JP5017543B2 - Peripheral device utilization system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a network system that uses a peripheral device connected to a network from a client terminal, and more particularly to a technique that does not require a model-specific driver for the client terminal.

  In recent years, network printing systems in which a printer is connected to a network and the printer is shared from a plurality of client terminals (such as personal computers) have become widespread. When using the network printing system, the user needs to install a printer driver in the client terminal and set the port monitor.

  In the case of a desktop PC (desktop personal computer), since it is continuously connected to the network, these settings usually need to be made only at the first installation.

  However, in the case of a notebook PC (notebook personal computer) that can be carried by the user, it may be temporarily connected to various networks such as a corporate office at a business trip destination. Must be installed and the port monitor configured. This is cumbersome for the user. In addition, driver installation and port monitor setting have a problem in that the procedure and contents are complicated, so that there is a high threshold for users who do not have specialized knowledge.

  Therefore, there is a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 as a solution to these problems.

  In the network communication environment setting system disclosed in Patent Document 1, a client information acquisition unit collects information about a client, and a printer information acquisition unit collects information about a printer that exists in the network. And the technique which sets a communication environment of a client by a port monitor construction part constructing | assembling a port monitor from these information and a driver installation part installing a driver is disclosed.

By using the technology of Patent Document 1, a series of driver installation procedures including the construction of a port monitor is facilitated, and even when temporarily connected to a network like a notebook PC, setting for using a printer is easy. Can be done.
JP 2001-117834 A

  However, the method described in Patent Document 1 has a problem that it takes time until the printer can be used because a port monitor is constructed on the client (notebook PC), and necessary printer drivers are acquired and installed. In addition, when connecting to various networks, the printer driver is installed on the client every time it is connected to the network. Therefore, the number of printer drivers is large and the management of printer drivers is complicated in notebook PCs that move in many offices. There is a problem of becoming.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a system that does not require installation of a printer driver and construction of a port monitor in a client terminal and can simplify a procedure until a printer can be used. With the goal.

  It is another object of the present invention to provide a system that can be used not only in a printer but also in a scanner.

  A first invention is a peripheral device utilization system in which a client terminal, a server device, and a printer device are connected. (1) The client terminal is a general-purpose interface that does not depend on the model of the printer device for an application. When the user instructs printing from an application, the root driver searches the server device for display means for displaying a printer object as a print output destination and connects the server device. A search means for establishing; a first conversion means for converting print object data into printer-independent print data; and a first transmission means for sending the printer-independent print data to the server device. 2) The server device includes a receiving unit that receives the printer-independent print data; Second converting means for converting a printer-independent print data to the printer-dependent print data, characterized by comprising a second transmission means for transmitting the printer-dependent print data to the printer.

  A second invention is a peripheral device utilization system in which a client terminal, a server device, and a printer device are connected. (1) The client terminal is a general-purpose interface that does not depend on the type of printer device for an application. A route driver that operates as a display device that displays a printer object as a print output destination when a user instructs printing from an application, and the server device is searched for and registered in the server device. Establishing a connection between the server device and a printer information acquisition unit that acquires information on the printer device, a printer information display unit that displays information on the printer device acquired by the printer information acquisition unit, and allows a user to select the information A connection establishment means, and the print object data First conversion means for converting into data, and first transmission means for transmitting the printer-independent print data to the server device; (2) the server device sends the printer-independent print data to the server device; A receiving means for receiving, a second converting means for converting the printer-independent print data into printer-dependent print data, and a second corresponding to the information by referring to the information of the selected printer device The apparatus further comprises selection means for giving the printer-independent print data to the conversion means, and second transmission means for transmitting the printer-dependent print data to the selected printer device.

  A third invention is a peripheral device utilization system in which a client terminal, a server device, a printer device, and an authentication device are connected. (1) User information management in which the client terminal registers user identification information And a root driver that operates as a general-purpose interface independent of the model of the printer device for the application. When the user instructs printing from the application, the root driver specifies a printer object as a print output destination. Display means for displaying; search means for searching the server apparatus to establish connection with the server apparatus; first conversion means for converting the print object data into printer-independent print data; and the printer-independent First transmission means for transmitting the print data to the server device, the printer independent User identification information is added to the print data, and (2) the server device receives the printer-independent print data, and stores the printer-independent print data in a temporary storage area. Spooler means, second conversion means for converting the printer-independent print data into printer-dependent print data, user identification information and printer apparatus identification information received from the authentication apparatus, and the user identification information The printer-independent print data to which the user identification information that matches is searched for, and the printer non-printing data is referred to the second conversion means corresponding to the printer apparatus identification information by referring to the printer apparatus identification information. Authentication means for providing dependent print data, and transmitting the printer-dependent print data to a printer device corresponding to the printer device identification information (3) the authentication device receives an input unit that receives input of user identification information, user identification information input to the input unit, and printer identification information associated with the own device. And third transmitting means for transmitting to the server device.

