen 504 is a screen for the administrator to confirm the deletion of device information, and when "Yes" is selected here to execute deletion, the screen transitions to device deletion confirmation screen 505 in FIG. 5B. In this way, the administrator can confirm that the device has been deleted from CPS 304. Thereafter, when "OK" is selected on device deletion confirmation screen 505, the screen returns to registered device list screen 506. At this time, screen 506 displays only the device information that remains after the device information has been deleted.

[0034] 5A to 9, a description will be given of the process of registering device information in the external CPS 105. Figures 5A and 5B show an example of a setting screen provided by the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment, which the administrator accesses and operates from the web browser of the client terminal 101.

[0035] FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating the process of registering a virtual printer registered in the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment in the external CPS 105. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of registration information for registering a virtual printer registered in the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment in the external CPS 105. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a registration destination URL of the external CPS 105 and a communication protocol to be used, which are stored in the setting DB 507. Note that this information may be changeable by an administrator. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of virtual printer capability settings stored in the setting DB 507 of the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment. This capability setting is stored in advance in the setting DB 507. For printing capabilities such as color, the minimum capabilities that any printer can support are set. For example, the color setting is set to monochrome only, and stapling and punching capabilities are set to none.

[0036] In the initial state, the registered device list of CPS 104 is in the state of screen 502. That is, in S601, client terminal 101 logs in to CPS 104, image forming devices 107 to 110 are registered in CPS 104, and the virtual printer "Color MFP Series" is registered in a state where no image forming device (actual printer) is assigned.

[0037] When a specific device is selected on the screen 502 and “External CPS Linkage” 523 is selected, the screen transitions to an external CPS linkage screen 507 .

[0038] When "Register" is selected on the external CPS linkage screen 507, the screen transitions to an external CPS registration screen 510. The external CPS registration screen 510 in FIG. 5A is an example screen displayed on the client terminal 101, and is a screen for selecting an external CPS to register the CPS 104 to. At this time, in S602, the administrator sets the CPS 105 as the external CPS to be registered and "Color MFP Series" as the device name to be registered on this external CPS registration screen 510, and selects "Register" 524. Having received the information entered on this external CPS registration screen 510, the setting management unit 304 of the CPS 104 references the external CPS destination URL list of FIG. 8 stored in the setting DB 507 and confirms the URL that is the registration destination of the external CPS 105. From this, it is determined that the registration URL of the external CPS 105 is "https: / / check.example2.co.jp." Therefore, in S603, the CPS 104 transmits a device registration request to this destination (URL). Upon receiving this registration request, the external CPS 105 responds to the CPS 104 in S604 with a URL for inputting authentication information and a temporary password for authentication (a PIN code in the first embodiment).

[0039] In S605, the CPS 104 receives the response from the external CPS 105 and sends an authentication information input screen such as screen 511 in Fig. 5A to the web browser of the client terminal 101. After checking this screen 511, the administrator opens the displayed URL in the web browser and enters account information registered in the external CPS 105, such as screen 512 in Fig. 5B. As a result, the user information entered on screen 512 is sent from the web browser to the external CPS 105.

[0040] The external CPS 105, which has received the user information, executes authentication processing based on the user information in S607, and if authentication is successful, executes registration processing based on the accepted registration request in S608. Then, in S609, the external CPS 105 transmits a registration success response and access token information to be used in subsequent communications to the CPS 104. In S610, the CPS 104, which has received this registration success, displays a registration success screen such as screen 513 in Fig. 5A. Thereafter, in S611, the CPS 104 executes registration processing for detailed device information.

[0041] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of registered destination URLs of the external CPS 105 stored in the setting DB 307 of the CPS 104 according to the first embodiment and communication protocols to be used.

[0042] As can be seen from Fig. 8, the external PS 105 uses IPP as the communication protocol, and therefore updates the detailed registration information in the IPP format as shown in Fig. 7. In addition, the detailed device information uses pre-stored device information read out, for example, as shown in Fig. 9. This completes the process of registering the virtual printer "Color MFP Series" registered in the CPS 104 in the external CPS 105, as shown on screen 514 in Fig. 5A.

