JP7234647B2 - Program and Information Processing Equipment - Google Patents

Description

The technical field disclosed in this specification relates to a program and an information processing apparatus for setting a paper size used for printing by a printer.

2. Description of the Related Art A technique is known in which a user-defined paper size is stored in an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer, and paper used for printing by a printer is set based on the paper size. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200001 discloses a technique for selecting an appropriate printer paper by a management server when a user-defined paper size is specified in print data output from an information processing apparatus.

JP 2014-63386 A

When the user sets the paper size, it takes time and effort for the user to measure the appropriate size using a measuring device and to check the appropriate size from a manual or the like. Further, it is troublesome for the user to input paper size items one by one. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200003 does not disclose a technique related to the details when setting the paper size.

The present specification discloses a program for an information processing apparatus capable of setting a paper size, and discloses a technology for reducing the user's trouble in setting the paper size.

A program designed to solve this problem is executable by a computer of an information processing device, and is a program for setting a paper size used for printing by a printer, wherein the computer is provided with a user of the information processing device. a first reception process for receiving an input of an instruction to measure a paper size via an interface; a transmission process of transmitting a measurement request for requesting measurement of the paper size of the paper set in the printer, and the printer measures the paper size of the paper set in the printer. , a measurement function for outputting the measurement result, and further, when the computer receives the measurement result of the paper size transmitted by the printer that received the measurement request via the communication interface, a display process for displaying the paper size included in the measurement result on a display device of the information processing apparatus; a second reception process for receiving an input of a registration instruction indicating registration of the paper size via the user interface; 2. When the registration instruction is accepted in the acceptance process, a storage process of storing the paper data including the information of the paper size currently displayed on the display device in the memory of the information processing device is executed. is characterized by

By executing the program disclosed in this specification, the information processing apparatus sends a measurement request requesting measurement of the paper size of the paper set in the printer to the printer in response to receiving the input of the measurement instruction. , and receive and display the measurement results from the printer. In other words, the effort required to acquire information such as the paper size is reduced. Further, the information processing apparatus stores the paper data including the information being displayed in the memory in response to receiving the registration instruction. In other words, the trouble of inputting information such as paper size for registration is reduced.

The information processing apparatus that implements the functions of the program, the control method that implements the functions of the program, and the computer-readable storage medium that stores the program are also novel and useful.

According to the technique disclosed in the present specification, a program for an information processing apparatus capable of setting a paper size, and a technique that reduces the user's effort when setting the paper size is realized.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printing system according to an embodiment; FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an outline of an internal configuration of a printer; FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a procedure of paper setting processing; FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a paper registration screen; 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of size measurement processing; FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen during measurement execution; FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a paper information screen;

An embodiment embodying a printing system including a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as "PC") and a printer will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. This embodiment discloses a printing system including a printer that prints on a continuous strip of print medium.

As shown in FIG. 1, the printing system of this embodiment has a PC 1, a printer 2, and a printer 3, which are connected so as to be able to communicate with each other. The PC 1 is a device that executes various processes for causing the printers 2 and 3 to print. The PC 1 is an example of an information processing device. Specifically, the PC 1 creates and edits image data for printing, accepts various print settings including paper size settings, and transmits print commands to the printers 2 and 3 . For example, a smart phone or a tablet computer can be used instead of the PC 1 .

The PC 1 includes a control board 10 including a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, and a nonvolatile memory 14, as shown in FIG. Furthermore, the PC 1 includes a network interface (hereinafter referred to as "network IF") 16, a USB interface (hereinafter referred to as "USB-IF") 17, and a user interface (hereinafter referred to as "user IF") 18. , and a display 19 , which are electrically connected to the control board 10 . Note that the control board 10 in FIG. 1 is a collective term for hardware and software used to control the PC 1, and does not necessarily represent a single piece of hardware that actually exists in the PC 1. FIG.

The CPU 11 executes various processes according to programs read from the ROM 12 and the nonvolatile memory 14 and based on user's operations. The CPU 11 is an example of a computer. The ROM 12 stores a boot program and the like for booting the PC 1 . The RAM 13 is used as a work area when various processes are executed, or as a storage area for temporarily storing data. The nonvolatile memory 14 is, for example, an HDD or a flash memory, and is used as an area for storing programs such as various application programs (hereinafter referred to as “applications”), data such as image data and document data, and various settings. be. The ROM 12, RAM 13 and non-volatile memory 14 are all examples of memory. Further, if the CPU 11 has a CPU buffer, the CPU buffer is also an example of memory.

