Page-description language interpreter for a parallel-processing system

• US 5,333,246 A
• Filed: 12/04/1991
• Issued: 07/26/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Nagasaka, Fumio
• Primary Examiner(s): Herndon, Heather R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): JANKUS, ALMIS R
• Application Number:
  US07/777,386
• Time in Patent Office: 965 Days
• Field of Search: 395/162-166, 395/161, 395/155, 395/153, 395/144-149, 395/133-139
• US Class Current: 345/619
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/02 using printers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/1859 involving data processing distributed amongst different data processing apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2215/0002 Handling the output data
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2215/0062 combining generic and host data, e.g. filling a raster
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2215/0065 Page or partial page composition
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text

Abstract

The rasterize processing for obtaining printing picture element information from a source file described in a page-description language is distributed-processed by a plurality of information processing units (6a, 6b, 6c) loose connected via a network (7). In the information processing unit (6a) which generates a printing request, a client process (210) converts a source file (19) into an intermediate code file (10) and further divides the intermediate code file into a plurality of partial files executable in the rasterize processing, independently. A part of these plural partial files is given to a rasterizer (212) of the information processing unit (6a) which generates a printing request, so as to be rasterized into picture element information. The remaining part of the plural partial files are distributed to the other information processing units (6b, 6c) via the network. In each of these other information processing units (6b, 6c), the distributed partial file is received by a server process (211), transmitted to the rasterizer (212) to form partial picture element information. These partial picture element information formed by these other information processing units (6b, 6c) are returned to the information processing unit (6a) which generates the printing request. In this information processing unit (6a) which generates the printing request, the client process (210) combines the picture element information returned from the other information processing units (6b, 6c) with the picture element information formed by the rasterizer (212) of its own unit, to form the entire picture element information. The entire picture element information is transmitted to a printing unit (21).

Claims

1. A page-description language interpreter for executing rasterize processing to obtain printing picture element information from a source file described in a page-description language, comprising:

a plurality of information processing units connected via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system;

means for receiving the source file and dividing a received source file or an intermediate file converted from the received source file into a plurality of partial files each of which can be rasterized independently;

means for transmitting the partial files to said plural information processing units via the network, to distributed-process the rasterize processing by the plural information processing units;

means provided for each of said plural information processing units, for obtaining partial picture element information by rasterizing the transmitted partial file; and

means for collecting the partial picture element information obtained by said plural information processing units via the network and forming entire picture element information by combining the collected partial picture element information.

2. The page-description language interpreter of claim 1, wherein said dividing means comprises:

means for detecting a mutual overlap between graphic form elements included in the source file; and

means for dividing the source file or the intermediate file into plural partial files in such a way that the detected overlapped graphic form elements are not included in different partial files.

3. The page-description language interpreter of claim 1, wherein said transmitting means comprises means for deciding information processing units which can share the rasterize processing by checking load status of said plural information processing units, respectively, and transmitting the partial files to only the decided information processing units.

4. An information processing unit connectable to at least one other information processing unit via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system, comprising:

means for receiving a source file described in a page-description language and dividing a received source file or an intermediate file converted from the received source file into a plurality of partial files each of which can be rasterized independently;

means for transmitting a part of the plural partial files to the other information processing unit via the network, to share partial rasterize processing of the plural partial files with the other information processing unit;

means for obtaining picture element information of a remaining partial file of the plural partial files, by rasterizing the remaining partial file except the partial file transmitted to the other information processing unit;

means for receiving a partial picture element information obtained by the rasterize processing in the other information processing unit from the other information processing unit via the network, and obtaining entire picture element information by combining a received partial picture element information with picture element information of the remaining partial file.

5. The information processing unit of claim 4, wherein the information processing unit is a computer.

6. The information processing unit of claim 4, wherein the information processing unit is a printing unit.

7. An information processing unit connectable to a plurality of other information processing units via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system, comprising:

means for receiving a source file described in a page-description language and dividing a received source file or an intermediate file converted from the received source file into a plurality of partial files each of which can be rasterized independently;

means for distributing the plural partial files to the plural other information processing units via the network, for rasterize processing of the plural partial files by the plural other information processing units as a distributed process; and

means for collecting partial picture element information obtained by rasterize processing in the plural other information processing units from the plural other information processing units via the network, and obtaining entire picture element information by combining the collected partial picture element information.

8. An information processing unit connectable to at least one other information processing unit via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system, comprising:

means for responsive to a message for requesting participation in page-description language translation processing, transmitted from the other information processing unit via the network, for discriminating whether the information processing unit can participate in the translation processing according to load condition, and transmitting a result of said discrimination to the other information processing unit;

means for receiving a partial file of a source file described in a page-description language or an intermediate code file converted from the source file, transmitted from the other information processing unit via the network, when the information processing unit can participate therein, and obtaining picture element information by rasterizing the partial file; and

means for transmitting the picture element information obtained by rasterizing the partial file, to the other information processing unit via the network.

9. An interpreter mounted on a first information processing unit connected to at least one other information processing unit via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system, for executing rasterize processing such that a source file described in a page-description language is converted into picture element information used in printing the source file, comprising:

client means for partially sharing rasterize processing of a first source file whose printing request is generated by the first information processing unit with the other information processing, unit;

server means for partially sharing rasterize processing of a second source file whose printing request is generated by the other information processing unit; and

rasterize means for executing the rasterize processing of any given file, and

wherein said client means comprises;

means for receiving the first source file and dividing the first source file, or a first intermediate code file converted from the first source file, into a plurality of partial files each of which can be rasterized independently;

means for transmitting a part of the plural partial files to the other unit via the network, to partially share the rasterize processing of the plural partial files with the other unit;

means for transmitting remaining partial files of the plural partial files except those transmitted to the other unit to said rasterize means; and

means for receiving picture element information obtained by the rasterize processing of the other unit from the other unit via the network, and obtaining entire picture element information by combining received picture element information with picture element information of a remaining portion obtained by said rasterize means, and

wherein said server means comprises;

means for receiving a partial file of the second source file or the second intermediate code file converted from the second source file from the other unit via the network, and transmitting the received partial file to said rasterize means; and

means for receiving picture element information of the partial file transmitted to said rasterize means from said rasterize means, and transmitting the received picture element information to the other information processing unit via the network.

10. An interpreting method of executing rasterize processing to obtain printing picture element information from a source file described in a page-description language, comprising the steps of:

preparing a plurality of information processing units connected via a network, each of said information processing units having an independent memory which is not shared with another information processing unit of the network for independently processing an assigned task in a parallel-processing system;

dividing the source file or an intermediate code file converted from the source file into a plurality of partial files each of which can be rasterized independently;

transmitting the partial files to the plural information processing units via the network, to distributed-process the rasterize processing by the plural information processing units;

obtaining partial picture element information by rasterizing the transmitted partial file in each of the plural processing units; and

collecting the partial picture element information obtained by the plural information processing units via the network at a place to form entire picture element information by combining the collected partial picture element information.