[0043] In this way, although it is actually a CPS, by registering information as an image forming device, from the perspective of the external CPS 105, it is impossible to determine whether it is an actual image forming device or a CPS, and they are considered to be equivalent. Also, as shown in FIG. 9, it is registered in the external CPS 105 as having minimum printer capabilities. As a result, if a print job is submitted from a user via the external CPS 105 when no image forming device is assigned to the virtual printer, a print job that can be printed on any image forming device is generated. Then, because the print job is sent from the external CPS 105 to the CPS 104, even if an image forming device is later assigned to the virtual printer and the print job is processed, printing can be performed without any inconsistency between the printing capabilities of the image forming device and the print settings of the print job.

[0044] Next, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 10, a process in which a real printer according to the first embodiment allocates an image forming device to an unallocated virtual printer will be described.

[0045] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating the flow of processing when an image forming apparatus, which is a real printer, is assigned to a virtual printer in the first embodiment.

[0046] Here, at the start of the sequence, it is assumed that a virtual printer "Color MFP Series" to which no image forming apparatus is assigned has been created on the virtual printer setting screen 403 in FIG.

[0047] When the administrator logs in to the CPS 104 from the web browser of the client terminal 101 in S1001, the registered device list screen 404 of the CPS 104 shown in Fig. 4 is displayed. On this screen 404, the administrator selects "Color MFP Series" and then selects "Virtual Printer Settings" 411, and the screen transitions to the virtual printer settings screen 405 in S1002.

[0048] On this screen 405, the name of the virtual printer can be changed and an image forming device to be associated can be selected. Here, the color MFPs corresponding to the image forming devices 107 to 109 are collectively assigned to a virtual printer called the "Color MFP Series." When the administrator selects the target image forming device and selects "OK" on screen 405, the setting management unit 304 stores the virtual printer's capability information in the setting DB 307 in S1003. Then, in S1004, it is confirmed whether the virtual printer is registered in the external CPS 105. If the virtual printer is registered in the external CPS 105, detailed information about the virtual printer is sent to the external CPS 105 where it is registered in S1005. This detailed information about the virtual printer includes the capability information of the virtual printer. This capability information may be an AND condition or an OR condition for the associated image forming device. It may also be selectable by setting. When the process of assigning the image forming device to the virtual printer is thus completed, a registered device list like that on screen 405 is displayed. On the other hand, if the virtual printer is not registered in the external CPS 105 in S1004, the screen 405 is displayed without any action.

[0049] 11 and 12, a process when the external CPS 105 according to the first embodiment accepts a print job from the client terminal 102 and performs printing will be described.

[0050] 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating the processing flow when the external CPS 105 according to the first embodiment receives a print job from the client terminal 102 and prints it. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a comparison between the attributes of a print job submitted from the client terminal 102 according to the first embodiment and the print job attributes at the time of submission to the image forming apparatus 107. Here, an example will be described in which a user Alice prints using the client terminal 102. Here, the client terminal 102 runs a Windows (registered trademark) OS, the external CPS 105 is Azure (registered trademark), and the communication protocol used by the external CPS 105 according to FIG. 9 is IPP (Internet Printing Protocol).

[0051] First, in step S1101, Alice logs in to the external CPS 105 from the client terminal 102 using the account name "aaaAlice@companyA.example2.co.jp" for the external CPS 105, which is registered in the external CPS 105. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the user account used to log in to the client terminal 102 is managed by a management service (e.g., Azure Active Directory) on the cloud platform that provides the external CPS 105. However, this is not limited to this. For example, the client terminal 102 may be managed by a local Active Directory (AD). In this case, Alice may first log in to the local AD using a different account, and then enter the account for the external CPS 105 after logging in to associate it with the external CPS 105. The OS of the client terminal 102 stores the association between the local AD account and the cloud management service account, thereby reducing the effort required for user input from the next time onwards.

[0052] Next, in S1102, the client terminal 102 searches for printers registered in the external CPS 105. The search includes information that identifies the tenant. For example, when Alice performs a search, the information registered in S611 described above is stored in the tenant (companyA.example2.co.jp) of the external CPS 105. Therefore, the "Color MFP Series" image forming device associated with the tenant (companyA.example2.co.jp) to which Alice belongs is discovered.

[0053] Next, Alice selects an arbitrary print job and instructs the "Color MFP Series" to execute printing. In S1103, the client terminal 102, which has received this instruction to execute printing, sends the print job to the external CPS 105. Here, since the "Color MFP Series" has only minimum capabilities as shown in FIG. 9, the created print job can be printed by any image forming device. In S1104, the external CPS 105, which has received this print job, saves the print job in storage.

