System, information processing device, and control method thereof

Abstract

To improve the convenience for a user in a series of operations related to color verification.SOLUTION: A system transmits screen information on a screen that receives color measurement settings and chart printing instructions for performing color verification by comparing a result of color measurement of a chart with a color reference, receives the color measurement settings and chart printing instructions, and based on the color measurement settings and chart printing instructions, generates print data of the chart.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for verifying the color quality of printed matter.

Background Art

[0002] In the field of commercial printing, the importance and demand for a color verification process for periodically verifying the color quality of image forming devices have been increasing in recent years. This is because if the printed output result fails to meet the expectations of color-sensitive orderers and the job is rejected, the cost will increase and the profit will decrease.

[0003] The color verification process consists of steps such as color measurement in color verification, printing-related settings, printing of a chart composed of multiple color patches, color measurement of the chart, color verification by comparing the color measurement results with color standards, and confirmation of the color verification results (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, user convenience can be improved in a series of operations related to color verification. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Block diagram showing the entire color verification system in the first embodiment. [Figure 2] Hardware configuration diagram of the information processing device in the first embodiment [Figure 3] Functional block diagram of the color verification system in the first embodiment [Figure 4] Example of a web page in the first embodiment [Figure 5] A schematic diagram showing an example of the settings screen in the first embodiment. [Figure 6-1]Schematic diagram showing an example of a color measurement screen in the first embodiment [Figure 6-2] Schematic diagram showing an example of a color measurement screen in the first embodiment [Figure 7] Schematic diagram showing an example of a color verification screen in the first embodiment [Figure 8] Example of color measurement settings in the first embodiment [Figure 9] Example of chart data in the first embodiment [Figure 10] Example of printing settings in the first embodiment [Figure 11] Flowchart for explaining the chart printing process in the first embodiment [Figure 12] Example of a chart color measurement request in the first embodiment [Figure 13] Examples of patch color measurement requests and patch color measurement results in the first embodiment [Figure 14] Example of a color measurement result in the first embodiment [Figure 15] Flowchart for explaining the color measurement process in the first embodiment [Figure 16] Flowchart for explaining the color verification process in the first embodiment [Figure 17] Flowchart for explaining the color measurement process in the second embodiment [Figure 18] Flowchart for explaining the color measurement process in the third embodiment [Figure 19] Examples of printing instructions and color verification instructions in the first embodiment [Figure 20] Schematic diagram of a patch layout in the first embodiment

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] (First Embodiment) This section will explain the configuration of a color verification system for realizing a color verification process, the printing of charts, the colorimetric measurement of charts, and color verification in order, using a specific example, and will then explain the features of the present invention. The configuration of the color verification system will be explained using Figures 1 to 7.

[0013] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating the color verification system according to this embodiment. The system is broadly divided into a web system 101 and a printer system 103, which are interconnected by the Internet 100. The web system 101 may be built on the cloud or on the company's own servers.

[0014] The internal configuration of the printing company system 103 will be described in detail below. As shown in Figure 1, the information processing device 104 and the image forming apparatus 106 are interconnected by a network 105. In addition, the colorimeter 107 is interconnected by a serial bus 108. The image forming apparatus 106 is controlled under the control of a group of programs running on the information processing device 104, processes print settings and print data received from the web system 101, and produces deliverables.

[0015] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing unit (102, 104). In this figure, the CPU 201 executes programs for the OS and general applications stored in the program ROM of ROM 203 or loaded into RAM 202 from HDD 210. ROM 203 contains font ROM and data ROM. RAM 202 functions as the main memory, work area, etc., of the CPU 201. The keyboard controller (KBC) 205 controls input from the keyboard (KB) 208 and pointing device (not shown). The display controller CRTC 206 controls the display on the display unit CRT 209. The disk controller (DKC) 207 controls access to HDD 210, etc., which stores boot programs, various applications, font data, etc. The network controller (NIC) 212 is connected to the network and performs communication control processing with other devices connected to the network. The bus 204 connects the CPU 201, RAM 202, ROM 203, and various controllers, etc., and carries data signals and control signals.

[0016] In the case of mobile phones, the configuration may include a touch panel controller or the like instead of the keyboard controller (KBC) 205. Also, a large-capacity storage device may be included instead of the HDD 210. Furthermore, the internal configuration of the network controller (NIC) 212 differs depending on whether the device has a wired LAN, a wireless LAN, or both. However, these differences in internal configuration are hidden within the network controller (NIC) 212, and the system is configured to be controllable as equivalent to the other modules shown in the diagram.

[0017] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of the web system 101 and the printing company system 103, which constitute the color verification system according to this embodiment.

[0018] First, we will explain the functional blocks installed in the information processing device 104 of the printing company system 103. The web browser 300 communicates with the web server 310 and obtains content (screen information). The web browser 300 then parses the obtained content and displays it in a formatted form (web page 302). The web browser 300 is also capable of executing programming languages ​​such as JavaScript.

[0019] The on-premise application 301 is an application that acts as a proxy, relaying access between the web system 101, the image forming apparatus 106, the colorimeter 107, and the web browser 300. For example, when printing a chart, the web system 101 relays the on-premise application 301 to print the chart to the image forming apparatus 106. Also, when measuring the color of the printed chart, the control of the colorimeter 107 is performed via the on-premise application 301. However, when printing a chart, the web system 101 may also directly send the chart printing data and print settings to the image forming apparatus 106 without relaying them through the on-premise application 301. The decision of whether or not to use the on-premise application 301 is made from the perspective of whether the printing company connects the image forming apparatus to an external network, and the present invention may use either connection configuration.

[0020] Web page 302 is content retrieved by the web browser 300 from the web server 310 and displayed on the web browser 300. Web page 302 may consist of a single piece of content, as shown in Figure 4(A), or it may contain nested guest content 400, as shown in Figure 4(B).

[0021] The web component 303 is a program associated with the web page 302 and is executed on the web browser 300. In this embodiment, the web component 303 is assumed to be JavaScript, but any program that runs on the web browser 300 is acceptable, such as an applet, ActiveX, or a plugin for the web browser 300.

[0022] When the web browser 300 displays the web page 302 (for example, the chart color measurement screen shown in Figure 6-2(C) later), the web component 303 accesses the color measurement control unit 304 and establishes communication. Subsequently, the web component 303 sends instructions to the color measurement control unit 304 in response to user operations on the web page 302, and controls the colorimeter 107 according to the user operations. The web component 303 also receives the response of the colorimeter 107 to the instructions from the color measurement control unit 304 and reflects it on the web page 302.

[0023] In this embodiment, WebSocket is used as the communication method between the web component 303 and the colorimeter control unit 304. Therefore, the web component 303 and the colorimeter control unit 304 can maintain a constant connection through a specific port. This allows user input to be transmitted to the colorimeter 107 in real time, and the response of the colorimeter 107 to be reflected on the web page 302 in real time.