  A fourth invention is a peripheral device utilization system in which a client terminal, a server device, and a scanner device are connected. (1) The client terminal is a general-purpose interface that does not depend on the model of the scanner device for an application. A scanner root driver that operates as a display means for displaying a scanner object as scanner device identification information, search means for searching the server device and establishing a connection with the server device, and A first transmission / reception unit that transmits a scanner control command given from an application to the server apparatus and gives a response received from the server apparatus to the application; (2) the server apparatus receives from the client terminal; The scanner control command A second transmission / reception means for sending a response given from the scanner control means to the client terminal, and a scanner control means for controlling the scanner device based on the scanner control command. Features.

  Note that the root driver is recognized as a normal printer driver from the notebook PC operating system (for example, displayed in the printer list), but is a model-specific process such as a normal printer driver (for example, to PDL). Conversion is not performed, and printer-independent print data is generated. Details will be described later.

  According to the present invention, a user can install a root driver in a notebook PC without installing a printer driver and setting a port monitor for each network, and can print on any network where the server of the present invention exists. Can be performed.

  According to the present invention, since the server has a printer driver and a port monitor, the printer driver is installed every time even in the case of a notebook PC that is often temporarily connected to various networks. Therefore, the problem that an unnecessary printer driver remains installed in the notebook PC can be solved.

  Further, according to the present invention, the printing procedure only requires the user to select the root driver and instruct printing, and the operation procedure is also simple.

  Further, according to the present invention, not only a printer but also a scanner can be controlled as a peripheral device.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples, and many changes and modifications can be made.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an operation example of a network system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 1 shows an example in which an employee who is a user of a notebook PC 1 carries the notebook PC 1 and travels from the Tokyo office 11 to the Osaka office 6. A root driver is installed in the notebook PC 1. Since the notebook PC 1 is normally used in the Tokyo office 11, settings for using the printer 7 installed in the Tokyo office 11 (installation of a printer driver corresponding to the printer 7 in the Tokyo office 11 and setting of a port monitor) Has been made. However, the setting for using the printer 2 installed in the Osaka office 6 is not made.

  The server 3 of the present invention is installed in the Osaka office 6 on a business trip destination. A user of the notebook PC 1 desires to print a document stored in the notebook PC 1 that he / she brought with the printer 2 installed in the Osaka office 6. In the case of the prior art, the user needs to make settings on the notebook PC 1 (installation of a printer driver corresponding to the printer 2 of the Osaka office 6 and setting of a port monitor). In the present invention, the root driver is installed. Therefore, the user does not need to make the above settings and can use the printer 2 of the Osaka office 6 simply by connecting the notebook PC 1 to the network 5 of the Osaka office 6.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  The network 120 is a network to which the notebook PC 20 is moved, and corresponds to the network 5 of the Osaka office 6 in the example of FIG. A notebook PC 20, a PC 150, a server 30, and a printer 100 are connected to the network 120. The notebook PC 20 is brought in by a business traveler and is temporarily connected to the network 120. The PC 150 is, for example, a desktop PC of an employee working in the Osaka office, and is continuously connected to the network 120. The printer 100 is a general network printer, and has a function of receiving a print job via a network and printing it out. The server 30 has a printer driver 32 corresponding to the printer 100 and a port monitor 33 in which the IP address of the printer 100 is registered. The server 30 can be configured using, for example, a general personal computer.

  A functional block of the notebook PC will be described with reference to FIG.

  The application 22 is, for example, document creation software, spreadsheet software, or the like, and issues a print instruction for data to be printed. The route driver 21 includes a search unit 21a, a conversion unit 21b, and a transmission unit 21c. When receiving a print instruction from the application 22, the search unit 21 a transmits a server search request toward the network 120. When a search response is received from the server 30, a communication connection with the server 30 is established. The conversion unit 21b converts the print target data into printer-independent data (printer-independent print data) such as EMF (Enhanced Meta File) or DIB (Device Independent Bitmap). The transmission unit 21 c transmits printer-independent print data to the server 30 via the communication module 25. The communication module 25 is a program for performing communication with the network 120, and includes an IP or the like that controls communication in the Internet layer.