[0054] Meanwhile, because the "Color MFP Series" is registered in the external CPS 105, the CPS 104 periodically checks in S1105 whether a print job addressed to the image forming apparatus 107 exists in the external CPS 105. In the first embodiment, the CPS 104 sends a request to the external CPS 105 to confirm the print job at regular time intervals. Note that this polling interval may be an interval specified by the external CPS 105 or an interval set in the CPS 104. Furthermore, instead of checking by polling, the external CPS 105 and the CPS 104 may be constantly connected, and when a print job is saved in the external CPS 105, the CPS 104 may be notified of the existence of the print job by a push notification.

[0055] If it is determined in S1105 that a print job exists, the CPS 104 makes a request to the external CPS 105 to obtain the print job in S1106. At this time, the CPS 104 issues the request based on the access token obtained in S609, so the external CPS 105 determines that the CPS 104 is a trusted party. Then, in S1107, the external CPS 105 transmits the requested print job to the CPS 104. At this time, the communication protocol used by the external CPS 105 is, for example, IPP, so the print job is in the IPP format as shown by 1201 in Fig. 12, and S1103 and S1105 to S1107 are also executed using IPP operations.

[0056] In S1108, the CPS 104 that has acquired the print job in this way first determines who the print job belongs to. If the protocol is IPP, this determination is made by checking, for example, a field such as "Requesting-user-name." From 1201 in Fig. 12, Alice's account information for the external CPS 105 is obtained, and this is compared with the authentication information stored in the authentication DB 307 to determine Alice's CPS 104 account.

[0057] Next, the image forming apparatus 107 references the access permission list set for the image forming apparatus 107 to determine whether Alice is an authorized user of the image forming apparatus 107. If Alice is a denied user, the acquired print job is discarded and a response indicating an access error is sent to the external CPS 105. On the other hand, if Alice is an authorized user, in S1109 the acquired print job is saved in the print job DB 309 of the CPS 104. Thereafter, in S1110 the CPS 104 notifies the external CPS 105 that it has completed acquiring the print job. In S1111, the external CPS 105, having received the notification that acquisition of the print job has been completed, determines that the print job is no longer necessary and deletes the print job.

[0058] Next, in S1112, the CPS 104 converts the data attributes of the print job so that data can be sent and received to and from the image forming apparatus 107. Here, the data attributes of the print job are converted from the communication protocol format (e.g., IPP) of the external CPS 105 to the communication protocol format (e.g., HTTP) adopted by the CPS 104. Assuming that the CPS 104 adopts, for example, an HTTP-based proprietary protocol, the CPS 104 converts the data into print job attributes such as those shown in 1202 in FIG. 12. Here, the value of "Requesting-user-name" is converted from authentication information (not shown) to "Alice" or "Alice@companyA.example1.co.jp", which can be interpreted by the CPS 104.

[0059] Because the image forming device 107 is registered in the CPS 104, in S1113 the image forming device 107 periodically checks with the CPS 104 at regular time intervals to see if there are any print jobs addressed to it. Note that this polling interval may be an interval specified by the CPS 104 or an interval set in the image forming device 107. Also, instead of checking by polling, the CPS 104 and the image forming device 107 may be assumed to be constantly connected, and when a print job is saved in the CPS 104, the image forming device 107 may be notified of the existence of the print job by a push notification. In this case, since it is desired to check all print jobs addressed to the image forming device 107, the print job confirmation request is realized by storing False in the "Which-jobs" attribute in the case of IPP, for example.

[0060] Alternatively, if the image forming apparatus 107 is subject to login management, a print job confirmation request may be sent when a specific user logs in. In this case, the print job confirmation request is sent only for the jobs of the logged-in user. For example, in the case of IPP, this is realized by setting the "Which-jobs" attribute to True and storing Alice's user name and account information in an attribute that can identify the user, such as "Requesting-user-name" or "Requesting-user-uri."

[0061] Here, in response to the print job confirmation in S1113, the CPS 104 checks the allocation of the virtual printer, and if the image forming device 107 is allocated to the virtual printer "Color MFP Series", it notifies the image forming device 107 that there is a print job.