[0024] The colorimeter control unit 304 receives instructions from the web component 303 and controls the colorimeter 107 via the colorimeter linkage unit 306. When the colorimeter 107 reads a patch, the colorimeter control unit 304 sends the reading result to the web component 303. Once all patches constituting the chart have been read, the colorimeter control unit 304 saves the reading results to the colorimeter result storage unit 309. Furthermore, when the colorimeter control unit 304 receives a colorimeter completion instruction from the web component 303, it retrieves the colorimeter result matching the ID in the colorimeter completion instruction from the colorimeter result storage unit 309 and sends it to the web server 310 via the colorimeter communication unit 305.

[0025] The colorimetric communication unit 305 communicates with the colorimetric control unit 304 and the web server 310. Upon receiving the colorimetric measurement result from the colorimetric control unit 304, the colorimetric communication unit 305 initiates communication with the web server 310 and transmits the colorimetric measurement result to the web server 310. Although there is no specified communication method, HTTP communication is used in this embodiment because the web server 310 and the on-premise application 301 do not need to be connected in real time at all times.

[0026] The colorimeter control unit 306 is the interface with the colorimeter 107 and mediates communication between the colorimeter control unit 304 and the colorimeter 107.

[0027] The print communication unit 307 handles communication between the print control unit 308 and the web server 310. When a user issues a print command, the print communication unit 307 receives a print job from the web server 310, consisting of print settings and print data, and also receives the IP address of the destination image forming apparatus, which it then passes to the print control unit 308.

[0028] When the print control unit 308 receives a print job from the print communication unit 307, it sends the print job to the image forming apparatus 106 at its IP address. In this embodiment, HTTP communication is assumed as the method for sending the print job. However, since it is sufficient for the print job to be sent to the image forming apparatus 106, other print transmission methods such as hot folders may also be used.

[0029] The color measurement result storage unit 309 is where the color measurement control unit 304 stores the color measurement results of the chart once the color measurement of the chart is complete. The color measurement result storage unit 309 may store the results as a file on the HDD of the information processing device 104, or it may be configured as a tabular database, for example, as shown below.

[0030] [Table 1]

[0031] The above is a description of the functional blocks installed in the information processing device 104.

[0032] Next, a functional block diagram of the information processing device 102 of the web system 101 will be described. The web server 310 is a service program that communicates with the web browser 300 via HTTP and provides the web browser 300 with the display of HTML and objects (such as images). The web server 310 also communicates with the print communication unit 307 via HTTP and sends print jobs to the on-premise application 301. Furthermore, the web server 310 communicates with the color measurement communication unit 305 via HTTP and receives the color measurement results of the chart from the color measurement control unit 304.

[0033] The color verification management unit 311 is a function for controlling the execution of each process in the color verification process. Based on user instructions entered on the web page 302, the color verification management unit 311 executes processes from chart printing to color measurement and color verification. It also sends print jobs to the web server 310 and saves the color measurement results received by the web server 310 to the color measurement result storage unit 309.

[0034] The color measurement setting storage unit 312 is where the color measurement settings entered by the user are stored. When a user enters and saves color measurement settings on the web page 302 (the settings screen in Figure 5), the web component 303 passes the color measurement settings to the web server 310 via the web browser 300. An example is shown in Figure 8 for the color measurement settings 800 (described later). The web server 310 then passes the color measurement settings 800 to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311, having received the color measurement settings 800, saves them in the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0035] The color measurement settings 800 stored in the color measurement setting storage unit 312 are used for various purposes in the color verification system. Conventional printing systems require the user to input print settings and upload print data to a web server, but in this invention, the user inputs the color measurement settings 800, and print settings and print data are generated based on these color measurement settings 800. Furthermore, the color measurement settings 800 are also used as a criterion for judging the color measurement results in color verification.

[0036] Furthermore, the color measurement setting storage unit 312 stores the color measurement results transmitted from the on-premise application 301, linking them to the color measurement settings having the same identifier. Figure 14 shows an example of the color measurement results (described later). Then, based on the identifier, the color measurement setting storage unit 312 stores the color verification results 1400 from the color verification processing unit 314, linking them to the color measurement setting 800.

[0037] For example, as shown in Table 1 below, the color measurement setting 800 and the color measurement result 1400 are linked based on the identifier (Test ID) "000001".

[0038] [Table 2]

[0039] The print job generation unit 313 has the function of generating print settings and print data. Specifically, the user issues a print command (by pressing the print button 504) on the web page 302 (the settings screen in Figure 5). When a print command is issued, the web component 303 sends the print command to the web server 310 via the web browser 300. 1900 in Figure 19(A) is an example of a print command, which includes a command ("print-request") and an identifier ("test-id"). When the web server 310 passes the print command 1900 to the color verification management unit 311, the color verification management unit 311 obtains the color measurement settings 800 from the color measurement storage unit 309 based on the identifier (000001) specified by the print command.

[0040] The color verification management unit 311 passes the acquired color measurement settings 800 to the print job generation unit 313. The print job generation unit 313 generates a print job consisting of chart print settings and print data that satisfy the color measurement settings 800. 900 and 905 in Figure 9(A) are examples of print data, and 1000 in Figure 10 is an example of print settings.

[0041] Regarding the generation of print settings 1000, for example, as shown in Table 3 below, the print settings storage unit 315 pre-associates color standards and print parameters. The print job generation unit 313 obtains the relevant print parameters from the print settings storage unit 315 based on the color standards (FOGRA xxxx-yyyy) of the color measurement setting 800 and generates print settings 1000.

[0042] [Table 3]

[0043] The print job generation unit 313 then returns the generated print job to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311 then sends the print job to the on-premise application 301 via the web server 310.

[0044] The color verification processing unit 314 compares the color measurement results obtained from reading the printed chart with the color standards of the printing industry or color standards independently established by the printing company, and makes a pass / fail judgment against the specified color standards.

[0045] Specifically, when a user presses the "Complete Color Measurement" button on web page 302, web component 303 sends a color measurement result transmission message to the color measurement control unit 304 to send the color measurement result 1400. Figure 19(B) shows an example of a color measurement result transmission instruction, which includes a command ("measurement-upload-request") and an identifier ("test-id"). Upon receiving the instruction, the color measurement control unit 304 retrieves the color measurement result 1400 stored in the color measurement result storage unit 309 based on the identifier (000001) included in the instruction, and transmits the color measurement result 1400 to the web server 310 via the color measurement communication unit 305. After the color verification management unit 311 saves the color measurement result 1400 in the color measurement setting storage unit 312, it retrieves the color measurement setting 800 associated with the color measurement result 1400 from the color measurement setting storage unit 312 and passes it to the color verification processing unit 314. The color verification processing unit 314 performs color verification based on the color measurement settings 800 and the color measurement result 1400, and returns the determination result to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311 then saves the determination result to the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0046] Figure 5 shows an example of the settings screen for web page 302 displayed on a web browser 300. The settings screen in Figure 5 is used to configure settings used in the three steps of printing, color measurement, and color verification.

[0047] The color measurement settings list 505 displays the color measurement settings that have already been created. In this embodiment, the color measurement settings list 505 displays the color standard used for color verification, the image forming apparatus to be color verified, the chart printing conditions, and the identifier. The add color measurement setting button 500 is used to add a new color measurement setting to the color measurement settings list 505. When the add color measurement setting button 500 is pressed, the color measurement setting editing area 506 is displayed, and the user enters the necessary information. For example, the user specifies the necessary items. Specifically, these are the color standard selection unit 507, the image forming apparatus selection unit 508, the paper type selection unit 510, the paper basis weight selection unit 511, the resolution selection unit 512, the M factor selection unit 513, the observation light source selection unit 514, the viewing angle selection unit 515, and the color measurement mode selection unit 516.