  The printer driver 23 and the port monitor 24 are for using a printer that exists in the network of the movement source of the notebook PC 20 (corresponding to the Tokyo office in FIG. 1). The printer driver 23 converts data to be printed into a format interpretable by a printer such as PDL (Page Description Language) and generates a print job (printer-dependent print data). The port monitor 24 is a program for managing the output destination of a print job, and for example, the IP address of a printer connected to the movement source network is registered.

  Since the notebook PC 20 is normally connected to the source office and uses the printer of the source office, the printer driver 23 and the port monitor 24 for that purpose are installed. Of course, the present invention can also be applied to a notebook PC in which a printer driver and a port monitor are not installed.

  The function blocks of the server will be described with reference to FIG.

  The printer driver 32 is a printer driver corresponding to the printer 100. The printer driver 32 converts the printer-independent print data received from the service program 31 into a format interpretable by a printer such as PDL (Page Description Language) and generates a print job (printer-dependent print data). The port monitor 33 is a program for managing the output destination of the print job, and transmits the print job received from the printer driver 32 to the printer 100. In the port monitor 33, the IP address of the printer 100 is registered in advance.

  The service program 31 includes a response unit 31a and a reception unit 31b. When the response unit 31a receives a server search request from the search unit 21a of the notebook PC 20, the response unit 31a returns a search response. When receiving the printer-independent print data from the notebook PC 20, the receiving unit 31 b gives this to the printer driver 32. The communication module 34 is a program for performing communication with the network 120, and includes an IP or the like that controls communication in the Internet layer.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the operation of the network system in the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  The network administrator installs the printer driver 32 and sets the port monitor 33 so that the printer 100 can be used from the server 30. Further, the user installs the root driver 21 in the notebook PC 20 in advance.

  The user connects the notebook PC 20 to the destination network 120. When a DHCP server exists in the destination network 120, an IP address is automatically assigned to the notebook PC 20, and communication between the notebook PC 20 and the network 120 becomes possible. Further, when there is no DHCP server in the destination network 120, the user can set the IP address in the notebook PC 20 to enable communication between the notebook PC 20 and the network 120.

  The user wants to print out the document stored in the notebook PC 20 by the printer 100 of the destination network. Here, the printer driver corresponding to the printer 100 is not installed in the notebook PC 20, and the port monitor is not set.

  The user activates the application 22 and performs a document printing operation. Normally, when “print” is selected from the application 22, a screen for selecting which printer to print out is displayed on the screen. As an example, the screen of FIG. 6 is shown. Since the printer objects corresponding to the printer driver and the root driver installed in the notebook PC 20 are displayed on this screen, the user can select a printer to be printed out from among them.

  For example, in the case of the notebook PC 20 of FIG. 2, since the printer driver 23 and the root driver 21 are installed, printer objects corresponding to these two drivers are displayed on the screen in a selectable manner. In FIG. 6, the printer object displayed as ABC PRT-1000 corresponds to the printer driver 23, and the printer object displayed as RootDriver corresponds to the root driver 21. The ABC PRT-1000 (printer driver 23) is a printer in the movement source network and cannot be used in the movement destination network 120. Therefore, the user selects RootDriver (root driver 21).

  The user selects the root driver 21 and instructs printing (clicks the print button 303). When printing is instructed, the application 22 instructs the root driver 21 to start printing via the operating system. Upon receiving an instruction to start printing, the route driver search unit 21 a transmits a server search request to the network 120. The server search request is transmitted by broadcast, for example.

  The service program 31 of the server 30 is waiting for a server search request. When receiving the server search request, the response unit 31a of the service program returns a server search response.

  The root driver 21 of the notebook PC is waiting for a server search response. When the server search response is received, it is determined that the server 30 exists on the network 120 and a communication connection is established with the service program 31 of the server 30.

  When the communication connection between the notebook PC 20 and the server 30 is established, the conversion unit 21b of the route driver converts the document (print target data) into printer-independent print data. Here, printer-independent means a data format independent of the printer model, such as EMF, DIB, JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group), and the like. The transmission unit 21c transmits the printer-independent print data to the server 30 using the communication connection established earlier.

  FIG. 3 shows a format of data transmitted from the notebook PC to the server. The data to be transmitted is obtained by adding the setting information 200 to the printer-independent print data 250. The setting information 200 includes print setting information such as monochrome / color printing, paper size, and number of copies.