[0062] When the image forming apparatus 107 determines that there is a print job addressed to itself in this way, in S1114 it requests the CPS 104 to acquire the print job using the communication protocol (for example, HTTP) employed by the CPS 104. As a result, in S1115 the print job is sent from the CPS 104 to the image forming apparatus 107. Upon receiving this print job, the image forming apparatus 107 executes print processing based on the print job and outputs the print results in S1116. At this time, if reservation is set in the image forming apparatus 107, the print job is not executed based on the print job, but is saved in the auxiliary storage device of the image forming apparatus 107. When printing is completed in this way, in S1117 the image forming apparatus 107 notifies the CPS 104 that acquisition of the print job is complete. As a result, in S1118 the CPS 104 deletes the print job, and this series of processes ends.

[0063] In this way, it is possible to identify the user to whom a print job submitted to the external CPS 105 is addressed, and to transmit the print job to the image forming apparatus 107 via the CPS 104 for printing.

[0064] Next, an example of a process when Alice uses the client terminal 101 to execute a print process via the CPS 104 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0065] FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram illustrating the flow of processing when a print process is executed via the CPS 104 using the client terminal 101 in the first embodiment.

[0066] First, in S1301, Alice logs in to the CPS 104 from the client terminal 101. Here, the login can be done by logging in to the web server of the CPS 104 or by using a dedicated application of the CPS 104. "Alice@companyA.example1.co.jp" is used as the account for the CPS 104.

[0067] Next, in S1302, the client terminal 101 sends a search request to the CPS 104 to search for printers that Alice can use. In S1303, the CPS 104 receives this printer search request and, referring to authentication information (not shown), responds with printer information that Alice can use. In this case, the image forming device 107 is the response. Then, in S1304, Alice selects an arbitrary print job and sends the print job to the CPS 104. Here, the communication protocol used is the communication protocol (for example, HTTP) adopted by the CPS 104, and the attributes of the print job data are also in a format such as 1202 in FIG. 12. After this, the processing in S1305 to S1311 is the same as S1109 and S1113 to S1118 in FIG. 11 described above, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0068] As described above, the CPS 104 not only acquires print jobs from the external CPS 105, but also has the function of receiving print jobs from client terminals as a CPS itself.

[0069] FIG. 14 is a sequence diagram illustrating the process of deleting a print job shown on the screen 504 in FIG. 5A and the screen 508 in FIG. 5B.

[0070] When the administrator wishes to delete a registered device including a virtual printer from the CPS 104, in S1401, the administrator selects the device to be deleted on the registered device list screen 502 in FIG. 5A and selects "Delete" 522. The CPS 104 that has received this deletion instruction determines whether the device has already been registered with the external CPS 105. Here, it is assumed that the device has already been registered with the external CPS 105. In this case, the information about the CPS 104 that has been registered with the external CPS 105 must first be deleted. Therefore, in S1402, the CPS 104 transmits a request to the external CPS 105 to delete the device information registered in S608 in FIG. 6. The external CPS 105 that has received this deletion request executes deletion processing for the device in question in S1403.

[0071] On the other hand, after transmitting the deletion request to the external CPS 105, the CPS 104 deletes the information of the device to be deleted from the setting DB 307 of the CPS 104 in S1404. Here, if the device is not registered in the external CPS 105, the processes of S1402 and S1403 are skipped. Also, if the administrator wants to delete only the registration in the external CPS 105 without deleting the registration from the CPS 104 on the external CPS link deletion screen 508, the process of S1404 is skipped.

[0072] As described above, even when linked with an external CPS, device deletion processing can be achieved without inconsistencies in registration.

[0073] As described above, according to the first embodiment, a virtual printer can be created without being linked to a real printer. A pre-registered real printer can then be assigned to the virtual printer. Furthermore, because the virtual printer is registered as having minimum printer capabilities, when a print job is submitted by a user, a print job that can be printed on any printing device is generated and sent. Therefore, even if a printing device (real printer) is assigned to the virtual printer later, printing can be performed without any inconsistency between the printing capabilities of the printing device and the print settings of the print job.