[0048] The color measurement setting edit button 501 allows the user to edit one of the color measurement settings selected in the color measurement setting list 505. When the color measurement setting edit button 501 is pressed, the color measurement setting editing area 506 is displayed, and the user enters the necessary information.

[0049] The color measurement setting delete button 502 is used to delete the color measurement setting selected in the color measurement setting list 505. When the color measurement setting delete button 502 is pressed, the web browser 300 sends a deletion request for the color measurement setting to the web server 310, and the web server 310 passes the deletion request to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311 then deletes the specified color measurement setting from the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0050] The Print Data Download button 503 is for downloading the chart print data to a specified local folder. For example, if you want to perform color verification on an image forming machine that is not supported by the color verification system, the color verification system may not be able to print on that machine. In this case, you can download the chart print data to a local folder and then print the data using the printer driver.

[0051] The print button 504 is for directly printing a chart from the web system 101 to the image forming apparatus 106. For example, when the print button 504 is pressed, the web browser 300 sends a print instruction (shown in Figure 19(A)) of the color measurement setting 800 to the web server 310, and the web server 310 passes the print instruction 1900 to the color verification management unit 311. When the web server 310 passes the print instruction 1900 to the color verification management unit 311, the color verification management unit 311 obtains the color measurement setting 800 from the color measurement setting storage unit 312 based on the identifier 807 (000001) specified by the print instruction 1900. The color verification management unit 311 passes the obtained color measurement setting 800 to the print job generation unit 313. The print job generation unit 313 generates a print job consisting of the chart print settings 1000 and print data 900-905 that satisfy the color measurement setting 800. The print job generation unit 313 then returns the generated print job to the color verification management unit 311. Subsequently, the color verification management unit 311 sends the print job and the IP address of the image forming apparatus 106 to the on-premise application 301 via the web server 310. The on-premise application 301 then sends the print job to the image forming apparatus 106.

[0052] The color measurement setting save button 517 is used to save the color measurement settings edited in the color measurement setting editing area 506. When the color measurement setting save button 517 is pressed, the color verification management unit 311 assigns an identifier (e.g., 000001) to the color measurement settings and saves them to the color measurement setting save unit 312 in JSON format, which is commonly used in web systems (e.g., color measurement setting 800 in Figure 8).

[0053] The color standard selection unit 507 allows you to select either a standard printing color standard or a user-defined printing color standard. A standard printing color standard refers to a standard set by an international standardization organization such as ISO. For example, there are color standards for each region, such as GRACOL in the United States, FOGRA in Europe, and Japan Color in Japan. A user-defined printing color standard is a color standard defined by the printing company itself. For example, a printing company may use a user-defined printing color standard if it wants to apply stricter color control than the standard printing color standard. User-defined printing color standards can be created using the tools provided by the web system 101, or they can be created using a separate tool and imported into the web system 101. The imported user-defined printing color standard will be displayed in the color standard selection unit 507. A detailed explanation of how to create a user-defined printing color standard is omitted here.

[0054] Traditionally, the quality of printed materials was determined by their appearance, and without clear standards, printing companies often had to repeatedly revise and reprint to meet color reproduction requests from clients and designers. Establishing standard color criteria for printed materials can improve this situation.

[0055] The color standard selected in the color standard selection unit 507 is used when generating the print data for the chart during printing. For example, in the case of Japan Color 2011, the number of patches is defined as ISO 12642-2 (1617 color patches), and the print data for the chart is generated to satisfy the number of patches. The printed chart is measured using the colorimeter 107, and the color measurement result is generated. Then, during color verification, the color standard selected in the color standard selection unit 507 is used as a comparison target with the color measurement result. As a result of this comparison, a judgment result of pass or fail can be obtained for the color measurement result relative to the color standard.

[0056] The image forming apparatus selection unit 508 is for selecting an image forming apparatus for outputting the print data of the chart. By measuring the color of the chart output from the image forming apparatus selected by the image forming apparatus selection unit 508 and obtaining the color measurement result, the current color status of the image forming apparatus can be understood. During color verification, the color measurement result of the chart output from the image forming apparatus is compared with the color standard selected by the color standard selection unit 507. This makes it possible to verify what the color state of the image forming apparatus selected by the image forming apparatus selection unit 508 was in relation to the color standard.

[0057] The paper type selection unit 510 is for selecting the type of paper to be used when printing the chart print data. During printing, the image forming apparatus prints the chart using the specified paper type. During color measurement, the paper type is one of the printing conditions that affects the color measurement results. For example, the color (LAB value) of the chart changes depending on whether the paper type is coated or uncoated, so the system needs to remember the printing conditions under which it was printed. When displaying the color verification results, the system informs the user whether the color verification passed or failed when the chart was printed under the specified printing conditions, as shown in the Test Condition at 700 in Figure 7(A). This ensures that when printing with an image forming apparatus that passed the color verification, the user can obtain a printout that conforms to the color standard, provided that the printing conditions are the same as those used during the color verification.

[0058] The paper weight selection unit 511 is for selecting the paper weight to be used when printing the chart data using the image forming apparatus. Since the color of the printed chart changes depending on whether the paper weight is high or low, paper weight is also one of the printing conditions. The printing conditions are the same as those for paper type, so they will not be discussed here.

[0059] The resolution selection unit 512 is for selecting the resolution to be used when printing the chart data in the image forming apparatus. Images with insufficient resolution will appear rough and blurry when printed, so the resolution specified when printing the chart is one of the printing conditions, just like the paper type and paper weight. The printing conditions are the same as those for paper type, so they will not be explained here.

[0060] The M-factor selection unit 513 is for selecting the intensity of ultraviolet light inside the measuring instrument 107. The "M" in M-factor refers to the standard for lighting inside the measuring instrument established by ISO 13655 2009. In recent years, there has been a growing trend to use paper containing fluorescent whitening agents, and with such paper, the appearance of the color changes depending on the intensity of the ultraviolet light component of the light source illuminating the sample. For this reason, ISO has specified the intensity of ultraviolet light inside the measuring instrument as follows.

[0061] M0: Illumination with spectral distribution of a tungsten lamp M1: Lighting with D50 UV power M2: Lighting with UV energy cut off by a UV filter. M3: Lighting with UV energy cut off by a polarizing filter. The M-factor selected by the M-factor selection unit 513 is not used during printing. On the other hand, the M-factor is transmitted to the colorimeter 107 during color measurement to control the intensity of ultraviolet light in the colorimeter 107. During color verification, it is also possible to indicate which M-factor was used to measure the color result in the color verification results (not shown).

[0062] The observation light source selection unit 514 selects the observation light source during color measurement. The observation light source is transmitted to the colorimeter 107 during color measurement and used to control the colorimeter 107, but is not used during printing. It is also possible to communicate which observation light source was used for color measurement through the color verification results (not shown).