  The server receiving unit 31b waits for printer-independent print data. When receiving the printer-independent print data, the receiving unit 31b gives this to the printer driver 32. The printer driver 32 converts the printer-independent print data into a data format that can be interpreted by a printer such as PDL, and generates a print job (printer-dependent print data). The printer dependence is a data format having a command system specific to a printer model, such as PDL, PJL (Printer Job Language), and the like.

  The printer driver 32 gives the print job to the port monitor 33. Since the IP address of the printer 100 is registered in the port monitor 33, the port monitor 33 that has received the print job uses the network print protocol such as LPR (Line Printer Daemon Protocol) to send the print job to the printer 100. Send to.

  When the printer 100 receives a print job, it prints it out.

  According to the first embodiment of the present invention, a user can perform printing without installing a printer driver and setting a port monitor for each network simply by installing a root driver on a notebook PC. It is.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the route driver installed in the notebook PC automatically searches the server and transmits printer-independent print data when a print instruction is issued. As an operation, it is only necessary to select a printer (root driver) on the print instruction screen and click the print button. Therefore, the user always prints with the same procedure for one root driver, so it is easy to print anywhere without going to the printer driver / port monitor setting. It can be performed.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, since the server has the printer driver and the port monitor, it is not necessary to install the printer driver and set the port monitor in the notebook PC. As a result, even in the case of a notebook PC that is often temporarily connected to various networks, the printer driver / port monitor is not set every time. Therefore, an unnecessary printer driver / port is not included in the notebook PC. The problem that the monitor remains set can be solved.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that the route driver 41 of the notebook PC 40 has a printer selection unit 41d, the service program 51 of the server 50 has a driver management unit 51c, and a plurality of printer drivers (52a 52b) and port monitors (53a, 53b) are installed.

  A functional block of the notebook PC will be described with reference to FIG.

  The route driver 41 includes a printer selection unit 41d, a search unit 41a, a conversion unit 41b, and a transmission unit 41c. The printer selection unit 41d allows the user to select which printer is to perform print output when there are a plurality of printers on the network. For this reason, the printer selection unit 41d includes a GUI (Graphical User Interface) screen for allowing the user to select a printer. Details of the GUI screen will be described later.

  When transmitting the printer-independent print data, the transmission unit 41c of the route driver adds the printer information and transmits it. The functions of the search unit 41a and the conversion unit 41b are the same as in the case of the first embodiment.

  The application 42, the communication module 45, the printer driver 43, and the port monitor 44 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  The function blocks of the server will be described with reference to FIG.

  The service program 51 includes a driver management unit 51c, a response unit 51a, and a reception unit 51b. The driver management unit 51c selects which printer driver to process the printer-independent print data, and provides the printer-independent print data to the selected printer driver.

  The server 50 has a plurality of printer drivers (52a, 52b) and a plurality of port monitors (53a, 53b). Among these, the printer driver 52a and the port monitor 53a correspond to the printer 100 connected to the network, and the printer driver 52b and the port monitor 53b correspond to the printer 110 connected to the server 50. Yes.

  Next, the operation of the network system in the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The network administrator installs the printer drivers 52a and 52b and sets the port monitors 53a and 53b so that the printer 100 and the printer 110 can be used from the server 50. In the case of the second embodiment, since there are a plurality of printers, settings are made for each printer as described above. Further, the user installs the route driver 41 in the notebook PC 40 in advance.

  The user connects the notebook PC 40 to the destination network 120. The procedure for setting the IP address in the notebook PC 40 is the same as in the first embodiment.

  The destination network 120 includes a printer 100 and a printer 110. The printer 100 is a network printer directly connected to the network 120. The printer 110 is a printer connected as a local printer to a local port (for example, IEEE 1284 or USB) of the server 50.

  The user desires to print out the document stored in the notebook PC 40 by the printer 110 of the destination network 120. Here, the printer driver of the printer 100 and the printer 110 is not installed in the notebook PC 40, and the port monitor is not set for them.

  The user activates the application 42 and performs a document printing operation. Normally, when “print” is selected from the application 42, a screen for setting which printer to print out is displayed on the screen. Here, since the printer driver 43 and the route driver 41 are installed, the two printers are displayed on the screen in a selectable manner.

  An example of the above screen is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 6 shows a state (301) in which a list of printer names is displayed by clicking a pull-down menu button. The printer object displayed as ABC PRT-1000 corresponds to the printer driver 43, and the printer object displayed as RootDriver corresponds to the root driver 41. When the user selects any printer object and clicks the property button 302, the user can make detailed settings for the selected printer. Further, when any printer object is selected and the print button 303 is clicked, a print instruction can be performed.