Any of the examples of memory may be a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. In addition to the above examples, non-transitory media include recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs. A non-transitory medium is also a tangible medium. On the other hand, an electrical signal that carries a program downloaded from a server on the Internet is a computer-readable signal medium, which is a kind of computer-readable medium, but is a non-transitory computer-readable storage. Not included in media.

The network IF 16 includes hardware for communicating with external devices via a network such as LAN and the Internet. The communication method of the network IF 16 may be wireless or wired, and may be of any standard. The USB-IF 17 includes hardware for performing communication based on the USB standard. Communication between the PC 1 and the printer 2 or 3 may be performed using the network IF 16 or the USB-IF 17 . Network IF 16 or USB-IF 17 is an example of a communication interface.

The user IF 18 includes hardware such as a keyboard, mouse, etc. that accepts user input operations. Display 19 includes hardware for displaying information on a screen. The display 19 is an example of a display device. Note that the PC 1 may have a touch panel or the like having the functions of both the user IF 18 and the display 19 .

As shown in FIG. 1, the PC 1 of the present embodiment includes a nonvolatile memory 14, a label creation application 40, and an operating system (hereinafter referred to as "OS") 41. As shown in FIG. The label creation application 40 includes a paper setting application 401 and a paper registration database (hereinafter referred to as “paper registration DB”) 402 . The label creation application 40 is a program that accepts editing of images for printing, print settings, print execution instructions, and the like. The label creation application 40 is an example of a program. The OS 41 includes a printer driver 411 that controls the printers 2 and 3 . Processing of each program will be described later.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the printer 2 or printer 3 of this embodiment incorporates a print head 21 and a print medium 22 wound into a roll, and performs printing on the print medium 22 and printing on the print medium 22. It is a so-called label printer that performs the transportation of the paper in parallel. The print heads 21 of the printers 2 and 3 are, for example, of a thermal transfer type, and include rows of a plurality of print pins that are heating elements. The printers 2 and 3 print on the print medium 22 by selectively heating each print pin of the print head 21 .

The print medium 22 used for printing by the printers 2 and 3 includes a continuous band-shaped base material 221 and a print target paper 222 attached to one side of the base material 221 . The printers 2 and 3 print on the paper 222 with the print head 21 while unwinding the print medium 22 . As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the printed portion of the print medium 22 is protruded out of the machine through the discharge port 23 . The printer 2 and printer 3 are provided with, for example, a manual cutter 24 near the outlet 23 . When the cutter 24 is operated by the user, the portion protruding outside the machine is cut off from the remaining print medium 22 and discharged.

The printing medium 22 used in the printers 2 and 3 includes a plurality of paper types depending on the shape of the paper 222 to be printed. Paper types are, for example, long tapes, die-cut labels, and media with marks. The long tape is formed by sticking a continuous strip of paper 222 similar to the base material 221 to the base material 221 . For example, by cutting off the printed portion with a cutter 24 or the like, a label of a predetermined length is created from the long tape. A die-cut label is a label in which cut sheets of paper 222 that have been cut in advance into a predetermined shape are attached to a substrate 221 at predetermined intervals. Marked media are media on which marks are provided at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction of the print medium 22, and each sheet 222 is set to a range including one mark.

The label creation application 40 of the present embodiment accepts setting of the paper size of each label created by printing with the printer 2 or printer 3 . Hereinafter, of the paper sizes, the size of the print medium 22 in the transport direction is referred to as "paper length", and the size in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction is referred to as "paper width". The transport direction of the print medium 22 is an example of the first direction. The paper width is determined by the set print medium 22 . For example, if the width of the paper 222 is smaller than the width of the substrate 221 , the width of the paper is the width of the paper 222 .

The paper length varies depending on the paper type and print data. When the paper type is a long tape, the paper length is the range to be printed for each piece of print data, and is the length that protrudes from the discharge port 23 after printing. If the paper type is a die-cut label, the paper length is one length of the cut paper 222 attached on the base material 221 . If the paper type is medium with marks, the paper length is the distance between marks in the transport direction.

The paper registration DB 402 stored in the non-volatile memory 14 of the PC 1 is a database that stores paper data of various papers used for printing by the printers 2 and 3 . The paper data is information about the print medium 22 that is set in the print job. A paper setting application 401 of the PC 1 is an application for creating paper data and registering it in the paper registration DB 402 .

Note that the printers 2 and 3 of this embodiment have a size measurement function for measuring the paper size of the set printing medium 22 and outputting the measurement result. The printers 2 and 3 have an optical sensor in the transport path, and detect the presence or absence of the paper 222 on the base material 221 and the presence or absence of the mark while transporting the printing medium 22 by the optical sensor. By executing the size measurement function, the printers 2 and 3 acquire information about the paper type, paper length, and paper width of the print medium 22, for example.