[0063] The observation light source, also called an illuminant, is a mathematical representation of a hypothetical light source used in the calculation of tristimulus values ​​from spectral measurements within the colorimeter 107. D50 is commonly used for color verification in the commercial printing field.

[0064] The viewing angle selection unit 515 is for selecting the viewing angle during color measurement. The viewing angle is transmitted to the colorimeter 107 during color measurement and used for sensor control of the colorimeter 107, but is not used during printing. It is also possible to convey which observation light source was used for color measurement through the color verification results (not shown). Generally, when evaluating the color of an object using a viewing angle of 4° or less, a 2° viewing angle is used, and when evaluating the color using a viewing angle of 4° or more, a 10° viewing angle is used. In the commercial printing field, a 2° viewing angle is generally used because the area of ​​uniform color is relatively small. On the other hand, when a uniform color is used over a large area, such as the body color of a car (automotive paint), a 10° viewing angle is used.

[0065] The colorimeter mode selection unit 516 is used to select a colorimeter mode during color measurement: whether to measure the printed chart with the colorimeter 107 only once (Single Scan) or twice (Dual Scan).

[0066] Figures 6-1 and 6-2 show examples of the color measurement execution screen of a web page 302 displayed on a web browser 300.

[0067] Figure 6-1(A) shows an example of the color measurement setting selection screen. The color measurement step display area 600 visually indicates which of the four steps of the color measurement process is currently being performed. Since Figure 6-1(A) is the screen for selecting color measurement settings, step 1 is highlighted.

[0068] The identifier input box 601 is for entering an identifier for a color measurement setting. Once the user enters an identifier for a color measurement setting and presses the OK button 604, the color measurement setting that matches the identifier can be selected in the color measurement setting list 602.

[0069] The color measurement start button 603 initiates the color measurement process for the color measurement setting selected in the color measurement setting list 602. When the color measurement start button 603 is pressed, the web browser 300 sends a color measurement start instruction for the selected color measurement setting to the web server 310, and the web server 310 passes the color measurement start instruction to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311 retrieves the color measurement setting from the color measurement setting storage unit 312 based on the identifier specified by the print instruction. Based on the color measurement setting, the color verification management unit 311 creates a chart color measurement request, which will be described later in Figure 12, and passes it to the web server 310. When the web server 310 sends the colorimeter preparation screen shown in Figure 6-1(B) to the web browser 300, it also sends the chart color measurement request.

[0070] Figure 6-1(B) shows an example of the colorimeter preparation screen (colorimeter selection screen).

[0071] The colorimeter preparation operation preview 604 serves to clearly convey the preparation operation of the colorimeter 107 using images. In this embodiment, a static preview image is displayed.

[0072] The colorimeter selection means 605 lists the colorimeters connected to the information processing device 104 and allows the user to select one colorimeter.

[0073] The colorimeter preparation operation information 606 displays the preparation operation for the colorimeter selected by the colorimeter selection means 605. If the preparation operation differs for each colorimeter, the text displayed in the colorimeter preparation operation information 606 is changed.

[0074] The color measurement cancel button 607 is used to cancel the color measurement operation currently underway. Pressing the color measurement cancel button 607 cancels the color measurement operation and returns you to the color measurement settings selection screen shown in Figure 6-1(A). The back button 608 is used to return to the screen immediately preceding the currently displayed screen. The next button 609 is used to advance to the next screen immediately preceding the currently displayed screen.

[0075] Figure 6-2(C) shows an example of the chart color measurement screen. The color measurement complete button 610 is used to complete the color measurement process. As shown in Figure 6-2(D), this button is activated when the color measurement of all patches on the chart has been completed. After the color measurement complete button 610 is activated, pressing the color measurement complete button 610 completes the color measurement of the chart. The web component 303 then instructs the color measurement control unit 304 to send the color measurement results.

[0076] Chart Preview 611 displays a preview of the chart based on the colorimetric settings selected in Figure 6-1(A). In Chart Preview 611, the patch 612, which is colorimetrically measured by the user, is highlighted. The Chart Preview 611 in Figure 6-2(C) is an example of a chart preview based on the patch layout 803 of colorimetric setting 800. The patch layout 803 of colorimetric setting 800 consists of two pages (pages 804 and 805), and each page consists of 4x3 patches. Therefore, Chart Preview 611 displays a preview of a 4x3 chart.

[0077] Figure 7 shows an example of a screen displaying the color verification results after color measurement is complete.

[0078] Figure 7(A) shows an example of the color verification results list screen. The color verification results list 700 displays the completed color verification results. The color verification result (Passed or Failed) is displayed in the Result column. The color verification results display button 701 is used to display the color verification report, which will be described later in Figure 7(B).

[0079] The color verification result download button 702 is for downloading the color verification report to a local folder. The color verification result delete button 703 is for deleting the color verification result selected in the color verification result list 700.

[0080] Figure 7(B) shows an example of a color verification report that details the color verification results.

[0081] 704 is an area that displays the image forming apparatus used for color verification and the date on which the color verification was performed. 705 compares the color reference information specified by the user in the color measurement settings with the measured values ​​and displays the specific LAB value. 706 displays the pass / fail result of the color verification. 707 displays the pass / fail result for each individual check item of the color verification. 708 graphically displays the color difference between the color reference selected by the user and the measured results of the actual chart measurement.

[0082] The above describes the configuration of the color verification system in this embodiment. This configuration enables the three steps of the color verification process (printing the chart, measuring the color of the chart, and color verification).

[0083] From here, we will explain how to print charts using specific examples.

[0084] Figure 8 shows an example of a color measurement setting. The color measurement setting 800 is generated by the color verification management unit 311 based on the values ​​entered by the user on the settings screen in Figure 5, and is stored in the color measurement setting storage unit 312. The identifier 807 (000001) of the color measurement setting 800 is automatically set when the user presses the save button 517 on the settings screen in Figure 5.

[0085] Color standard 801 is the color standard specified by the user in the color standard selection unit 507 of Figure 5.

[0086] Patch size 802 indicates the size at which the patches in the chart will be printed, based on the user-specified color standard 801.

[0087] The patch layout 803 is defined by a user-specified color standard 801 and determines the layout of patches within the chart. In this embodiment, the patch layout 803 is an array, consisting of a hierarchy of pages, rows, and columns. Each column represents one patch, and in one example, the CMYK signal values ​​are listed.

[0088] In this embodiment, the patch layout 803 consists of two pages, page 804 and page 805. Pages 804 and 805 are arranged in four rows vertically, and each row consists of three columns. In other words, it is a two-page chart, and each page consists of 4x3 patches. The color verification management unit 311 uses the values ​​of the patch layout 803 to generate the chart preview 611 shown in Figure 6-2(C) (a two-page chart consisting of 4 rows x 3 columns of patches).

[0089] The colorimetric mode 806 indicates the colorimetric mode in the colorimetric setting 800, and includes, for example, lighting conditions, colorimetric direction, and scan mode, which means how many times the patch is measured. There are two scan modes: "single scan," which measures the patch only once, and "dual scan," which measures the patch twice. The colorimetric mode 806 is the value selected by the user in the colorimetric mode selection unit 516 in Figure 5.

[0090] Figure 9(A) shows an example of the print data for the chart in this embodiment.

