Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application is based on Application No. HEI 11-061330 filed in Japan, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a printing system and an output device capable of arbitrarily changing the image output style as desired by the user, a method therefor, and a program product storing a program therefor. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
   There are cases where each user desires a different output style, for example, in making a hard copy of an original which the user has prepared. Moreover, there are cases where a user desires a different output style for each page. In such cases, in outputting and copying all the print pages, the output style is manually changed; for example, the front cover is copied on single-side of a sheet, and the other pages are copied on double-sides or a plurality of pages are copied being scaled down on one sheet. Here, the page refers to the number of pages of the original image data (this applies hereafter). That is, the number of pages of the original image data does not always the same as that of the output matter. 
   On the other hand, an output device has been proposed which is capable of reducing the consumption of toner and recording paper by, in making a plurality of copies of an original, making only one normal-size copy of the original and making the other copies so that the original is scaled. 
   However, the output device described in the prior art requires all the pages of the print, which is the original, to be output once, so that sheets are wasted in accordance with the amount of the original. In addition, this output device cannot meet the demand that each page be output in a different style. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In view of the problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing system and an output device capable of outputting print of a style desired by the user without any waste of sheets, a method therefor, and a program product storing a program therefor. 
   Accordingly, a printing system according to the present invention comprises: a data processor; an output device including an interface for receiving data from the data processor and an image forming unit for forming an image on a sheet of paper; a memory for storing a plurality of different output styles corresponding to print contents; a specifying unit for specifying a print content to be image-formed; and a controller for converting the data into an output style corresponding to the specified print content. The image forming unit performs image formation based on the converted data. 
   A feature of the present invention is that output styles corresponding to print contents are previously stored and when a print content is specified, image data is converted into the corresponding output style to perform image formation. This enables print of a desired style to be obtained without the need to print all the print pages once. 
   Output styles include normal printing (hereinafter, referred to as 1UP printing), printing where two pages are image-formed being scaled down on one sheet (hereinafter, referred to as 2UP printing), printing where four pages are image-formed being scaled down on one sheet (hereinafter, referred to as 4UP printing), double-sided printing, high-resolution printing, and low-resolution printing. Print contents refer to uses of output matters such as a report on an experiment, a material for a meeting, a document given out to a customer, an original copy and a duplicate. 
   While output styles corresponding to print contents are previously stored and a print content is specified to image-form it in a desired output style, the user may select an output style for each print page. 
   That is, a printing system according to the present invention comprises: a data processor; an output device including an interface for receiving data from the data processor and an image forming unit for forming an image on a sheet of paper; a memory for storing a plurality of different output styles; a specifying unit for specifying an output style for each print page; and a controller for converting the data into the specified output style. The image forming unit performs image formation based on the converted data. 
   Here, the memory, the specifying unit and the controller may be provided in either of the data processor and the output device, or all of the memory, the specifying unit and the controller may be provided in the output device. 
   That is, an output device according to the present invention comprises: an image forming unit for forming an image on a sheet of paper; a memory for storing a plurality of different output styles corresponding to print contents; a specifying unit for specifying a print content to be image-formed; and a controller for converting image data into an output style corresponding to the specified print content. The image forming unit performs image formation based on the converted data. 
   Moreover, an output device according to the present invention comprises: an image forming unit for forming an image on a sheet of paper; a memory for storing a plurality of different output styles; a specifying unit for specifying an output style for each print page; and a controller for converting image data into the specified output style. The image forming unit performs image formation based on the converted data. 
   Moreover, installing a printer driver (software) in the data processor or the output device produces effects similar to those of the printing systems of the present invention. 
   That is, according to the present invention, a computer-readable program product storing a program for controlling a printing system can be provided. The computer-readable program product stores a program for converting image data into an output style corresponding to a specified print content, and performing image formation. 
   Moreover, according to the present invention, a computer-readable program product storing a program for controlling a printing system can be provided. The computer-readable program product stores a program for converting image data into an output style specified for each print page, and performing image formation. 
   According to the present invention, since image formation is performed with image data being converted into an output style desired by the user, it is unnecessary to output the original once, so that waste of sheets can be prevented. Moreover, since the user can select an output style which he or she desires, utilization of, for example, the 2UP printing, the 4UP printing or the double-sided printing reduces the number of prints, so that when an ejection bin is used, the bin capacity can be saved. This prevents ejection bin full error which can be caused particularly in an output device generally having a small bin capacity. 
   Moreover, enabling low-resolution printing to be selected reduces not only the printout time but also toner consumption, and the reduction can be specified in fine steps. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     These and other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments thereof taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  shows an embodiment of a printing system according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  shows examples of print contents and corresponding output styles; 
       FIG. 3  shows an example of output styles varying among pages; 
       FIG. 4  shows a flowchart of a control processing in a printer in the embodiment; and 
       FIGS. 5(   a ) to  5 ( c ) show examples of output styles obtained by the embodiment. 
   

   In the following description, like parts are designated by like reference numbers throughout the several drawings. 
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
   The present invention will be detailed based on the concrete examples shown in the drawings.  FIGS. 1 to 4  show a preferred embodiment of a printing system according to the present invention.  FIG. 1  shows the structure of a printing system  10  of this embodiment. In  FIG. 1 , a host computer (data processor)  100  and a printer (output device)  200  are connected by a signal line. The host computer  100  sends image data to the printer  200  to perform printing. 