After starting the execution of the size measurement function, the printers 2 and 3 first determine the paper type. For example, when the end of the paper 222 is detected during measurement, the printer 2 or 3 determines that the paper type of the printing medium 22 being conveyed is a die-cut label, and transmits information indicating the die-cut label to the PC 1.例文帳に追加If it is determined that the label is not a die-cut label, the printer 2 or printer 3 further conveys and detects the presence or absence of a mark. and transmits information indicating marked media to the PC1. If the end of the paper 222 or the mark is not detected even after the paper 222 has been conveyed by a predetermined amount, the printer 2 or printer 3 determines that the paper type of the print medium 22 being conveyed is a long tape. After transmitting the paper type information, the printers 2 and 3 further transport the print medium 22 to measure the paper length and paper width, and after all the measurements are completed, send the measurement results to the PC 1.

Note that when the print medium 22 is stored in a cassette and the printer 2 or 3 can acquire the information of the print medium 22 from the cassette by installing the cassette, the printer 2 or printer 3 can acquire the information from the cassette. Information such as paper type may be acquired based on the information obtained.

The printer 2 has a width measurement function in addition to the size measurement function. The printer 2 includes a width sensor, which is a line sensor, in addition to the optical sensor described above, and can acquire the position of the widthwise edge of the paper 222 without conveying the print medium 22 . By executing the width measurement function, the printer 2 acquires information about the paper width of the print medium 22, for example. In executing the width measurement function, the printer 2 cannot obtain information on the paper type and paper length of the print medium 22 . In other words, the items measured by the printer 2 by the width measurement function are smaller than the items measured by the size measurement function.

On the other hand, the printer 3 is a model without a width sensor and does not have a width measurement function. Printer 2 is an example of a first model, and printer 3 is an example of a second model.

Then, the PC 1 receives an instruction to execute the size measurement function or the width measurement function in the paper setting application 401, for example. Upon receiving an execution instruction for each function, the PC 1 transmits a request for measurement using the received measurement function to the printers 2 and 3 . When the printer 2 receives a measurement request for the size measurement function or width measurement function from the PC 1 , the printer 2 executes the function corresponding to the received measurement request and transmits the measurement result to the PC 1 . When the printer 3 receives a measurement request for the size measurement function from the PC1, the printer 3 executes the size measurement function and transmits the measurement result to the PC1.

Further, the printer 2 and the printer 3 of this embodiment may be capable of mounting an option unit 25 outside the discharge port 23 as shown in FIG. 2, for example. The option unit 25 is a unit that processes the print medium 22 after printing. For example, the option unit 25 is a cutter option or a peeler option, and only one option can be installed. The cutter option is for automatically cutting the print medium 22 that has been printed and discharged from the discharge port 23. For example, it is possible to set cutting for each label or cutting at the trailing edge of all labels. The peeler option is for peeling the paper 222 from the base material 221. For example, the paper 222 is discharged after being partially peeled from the base material 221. FIG.

Next, each process performed by the label creation application 40 will be described. It should be noted that the following processing and each processing step in the flow chart basically indicate the processing of the CPU 11 in accordance with the instructions described in each program. That is, the processes such as "judgment", "extraction", "selection", "calculation", "determination", "specification", "acquisition", "acceptance", "control", etc. in the following description are performed by the CPU 11. represent. Processing by the CPU 11 also includes hardware control using the API of the OS 41 of the PC 1 . In this specification, the description of the OS 41 will be omitted and the operation of each program will be described. That is, in the following description, the description to the effect that "the program B controls the hardware C" may refer to "the program B controls the hardware C using the API of the OS 41". Also, the processing of the CPU 11 according to the instructions written in the program may be described with abbreviated words. For example, it may be described as "performed by the CPU 11" or "performed by the program".

Note that "acquisition" is used as a concept that does not require a request. That is, the process of receiving data without the CPU 11 requesting it is also included in the concept of "the CPU 11 acquires data." Also, "data" in this specification is represented by a computer-readable bit string. Data having substantially the same meaning and content but different formats are treated as the same data. The same applies to "information" in this specification. Further, "request" and "instruct" are concepts indicating outputting information indicating requesting or instructing to the other party. Also, information indicating a request or information indicating an instruction is simply referred to as a "request" or an "instruction."