[0091] The chart print data consists of two pages. In Figure 8, page 804, defined in the color measurement setting 800, corresponds to chart 900, and page 805 corresponds to chart 905. Chart 900 is composed of four main blocks. Page number 901 indicates the number of pages in the print data for chart 900. In this example of print data, since there are two pages of print data, the number "2" is assigned.

[0092] Identifier 902 is an identifier automatically issued when a user creates a color measurement setting on the settings screen shown in Figure 5. Identifier 902 is provided to facilitate the linking of printed charts with the color measurement settings on the screen. When a chart printing command is issued, the identifier of the color measurement setting selected by the user is added to the print data as identifier 902.

[0093] Print condition 903 is the print condition entered by the user when they created the color measurement settings on the settings screen in Figure 5. When a chart printing command is issued, the print condition of the color measurement settings selected by the user is assigned as print condition 903.

[0094] Chart information 904 is the chart itself that the user measures. Chart information 904 and the chart preview 611 displayed on web page 302 represent the same chart.

[0095] The following processes are performed when determining chart information 904 and page number 901. First, the paper size is determined from the print setting storage unit 315 based on the color standard selected by the user. Next, the patch size 802 and patch layout 803 are determined to match the paper size, based on the patch layout specifications readable by the colorimeter and the color information defined within the color standard. Chart information 904 is created using the color information defined within the color standard, the patch size 802, and the patch layout 803. Specifically, Figure 20 shows the relationship between the color measurement setting 800 and charts 900 and 905. First, chart information 904 is generated based on the 4x3 matrix and CMYK signal values ​​of page 804 of the color measurement setting 800. Next, the identifier (00001) of the color measurement setting 800 is added to 902, and information such as test specifications and image forming apparatus is added to 903, creating chart 900. Chart 905 is generated based on page 805 using a similar process.

[0096] For the sake of explanation, this embodiment will be described using the example of a 4x3 patch shown in Figure 9(A). However, in reality, the patch size is often smaller and the number of batches is often larger, as shown in Figure 9(B).

[0097] Figure 10 shows an example of print settings in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the Job Definition Format (JDF), a printing industry standard, will be used for explanation.

[0098] Page number 1001 indicates the number of pages in the print data specified in 1002. For example, the print data for Chart 900 in Figure 9 has 2 pages, so page number 1001 is set to "2".

[0099] Print parameters 1003, 1004, and 1005 are generated based on values ​​stored in the print settings storage unit 315 in Table 3, linked to the color standard. Specifically, the print job generation unit 313 obtains information on the color standard 801 from the color measurement setting 800 passed from the color verification management unit 311. Based on the color standard 801, the print job generation unit 313 identifies the test specification from the "Test Specification" column in the print settings storage unit 315. For example, in the case of the test specification 801 of the color measurement setting 800, the column "FOGRA xxxx-yyyy" is identified in the print settings storage unit 312. Then, the print job generation unit 313 obtains the print parameters from the identified test specification column. For example, 1003 is "Rotate0" in the Orientation column of the print settings storage unit 312, and 1004 is "AutoSelect" in the OutputBin column of the print settings storage unit 312. In this way, JDF parameters are generated based on the print parameters stored in the print settings storage unit 312.

[0100] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the process flow for chart printing. The following processes are executed by the CPU 201 of the information processing device 104.

[0101] Figure 11(A) is the main flowchart for chart printing.

[0102] In S1100, the color verification management unit 311 receives the color measurement settings entered by the user from the web component 303 (settings screen in Figure 5) and generates the color measurement settings 800. In S1101, the color verification management unit 311 saves the color measurement settings 800 to the color measurement settings storage unit 312. In S1102, the color verification management unit 311 determines whether it has received a print command 1900 from the web component 303. If it has received a print command 1900, the color verification management unit 311 proceeds to S1103; otherwise, it terminates this process.

[0103] In S1103, the color verification management unit 311 retrieves the color measurement setting 800 stored in the color measurement setting storage unit 312 based on the identifier (000001) of the print instruction 1900. Then, it passes the color measurement setting 800 to the print job generation unit 313 and delegates the print data generation process and the print setting generation process.

[0104] In S1104, the print job generation unit 313 performs the process shown in Figure 11(B), which will be described later, to create print data (charts 900 and 905 in Figure 9), and returns the print data to the color verification management unit 311.

[0105] In S1105, the print job generation unit 313 performs the process shown in Figure 11(C) described later, creates the print settings 1200, and returns the print settings 1200 to the color verification management unit 311.

[0106] In S1106, the color verification management unit 311 sends a print job consisting of print data and print settings 1200 to the print communication unit 307 of the on-premise application 301 via the web server 310. Then, it starts printing to the IP address of the image forming apparatus 106 (shown as "AAA printer" in Figure 8) specified in the color measurement setting 800. The print communication unit 307 passes the print job to the print control unit 308, and the print control unit 308 sends the print job to the image forming apparatus 106 at the specified IP address.

[0107] Figure 11(B) is a flowchart showing the process for generating print data.

[0108] In S1107, the print job generation unit 313 obtains information on the patch layout 803 from the color measurement settings 800 received from the color verification management unit 311.

[0109] In S1108, the print job generation unit 313 generates chart information (904 in Figure 9) based on the patch layout 803. Specifically, in this embodiment, the patch layout 803 consists of two pages, page 804 and page 805. Pages 804 and 805 are composed of four rows vertically. Each row consists of three columns. In other words, it is a two-page chart, and each page consists of 4x3 patches. The print job generation unit 313 uses the values ​​of the patch layout 803 to generate chart information 904 consisting of a two-page chart with 4 rows x 3 columns of patches.

[0110] In S1109, the print job generation unit 313 determines the number of pages based on the print data obtained in step S1108.

[0111] In S1110, the print job generation unit 313 generates print data based on the information determined in S1108 to S1109. Specifically, the print job generation unit 313 adds an identifier (902 in Figure 9) and printing conditions (903 in Figure 9) to the print data based on the color measurement settings, and also adds the number of pages (901 in Figure 9) and chart information (904 in Figure 9) to the print data to generate the print data.

[0112] Figure 11(C) is a flowchart showing the process for generating print settings.

[0113] In S1111, the print job generation unit 313 obtains the color reference 801 (FOGRA xxxx-yyyy) from the color measurement setting 800.

[0114] In step S1112, the print job generation unit 313 searches for the color reference 801 in the print setting storage unit 315 and obtains the associated print parameters. Specifically, the print job generation unit 313 identifies the test specification from the "Test Specification" column in the print setting storage unit 315 based on the color reference 801 (FOGRA xxxx-yyyy). For example, in the case of test specification 801 for color measurement setting 800, the "FOGRA xxxx-yyyy" column is identified in the print setting storage unit 312. Then, the print job generation unit 313 obtains the print parameters from the identified test specification column.

[0115] In S1113, the print job generation unit 313 generates print settings 1000 based on the print parameters, as explained in Figure 10. For example, 1003 is "Rotate0" in the Orientation column of the print settings storage unit 312, and 1004 is "AutoSelect" in the OutputBin column of the print settings storage unit 312. In this way, JDF parameters are generated based on the print parameters in the print settings storage unit 312.

