Monitoring job status for grouped print jobs

• US 7,315,404 B2
• Filed: 10/04/2001
• Issued: 01/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kimura, Mitsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lamb; Twyler
• Assistant Examiner(s): Robinson; Myles D.
• Application Number:
  US09/969,819
• Publication Number:
  US 20020042797A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,280 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.15, 358/1.2, 358/1.16, 358/1.9, 358/1.3, 358/1.14
• US Class Current: 358/406
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1207 resulting in the user being informed about print result after a job submission
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/121 Facilitating exception or error detection and recovery, e.g. fault, media or consumables depleted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1234 Errors handling and recovery, e.g. reprinting G06F3/1261 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1259 Print job monitoring, e.g. job status
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1262 by grouping or ganging jobs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration

Abstract

When a group print job is to be processed, a print application issues a grouping start instruction to a print system client first. The respective print jobs are then transmitted to a spooler. The print system client extracts the print jobs and sends them to a printer in accordance with scheduling by a print system server. In this case, if a transmission retry, transmission error, error after transmission, or the like occurs in a member print job belonging to the group job, the corresponding status is set as the status of the group job. The subsequent processing is performed as if the error had occurred in the overall group job.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus that communicates with a printing apparatus that consecutively outputs a plurality of member print jobs included in a group print job in a designated order, said plurality of member print jobs being grouped in the group print job, comprising:

an output unit constructed to output the group print job including the member print jobs to the printing apparatus; and

a controller that causes a display unit to display a status of the group print job and a status of a non-grouped print job together in a window, and when a status of a member print job included in the group print job changes, the controller causes the display unit to display the changed status of the group print job to which the member print job belongs,

wherein said controller further causes the display unit to display information of the member print job included in the group print job when the group print job displayed in the window is designated via a user interface.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the status of the member print jobs includes an error status of processing in the printing apparatus, and

said controller causes the display unit to display the status of the group print job that has changed in accordance with an error in a member print job.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said controller causes the display unit to display a transmission-in-progress state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a transmission-in-progress state.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said controller causes the display unit to display a suspension state as the status of the group print job, to which the member print job belongs, in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a suspension state indicative of data transmission suspension that can start data transmission again after the printing apparatus recovers from an error.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said controller causes termination of processing on other member print jobs when the status of one of the member print jobs is changed to a termination state, indicative of data transmission termination that cannot start data transmission again.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said controller causes the display unit to display a data transmission completion state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a data transmission completion state indicative of completion of data transmission to the printing apparatus, and causes the display unit to display an error state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to an error state indicative of an error in data transmission to the printing apparatus.

7. A method of an information processing apparatus communicating with a printing apparatus that consecutively outputs a plurality of member print jobs included in a group print job in a designated order, said plurality of member print jobs being grouped in the group print job, said method comprising:

an output step of outputting the group print job including member print jobs to the printing apparatus; and

a control step of causing a display unit to display a status of the group print job and a status of a non-grouped print job together in a window, and when a status of a member print job included in the group print job changes, causes the display unit to display the changed status of the group print job to which the member print job belongs,

wherein said controller further causes the display unit to display information of the member print job included in the group print job when the group print job displayed in the window is designated via a user interface.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the status of the member print jobs includes an error status of processing in the printing apparatus, and

said control step causes the display unit to display the status of the group print job that has changed in accordance with an error in a member print job.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a transmission-in-progress state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a transmission-in-progress state.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a suspension state as the status of the group print job, to which the member print job belongs, in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a suspension state indicative of data transmission suspension that can start data transmission again after the printing apparatus recovers from an error.

11. The method according to claim 7, further comprising a termination control step of causing termination of processing on other member print jobs when a status of one of the member print jobs is changed to a termination state, indicative of data transmission termination that cannot start data transmission again.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a data transmission completion state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a data transmission completion state indicative of completion of data transmission to the printing apparatus, and causes the display unit to display an error state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to an error state indicative of an error in data transmission to the printing apparatus.

13. A computer-readable medium on which is stored a computer program for causing a computer to communicate with a printing apparatus that consecutively outputs a plurality of member print jobs included in a group print job in a designated order, said plurality of member print jobs being grouped in the group print job, said program comprising:

an output step of outputting the group print job including member print jobs to the printing apparatus; and

a control step of causing a display unit to display a status of the group print job and a status of a non-grouped print job together in a window, and when a status of a member print job included in the group print job changes, causes the display unit to display the changed status of the group print job to which the member print job belongs,

wherein said controller further causes the display unit to display information of the member print job included in the group print job when the group print job displayed in the window is designated via a user interface.

14. The computer-readable medium according to claim 13, wherein the status of the member print jobs includes an error status of processing in the printing apparatus, and

said control step causes the display unit to display the status of the group print job that has changed in accordance with an error in a member print job.

15. The computer-readable medium according to claim 13, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a transmission-in-progress state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a transmission-in-progress state.

16. The computer-readable medium according to claim 13, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a suspension state as the status of the group print job, to which the member print job belongs, in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a suspension state indicative of data transmission suspension that can start data transmission again after the printing apparatus recovers from an error.

17. The computer-readable medium according to claim 13, further comprising a termination control step of causing termination of processing on other member print jobs when the status of one of the member print jobs is changed to a termination state, indicative of data transmission termination that cannot start data transmission again.

18. The computer-readable medium according to claim 13, wherein said control step causes the display unit to display a data transmission completion state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to a data transmission completion state indicative of completion of data transmission to the printing apparatus, and causes the display unit to display an error state as the status of the group print job in accordance with a change in the status of one of the member print jobs that has changed to an error state indicative of an error in data transmission to the printing apparatus.