Image forming apparatus, computer-readable storage medium for computer program, and control method thereof

• US 9,052,860 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2010
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Yamahata, Taketoshi, Matsuura, Tsumoru, Yoshida, Eiichi, Kuno, Takatsugu, Komaba, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Madelein A
• Application Number:
  US12/859,809
• Publication Number:
  US 20110051158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,754 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.9, 358/3.23, 358/3.02, 358/3.1, 358/3.12, 358/520, 358/518, 358/523, 358/537, 358/442, 358/444, 358/1.16
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/502 relating to the structure of the control menu, e.g. pop-up menus, help screens
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5091 for user-identification or authorisation
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00109 Remote control of apparatus, e.g. by a host
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1204 resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic actions, using hardware token storing data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1222 Increasing security of the print job
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1234 Errors handling and recovery, e.g. reprinting G06F3/1261 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1239 Restricting the usage of resources, e.g. usage or user levels, credit limit, consumables, special fonts
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1258 by updating job settings at the printer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server

Abstract

An image forming apparatus that prints and edits a document includes a user identification portion, a print management portion that records print management information indicating a user who performs abort operation of printing, an edit management portion that records edit management information, a determination portion that determines, based on the print management information, whether or not the user is a print suspended operator who has performed the abort operation previously, a page extraction portion that, when the print suspended operator performs reprinting operation for giving instructions to print the document that has been updated, extracts pages of the document which were printed successfully when printing of the document was suspended and have been updated thereafter, and a print controller that controls the image forming apparatus such that the image forming apparatus prints at least unprinted pages of the document and the pages extracted by the page extraction portion.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus that includes a storage area for storing a document therein, and prints and edits the document stored in the storage area, the image forming apparatus comprising:

a user identification portion that identifies a user who operates the image forming apparatus;

a print management portion that, when abort operation for giving instructions to suspend printing is performed while the document is being printed, records print management information indicating unprinted pages, and a user who performs the abort operation and is identified by the user identification portion;

an edit management portion that, when the document is updated according to edit operation, records edit management information indicating an updated page;

a determination portion that determines, based on the print management information, whether or not the user who is identified by the user identification portion is a print suspended operator who has performed the abort operation previously;

a page extraction portion that, when the print suspended operator performs reprinting operation for giving instructions to print the document that has been updated, refers to the print management information and the edit management information and extracts pages of the document which were printed successfully when printing of the document was suspended and, at the same time, which have been updated thereafter; and

a print controller that controls the image forming apparatus such that the image forming apparatus prints, in response to the reprinting operation, only unprinted pages of the document and the pages extracted by the page extraction portion,

wherein the edit operation comprises altering data of a page of the document.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the print controller controls the image forming apparatus such that the image forming apparatus prints a smallest-numbered-page and pages onward therefrom, the smallest-numbered-page being a page having a smallest page number among the unprinted pages of the document and the pages extracted by the page extraction portion.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the edit management portion records, as a part of the edit management information, whether there is a change in a total number of pages of the document as a result of updating the document, and

the print controller causes the image forming apparatus to print all pages of the document of which printing was suspended and which has been updated thereafter if printing of a symbol indicating the total number of pages is specified and, at the same time, there is the change in the total number of pages.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an edit information display portion that displays information indicating the pages extracted by the page extraction portion when the print suspended operator specifies the document as a target for operation.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a suspension information display portion that, if the user identified by the user identification portion is the print suspended operator, displays information indicating presence of the document of which printing was suspended by the print suspended operator.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a notification portion that, in response to deletion operation performed by a user for giving instructions to delete the document, refers to the print management information and, if the print suspended operator is found for the document, notifies the user who performed the deletion operation of a fact that the print suspended operator is found for the document.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a document management portion that, in response to deletion operation performed by a user for giving instructions to delete the document, refers to the print management information and, if the print suspended operator is found for the document, performs deletion reservation settings by which access to the document is limited to the print suspended operator,

wherein the document management portion deletes the document after printing that corresponds to the reprinting operation involving the document as a target to be printed has been successfully completed.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, when the abort operation is performed, the print management portion records an aborted time as a part of the print management information, and

the print management portion deletes the document if deletion operation for giving instructions to delete the document is performed after a predetermined period of time or longer has elapsed since the aborted time.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing thereon a computer program used in a computer included in an image forming apparatus having a function to print and edit a document stored in a storage area for storing documents, the computer program causing the computer to perform:

a user identification step that identifies a user who operates the image forming apparatus;

a print management step that, when abort operation for giving instructions to suspend printing is performed while the document is being printed, records print management information indicating unprinted pages and a user who performs the abort operation and is identified in the user identification step;

an edit management step that, when the document is updated according to edit operation, records edit management information indicating an updated page;

a determination step that determines, based on the print management information, whether or not the user who is identified in the user identification step is a print suspended operator who has performed the abort operation previously;

a page extraction step that, when the print suspended operator performs reprinting operation for giving instructions to print the document that has been updated, refers to the print management information and the edit management information, and extracts pages of the document which were printed successfully when printing of the document was suspended and, at the same time, which have been updated thereafter; and

a print controlling step that controls the image forming apparatus such that the image forming apparatus prints, in response to the reprinting operation, only unprinted pages of the document and the pages extracted in the page extraction step,

wherein the edit operation comprises altering data of a page of the document.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the print controlling step controls the image forming apparatus such that the image forming apparatus prints a smallest-numbered-page and pages onward therefrom, the smallest-numbered-page being a page having a smallest page number among the unprinted pages of the document and the pages extracted in the page extraction step.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the edit management step records, as a part of the edit management information, whether there is a change in a total number of pages of the document as a result of updating the document, and

the print controlling step causes the image forming apparatus to print all pages of the document of which printing was suspended and which has been updated thereafter if printing of a symbol indicating the total number of pages is specified and, at the same time, there is the change in the total number of pages.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the computer program causes the computer to further perform an edit information display step that displays information indicating the pages extracted in the page extraction step when the print suspended operator specifies the document as a target for operation.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the computer program causes the computer to further perform a suspension information display step that, if the user identified in the user identification step is the print suspended operator, displays information indicating presence of the document of which printing was suspended by the print suspended operator.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the computer program causes the computer to further perform a notification step that, in response to deletion operation performed by a user for giving instructions to delete the document, refers to the print management information and, if the print suspended operator is found for the document, notifies the user who performed the deletion operation of a fact that the print suspended operator is found for the document.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein the computer program causes the computer to further perform a document management step that, in response to deletion operation performed by a user for giving instructions to delete the document, refers to the print management information and, if the print suspended operator is found for the document, performs deletion reservation settings by which access to the document is limited to the print suspended operator and deletes the document after printing that corresponds to the reprinting operation involving the document as a target to be printed has been successfully completed.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,

wherein, when the abort operation is performed, the computer program causes the computer to perform recording an aborted time as a part of the print management information in the print management step, and to perform a step of deleting the document if deletion operation for giving instructions to delete the document is performed after a predetermined period of time or longer has elapsed since the aborted time.