[0116] The above is a description of an example of chart printing in this embodiment. As explained in the specific example, in chart printing in this embodiment, the user sets color measurement settings on the web browser 300, rather than print settings. The color verification system then automatically generates print data and print settings based on the color measurement settings. Furthermore, the color measurement settings are also used for chart preview display as shown in Figures 6-2(C) and (D), and for color verification as shown in Figures 7(A) and (B).

[0117] From here, we will explain the colorimetric processing of printed charts using specific examples.

[0118] Figure 12 shows an example of a chart color measurement request. When the browser 300 receives a color measurement start command by pressing the color measurement start button 603, the chart color measurement request 1200 is created based on the color measurement settings 800. The web server 310 also sends the chart color measurement request 1200 along with the web page 302 of the colorimeter preparation screen shown in Figure 6-1(B). In this embodiment, the JSON format, which is commonly used in web systems, is used as the data format for the chart color measurement request.

[0119] Since the chart color measurement request 1200 is created based on the color measurement settings 800, items 801 to 807 are the same as those in the color measurement settings 800. On the other hand, authentication information 1201 is added to the color measurement settings 800 in the chart color measurement request 1200. Authentication information 1201 is generated when a user logs into the color verification system. In the flowchart described later, the color measurement settings (801 to 807) included in the chart color measurement request 1200 are used for processes such as determining the completion of color measurement by the color measurement control unit 304. Authentication information 1201 is also used for user authentication when the color measurement control unit 304 uploads the color measurement results 1400 to the web server 310.

[0120] Figure 13 shows an example of a patch color measurement request and patch color measurement result exchanged between the web component 303 and the color measurement control unit 304.

[0121] The patch color measurement request 1300 in Figure 13(A) has a color measurement setting identifier and a patch row number to be measured. In this embodiment, since it is an example of performing color verification against the color measurement setting 800, the identifier of the patch color measurement request 1300 contains the same value (000001) as the identifier 807 of the color measurement setting 800. The patch row number to be measured represents the row selected by the user in the chart preview 611 displayed on the chart color measurement screen in Figure 6-2(C).

[0122] The patch colorimetric results 1301 and 1302 in Figures 13(B) and 13(C) contain the colorimetric setting identifier, the colorimetric result, the measured value, and an error code if an error occurs in the colorimeter 107. Here, the colorimetric result refers to the result of the colorimetric processing performed by the colorimeter 107. The patch colorimetric result 1301 in Figure 13(B) represents the colorimetric result of the first line specified in the patch colorimetric request 1300.

[0123] Figure 14 shows an example of the colorimetric results generated when all color measurements of the chart are completed. In this embodiment, the colorimetric results 1400 are expressed in the international standard CGAT format and have metadata for programmatic identification of the colorimetric values ​​measured by the colorimeter 107 and the colorimetric results 1400.

[0124] Figure 15 is a flowchart showing the flow of the colorimetric processing in this embodiment. The following processes are executed by the CPU 201 of the information processing devices 102 and 104.

[0125] In S1500, the color verification management unit 311 receives a color measurement start command (by pressing the color measurement start button 603) entered by the user via the web component 303.

[0126] In S1501, the color verification management unit 311 determines whether it has received a color measurement start instruction (color measurement instruction) from the web component 303. If a color measurement start instruction is received, the unit proceeds to S1502; otherwise, it does nothing and waits for a color measurement start instruction to be received.

[0127] In S1502, the color verification management unit 311 obtains the color measurement setting 800 from the color measurement setting storage unit 312 based on the identifier (000001) specified by the color measurement start instruction, and creates a chart color measurement request 1200. The color verification management unit 311 then passes the chart color measurement request 1200 to the web server 310 along with the web page 302 of the colorimeter preparation screen shown in Figure 6-1(B).

[0128] In S1503, the web server 310 sends web page 302 to the browser 300, and the browser 300 displays web page 302. Furthermore, along with web page 302, the web server 310 sends the chart color measurement request 1200 shown in Figure 12 to the browser 300. Note that only the host content as illustrated in Figure 4(A) is displayed here. Specifically, the colorimeter preparation screen shown in Figure 6-1(B) is displayed. The colorimeter preparation screen does not change dynamically based on the operation of the colorimeter 107, so only the host content is displayed.

[0129] Furthermore, the web page 302 sent from the web server 310 also includes a web component 303. When the web page 302 is displayed in the browser 300, the web component 303 establishes a connection with the colorimetric control unit 304, enabling constant communication between them. When establishing this connection, the web component 303 passes a chart colorimetric request 1200 to the colorimetric control unit 304.

[0130] In S1504, the web component 303 obtains a list of colorimeters managed by the colorimeter control unit 304. This list of colorimeters is displayed on the colorimeter selection means 605 of the colorimeter preparation screen in Figure 6-1(B).

[0131] In S1505, web component 303 accepts the user's selection of a colorimeter.

[0132] In S1506, web component 303 determines whether the "Next" button 609 was pressed on web page 302. If the "Next" button 609 was pressed, the process proceeds to S1507.

[0133] In S1507, the web component 303 communicates with the web server 310 and requests the web server 310 to generate the web page for the chart color measurement screen. Upon receiving the request, the web server 310 requests the color verification management unit 311 to generate the web page. The color verification management unit 311 generates a web page (here, the chart color measurement screen in Figure 6-2(C)) consisting of host content that displays the information necessary for the color measurement work of the printed chart, and guest content that performs the chart preview 611. In generating the chart preview 611, the color verification management unit 311 uses the number of patch rows, the number of patches, and the color signal values ​​defined in the patch layout 03 of the color measurement setting 800.

[0134] The web server 310 sends the web page generated by the color verification management unit 311 to the browser 300. Similar to S1503, the web page 302 contains the web component 303.

[0135] In S1508, the web browser 300 displays the web page 302 received in S1507. Here, the chart preview 611 portion of the chart color measurement screen is treated as guest content. Based on the message from the color measurement control unit 304, the web component 303 updates the display of the chart preview 611 and controls user operations on the chart preview 611.

[0136] In S1509, web component 303 accepts the user's patch selection in chart preview 611. The patch selected by the user becomes the patch to be measured. For example, by selecting the patch in the row labeled "2:1" in Figure 6-2(C), patch 612 is selected as the patch to be measured.

[0137] In S1510, the web component 303 sends a patch color measurement request corresponding to the selected patch to the color measurement control unit 304. For example, the patch color measurement request 1300 shown in Figure 13 is sent.

[0138] In S1511, the user measures the color of the patch using the colorimeter 107, and the colorimeter control unit 304 receives the measured values ​​from the colorimeter 107 via the colorimeter linkage unit 306. The colorimeter control unit 304 then creates the patch color measurement result (for example, the patch color measurement result 1301 in Figure 13(B)) and sends it to the web component 303.

[0139] In S1512, the web component 303 receives the patch color measurement results from the color measurement control unit 304.

[0140] In S1513, web component 303 performs a color measurement result determination process. Specifically, if the color measurement result (Result) of patch color measurement result 1300 is "true", web component 303 determines that the patch color measurement was successful and proceeds to S1514, and if it is "false", it determines that the patch color measurement failed and proceeds to S1518.