Also, the process of judging by the CPU 11 whether or not the information A indicates that the matter B is conceptually described as "judging whether or not the information A is the matter B". There is The processing by the CPU 11 to determine whether information A indicates matter B or matter C is referred to as "judging whether information A is matter B or matter C". It may be described conceptually as

First, the procedure of paper setting processing by the paper setting application 401 of the label creation application 40 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The paper setting process is executed by the CPU 11 of the PC 1 when the label creation application 40 receives a paper data setting instruction. Paper setting processing executed with the printer 2 selected will be described below.

In the paper setting process, the CPU 11 first displays the paper registration screen 61 on the display 19 (S101). The paper registration screen 61 is, for example, a screen including a paper name column 611, a paper size column 612, and a margin size column 613, as shown in FIG. The paper registration screen 61 further includes a paper automatic detection selection field 62 , an add button 63 and a cancel button 64 . Then, the CPU 11 accepts input to each column on the paper registration screen 61 .

A paper name field 611 is a field for receiving the input of the paper name to be registered in the paper registration DB 402 and the selection of the paper type. As described above, paper types include, for example, long tapes, die-cut labels, and media with marks. The paper size field 612 includes a field for receiving input of an individual paper size and a field for receiving input of information indicating the arrangement of marks when the paper type is media with marks. The paper length can be freely set for long tapes. In the case of die-cut labels or marked media, each piece of information in the paper size column 612 is determined by the size of the individual label. A margin size column 613 is a column for receiving input of information for setting a margin around the print area.

The automatic paper detection selection field 62 is a field for receiving an instruction to cause the printer 2 to perform measurement using the size measurement function or the width measurement function. The add button 63 is a button for accepting a registration instruction to register paper data including information input on the paper registration screen 61 in the paper registration DB 402 . The cancel button 64 is a button for accepting an instruction to end the paper setting process without registering the paper data.

The CPU 11 determines whether or not an operation to the paper automatic detection selection field 62 has been received on the paper registration screen 61 being displayed (S102). S102 is an example of a first reception process. If it is determined that an operation to the automatic paper detection selection field 62 has been accepted (S102: YES), the CPU 11 selects "automatic paper detection" or "acquire width only", for example, as partly shown in FIG. 4B. The display 19 displays a pull-down menu for accepting a selection (S105).

"Paper automatic detection" is an option for accepting a size measurement instruction to cause the printer 2 to execute the size measurement function. The size measurement instruction is an instruction to cause the printer 2 to measure the size of the paper loaded in the printer. “Obtain Width Only” is an option for accepting a width measurement instruction to cause the printer 2 to perform the width measurement function. The width measurement instruction is an instruction to cause the printer 2 to measure the width of the paper loaded in the printer. When the size measurement function is executed, the printer 2 transmits to the PC 1 measurement results including at least information on the paper type, paper length, and paper width. On the other hand, when the width measurement function is executed, the printer 2 transmits to the PC 1 a measurement result containing at least paper width information and not including paper type and paper length information. The size measurement instruction is an example of a first measurement instruction, and the width measurement instruction is an example of a second measurement instruction.

The CPU 11 determines whether or not "automatic paper detection" has been selected from the pull-down menu, that is, whether or not a size measurement instruction has been received (S106). When determining that the size measurement instruction has been received (S106: YES), the CPU 11 executes size measurement processing (S107).

The procedure of size measurement processing will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the size measurement process, for example, as shown in FIG. 6A, the CPU 11 causes the display 19 to display an execution screen 71 indicating that measurement is being executed (S201). Since it takes a certain amount of time for the printer 2 to complete the size measurement function, the user is notified of the fact that the function is being executed by displaying the execution screen 71 . Further, the CPU 11 transmits a measurement request requesting measurement by the size measurement function to the printer 2 (S202). S202 is an example of a transmission process.

Upon receiving the measurement request, the printer 2 starts executing the size measurement function. The printer 2 transports the print medium 22 at a standard measurement speed and performs optical sensor measurements. The standard measurement speed may be a speed determined in advance as a transport speed when the size measurement function is executed, a transport speed during printing by the printer 2, or a speed specified by the PC 1 when the measurement request is transmitted. .

After transmitting the measurement request to the printer 2, the CPU 11 determines whether or not information indicating a die-cut label has been received from the printer 2 (S203). When determining that information indicating a die-cut label has been received (S203: YES), the CPU 11 causes the display 19 to display a die-cut label detection screen 72, as shown in FIG. 6B, for example (S204). The die-cut label detection screen 72 is obtained by adding a message indicating that a die-cut label has been detected, a retry button, and a cancel button to the in-execution screen 71 displayed in S201.

