U.S. patent number RE48,764 [Application Number 16/541,827] was granted by the patent office on 2021-10-05 for information processing apparatus, recording system, computer readable medium.
This patent grant is currently assigned to BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA. The grantee listed for this patent is BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA. Invention is credited to Norihiko Asai.
United States Patent |
RE48,764 |
Asai |
October 5, 2021 |
Information processing apparatus, recording system, computer
readable medium
Abstract
An information processing apparatus includes: a display; user
interface a user interface; a storage configured to store an
external program; a network interface configured to perform
wireless communication with an image recording apparatus capable of
executing recording processing of recording an image on a sheet
according to a setting value; and a controller configured to
execute: external acquisition processing of executing the external
program for determining the print data based on a user's operation
and acquiring the print data; preview display processing of
generating a preview image and displaying the preview image on the
display; first reception processing of receiving a touch operation
of instructing execution of the recording processing through the
user interface; and output processing of, when the first touch
operation is received, transmitting recording instruction
information for executing the recording processing of the print
data to the image recording apparatus.
Inventors: |
Asai; Norihiko (Tajimi,
JP) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA |
Nagoya |
N/A |
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
(Nagoya, JP)
|
Family
ID: |
1000005565062 |
Appl.
No.: |
16/541,827 |
Filed: |
August 15, 2019 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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Reissue of: |
14966063 |
Dec 11, 2015 |
9733879 |
Aug 15, 2017 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Dec 11, 2014 [JP] |
|
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2014-250921 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F
3/1286 (20130101); G06F 3/1205 (20130101); G06F
3/1227 (20130101); H04N 1/00962 (20130101); G06F
3/1292 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G06F
3/12 (20060101); H04N 1/00 (20060101) |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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2003-337669 |
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Nov 2003 |
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JP |
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2006-163990 |
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Jun 2006 |
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JP |
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2010-211667 |
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Sep 2010 |
|
JP |
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2014-038410 |
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Feb 2014 |
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JP |
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2014-137770 |
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Jul 2014 |
|
JP |
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2014-174663 |
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Sep 2014 |
|
JP |
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Other References
"Instruction manual iPad/iPhone/iPod touch application ePrint",
Mar. 28, 2014, pp. 1-44, http://www.e - workshop - , Microtech Co.,
Ltd.,dev.com/downloadfiles/ePrintManual_J.pdf together with an
English language abstract. cited by applicant .
Official Action dated May 12, 2020 received in Japanese Patent
Application No. 2019-082451 together with an English language
translation. cited by applicant .
Notice of Allowance dated Mar. 28, 2017 received in related U.S.
Appl. No. 14/966,063. cited by applicant .
Office Action dated Oct. 14, 2016 received in related U.S. Appl.
No. 14/966,063. cited by applicant .
Official Action dated Feb. 4, 2020 received from the Japanese
Patent Office in related application JP 2019-082451, together with
an English language translation. cited by applicant .
Furuya Satoyuki, Print Setting Change, Jun. 22, 2006, Machine
Translated Japanese Pantent Application Publication JP 2006-163990
Listed on IDS, All Pages. cited by applicant.
|
Primary Examiner: Nasser; Robert L
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Scully Scott Murphy &
Presser
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing a
printing program configured to be executed by a computer comprising
a display, a user interface, a storage configured to store an
external program which is installed in the computer and a network
interface.[., the printing program.]., when the printing program
which is installed in the computer is executed by the computer, the
printing program causing the computer to execute: first user
interface displaying process of displaying, on the display a first
user interface which allows a user to select a first type of print
data, when the external program is executed by the computer, the
external program causing the computer to execute second user
interface displaying process of displaying, on the display, a
second user interface which allows the user to select a second type
of print data different from the first type of print data, when the
printing program .[.which is installed in the computer.]. is
executed by the computer, causing the computer to execute:
.Iadd.determination processing of determining whether the external
program is stored in the storage; .Iaddend. third user interface
displaying process of display, on the display, a third user
interface which allows the user to select an activation of the
external program; .Iadd.list display processing of displaying, on
the display, a basic object and an external object, the external
object representing the external program stored in the storage, in
the list display processing, only an external object of a specific
external program which is determined to be stored in the storage in
the determination processing is displayed on the display as the
external object, the external object being the third user
interface, .Iaddend. external program executing processing of
executing the external program when the user selects the activation
of the external program through the third user interface, after the
external program is activated, external acquisition processing of
acquiring the second type of the print data selected by the user
through the second user interface; preview display processing of
displaying a preview image on the display, the preview image
representing a state where a print image represented by one of the
first type of the print data selected by the user through the first
user interface and the second type of the print data acquired in
the external acquisition processing is recorded on a sheet
according to the specified setting value, by an image recording
apparatus which is configured to perform wireless communication
with the network interface; first reception processing of receiving
a first touch operation through the .Iadd.first .Iaddend.user
interface at a state where the preview image is displayed on the
display, the first touch operation instructing execution of the
recording processing of the print data.[.user interface.].; and
output processing of, when the first touch operation is received in
the first reception processing, transmitting recording instruction
information to the image recording apparatus through the network
interface, recording instruction information instructing the image
recording apparatus to execute the recording processing of the
print data.