[0141] In S1514, web component 303 displays the corresponding value (lab-value) of the patch colorimetric result in each cell of the selected patch in the guest content chart preview 611.

[0142] In S1515, web component 303 determines in chart preview 611 whether color measurement of all patches has been completed. If color measurement of all patches is complete, web component 303 proceeds to S1516; otherwise, it proceeds to S1509 and accepts the selection of the next patch.

[0143] Furthermore, once the colorimetric control unit 304 has completed color measurement for all the patch rows specified in the chart colorimetric request 1200, it generates the colorimetric result 1400 shown in Figure 14 and saves it to the colorimetric result storage unit 309.

[0144] In S1516, the web component 303 determines whether the user has pressed the color measurement complete button. If the color measurement complete button is pressed, the web component 303 sends a color measurement result transmission instruction 1901, as shown in Figure 19(B), to the color measurement control unit 304.

[0145] In S1517, the colorimetric control unit 304 retrieves the colorimetric result 1400 stored in the colorimetric result storage unit 309 based on the identifier (000001) included in the colorimetric result transmission instruction 1901, and transmits the colorimetric result 1400 to the web server 310 via the colorimetric communication unit 305. In this embodiment, the transmission is performed without going through a web browser. When transmitting the colorimetric result 1400 to the web server 310, the colorimetric control unit 304 performs authentication using the authentication information 1201 of the chart colorimetric request 1200, and transmits the colorimetric result 1400 after successful authentication.

[0146] The web server 310 passes the color measurement result 1400 to the color verification management unit 311. The color verification management unit 311 stores the color measurement result 1400 in the color measurement setting storage unit 312, associating it with the color measurement setting 800 that has the same identifier (000001).

[0147] In S1518, web component 303 displays a patch colorimetric error warning message on chart preview 611.

[0148] In S1519, web component 303 displays a patch remeasurement instruction on chart preview 611.

[0149] The above is a description of an example of chart colorimetric processing in this embodiment. As explained in the specific example, in the chart colorimetric processing of this embodiment, the web page 302 displayed in the web browser 300 consists of host content and guest content (chart preview 611). The guest content is configured within the host content. The host content is transmitted from the web server 310, and the guest content portion is not statically displayed, but its display is dynamically updated with data transmitted from the on-premise application 301.

[0150] From here, the color verification process in this embodiment will be explained using a specific example.

[0151] After the color measurement of the chart is completed, the color verification process starts when the color measurement results are saved in the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0152] Figure 16 is a flowchart showing the flow of the color verification process in this embodiment.

[0153] In S1600, the color verification management unit 311 obtains the same color measurement setting 800 as the identifier (000001) of the color measurement result 1400 from the color measurement setting storage unit 312, and passes the color measurement result 1400 and the color measurement setting 800 to the color verification processing unit 314.

[0154] In S1601, the color verification processing unit 314 compares the expected values ​​(CMYK signal values) of each patch defined in the patch layout 803 within the color measurement setting 800 with the measured values ​​of the color measurement result 1400 obtained by measuring the color of the printed chart with the colorimeter 107.

[0155] In S1602, the color verification processing unit 314 performs a pass / fail determination based on the comparison results. Specifically, it determines that the color passes if the color difference is within the threshold, and fails if it is outside the threshold.

[0156] In S1603, the color verification processing unit 314 passes the judgment result to the color verification management unit 311, which then links the judgment result to the color measurement setting 800 and saves it in the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0157] In S1604, the color verification management unit 311 creates a color verification report based on the judgment result and saves it to the color measurement setting storage unit 312.

[0158] In S1605, the color verification management unit 311 determines whether the user has pressed the color verification result display button 701. If the color verification management unit 311 has pressed the color verification result display button 701, it proceeds to S1606.

[0159] In S1606, the color verification management unit 311 sends the specified color verification report as a web page to the browser 300 via the web server 310. The browser 300 displays the color verification report. This web page is displayed as shown in Figure 7(B).

[0160] As described above, by enabling communication between a program running on a web browser and an on-premise application, it becomes possible to control image forming equipment and colorimeters solely through browser operations.

[0161] Specifically, during the color verification process, when printing charts, the web server directly sends the chart print job to the on-premises application, which then forwards the print job to the image forming machine. When measuring the color of the chart, the web browser retrieves the host content from the web server, and the program running on the web browser controls the colorimeter via the on-premises application to update the display of the guest content.

[0162] This allows us to provide users with a color verification system that can be operated solely through a web browser, while also improving user convenience in the browser.

[0163] (Second embodiment) In the first embodiment, a simple color measurement result determination process was performed in S1513 when measuring the color of the chart, and the process of receiving the patch color measurement result from the on-premise application was described. However, even if, for example, the web component 303 knew the row number of the patch selected by the user, the following problem may occur. That is, since the color measurement value coming from the colorimeter 107 is the signal value obtained by scanning the patch of the printed chart, it is not possible to know whether the user measured the correct patch using the colorimeter 107, and an incorrect patch color measurement value may be displayed in the chart preview 611.

[0164] Therefore, when updating the chart preview displayed in the guest content of web page 302, it is necessary to perform a more detailed measurement result determination process for the selected colorimetric target patch and display the patch colorimetric result in the correct position. The second embodiment describes characteristic processing performed when displaying the patch colorimetric result in the chart preview of the web page.

[0165] Please note that items already explained in the first embodiment will be omitted from this explanation.

[0166] Figure 17 is a flowchart showing the flow of the colorimetric processing in this embodiment.

[0167] In S1512, the web component 303 receives the patch color measurement results from the color measurement control unit 304. As explained in Figure 13(B), the patch color measurement results include the color measurement values ​​of the patches scanned by the colorimeter 107. The following processing is performed using these patch color measurement values.

[0168] In S1700, the web component 303 obtains the colorimetric values ​​of the patch colorimetric result 1301 and determines whether the number of patches is as expected. Specifically, the web component 303 counts the number of patches in the colorimetric values ​​of the patch colorimetric result 1301. Then, based on the line number of the patch colorimetric request issued in S1510, the web component 303 identifies the number of patches (expected value) described in the patch layout of the chart colorimetric request 1200 in Figure 12 and compares it with the number of patches in the colorimetric values ​​obtained this time.

[0169] If the comparison finds that the patch counts match, web component 303 determines that the correct number of patches was scanned and proceeds to S1701. If the patch counts do not match, web component 303 determines that the wrong patches were scanned and proceeds to S1518.

[0170] In S1701, the web component 303 checks the colorimetric values ​​of the patch colorimetric result 1301 and determines whether the colorimetric values ​​match the expected values ​​of the patch selected by the user. Specifically, based on the line number of the patch colorimetric request issued in S1510, the web component 303 identifies the expected values ​​of the patch listed in the expected values ​​of the entire chart in the chart colorimetric request 1200 in Figure 12 and compares them with the colorimetric values ​​obtained this time.

[0171] If the colorimetric value of the patch matches the expected value, web component 303 proceeds to S1514. If the colorimetric value of the patch does not match the expected value, web component 303 proceeds to S1702.