When determining that the information indicating the die-cut label has not been received (S203: NO), the CPU 11 determines whether or not the information indicating the marked medium has been received (S205). If it is determined that information indicating marked media has been received (S205: YES), the CPU 11 causes the display 19 to display a marked media detection screen 73, for example, as shown in FIG. 6C (S206). . A marked medium detection screen 73 is obtained by adding a message indicating that a marked medium is detected, a retry button, and a cancel button to the in-execution screen 71 displayed in S201.

The information indicating the die-cut label and the information indicating the marked medium received from the printer 2 is information indicating that the print medium 22 is a specific type of paper, and is an example of specific paper information. The die-cut label detection screen 72 and marked media detection screen 73 are screens for notifying that a specific type of paper is set in the printer 2, and S204 and S206 are examples of notification processing.

After S204 or S206, the CPU 11 determines whether or not a retry instruction has been received on the die-cut label detection screen 72 displayed in S204 or the marked medium detection screen 73 displayed in S206 (S207). . The retry instruction is an example of a remeasurement instruction, and S207 is an example of a fourth reception process. Retry is an instruction to request the printer 2 to re-execute the size measurement function. For example, if the die-cut label detection screen 72 is displayed even though the mounted printing medium 22 is not a die-cut label, the user can instruct the printer 2 to retry before completing the size measurement function. . In other words, by displaying the determined paper type, if you notice that an inappropriate paper is set or the measurement result by the size measurement function is not appropriate, you can can be interrupted and retried.

When determining that a retry instruction has not been received (S207: NO), the CPU 11 determines whether or not a cancel instruction has been received (S208). The instruction to cancel is an example of an instruction to cancel, and S208 is an example of a third receiving process. Cancel is an instruction to request the printer 2 to stop measuring the size measurement function. For example, when the user intends to use a long tape and the die-cut label detection screen 72 is displayed, the user can instruct cancellation before the printer 2 completes the size measurement function. In other words, by displaying the determined paper type, if you notice that an inappropriate paper is set or the measurement result by the size measurement function is not appropriate, you can can be discontinued.

If it is determined that no cancellation instruction has been received (S208: NO), or if it is determined that information indicating a medium with a mark has not been received (S205: NO), the CPU 11 includes information on various paper sizes. It is determined whether or not the measurement result has been received (S209). If it is determined that the measurement result has not been received (S209: NO), the CPU 11 returns to S203 and waits until any information is received from the printer 2 or an instruction to retry or cancel is received during display. .

When it is determined that a retry instruction has been received on the displayed die-cut label detection screen 72 or marked medium detection screen 73 (S207: YES), the CPU 11 issues a stop request to stop the size measurement function being executed. It is transmitted to the printer 2 (S210). Furthermore, the CPU 11 transmits to the printer 2 a speed reduction request to change the transport speed to a low measurement speed that is slower than the standard measurement speed (S211). The transport speed at the time of execution of the size measurement function is an example of measurement conditions. The standard measurement speed is an example of a first transport speed, and the low speed measurement speed is an example of a second transport speed.

Then, the CPU 11 returns to S<b>201 , causes the display 19 to display the in-execution screen 71 shown in FIG. As a result, the printer 2 conveys the print medium 22 at a low measurement speed, and redoes the size measurement function. The measurement request transmitted in S202 in this case is an example of a retry request, and S202 is an example of retry request processing. If a retry instruction is received after the size measurement function is started with the transport speed set to a low measurement speed, the CPU 11 may display an error message indicating that the retry is already being performed, and may not accept the retry. However, re-measurement may be performed at a low measurement speed, or re-measurement may be performed at a speed lower than the low measurement speed.

If it is determined that a cancellation instruction has been received on the displayed die-cut label detection screen 72 or marked medium detection screen 73 (S208: YES), the CPU 11 requests cancellation of the size measurement function being executed. The request is sent to the printer 2 (S212). S212 is an example of a stop request process. As a result, the printer 2 stops the size measurement function being executed. Furthermore, the CPU 11 closes the die-cut label detection screen 72 or the marked medium detection screen 73 being displayed (S213).

On the other hand, if it is determined that the measurement result has been received (S209: YES), the CPU 11 can determine that the measurement by the printer 2 has ended. The attached medium detection screen 73 is closed (S215), and the paper information screen 74 is displayed on the display 19 as shown in FIG. 7, for example (S216). S216 is an example of display processing. The paper information screen 74 is a screen showing information on the measurement results received from the printer 2, and includes, for example, information on paper type, paper width, and paper length, an import button, and a cancel button. If the paper type is a die-cut label, information on the distance between labels is also included. A die-cut label is an example of die-cut paper, and the distance between labels is an example of a parameter.