  Although not illustrated in FIG. 6, items for setting a print range (print target page designation), the number of copies to be printed, a paper size, and the like may be included as other items on the screen.

  In the screen of FIG. 6, ABC PRT-1000 (printer driver 43) cannot be used here because it is a printer in the source network. Therefore, the user selects RootDriver. In the case of the second embodiment, since there are a plurality of printers (in this case, two printers 100 and 110) that can be printed out by the route driver 41, if the user desires, which printer should print out. Can be identified. Note that if a print instruction (clicking the print button 303) is made without specifying, printing is performed by a printer set as a default. For example, when the printer 100 is set as the default printer of the route driver 41, the printer 100 prints out.

  When the user selects a printer, after selecting RootDriver on the screen of FIG. 6, the user clicks the property button 302. Thereby, the printer selection screen of the route driver 41 is displayed. An example of the printer selection screen is shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 7, two printers are displayed in the display column 501. This shows a state after the printer search button 502 is clicked to search for a printer. This field is blank before performing a printer search.

  The user clicks the printer search button 502 on the printer selection screen 500. In response to this, the printer selection unit 41 d transmits a printer search request to the server 50. This is a request for acquiring information on the printer managed by the server 50, and is transmitted by broadcast, for example.

  The driver management unit 51c of the server 50 is waiting to receive a printer search request. When receiving the printer search request, the driver management unit 51c returns the printer information (printer name, status, IP address, etc.) managed by the server 50 to the notebook PC 40 as a printer search response. In the case of the server shown in FIG. 4, since the printer driver 52a and the printer driver 52b are provided, the printer information corresponding to the printer driver 52a and the printer information corresponding to the printer driver 52b are returned to the notebook PC 40, respectively.

  When receiving the printer search response, the printer selection unit 41d of the notebook PC 40 displays information included in the response on the printer selection screen 500. In FIG. 7, as an example, XYZ company AAA-1500 and ABC company BBB-200 are displayed, and the printer name, location, and status information are respectively displayed. The XYZ company AAA-1500 corresponds to the printer 100, and the ABC company BBB-200 corresponds to the printer 110. Then, based on the information on the printer selection screen 500, the user determines a printer to be printed out. In this case, the user selects the printer 110 (ABC BBB-200) and clicks an OK button 504. Thus, since the printer 110 is specified, the user returns to the screen of FIG. 6 and clicks the print button 303 to instruct printing.

  When printing is instructed, the application 42 instructs the root driver 41 to start printing via the operating system. When the printing start is received, the search unit 41a of the route driver establishes a communication connection with the server service program 51.

  When the communication connection is established, the conversion unit 41b of the route driver converts the document (print target data) into printer-independent print data. The printer selection unit 41d adds the printer information of the printer (printer 110) selected earlier to the printer-independent print data. The transmission unit 41c transmits the printer-independent print data to the server 50 using the communication connection established earlier.

  FIG. 5 shows a format of data transmitted from the notebook PC to the server.

  The transmitted data is obtained by adding the setting information 200 and the printer information 210 to the printer-independent print data 250. The setting information 200 includes print setting information such as monochrome / color printing, paper size, and number of copies. The printer information 210 includes information for specifying a printer such as a printer name.

  The server receiving unit 51b waits for printer-independent print data. When the printer-independent print data is received, the receiving unit 51b gives it to the driver management unit 51c. The driver management unit 51c refers to the printer information 210 and selects one printer driver from a plurality of printer drivers. In this case, since the printer information includes information on the printer 110 (printer name, etc.), the driver management unit 51c gives printer-independent print data to the printer driver 52b. The printer driver 52b converts printer-independent print data into a data format that can be interpreted by a printer such as PDL, and generates a print job (printer-dependent print data). The print job is given from the printer driver 52b to the port monitor 53b.

  The port monitor is a program that manages the output destination of the print job, but is associated with the printer driver on a one-to-one basis. Therefore, when the printer driver is specified, the port monitor is automatically specified.

  Since the local port (for example, LPT1) to which the printer 110 is connected is registered as the print job output destination in the port monitor 53b, the port monitor 53b outputs the print job to the local port.

  When the printer 110 receives the print job, it prints it out.

