Document processing apparatus, control method therefor, computer program, and computer-readable storage medium

• US 20050246631A1
• Filed: 04/14/2005
• Published: 11/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Tomita, Makoto, Mori, Yasuo, Kanaya, Wataru, Nakagiri, Koji, Sato, Junko, Kanaya, Michiko
• Granted Patent: US 7,810,040 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/209
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191

Abstract

This invention enables storing and managing one document of respective parts as electronic data created by a plurality of applications regardless of the type of application program which creates each part of one document. For this purpose, a plurality of shared folders are set on a network, and attributes in printing are set for the shared folders. A hot folder program supervises the shared folders. When a document image data file scanned by a multifunction apparatus is stored in one of the shared folders, the hot folder program causes an action program to perform a process complying with the attributes set for the shared folder which stores the file, and a bookbinding application to import the file.

Claims

1. A document processing apparatus which creates a book file managed by a hierarchical structure and formed from document data, comprising:

a setting unit adapted to set an attribute for a folder;

a detection unit adapted to detecting storage of data into the folder; and

a creation unit adapted to, when said detection unit detects that data is stored into a first folder set by said setting unit, create document data based on a setting of the first folder on any layer of a book file which has already been created.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first folder includes a folder having a setting different from a setting of the book file which has already been created.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when said detection unit detects that data is stored into a second folder, the book file which has already been created corresponds to a file in which document data is created on any layer by said creation unit on the basis of a setting of the second folder.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a specifying unit adapted to specify from a plurality of book files a book file which is created by said creation unit and serve as an addition destination of document data on any layer,

wherein said creation unit creates document data for the book file which is specified by said specifying unit and serves as an addition destination.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a processing unit adapted to, when data is stored into the first folder in order to add document data of any layer to the book file which has already been created, adopt some of settings of the first folder and uses the settings as settings of the document data to be added.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when a setting of document data to be added to the book file is the same as an attribute of a book, said creation unit synchronizes the setting of the document data to be added with a change of the attribute of the book, and when the setting of the document data to be added to the book file is different from the attribute of the book, makes the setting of the document data to be added independent of the attribute of the book.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first folder or the second folder includes a shared folder accessible by a document scanning apparatus connected via a communication line, and stores a document image scanned by the document scanning apparatus.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first folder is prepared by changing a setting of the second folder.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first folder and the second folder include folders discriminated and displayed.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the attribute set by said setting unit includes layout information representing the number of pages laid out on one print sheet, and information representing whether to perform double-sided printing.

11. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a determination unit adapted to determine whether a file stored in the first folder or the second folder is a file of a predetermined format;

a storage unit adapted to store a device driver which is activated upon designating printing on an application program, convert data output from the application into data of a predetermined format, and output the data of the predetermined format as a file; and

an application activation unit adapted to, when said determination unit determines that the file is of a format other than the predetermined format, cause an application program which creates the file to read the file and use the device driver to designate printing,

wherein said creation unit creates page information from a data file of the predetermined format.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said determination unit determines whether the file is an image file.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hierarchical structure includes a hierarchical structure formed from a book representing a property of an entire document, at least one chapter contained in the book, and at least a page contained in each chapter, and allows setting attribute information for each of the book, the chapter, and the page on layers.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when document data stored in a folder are files of single pages, said creation unit creates the files of single pages as one new chapter.

16. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the document data includes chapter data of the book file, and the chapter data includes an attribute setting and page data of the chapter.

15. A document processing apparatus which creates a book file, comprising:

a setting unit adapted to set an attribute for a folder;

a detection unit adapted to detect storage of data into the folder; and

a creation unit adapted to, when said detection unit detects that data is stored into a target folder, create document data based on a setting of the folder,

wherein when a setting of document data to be added to the book file is the same as an attribute of a book, said creation unit synchronizes the setting of the document data to be added with a change of the attribute of the book, and when the setting of the document data to be added to the book file is different from the attribute of the book, makes the setting of the document data to be added independent of the attribute of the book.

17. A method of controlling a document processing apparatus which creates a book file managed by a hierarchical structure and formed from document data, comprising:

a setting step of setting an attribute for a folder;

a detection step of detecting storage of data into the folder; and

a creation step of, when data is detected in the detection step to be stored into a first folder set in the setting step, creating document data based on a setting of the first folder on any layer of a book file which has already been created.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first folder includes a folder having a setting different from a setting of the book file which has already been created.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein, when data is detected in the detection step to be stored into a second folder, the book file which has already been created corresponds to a file in which document data is created on any layer in the creation step on the basis of a setting of the second folder.

20. The method according to claim 17, further comprising a specifying step of specifying from a plurality of book files a book file which is created in the creation step and serves as an addition destination of document data on any layer,

wherein in the creation step, document data is created for the book file which is specified in the specifying step and serves as an addition destination.

21. The method according to claim 17, further comprising a processing step of, when data is stored into the first folder in order to add document data of any layer to the book file which has already been created, adopting some of settings of the first folder and using the settings as settings of the document data to be added.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein in the creation step, when a setting of document data to be added to the book file is the same as an attribute of a book, the setting of the document data to be added is synchronized with a change of the attribute of the book, and when the setting of the document data to be added to the book file is different from the attribute of the book, the setting of the document data to be added is made independent of the attribute of the book.

23. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first folder or the second folder includes a shared folder accessible by a document scanning apparatus connected via a communication line, and stores a document image scanned by the document scanning apparatus.

24. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first folder is prepared by changing a setting of the second folder.

25. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first folder and the second folder include folders discriminated and displayed.

26. The method according to claim 17, wherein the attribute set in the setting step includes layout information representing the number of pages laid out on one print sheet, and information representing whether to perform double-sided printing.

27. The method according to claim 17, further comprising:

a determination step of determining whether a file stored in the first folder or the second folder is a file of a predetermined format;

a storage step of storing a device driver which is activated upon designating printing on an application program, converts data output from the application into data of a predetermined format, and outputs the data of the predetermined format as a file; and

an application activation step of, when the file is determined in the determination step to be of a format other than the predetermined format, causing an application program which creates the file to read the file and using the device driver to designate printing,

wherein in the creation step, page information is created from a data file of the predetermined format.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein in said determination step, whether the file is an image file is determined.

29. The method according to claim 17, wherein the hierarchical structure includes a hierarchical structure formed from a book representing a property of an entire document, at least one chapter contained in the book, and at least a page contained in each chapter, and allows setting attribute information for each of the book, the chapter, and the page on layers.

30. The method according to claim 17, wherein in the creation step, when document data stored in a folder are files of single pages, the files of single pages are created as one new chapter.

32. The method according to claim 17, wherein the document data includes chapter data of the book file, and the chapter data includes an attribute setting and page data of the chapter.

33. A computer program comprising a function of executing steps in a method defined in claim 17.

34. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program defined in claim 33.

31. A method of controlling a document processing apparatus which creates a book file, said method comprising:

a setting step of setting an attribute for a folder;

a detection step of detecting storage of data into the folder; and

a creation step of, when data is detected in the detection step to be stored into a target folder, creating document data based on a setting of the folder,

wherein in the creation step, when a setting of document data to be added to the book file is the same as an attribute of a book, the setting of the document data to be added is synchronized with a change of the attribute of the book, and when the setting of the document data to be added to the book file is different from the attribute of the book, the setting of the document data to be added is made independent of the attribute of the book.