The import button is a button for accepting an instruction to automatically input the paper information being displayed into each column of the paper registration screen 61 (see FIG. 4) described above. The cancel button is a button for accepting an instruction to close the paper information screen 74 being displayed and return to the paper registration screen 61 .

The CPU 11 determines whether or not the operation of the import button has been accepted (S217). When determining that the operation of the import button has not been received (S217: NO), the CPU 11 determines whether or not the operation of the cancel button has been received (S218). When determining that the operation of the cancel button has not been accepted (S218: NO), the CPU 11 returns to S217 and waits until the operation of the import button or the cancel button is accepted.

When determining that the operation of the import button has been accepted (S217: YES), the CPU 11 inputs and displays each information of the measurement result in each column of the paper registration screen 61 (S219). Accordingly, the information on the paper registration screen 61 is updated based on the measurement results received from the printer 2 . After S219, or when it is determined that the operation of the cancel button has been accepted on the paper information screen 74 (S218: YES), or after S213, the CPU 11 ends the size measurement process and returns to the paper setting process. .

Returning to the description of FIG. If it is determined that the size measurement instruction has not been received (S106: NO), the CPU 11 determines whether "obtain width only" has been selected in the pull-down menu shown in FIG. It is determined whether or not it has been accepted (S108). When determining that the width measurement instruction has been received (S108: YES), the CPU 11 executes width measurement processing (S109).

The width measurement process is a process including only the paper width measurement process among the size measurement processes shown in FIG. Specifically, the width measurement process is a process in which S203 to S208 and S210 to S213 of the size measurement process are deleted. The process of transmitting the measurement request to the printer 2 in the width measurement process is an example of the transmission process. The printer 2 that has received the width measurement request measures the paper width of the paper 222 by the width sensor without conveying the print medium 22 . The measurement result obtained from the printer 2 by the CPU 11 in the width measurement process is only the paper width, and the information displayed on the paper information screen 74 is also only the paper width.

If it is determined that an operation to the paper automatic detection selection field 62 has not been received (S102: NO), or after S107 or after S109, or if it is determined that a width measurement instruction has not been received (S108 : NO), the CPU 11 determines whether or not the add button 63 has been pressed (S110). S110 is an example of a second reception process.

When determining that the add button 63 has not been pressed (S110: NO), the CPU 11 determines whether or not the cancel button 64 has been pressed (S111). If it is determined that the cancel button 64 has not been pressed (S111: NO), the CPU 11 returns to S102, and until it receives an operation on the automatic paper detection selection field 62, a press of the add button 63, or a press of the cancel button 64, Input to each column of the paper registration screen 61 is accepted.

When determining that the add button 63 has been pressed (S110: YES), the CPU 11 registers each piece of information input to the paper registration screen 61 as paper data in the paper registration DB 402 (S112). S112 is an example of a storage process. Further, the CPU 11 transmits an instruction to register similar information to the printer 2 (S113). If the printer 2 has a function of storing paper information in its own memory along with execution of the size measurement function, S113 may be skipped.

Note that when the option unit 25 (see FIG. 2) is attached to the printer 2, some option units 25 are set with a recommended minimum length as the paper length. In this case, the CPU 11 determines whether the length of the paper displayed on the paper registration screen 61 is shorter than the minimum length of the attached optional unit 25 before registering it in the paper registration DB 402 in S112. A warning message may be displayed when it is determined to be short. Additionally, you may cancel your registration.

After S113, or if it is determined that the cancel button 64 has been pressed (S111: YES), the CPU 11 closes the paper registration screen 61 (S114) and ends the print setting process.

Note that when the selected printer is the printer 3, the process executed by the CPU 11 of the PC 1 is different from the paper setting process shown in FIG. Since the printer 3 does not have a width sensor, it does not have a width measurement function. Therefore, the CPU 11 does not accept an instruction to execute the width measurement function on the paper registration screen 61 . Specifically, the CPU 11 displays a paper registration screen 61 including an automatic paper detection button for receiving an instruction for automatic paper detection instead of the automatic paper detection selection field 62 including a pull-down menu.

The paper setting process corresponding to the printer 3 is obtained by deleting S105, S106, S108, and S109 from the paper setting process shown in FIG. When the CPU 11 receives an instruction for automatic paper detection (YES in S102), the CPU 11 determines that it is an instruction to execute the size measurement function, and executes size measurement processing in S107.

The PC 1 may be able to execute the paper setting application 401 even when no printer is selected. In that case, the PC 1 may not accept automatic paper detection, or may display a window for accepting printer selection and accept printer selection by the user. Then, the PC 1, for example, accepts input of numerical values in the paper size column 612 and the margin size column 613 of the paper registration screen 61, and forms paper data that associates each received information with the paper name set in the paper name column 611. is registered in the paper registration DB 402 .