  According to the second embodiment of the present invention, after a root driver is selected, a printer for which print output is desired can be selected from a plurality of printers. Therefore, when there are a plurality of printers in the destination network Even so, the printer to be printed can be specified.

(Third embodiment)
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network system according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that the authentication units (160, 170) are connected to the network. The authentication unit (160, 170) is a device for authenticating a user with an IC card or the like, and is associated with a printer on a one-to-one basis. In the third embodiment, the authentication unit (160, 170) is used to specify a printer for printing output together with user authentication.

  A functional block of the notebook PC will be described with reference to FIG.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that a user information management unit 66 is provided.

  The user information management unit 66 holds user information (user information). Here, the user information is information for uniquely identifying the user, such as a user ID recorded on the IC card. The user registers the IC card user information in the user information management unit 66 in advance.

  When transmitting the printer-independent print data, the root driver transmission unit 61c adds user information and transmits the print data. The functions of the search unit 61a and the conversion unit 61b are the same as in the case of the first embodiment.

  The functions of the application 62, the printer driver 63, the port monitor 64, and the communication module 65 are the same as in the case of the first embodiment.

  The function blocks of the server will be described with reference to FIG.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that an authentication unit 75 and a spooler 76 are provided, and a plurality of printer drivers (72a, 72b) and port monitors (73a, 73b) are provided. The printer driver 72a corresponds to the printer 100, and the IP address of the printer 100 is registered in the port monitor 73a. Similarly, the printer driver 72b corresponds to the printer 110, and the IP address of the printer 110 is registered in the port monitor 73b. When the spooler 76 receives printer-independent print data, the spooler 76 stores the print data in a spool area (not shown) provided in a RAM (Random Access Memory) or HDD (Hard Disc Drive) of the server 70. The spool area is a storage area for temporarily storing printer-independent print data. The authentication unit 75 receives user information and printer identification information from the authentication unit (160, 170), and collates the user information with user information added to printer-independent print data stored in the spool area. .

  Next, the operation of the network system in the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The network administrator installs the printer drivers 72 a and 72 b and sets the port monitors 73 a and 73 b so that the printer 100 and the printer 110 can be used from the server 70. In the case of the third embodiment, since there are a plurality of printers, the above setting is performed for each printer.

  The user installs the route driver 61 in the notebook PC 60 in advance. In addition, the user registers user information recorded on his IC card in the notebook PC 60.

  The user connects the notebook PC 60 to the destination network 120. The procedure for setting the IP address in the notebook PC 60 is the same as in the first embodiment.

  The user desires to print out the document stored in the notebook PC 60 with the printer (printer 100 or 110) of the network 120 at the movement destination. Here, the printer driver corresponding to these printers is not installed in the notebook PC, and the port monitor is not set.

  The user activates the application 62 to perform a document printing operation. Normally, when “print” is selected from the application 62, a screen for setting which printer to print out is displayed on the screen. As an example, the screen of FIG. 6 is shown (however, unlike the second embodiment, selecting the root driver and clicking the property button does not shift to the printer selection screen shown in FIG. 7). Since the printer installed on the notebook PC is displayed on this screen, the user can select a printer to be printed out from among the printers.

  For example, in the case of the notebook PC 60 of FIG. 8, since the printer driver 63 and the root driver 61 are installed, these two printers are displayed on the screen in a selectable manner. The printer driver 63 is a printer in the movement source network and cannot be used in the movement destination network 120. Accordingly, the user selects the root driver 61 and instructs printing.

  When printing is instructed, the application 62 instructs the root driver 61 to start printing via the operating system. When the print start is received, the route driver search unit 61 a establishes a communication connection with the service program 71 of the server 70.

  When the communication connection is established, the conversion unit 61b of the route driver converts the document (print target data) into printer-independent print data. The transmission unit 61c transmits the printer-independent print data to the server 70 using the communication connection established earlier.

  FIG. 9 shows a format of data transmitted from the notebook PC to the server.

  The transmitted data is obtained by adding the setting information 200 and the user information 220 to the printer-independent print data 250. The setting information 200 includes information such as monochrome / color printing, paper size, and the number of copies. The user information 220 includes information for identifying the user, such as a user ID included in the IC card.

  The server receiving unit 71b waits for printer-independent print data. When the printer-independent print data is received, the receiving unit gives it to the spooler 76. The spooler 76 stores the print data in a spool area (not shown).

  The user carries his / her IC card and moves to the printer installation location where he / she wishes to print out. Then, the user places his IC card over an authentication unit (authentication unit associated with the printer) installed in the vicinity of the printer. As an example, it is assumed that the user holds the IC card over the authentication unit 160 associated with the printer 100.