[0172] In S1702, the web component 303 displays a warning message on the guest content chart preview 611 indicating that the measured colorimetric value is not as expected. Here, a warning message is displayed, not an error message. It does not immediately display an instruction to remeasure the patch (S1519). This is because there is a possibility that the lighting environment during color measurement was poor, or that the printed chart was dirty, so it cannot be said that the wrong patch was measured. On the other hand, in cases like S1700 where the number of patches does not match, it is possible to definitively determine that the wrong patch was measured.

[0173] Furthermore, since the chart color measurement request 1200 and the patch color measurement request 1300 are passed from the web component 303 to the color measurement control unit 304, the above processing can also be performed in the color measurement control unit 304. Even if the processing is performed in the color measurement control unit 304, the features of the present invention remain unchanged. When the above processing is performed in the color measurement control unit 304, the web component 303 only needs to look at the value described in the Result of the patch color measurement result and make a decision.

[0174] As described above, by performing steps S1700, S1701, and S1702, it is possible to ensure that the patch selected by the user has been accurately measured. In other words, based on the row number of the selected patch, the success or failure of the color measurement operation for the user-selected patch is determined using a two-step process involving the number of patches and the expected value. This allows the web component 303 to display the patch measurement result in the correct position relative to the patch being measured.

[0175] (Third embodiment) In the first embodiment, an example of a single scan, in which the colorimetric measurement of a patch is performed only once, was described. In the third embodiment, an example of a dual scan, in which the colorimetric measurement operation of a patch is performed twice, is described. When performing a dual scan, if the colorimetric control unit 304 simply sends the colorimetric values ​​obtained from the colorimeter 107 to the web component 303, the web component 303 will update the chart preview 611 many times. Then, only the last transmitted patch colorimetric result will be displayed.

[0176] Therefore, in the third embodiment, we will describe the characteristic processing performed during dual scanning. Figure 18 is a flowchart illustrating the colorimetric processing in the third embodiment.

[0177] In S1800, the colorimetric control unit 304 checks the scan mode of the chart colorimetric request 1200. If the scan mode is dual scan, the colorimetric control unit 304 proceeds to S1801.

[0178] In S1801, the colorimetric control unit 304 receives colorimetric values ​​from the colorimeter 107. The colorimetric control unit 304 does not immediately send the colorimetric values ​​to the web component 303, but receives two colorimetric values ​​from the colorimeter 107. Based on the two colorimetric values, the colorimetric control unit 304 creates a value that simulates the result of a spectral measurement of the M1 factor (illumination with D50 UV power). In this embodiment, data equivalent to a light source with an M1 factor is created, but depending on the application of the system, a light source may be created with other conditions, such as an M0 factor. Furthermore, it may be possible to change conditions such as M1 and M0 in the settings.

[0179] As described above, dual scanning performs the colorimetric operation on the patch twice, but instead of sending two sets of scan data, it creates and sends data equivalent to the light source with an M1 factor from the two sets of scan data. This allows the web component 303 to display the result of a single patch measurement in the chart preview 611, rather than displaying the results of two separate patch measurements.

[0180] The present invention can also be realized by performing the following process: supplying software (programs) that realize the functions of the embodiments described above to a system or device via a network or various storage media; and having the computer (or CPU or MPU) of that system or device read and execute the program.

[0181] According to the embodiment described above, when measuring the color of a chart, the web browser retrieves the host content from the web server. The program running on the web browser controls the colorimeter via an on-premise application and updates the display of the guest content. On the other hand, when printing the chart, the print data is not sent to the image forming apparatus via the browser. This improves user convenience in a color verification system using a web browser.

Claims

1. A web system capable of communicating with an information processing device, A transmission means for transmitting screen information of setting screens related to multiple color measurement settings to the information processing device, When a print instruction is received based on the operation of a first display item in the information processing device, the processing means performs processing to print according to the print instruction, It has, The aforementioned settings screen includes: For each of the selectable color measurement settings, a first piece of information indicating the color reference used for color verification and a second piece of information indicating the image forming apparatus to be color-verified are displayed, and, The first display item is displayed to receive a user operation to instruct the printing of a chart corresponding to the color measurement settings included in the plurality of color measurement settings. The color verification is performed by comparing the color measurement result, which is the result of measuring the color of a chart printed based on the operation of the first display item using a colorimeter, with the color standard corresponding to the chart. A web system characterized by the following features.

2. The web system according to claim 1, characterized in that, based on the receipt of the print command, it generates a print job for a chart that satisfies the color measurement settings specified by the user on the settings screen, and controls the system to send the generated print job to the printing device.

3. The print command is associated with the color measurement setting identifier specified by the user on the settings screen. When generating the aforementioned print job, the system generates a print job that includes a chart of the number of rows and columns set in the color measurement setting corresponding to the identifier associated with the print instruction, and print conditions associated with the color standard set in the color measurement setting corresponding to the identifier, from among the multiple color measurement settings managed by the web system. The web system according to feature 2.

4. The web system according to claim 3, characterized in that the printing conditions are described in the Job Definition Format in the print job.

5. The aforementioned settings screen further displays a second display item that accepts instructions to add or edit color measurement settings. The web system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the color standard used for color verification, the image forming apparatus subject to color verification, and the printing conditions of the chart, which are set by operating the second display item, are recorded in the web system as a set of settings associated with the same identifier.

6. The web system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the settings screen further displays third information indicating the printing conditions for the chart, corresponding to each of the plurality of color measurement settings.

7. The web system according to any one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that the printing conditions are at least one of paper type, paper weight, and resolution.

8. The web system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further characterized in that the transmitting means transmits a second screen information to the information processing device for displaying a screen using a web browser that includes a third display item that receives an instruction to transmit the color measurement result to the web system.

9. The web system according to claim 8, further characterized in that the transmission means transmits a third screen information to the information processing device for displaying the color verification result, which is the result of performing color verification by comparing the color measurement result with a color standard in the web system, using a web browser.

10. The web system according to claim 9, characterized in that the third screen information is information for displaying information indicating the color measurement result and information indicating the color standard as the color verification result.

11. The web system according to claim 9 or 10, further characterized in that the third screen information includes information for displaying information indicating whether the color verification passed or failed as a result of the color verification.

12. The web system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, further characterized in that the transmitting means is controlled to transmit a fourth screen information for displaying a colorimetric screen using a web browser, which is a screen relating to the colorimetric measurement of a printed chart, which displays a preview of the chart and displays the patches of the previewed chart to be colorimetrically measured by the user.

13. A method for controlling a web system that can communicate with an information processing device, A transmission step of transmitting screen information of a setting screen related to multiple color measurement settings to the information processing device, When a print instruction is received based on the operation of a first display item in the information processing device, the processing step includes performing a process to print according to the print instruction, It has, The aforementioned settings screen includes: For each of the selectable color measurement settings, a first piece of information indicating the color reference used for color verification and a second piece of information indicating the image forming apparatus to be color-verified are displayed, and, The first display item is displayed to receive a user operation to instruct the printing of a chart corresponding to the color measurement settings included in the plurality of color measurement settings. The color verification is performed by comparing the color measurement result, which is the result of measuring the color of a chart printed based on the operation of the first display item using a colorimeter, with the color standard corresponding to the chart. A method for controlling a web system characterized by the following features.

14. A program for causing a computer to function as one of the means of a web system as described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

15. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as one of the means of a web system described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

Images