As described in detail above, according to the printing system described in this specification, the printer 2 and the printer 3 have the size measurement function, and the PC 1 requests the printer 2 and the printer 3 to execute the size measurement function. can do. When registering paper data in the paper registration DB 402, the PC 1 of this embodiment transmits a measurement request to the selected printer in response to receiving an instruction for automatic paper detection, and receives the measurement result from the printer. is displayed on the paper registration screen 61 . Since the PC 1 automatically transmits the request for the size measurement function, the user's trouble in obtaining the paper size is reduced. In addition, since the PC 1 automatically displays the measurement result, the user's trouble of inputting the paper size can be reduced.

It may take some time for the printer to complete the size measurement function. In this embodiment, when the paper type determination result is received before the completion of the paper size measurement, it is displayed that the paper is of a specific type. can be recognized. In addition, by receiving an instruction to cancel measurement together with displaying that the paper is of a specific type, useless continuation of measurement can be avoided. In addition, by receiving an instruction to reduce the transport speed of the print medium 22 and retry along with the indication that the paper is of a specific type, it is possible to avoid unnecessary continuation of measurement and obtain more appropriate measurement results. sexuality increases.

Since the printer 2 has a size measurement function and a width measurement function, by transmitting a measurement instruction designating one of the functions from the PC 1, the functions of the printer can be further exhibited and the user's convenience can be improved. improves. The size measurement function can determine the paper type, while the width measurement function can acquire only the paper width. If the paper type can be determined, the user's convenience is improved by displaying the determination result.

Since the printer 3 has only the size measurement function, the PC 1 does not display the option of obtaining only the width in the paper setting process when the printer 3 is selected. By making it possible to accept measurement instructions that can be handled for each printer model, it is possible to avoid confusion for the user, such as items in the measurement results that differ from the user's assumptions.

In addition, the measurement result of measuring a die-cut label includes information on the distance between labels in addition to the paper width and paper length. If the label is determined to be a die-cut label, the parameters required for the die-cut label are displayed, thereby improving convenience for the user.

It should be noted that the present embodiment is merely an example, and does not limit the present invention in any way. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the number of PCs and printers is not limited to the illustrated example. Moreover, the printing method of the printer 2 is not limited to the thermal transfer method, and may be, for example, an inkjet method, an electrophotographic method, or a thermal method. Also, the print medium is not limited to labels, and may be, for example, simple roll paper.

Also, although the paper setting process is performed by the paper setting application 401 , it may be performed by the printer driver 411 . Also, the configuration of the display screen is an example, and is not limited to the illustrated example. For example, although the options for the measurement function are displayed using a pull-down menu, the options are not limited to this, and may be displayed using buttons.

In addition to the display of the paper type, it is assumed that retry or cancellation is accepted, but this need not be accepted. In that case, it is not necessary to display only the paper type. Further, the printer may not transmit paper type information during measurement, and may transmit all information after all measurements are completed. In addition, the conveying speed is automatically lowered at the time of retry, but it is not necessary. For example, the user may be asked whether to slow down or not.

Further, in any flowchart disclosed in the embodiments, multiple processes in any multiple steps can be arbitrarily changed in execution order or executed in parallel as long as there is no contradiction in the processing contents.

Also, the processing disclosed in the embodiments may be performed by a single CPU, multiple CPUs, hardware such as an ASIC, or a combination thereof. Further, the processes disclosed in the embodiments can be realized in various forms such as a recording medium recording a program for executing the processes, a method, and the like.

1 PC
2 Printer 11 CPU
14 non-volatile memory 16 network IF
17 USB-IF
18 User interface
19 Display 40 Label making app

Claims (10)