  The authentication unit 160 acquires user information from the IC card. Then, the authentication unit 160 sends the printer identification information (for example, the printer name and the printer IP address) for identifying the printer (in this case, the printer 100) associated with the own apparatus and the acquired user information to the network 120. To the server 70. It is assumed that the authentication unit knows the IP address of the server 70 in advance.

  The server authentication unit 75 waits for reception of printer identification information and user information. Upon receiving these pieces of information, the authentication unit 75 collates the user information with the user information added to the printer-independent print data stored in the spool area. If there is matching printer-independent data as a result of the collation, the spooler 76 is instructed to provide the printer-independent print data to the printer driver specified by the printer specifying information. In this case, the printer specifying information indicates the printer 100.

  The spooler 76 acquires printer-independent print data from the spool area and provides it to the printer driver 72a. The printer driver 72a converts printer-independent print data into a data format that can be interpreted by a printer such as PDL, and generates a print job (printer-dependent print data). The print job is given from the printer driver 72a to the port monitor 73a.

  The port monitor 73a that has received the print job transmits the print job to the printer 100 using a network printing protocol such as LPR (Line Printer Daemon Protocol).

  When the printer 100 receives a print job, it prints it out.

  According to the third embodiment of the present invention, the printer to be printed out is specified not when the notebook PC is instructed to print, but when the IC card is held over the authentication unit of the printer that desires the print output. The Thus, for example, it is possible to avoid the problem that the printer is specified by the notebook PC and instructed to be printed, but the printer is processing another print job and is waiting for print output.

(Fourth embodiment)
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network system according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that the peripheral device to be used by the notebook PC is not a printer but a scanner. In the fourth embodiment, by installing a scanner root driver, a scanner connected to a network can be used without installing a model-specific scanner driver.

  The functional blocks of the notebook PC will be described with reference to FIG.

  The application 82 is software that saves and processes image data read by a scanner, for example. The scanner route driver 81 includes a command transmission / reception unit 81b and a search unit 81a. The command transmission / reception unit 81b communicates the scanner control command and the scan data with the command transmission / reception unit 91b of the server 90 via the communication module 85. When receiving a scanner use request from the application 82, the search unit 81 a transmits a scanner search request to the network 120. When a search response is received from the server 90, a communication connection with the server 90 is established.

  The scanner driver 83 is for controlling a scanner that exists in the source network. The scanner driver 83 controls the scanner using a control command specific to the scanner model. The communication module 85 is a program for communicating with the network 120, and includes an IP or the like that controls communication in the Internet layer.

  Since the notebook PC 80 is normally connected to the source office and uses the scanner of the source office, the scanner driver 83 for that purpose is installed. Of course, the present invention can also be applied to a notebook PC in which the scanner driver is not installed.

  The function blocks of the server will be described with reference to FIG.

  The service program 91 includes a response unit 91a and a command transmission / reception unit 91b. When the response unit 91a receives a scanner search request from the search unit 81a of the scanner route driver, the response unit 91a returns a search response. The command transmission / reception unit 91b communicates scanner commands and scan data via the communication module 94 with the command transmission / reception unit 81b of the notebook PC 80. The scanner driver 92 is a scanner driver corresponding to the scanner 180. The communication module 94 is a program that communicates with the network 120, and includes an IP that controls communication in the Internet layer.

  Next, the operation of the network system in the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  The network administrator installs a scanner driver 92 corresponding to the scanner 180 in the server 90. In addition, the user installs the scanner root driver 81 in the notebook PC 80 in advance.

  The user connects the notebook PC 80 to the destination network 120. The procedure for setting the IP address in the notebook PC 80 is the same as in the first embodiment.

  The user moves to the installation location of the scanner 180 and sets a document to be read on the document table of the scanner 180.

  The user operates the application 82 and gives an instruction to start reading.

  When the reading start is instructed, the application 82 gives a scanner control command for instructing the scanner root driver 81 to start reading via the operating system. In response to this, the scanner root driver search unit 81 a transmits a server search request to the network 120. The server search request is transmitted by broadcast, for example.

  The server service program 91 is waiting for a server search request. When the server search request is received, the response unit 91a of the service program returns a server search response.

  The scanner root driver 81 of the notebook PC is waiting for a server search response. When the server search response is received, it is determined that the server 90 exists on the network 120 and a communication connection is established with the service program 91 of the server.

