Patent ID: 7847990

Claim:
A method to print a composite image in which a first image represented by first data and a second image formed on a recording medium are overlaid, by using a data processing apparatus, capable of generating the first data, and an image forming apparatus, capable of generating the second data which represents the second image and forming the composite image on a recording medium, comprising steps of: transmitting one of a print instruction concerning a printing operation for the first image and a composition instruction concerning composition of the composite image along with the first data from the data processing apparatus to the image forming apparatus; receiving the one of the printing instruction and the composition instruction along with the first data from the data processing apparatus in the image forming apparatus; judging as to whether the composition instruction is received along with the first data; suspending the printing operation for the first data when it is judged that the composition instruction is received along with the first data; reading the second image formed on the recording medium when the printing operation for the first data is suspended; generating the second data based on the read second image; composing third data representing the composite image by superimposing the second image represented by the second data over the first image represented by the first data; and forming the composite image according to the third data when the third data is composed.