[0074] [Embodiment 2] In the second embodiment, an example will be described in which an administrator can set the capability information of a virtual printer when registering the virtual printer in an external CPS. Note that the configuration of the printing system according to the second embodiment, and the hardware configuration of the server and image forming device, etc. are the same as those of the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0075] 15A and 15B are diagrams illustrating screens and operation flows for managing registered devices registered in a CPS according to the second embodiment, and depict screens related to linkage operations with an external CPS in FIGS. 5A and 5B. In FIGS. 15A and 15B, an external CPS registration screen 1510 and a virtual printer capability setting screen 1515 are added in place of the external CPS registration screen 510 in FIG. 5A. Furthermore, a screen 1502, an external CPS linkage screen 1507, and screens 1511 to 1514 are the same as screens 502, 507, and 511 to 514 in FIGS. 5A and 5B, respectively, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0076] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of settings of virtual printer capability information stored in the setting DB 307 of the CPS 104 according to the second embodiment.

[0077] The administrator accesses and operates from the web browser of the client terminal, and the operations up to the transition from screen 1502 to screen 1507 are the same as in the first embodiment. After that, when "Register" is selected on external CPS linkage screen 1507, the screen transitions to external CPS registration screen 1510. On this external CPS registration screen 1510, the external CPS to register to and the name of the registered device are set, as in the first embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to set virtual printer capability information. When "Set virtual printer capability information" 1520 is selected on external CPS registration screen 1510, the screen transitions to virtual printer capability information setting screen 1515 in FIG. 15B.

[0078] On the virtual printer capability information setting screen 1515, the capabilities of the virtual printer can be set, including print settings such as color and double-sided printing. Furthermore, there is a check box 1521 for selecting whether or not to set the virtual printer capability information. When "OK" is selected with this check box 1521 checked, the virtual printer capabilities set on this screen are written to the virtual printer capability setting data in FIG. 16. Furthermore, "Virtual printer capability information setting" on the external CPS registration screen 1510 displays "Yes." On the other hand, when "OK" is selected with the check box 1521 unchecked, the virtual printer capability information is not written to the virtual printer capability setting data. In this case, "Virtual printer capability information setting" on the external CPS registration screen 1510 displays "No."

[0079] Thereafter, when "Register" 1522 is selected on the external CPS registration screen 1510, the setting of the virtual printer capability information to the external CPS 105 can be completed by performing operations from screen 1511 to screen 1514, as in the first embodiment.

[0080] In the screen operations described above, the processes from S601 to S610 in the first embodiment are performed. Thereafter, when detailed information about the virtual printer is sent, if "Set virtual printer capability information" on screen 1510 in Fig. 15A is set to "Yes", the virtual printer capability information saved in data 1600 is sent. If "Set virtual printer capability information" on external CPS registration screen 1510 is set to "No", the default capability information saved in setting DB 307 shown in Fig. 16 is sent.

[0081] As described above, according to the second embodiment, when registering a virtual printer in an external CPS, the administrator can set the printing capabilities of the virtual printer, post-processing, etc. If the administrator does not set the printing capabilities of the virtual printer, the printing capabilities of the default virtual printer will be set.

[0082] [Embodiment 3] In the third embodiment, an example is described in which the administrator sets default printing capabilities for each product series in the process of setting the capabilities of a virtual printer when registering the virtual printer in an external CPS. In the third embodiment, a method of individually setting the capabilities of the virtual printer in the second embodiment is described using an example in which a default printing capability is selected from multiple predetermined combinations. Note that the configuration of the printing system according to the third embodiment, and the hardware configuration of the server and image forming device, etc. are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0083] Fig. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a virtual printer capability selection screen provided by the CPS 104 according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, settings are made by transitioning through screens similar to those shown in Figs. 15A and 15B. However, instead of the virtual printer capability information setting screen 1515 shown in Fig. 15B, the screen shown in Fig. 17 is displayed.

[0084] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of settings of the capabilities of the virtual printer stored in the setting DB 307 of the CPS 104 according to the third embodiment.

[0085] The capability settings for "Default (general settings)," "ImageRunner ADV series," "ImageCLASS series," and "inkjet printer series" are stored in advance in the setting DB 307. "Default (general settings)" stores the minimum capabilities of basic printers. In addition, other capability settings store the basic capabilities corresponding to the printer product series.

[0086] The administrator now accesses and operates from the web browser on the client terminal, and the operations up to the transition from screen 1502 in Fig. 15A to external CPS registration screen 1510 are the same as in embodiment 2. After that, when "Set virtual printer capability information" 1520 is selected on external CPS registration screen 1510, the screen transitions to the virtual printer capability selection screen in Fig. 17.

