Information processor, method for processing information and memory medium for storing program readable by computer

• US 7,307,749 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2005
• Issued: 12/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Nishikawa, Satoshi, Nakagiri, Koji, Mori, Yasuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lamb, Twyler
• Assistant Examiner(s): DULANEY, BENJAMIN O
• Application Number:
  US11/151,360
• Publication Number:
  US 20050231762A1
• Time in Patent Office: 910 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.1, 358/1.2, 358/1.9, 358/1.12, 358/1.13, 358/1.14, 358/1.15, 358/1.16, 358/1.17, 358/450, 358/451, 358/452, 358/453
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1205 resulting in increased flexibility in print job configuration, e.g. job settings, print requirements, job tickets
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1206 resulting in increased flexibility in input data format or job format or job type
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1255 Settings incompatibility, e.g. constraints, user requirements vs. device capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1262 by grouping or ganging jobs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server

Abstract

In order to compose a plurality of print jobs together to prepare one composed job and provide a desired printed result with no inconvenience to a user, an information processor of the present invention includes a generator for generating print setting information for the composed job, for analyzing the print setting information of a plurality of print jobs and unifying information which can be respectively set only to one print job when a plurality of print jobs are instructed to be composed together so as to obtain one composed job.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus for generating printing data to be transmitted to a printer, comprising:

storage means for storing data to be printed as a print job in association with print setting information for the data to be printed;

composition instructing means for selecting a plurality of print jobs stored by said storage means, and for providing a composition instruction that instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to generate one composed job;

discrimination means for analyzing the print setting information of the plurality of print jobs stored by said storage means when said composition instructing means provides the composition instruction, and for discriminating whether the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for a certain print setting item for which each of the plurality of print jobs is allowed to have a unique print setting;

confirmation message display means for, if said discrimination means discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, displaying a confirmation message; and

setting unifier means for unifying the print setting of the print setting item for the composed job, after the confirmation message is displayed by said confirmation message display means.

2. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said discrimination means discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, and said confirmation message display means displays a confirmation message for selection between a process in which the settings are unified and a process in which the plurality of print jobs are not composed together.

3. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising intermediate code conversion means for converting the data to be printed into data of an intermediate code format as a page description file by a page unit.

4. An information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein information for designating the page description file laid out on a physical page is added to the print setting information of the composed job.

5. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print setting information is temporarily stored as a print setting file of each print job.

6. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising preview display control means for controlling a preview based on the print setting information of the print job or the composed job to be displayed.

7. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising order control means for operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to reshuffle the order of the print jobs.

8. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising job cancelling means for operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to cancel a specific print job.

9. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising job divider means for dividing the composed job into a plurality of print jobs before they are joined together.

10. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising job duplicating means for designating the print job or the composed job to prepare the duplication of the designated print job.

11. An information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising setting initializing means for returning the intermediate code format as a base of the job to an initial state upon preparation of the data.

12. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising page editing means for cancelling a page designated relative to a logical page in the print job or the composed job.

13. An information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising printing data generator means for generating the printing data to be transmitted to the printer on the basis of the data of the intermediate code format which is temporarily stored by said intermediate code conversion means.

14. An information processing apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:

description instruction generator means for converting the data of the intermediate code format temporarily stored by said intermediate code conversion means into a description instruction which can be interpreted by a description unit of an OS and outputting the converted data;

print instruction allocation means for sending a print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from the application to said intermediate data conversion means and sending the print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from said description instruction generator means to said printing data generator means.

15. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising composed job information generator means for generating the layout information of the composed job on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs when said composition instructing means instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to have one composed job.

16. An information processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said composed job information generator means generates the layout information of the composed job for each physical page on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs.

17. An information processing apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising layout unification instructing means for instructing the layout information of the composed job to be unified, wherein said composed job information generator means unifies the layout information of the composed job by all the physical pages when said layout unification instructing means instructs the layout information to be unified.

18. An information processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein said composed job information generator means unifies the layout information of the composed job to prescribed layout information.

19. An information processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein said composed job information generator means unifies the layout information of the composed job to the layout information of the print job corresponding to a first physical page in the composed job.

20. A method for generating printing data to be transmitted to a pnnter, comprising:

a storage step of storing data to be printed as a print job in association with print setting information for the data to be printed;

a composition instructing step of selecting a plurality of print jobs stored in said storage step, and for providing a composition instruction that instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to generate one composed job;

a discrimination step of analyzing the print setting information of the plurality of print jobs stored in said storage step when said composition instructing step provides the composition instruction, and for discriminating whether the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for a certain print setting item for which each of the plurality of print jobs is allowed to have a unique print setting;

a confirmation message display step of, if said discrimination step discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, displaying a confirmation message; and

a setting unifier step for unifying the print setting of the print setting item for the composed job, after the confirmation message is displayed in said confirmation message display step.

21. A method according to claim 20, wherein said discrimination step discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, and said confirmation message display step displays a confirmation message for selection between a process in which the settings are unified and a process in which the plurality of print jobs are not composed together.

22. A method according to claim 20, further comprising an intermediate code conversion step of converting the data to be printed into data of an intermediate code format as a page description file by a page unit.

23. A method according to claim 22, wherein information for designating the page description file laid out on a physical page is added to the print setting information of the composed job.

24. A method according to claim 20, wherein the print setting information is temporarily stored as a print setting file of each print job.

25. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a preview display control step of controlling a preview based on the print setting information of the print job or the composed job to be displayed.

26. A method according to claim 20, further comprising an order control step of operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to reshuffle the order of the print jobs.

27. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a job cancelling step of operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to cancel a specific print job.

28. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a job divider step of dividing the composed job into a plurality of print jobs before they are joined together.

29. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a job duplicating step of designating the print job or the composed job to prepare the duplication of the designated print job.

30. A method according to claim 22, further comprising a setting initializing step of returning the intermediate code format as a base of the job to an initial state upon preparation of the data.

31. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a page editing step of cancelling a page designated relative to a logical page in the print job or the composed job.

32. A method according to claim 22, further comprising a printing data generator step of generating the printing data to be transmitted to the printer on the basis of the data of the intermediate code format which is temporarily stored in said intermediate code conversion step.

33. A method according to claim 32, further comprising:

a description instruction generator step of converting the data of the intermediate code format temporarily stored in said intermediate code conversion step into a description instruction which can be interpreted by a description unit of an OS and outputting the converted data;

a print instruction allocation step of sending a print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from the application to said intermediate data conversion step and sending the print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from said description instruction generator step to said printing data generator step.

34. A method according to claim 20, further comprising a composed job information generator step of generating the layout information of the composed job on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs when said composition instructing step instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to have one composed job.

35. A method according to claim 34, wherein said composed job information generator step generates the layout information of the composed job for each physical page on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs.

36. A method according to claim 34, further comprising a layout unification instructing step of instructing the layout information of the composed job to be unified, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job by all the physical pages when said layout unification instructing step instructs the layout information to be unified.

37. A method according to claim 36, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job to prescribed layout information.

38. A method according to claim 36, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job to the layout information of the print job corresponding to a first physical page in the composed job.

39. A program stored on a computer-readable medium, said program for generating printing data to be transmitted to a printer, comprising:

code for a storage step of storing data to be printed as a print job in association with print setting information for the data to be printed;

code for a composition instructing step of selecting a plurality of print jobs stored in said storage step, and for providing a composition instruction that instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to generate one composed job;

code for a discrimination step of analyzing the print setting information of the plurality of print jobs stored in said storage step when said composition instructing step provides the composition instruction, and for discriminating whether the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for a certain print setting item for which each of the plurality of print jobs is allowed to have a unique print setting;

code for a confirmation message display step of, if said discrimination step discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, displaying a confirmation message; and

code for a setting unifier step for unifying the print setting of the print setting item for the composed job, after the confirmation message is displayed in said confirmation message display step.

40. A program according to claim 39, wherein said discrimination step discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, and said confirmation message display step displays a confirmation message for selection between a process in which the settings are unified and a process in which the plurality of print jobs are not composed together.

41. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for an intermediate code conversion step of converting the data to be printed into data of an intermediate code format as a page description file by a page umt.

42. A program according to claim 41, wherein information for designating the page description file laid out on a physical page is added to the print setting information of the composed job.

43. A program according to claim 39, wherein the print setting information is temporarily stored as a print setting file of each print job.

44. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a preview display control step of controlling a preview based on the print setting information of the print job or the composed job to be displayed.

45. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for an order control step of operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to reshuffle the order of the print jobs.

46. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a job cancelling step of operating on the plurality of print jobs in the composed job to cancel a specific print job.

47. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a job divider step of dividing the composed job into a plurality of print jobs before they are joined together.

48. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a job duplicating step of designating the print job or the composed job to prepare the duplication of the designated print job.

49. A program according to claim 41, further comprising code for a setting initializing step of returning the intennediate code format as a base of the job to an initial state upon preparation of the data.

50. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a page editing step of cancelling a page designated relative to a logical page in the print job or the composed job.

51. A program according to claim 41, further comprising code for a printing data generator step of generating the printing data to be transmitted to the printer on the basis of the data of the intermediate code format which is temporarily stored in said intermediate code conversion step.

52. A program according to claim 51, further comprising:

code for a description instruction generator step of converting the data of the intermediate code format temporarily stored in said intermediate code conversion step into a description instruction which can be interpreted by a description unit of an OS and outputting the converted data;

code for a print instruction allocation step of sending a print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from the application to said intermediate data conversion step and sending the print instruction received through the description unit of the OS from said description instruction generator step to said printing data generator step.

53. A program according to claim 39, further comprising code for a composed job information generator step of generating the layout information of the composed job on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs when said composition instructing step instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to have one composed job.

54. A program according to claim 53, wherein said composed job information generator step generates the layout information of the composed job for each physical page on the basis of the layout information of the plurality of print jobs.

55. A program according to claim 53, further comprising code for a layout unification instructing step of instructing the layout information of the composed job to be unified, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job by all the physical pages when said layout unification instructing step instructs the layout information to be unified.

56. A program according to claim 55, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job to prescribed layout information.

57. A program according to claim 55, wherein said composed job information generator step unifies the layout information of the composed job to the layout information of the print job corresponding to a first physical page in the composed job.

58. An information processor for generating printing data to be transmitted to a printer, comprising:

a storage unit for storing data to be printed as a print job in association with print setting information for the data to be printed;

a composition instructing unit for selecting a plurality of print jobs stored by said storage unit, and for providing a composition instruction that instructs the plurality of print jobs to be composed together so as to generate one composed job;

a discrimination unit for analyzing the print setting information of the plurality of print jobs stored by said storage unit when said composition instructing unit provides the composition instruction, and for discriminating whether the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for a certain print setting item for which each of the plurality of print jobs is allowed to have a unique print setting;

a confirmation message display unit for, if said discrimination unit discriminates that the plurality of print jobs have different print settings for the print setting item, displaying a confirmation message; and

a setting unifier unit for unifying the print setting of the print setting item for the composed job, after the confirmation message is displayed by said confirmation message display unit.