   The host computer  100  includes an application unit  101 , a printer driver unit  102 , an interface  103 , a central processing unit (CPU)  104 , a random-access memory (RAM)  105 , a display  106 , a keyboard  107  and a mouse  108 . In response to an instruction of the CPU  104 , the application unit  101  manages the data and the number of pages of an original. The printer driver unit  102  receives data from the application unit  101 , and calculates the total number of print pages based on the information. The printer driver unit  102  also converts the data received from the application unit  101  into a language which a controller section  210  of the printer  200  can interpret, and adds information on the print content or the output style which the user has specified with the keyboard  107  and the mouse  108 . The interface  103  sends the converted data and the added information on the print content or the output style to the printer  200 . 
   The printer  200  includes the controller section  210  and an engine section  220 . The controller section  210  includes an operation unit  213 , a CPU (controller)  211 , a RAM (memory)  214 , a read-only memory (ROM)  215 , and interfaces  212 . The interface  212  receives the data from the interface  103  of the host computer  100 . The CPU (controller)  211  analyzes the received data, reads the output style specified by the user from the RAM (memory)  214 , and expands image data into a data format (bit map data) which the engine section  220  can interpret. The interface  215  sends the data to the engine section  220 . 
   The engine section (image forming unit)  220  includes an interface  221 , an engine control unit  222 , and an output unit  223 . The interface  221  receives the data from the interface  215 . The output unit  223  prints the image data onto paper under the control of the engine control unit  222 . 
   A floppy disk  300  is a program product storing software to be installed in the printer  200 . The floppy disk  300  stores a processing in the printer  200  described later with reference to  FIG. 4 . Installing it in the printer  200  enables the printing system  10  to perform the processing shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     FIG. 2  shows examples of print contents and corresponding output styles in the present invention. For example, when the experimental result report which is a print content is specified, the output style is such that only the front cover is 1UP-printed and the other pages are 2UP-printed. When the meeting material is specified, the output style is such that the odd-numbered pages are printed at low resolution and the even-numbered pages are printed at high resolution. The user can specify the print content on a screen of the printer driver unit  102  of the host computer  100  by operating the keyboard  107  and the mouse  108 . Print contents and corresponding output styles are previously stored in the RAM  214  of the printer  200 . 
     FIG. 3  shows an example of output styles varying among pages in the present invention. This figure shows a screen of the printer driver unit  102  provided on the display  106  of the host computer  100  in this embodiment. The first and the second pages are 1UP-printed on single-side at low resolution. The third to the tenth pages are 2UP-printed on single-side at low resolution. The user can specify such output styles varying among pages on the screen of the printer driver unit  102  of the host computer  100  by operating the keyboard  107  and the mouse  108 . 
     FIG. 4  shows a flow chart of the control processing in the printer  200 . When the processing is started, in the controller section  210 , the interface  212  receives print data from the host computer  100 , and the data is temporarily stored in the RAM  214  under the control of the CPU  211  (steps S 100  and S 101 ). Then, the CPU  211  analyzes the data in the RAM  214  and the print content, shown in  FIG. 2 , specified by the user or the output styles varying among pages shown in  FIG. 3  (step S 102 ), expands the print data into bit map data in accordance with the corresponding output style (step S 103 ), and sends the data from the interface  215  to the interface  221  of the engine section  220  (step S 104 ). 
   In the engine section  220 , when the print data is received, the print data is sent to the output unit  223  under the control of the engine control unit  222  (step S 105 ) and printing is performed (step S 106 ). Then, the processing is ended. 
     FIGS. 5(   a ) to  5 ( c ) show original image data and examples of outputs produced when output styles varying among pages are specified.  FIG. 5(   a ) shows original image data where all of the first to the tenth pages are 1UP-printed.  FIG. 5(   b ) shows an output produced when the 1UP printing is specified as the output style of the first and the second pages and the 2UP printing is specified as the output style of the third to the tenth pages.  FIG. 5(   c ) shows an output produced when the 1UP printing is specified as the output style of the first and the tenth pages and the 4UP printing is specified as the output style of the second to the ninth pages. 
   While a printing system according to the embodiment has been described, it should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment; each of the memory, the specifying unit and the controller may be provided in either of the data processor and the output device. 
   For example, all of the memory, the specifying unit and the controller may be provided in the printer  200 . In this case, a plurality of output styles corresponding to print contents are stored in the RAM  214  of the printer  200 . The CPU  211  converts the image data into the output style corresponding to the print content specified with the operation unit  213 , and image formation is performed based on the converted data. 
   As another example, all of the memory, the specifying unit and the controller may be provided in the host computer  100 . In this case, a plurality of output styles corresponding to print contents are stored in the RAM (memory)  105  of the host computer  100 . The CPU (controller)  104  converts the image data into the output style corresponding to the print content specified by the printer driver unit (specifying unit)  102 , and image formation is performed based on the converted data. 
   Further, the software on the floppy disk  300  may be installed in the host computer  100  to enable the printing system  10  to perform the processing shown in  FIG. 4 . 
   While any data processor that processes signals to output image data may be used, a host computer is generally used. The number of data processors may be either one or more than one. Any output device that is capable of image formation may be used; for example, a printer or a copier may be used. The number of output devices may be either one or more than one. The data processor and the output device may be connected by any means; for example, they may be connected by a network line. The output device has an ejection bin. The number of ejection bins may be either one or more than one. 
   Although the present invention has been fully described by way of examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, unless such changes and modifications depart from the scope of the present invention, they should be construed as being included therein.

Technology Category: 7