[0087] On this virtual printer capability selection screen, the user can select the device type to be registered. The user selects the device type based on the type of printer to be associated with the virtual printer being set up, and then selects OK. For example, if the printer to be associated with the virtual printer is an inkjet printer, select "Inkjet Printer Series." If the printer to be associated has not yet been decided, select "General Settings." In the example in Figure 17, "ImageRunner ADV Series" has been selected.

[0088] When OK is selected on the virtual printer capability selection screen, the screen returns to screen 1510 in Fig. 15A, and the printer is registered in the same manner as in embodiment 2. Thereafter, when detailed information about the virtual printer is to be sent, capability setting information corresponding to the item selected on the virtual printer capability selection screen in Fig. 17 is read from setting DB 307 shown in Fig. 18, and the capability information is sent to external CPS 105.

[0089] As described above, according to the third embodiment, the user can set the capabilities of the real printer to be registered in the virtual printer simply by selecting the printing capabilities corresponding to the type of the real printer to be registered in the virtual printer.

[0090] (Other embodiments) The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described 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 (e.g., ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0091] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the following claims are appended to apprise the public of the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0092] 101... client terminal, 104... CPS, 105... external CPS, 107 to 110... image forming apparatus, 201... CPU, 202... ROM, 304... setting management unit, 307... setting DB, 510, 1510... external CPS registration screen

Claims

1. A first server system that provides a first cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer, a registration means for registering the first server system as a destination printer in a second server system that provides a second cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer; an acquiring means for acquiring print data from the second server system that has registered the first server system as a destination printer by using an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation; a transmitting means for transmitting print data based on the acquired print data to a printer that has requested the print data; A first server system comprising:

2. 2. The first server system according to claim 1, wherein the first server system specifies a name when registering the first server system as a destination printer in the second server system.

3. 3. The first server system according to claim 1, wherein the second cloud print service is a cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer.

4. A first server system as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the printing data based on the acquired printing data is printing data converted into printing data in a format of a protocol used by the first server system to communicate with the printer.

5. The first server system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the printer capability information stored in the second cloud print service when the first server system is registered as a destination printer is registered using attribute names and attribute values ​​specified in the IPP.

6. 6. The first server system according to claim 5, wherein the stored printer capability information includes information about color settings.

7. 7. The first server system according to claim 1, wherein the first server system is a computer system including a plurality of server computers.

8. A system including a printer and a first server system that provides a first cloud print service that transmits print data to the printer, the first server system, a registration means for registering the first server system as a destination printer in a second server system that provides a second cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer; an acquiring means for acquiring print data from the second server system that has registered the first server system as a destination printer by using an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation; a transmitting means for transmitting print data based on the acquired print data to a printer that has requested the print data; The printer a print control means for executing printing based on the print data transmitted by the transmission means; A system characterized by having:

9. A control method for controlling a first server system that provides a first cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer, comprising: a registration step in which a registration unit of the first server system registers the first server system as a destination printer with a second server system that provides a second cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer; an acquisition step in which an acquisition unit of the first server system acquires print data from the second server system that has registered the first server system as a destination printer by utilizing an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation; a transmitting step in which a transmitting means of the first server system transmits print data based on the acquired print data to a printer that has requested the print data; The control method is characterized by having the following.

10. 10. The control method according to claim 9, wherein in the registration step, the registration means specifies a name when registering the first server system as a destination printer in the second server system.

11. 11. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the second cloud print service is a cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer.

12. A control method described in any one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that the printing data based on the acquired printing data is printing data converted into printing data in a format of a protocol used by the first server system to communicate with the printer.

13. 13. A control method according to claim 9, wherein the printer capability information stored in the second cloud print service when the first server system is registered as a destination printer is registered using attribute names and attribute values ​​specified in the IPP.

14. 14. The control method according to claim 13, wherein the stored printer capability information includes information about color settings.

15. 15. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the first server system is a computer system including a plurality of server computers.

16. A control method for a system including a printer and a first server system that provides a first cloud print service that transmits print data to the printer, the first server system, registering the first server system as a destination printer in a second server system that provides a second cloud print service that transmits print data to a printer; acquiring print data from the second server system that has registered the first server system as a destination printer by using an IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) operation; Sending print data based on the acquired print data to the printer that requested the print data; The printer A control method characterized by executing printing based on transmitted print data.

17. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the first server system according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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