Patent ID: 6567180
Filing Date: 2003-05-20
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
A printing method for use with a print system including a computer and a printer connected to the computer directly or by way of a network,wherein the computer comprises: a program for preparing a document; and a logical printer driver for converting the document into a PDL document, the method comprising: directing the printer from the computer to print and store the PDL document prepared by the computer in an arbitrary combination of formats; transferring the PDL document from the computer to the printer; storing the document in an archive of the printer according to the instruction from the computer; and printing the document according to the at least one of the following computer instructions: (1) requesting the printer to reprint the document stored in the archive; determining whether or not a document of dot image format is stored in the archive of the printer; reprinting the document of dot image format if the document of dot image format is found; and reprinting the document after having plotting a document or PDL format if the document of dot image format is not found in the archive; (2) requesting the printer to display and edit a document, which has been stored in a PDL format in the archive of the printer; reading the document of PDL format from the archive of the printer; displaying the document; and editing the document, (3) requesting the printer to display and edit a document, which has been stored in a storage format in the archive of the printer from the computer; determining whether or not the format of the document stored in the printer is identical with the display/editing format required by an application program for editing purposes installed in the computer; reading and transferring the document to the computer without modification if the formats are identical; and converting the document stored in the archive into a document of editing./display format through use of a document format conversion section provided in the printer if the formats differ from each other.