A program executable by a computer of an information processing device and for setting a paper size used for printing by a printer,
to the computer;
a first reception process for receiving input of a paper size measurement instruction via the user interface of the information processing apparatus;
Measurement for requesting the printer to measure the paper size of the paper set in the printer via the communication interface of the information processing device when the measurement instruction is received in the first reception process. a sending process for sending a request, and the printer has a measurement function for measuring the paper size of the paper set in the printer and outputting the measurement result,
Furthermore, in said computer,
When a paper size measurement result sent by the printer that received the measurement request is received via the communication interface, the paper size included in the received measurement result is displayed on a display device of the information processing device. a display process that causes
a second reception process for receiving input of a registration instruction indicating registration of a paper size via the user interface;
a storage process of storing paper data including information of a paper size currently displayed on the display device in a memory of the information processing apparatus when the registration instruction is received in the second reception process;
and
Furthermore, in said computer,
A specific type of paper is set in the printer when specific paper information is received after the measurement request is sent and before the paper size measurement result is received from the printer via the communication interface. In the printer, when the paper set in the printer is the specific type of paper, the printer performs the specific type of paper during measurement of the paper size by the measurement function. outputting the specific paper information indicating that it is paper;
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 1 ,
to the computer;
a third reception process for receiving an input of a stop instruction to stop measuring the paper size via the user interface during the notification period of the notification process;
stop request processing for transmitting a stop request requesting stop of paper size measurement to the printer via the communication interface when the stop instruction is received in the third reception processing;
to run
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 1 ,
to the computer;
a fourth reception process for receiving input of a remeasurement instruction indicating remeasurement of the paper size via the user interface during the notification period of the notification process;
When the re-measurement instruction is received in the fourth reception process, the printer is instructed via the communication interface to stop the paper size measurement currently being executed, change the measurement conditions, and measure the paper size. retry request processing for sending a retry request requesting re-execution of
to run
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 3 ,
the measurement request is a request to cause the printer to transport a sheet of paper set in the printer at a first transport speed in a first direction and to measure the size of the sheet of paper in the first direction;
The retry request causes the printer to stop measuring the paper size based on the measurement request, change the paper transport speed to a second transport speed slower than the first transport speed, and measure the paper size. is a request to rerun the
A program characterized by In the program according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
The measurement instructions include a first measurement instruction and a second measurement instruction,
the first measurement instruction is an instruction to cause the printer to measure N items of paper size using the measurement function;
the second measurement instruction is an instruction to cause the printer to measure M items, which are less than the N items of the paper size, by the measurement function;
In the display process,
When the first measurement instruction has been received in the first reception process, the N items of the paper size included in the measurement result when the measurement corresponding to the first measurement instruction is performed are display on the display device,
When the second measurement instruction has been received in the first reception process, the M items of the paper size included in the measurement result when the measurement corresponding to the second measurement instruction is performed are displayed on a display device,
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5 ,
The printer includes a first model that supports both a measurement request based on the first measurement instruction and a measurement request based on the second measurement instruction, and a measurement request based on the first measurement instruction. a second model that corresponds to but does not correspond to a measurement request based on said second measurement instruction;
In the first reception process,
if the printer is the first model, accepts both the first measurement instruction and the second measurement instruction;
when the printer is the second model, accepting the first measurement instruction and not accepting the second measurement instruction;
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5 or claim 6 ,
the first measurement instruction is an instruction that accompanies paper conveyance when the printer measures the paper size;
The second measurement instruction is an instruction that does not accompany transport of paper when the printer measures the paper size.
A program characterized by In the program according to any one of claims 5 to 7 ,
In the measurement request based on the first measurement instruction, the type of paper is included in the received measurement result,
In the measurement request based on the second measurement instruction, the type of paper is not included in the received measurement result,
In the display process,
When the first measurement instruction has been received in the first reception process, the type of paper included in the measurement result when the measurement corresponding to the measurement request based on the first measurement instruction is performed is displayed. display on the device
A program characterized by In the program according to any one of claims 5 to 8 ,
In the first measurement instruction, the received measurement result includes information as to whether it is die-cut paper,
In the display process,
display the parameters corresponding to the die-cut paper,
A program characterized by memory;
a user interface;
a communication interface;
a computer;
An information processing device comprising
The computer is
a first reception process for receiving, via the user interface, an input of an instruction to measure the size of a sheet of paper set in a printer connected to the information processing device;
When the measurement instruction is received in the first reception process, a measurement request requesting measurement of the paper size of the paper set in the printer is transmitted to the printer via the communication interface. and a transmission process, wherein the printer measures the paper size of the currently set paper in response to receiving the measurement request, and has a measurement function of outputting the measurement result,
Further, the computer
When a paper size measurement result sent by the printer that received the measurement request is received via the communication interface, the paper size included in the received measurement result is displayed on a display device of the information processing device. a display process that causes
a second reception process for receiving input of a registration instruction indicating registration of a paper size via the user interface;
a storage process of storing paper data including information of a paper size currently displayed on the display device in the memory when the registration instruction is received in the second reception process;
and run
Further, the computer
A specific type of paper is set in the printer when specific paper information is received after the measurement request is sent and before the paper size measurement result is received from the printer via the communication interface. and executing a notification process for notifying that the paper set in the printer is the specific type of paper, and the printer detects the specific type of paper during the paper size measurement by the measurement function. outputting the specific paper information indicating that it is paper;
An information processing device characterized by:

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