Print control with interfaces provided in correspondence with printing methods to show status of member printers

• US 8,947,688 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2013
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kuroda, Shigeki, Morooka, Hidekazu, Tomita, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): RUDOLPH, VINCENT M
• Application Number:
  US13/866,534
• Publication Number:
  US 20130229676A1
• Time in Patent Office: 655 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 358/1.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/12 Digital output to print unit , e.g. line printer, chain printer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1203 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. print management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1256 User feedback, e.g. print preview, test print, proofing, pre-flight checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server

Abstract

Display control is made so as to obtain an optimum setting picture plane in accordance with a change in designation of an outputting method of a distribution printing, a multiple-address printing, an automatic substitute printing, or the like without allowing the user to be conscious thereof.

Claims

1. A print control apparatus for controlling a print process, the print control apparatus comprising:

at least a processor and a memory, cooperating to function as;

a registration unit configured to register member printers forming a printer group in response to a user instruction, wherein the member printers are selected from a plurality of printers on a network;

a displaying unit configured to display via a user interface for the print process, after a print instruction is performed by an application program, a list of the member printers registered by the registration unit and to display name information and status information of each of the member printers on the list; and

a designation unit configured to designate, as an output target printer to be used in a current print process for print data of the print instruction performed by the application program, one of the member printers on the list,

wherein the displaying unit displays the list via the user interface such that the designated member printer and the member printer not designated by the designation unit are listed for a next print process without re-registration by the registration unit.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein when an automatic substitute print feature is selected from a plurality printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registration unit, the displaying unit displays a setting button for setting a printing priority via the user interface.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, when a ratio distribution print feature is selected from a plurality printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registration unit, the displaying unit displays user interface elements for setting distribution ratios of the ratio distribution print via the user interface.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the status information indicates any temporary status of the member printer.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the displaying unit further displays location information of each of the member printers on the list, the location information indicating a physical space where the member printer is installed.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printer group based on the registration by the registration unit corresponds to a feature related to a color function of the member printer as a printing feature selected from a plurality of printing features.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the member printers on the list include a printer having a capability to process a paper size of A3.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the designation unit is configured to designate the output target printer such that any of the member printers not designated by the designation unit is temporarily not used for the current print process.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor and the memory further cooperates to function as a setting unit configured, for a printer driver that is installed to the print control apparatus, to set the printer driver as a member printer driver corresponding to the member printers registered by the registration unit, and wherein when the setting is performed by the setting unit, attribute information that is to be displayed with the list is acquired from the installed printer driver.

10. A print control method performed by a print control apparatus that includes a processor coupled to a memory, the method comprising steps of:

registering member printers forming a printer group in response to a user instruction, wherein the member printers are selected from a plurality of printers on a network;

displaying via a user interface for the print process, after a print instruction is performed by an application program, a list of the member printers registered in the registering step and name information and status information of each of the member printers on the list; and

designating, as an output target printer to be used in a current print process for print data of the print instruction performed by the application program, one of the member printers on the list,

wherein the displaying step includes displaying the list via the user interface such that the designated member printer and the member printer not designated in the designating step are listed for a next print process without re-registration in the registering step.

11. The method according to claim 10,

wherein a displaying step includes, when an automatic substitute print feature is selected from a plurality of printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registering step, displaying a setting button for setting a printing priority via the user interface.

12. The method according to claim 10,

wherein, a displaying step includes, when a ratio distribution print feature is selected from a plurality of printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registering step, displaying user interface elements for setting distribution ratios of the ratio distribution print via the user interface.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein the status information indicates any temporary status of the member printer.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein the displaying step includes displaying location information of each of the member printers on the list, the location information indicating a physical space where the member printer is installed.

15. The method according to claim 10, wherein the printer group based on the registration by the registering step corresponds to a feature related to a color function of the member printer as a printing feature selected from a plurality of printing features.

16. The method according to claim 10, wherein the member printers on the list include a printer having a capability to process a paper size of A3.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program that when executed causes a computer to perform a method, the method comprising steps of:

registering member printers forming a printer group in response to a user instruction, wherein the member printers are selected from a plurality of printers on a network;

displaying via a user interface for the print process, after a print instruction is performed by an application program, a list of the member printers registered in the registering step and name information and status information of each of the member printers on the list; and

designating, as an output target printer to be used in a current print process for print data of the print instruction performed by the application program, one of the member printers on the list,

wherein the displaying step includes displaying the list via the user interface such that the designated member printer and the member printer not designated in the designating step are listed for a next print process without re-registration in the registering step.

18. The storage medium according to claim 17,

wherein the displaying step includes, when an automatic substitute print feature is selected from a plurality of printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registering step, displaying a setting button for setting a printing priority via the user interface.

19. The storage medium according to claim 17,

wherein, the displaying step includes, when a ratio distribution print feature is selected from a plurality of printing features as a printing feature corresponding to the printer group based on the registration by the registering step, displaying user interface elements for setting distribution ratios of the ratio distribution print via the user interface.

20. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the status information indicates any temporary status of the member printer.

21. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the displaying step includes displaying location information of each of the member printers on the list, the location information indicating a physical space where the member printer is installed.

22. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the printer group based on the registration by the registering step corresponds to a feature related to a color function of the member printer as a printing feature selected from a plurality of printing features.

23. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the member printers on the list include a printer having a capability to process a paper size of A3.