  When the communication connection between the notebook PC 80 and the server 90 is established, the command transmission / reception unit 81b of the scanner route driver transmits the scanner control command given from the application 82 to the server 90 using the communication connection established earlier. To do.

  The server command transmission / reception unit 91b waits for a scanner control command. When the command transmission / reception unit 91b receives the scanner control command, it gives it to the scanner driver 92. The scanner driver 92 controls the scanner 180 based on the scanner control command. When a response to the scanner control command is received from the scanner driver 92, the response is given to the command transmission / reception unit 81b of the notebook PC via the network 120. The command transmission / reception unit gives this to the application 82.

  The image data read by the scanner 180 is transmitted from the scanner 180 to the server 90 via the network 120. The command transmission / reception unit 91b of the server transmits the acquired image data to the notebook PC 80 using the previously established communication connection. The command transmission / reception unit 81 b of the notebook PC receives the image data and gives it to the application 82.

  As a result, the user can store and process the acquired image data by operating the application 82.

  According to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, since the server has the scanner driver, it is not necessary to set the scanner driver in the notebook PC. In addition, the scanner root driver automatically searches the server, sends a scanner control command, and acquires scanned image data when a scanning instruction is issued. The scanner root driver is specified by the application as a user operation. Then, it is only necessary to click the reading start button.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said each embodiment. For example, although the wired network is used as the movement destination network in each of the above embodiments, a wireless network such as the IEEE 802.11 standard may be used.

  In the above embodiments, the printer driver and the port monitor (or scanner driver) for using the printer (or scanner) of the source network are set in the notebook PC. However, the route driver is also used in the source network. By using (or a scanner route driver) (installing a server in the source network), these can be made unnecessary.

  In the second embodiment, the printer selection unit of the route driver acquires the printer information from the server when the printer search button is clicked on the screen shown in FIG. 7, but at other timings. You may make it acquire.

  Further, in the third embodiment, the authentication unit is shown as being directly connected to the network. However, as another form, the printer and the authentication unit may be connected via an interface such as a USB, The printer may have a built-in authentication unit.

  In the third embodiment, an IC card is used as user authentication information. However, for example, biometric authentication information such as fingerprint authentication can also be used.

  The present invention is useful when a network printer or a network scanner is used from a device such as a notebook PC that is temporarily connected to the network.

It is a figure showing an example of 1 operation of a network system in a 1st embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the network system in 1st Embodiment. In 1st Embodiment, it is a figure which shows the format of the data transmitted to a server from notebook PC. It is a figure which shows an example of the network system in 2nd Embodiment. In 2nd Embodiment, it is a figure which shows the format of the data transmitted to a server from notebook PC. It is a figure which shows an example of a printing screen. It is a figure which shows an example of the printer selection screen in a route driver. It is a figure which shows an example of the network system in 3rd Embodiment. In 3rd Embodiment, it is a figure which shows the format of the data transmitted to a server from notebook PC. It is a figure which shows an example of the network system in 4th Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Notebook PC
2 Printer 3 Server 4 PC
5 Network 6 Osaka Office 7 Printer 8 PC
9 PC
10 Network 11 Tokyo Office

Claims (1)

  A peripheral device utilization system in which a client terminal, a server device, a printer device, and an authentication device associated with the printer device on a one-to-one basis are connected.
  (1) The client terminal
  User information management means for registering user identification information;
  The application has a root driver that operates as a general-purpose interface that does not depend on the printer device model.
  The root driver is
  Display means for displaying a printer object as a print output destination when a user instructs printing from an application;
  Search means for searching for the server device and establishing a connection with the server device;
  First conversion means for converting the print target data into printer-independent print data;
  First transmission means for transmitting the printer-independent print data to the server device in association with the user identification information;
  (2) The server device
  Receiving means for receiving the printer-independent print data;
  Spooler means for storing the printer-independent print data in a temporary storage area;
  Second conversion means for converting the printer-independent print data into printer-dependent print data;
  User identification information and printer apparatus identification information are received from the authentication apparatus, printer-independent print data associated with user identification information that matches the user identification information is searched, and the printer apparatus identification information is The authentication means for giving the printer-independent print data to the second conversion means corresponding to the printer device identification information;
  Second transmission means for transmitting the printer-dependent print data to a printer device corresponding to the printer device identification information;
  (3) The authentication device
  Input means for accepting input of user identification information;
  And a third transmission unit for transmitting the user identification information input to the input unit and the printer identification information associated with the own device to the server device.

Images