.[.2. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein the printing program causes the
computer to execute: list display processing of displaying, on the
display, a basic object and an external object, the external object
representing the external program stored in the storage in the
third user interface displaying process; in a state that the third
user interface is displayed on the display, second reception
processing of receiving, through the user interface, a second touch
operation of selecting one of the basic object and the external
object which are displayed on the display in the list display
processing; basic acquisition processing of, when the second touch
operation of selecting the basic object is received in the second
reception processing, receiving, through the user interface, a
designation operation of designating data which can be acquired
from an acquisition source and acquiring, as the first type of the
print data which is acquired through the first user interface, the
data designated in the designation operation from the acquisition
source without intervention of the external program, and the
external acquisition processing by using the external program
represented by the external object when the second touch operation
of selecting the external object is received in the second
reception processing..].
.[.3. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 2, wherein the printing program is causes the
computer to execute determination processing of determining whether
the external program is stored in the storage, and in the list
display processing, only an external object of a specific external
program which is determined to be stored in the storage in the
determination processing is displayed on the display as the
external object..].
.[.4. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 3, wherein the printing program causes the
computer to execute identification information acquisition
processing of acquiring a plurality of program identifying
information for identifying each of the external programs that can
be executed in the external acquisition processing, and in the
determination processing, it is determined whether the external
program identified by the program identifying information is stored
in the storage..].
.[.5. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 3, wherein the printing program causes the
computer to execute: object acquisition processing of attempting to
acquire first object data from the specific external program, the
object data representing a first object; display the first object
on the display, as the external object, in the list display
processing when the first object data is acquired in the object
acquisition processing, and the first object represents the
specific external program..].
.[.6. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 5, wherein second object data representing a
second object for distinguishing one of the external programs from
another external program is stored in the storage, third object
data representing a third object for distinguishing the external
programs from the basic object is stored in the storage, and the
printing program causes the computer to display one of the second
object and the third object on the display, as the external object,
in the list display processing..].
.[.7. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 6, wherein when the first object data is
acquired in the object acquisition processing, the printing program
causes the computer to display the first object on the display, as
the external object, in the list display processing, and when the
first object data cannot be acquired in the object acquisition
processing, the printing program causes the computer to display one
of the second object and the third object on the display, as the
external object, in the list display processing..].
.[.8. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 7, wherein the second object data and the third
object data are stored in the storage when the printing instruction
is installed in the computer or when the printing instruction is
updated..].
.[.9. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 3, wherein the external object is provided to an
area of the storage allotted to the external program when the
external program is installed in the computer, and the printing
program reads out the external object from the storage from an area
of the storage allotted to the external program..].
.[.10. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 3, wherein when it is notified from an OS
(Operation System) of the computer that the external program is
deleted from the storage, the printing program causes the computer
to set the external object, which represents the specific external
program, to a non-display state in the list display
processing..].
.[.11. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 3, wherein when it is determined in the
determination processing that the external program is not stored in
the storage, the printing program causes the computer to display a
notification object, which notifies that there is the external
program capable of being installed in the computer, on the display
in the list display processing..].
.[.12. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein the printing program causes the
computer to execute: the external acquisition processing of
acquiring program identifying information of the executed external
program from the external program, the identifying information
identifying the external program that can be executed in the
external acquisition processing; readout processing of, when the
first setting value associated with the acquired program
identifying information is stored in the storage, reading out the
first setting value from the storage; the preview display
processing of displaying the preview image, which is generated
according to the first setting value read out in the readout
processing, on the display, and the output processing of
transmitting, to the image recording apparatus through the network
interface, the recording instruction information for executing the
recording processing of the second type of the print data according
to the first setting value used for generation of the preview
image..].
.[.13. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 12, wherein in the preview display processing
that is executed when a designated setting value, which is the
setting value to be used in the recording processing of the second
type of the print data, is acquired from the external program, the
printing program displays the preview image generated according to
the designated setting value on the display, regardless of whether
the first setting value is stored in the storage..].
.[.14. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 13, wherein the printing program causes the
computer to store the designated setting value in the storage as
the first setting value..].
.[.15. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing
an external program that is to be executed by the computer with an
instruction from the printing program according to claim 1, wherein
when the user interface receives a touch operation of designating
the second type of the print data, the external program causes the
computer to execute notification processing of notifying the
printing program of data identifying information representing the
second type of the print data..].
.[.16. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein the printing program is called by the
external program as a plug-in..].
.[.17. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein the printing program is activated by
the external program through an Operating System (OS)..].
.[.18. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein wherein the printing program causes
the computer to execute: notifying process of activating the
external program and notifying, of the external program, a
selectable range of the setting values to be used in the output
processing; after notifying the selectable range of the setting
values, setting value acquiring process of acquiring, from the
external program, the setting value selected from the selectable
range by the external program as the specified setting
value..].
19. An information processing apparatus comprising: a display; a
user interface; a storage configured to store an external program
and .[.a printing program.]. .Iadd.an instruction program
.Iaddend.which are independently installed in the information
processing apparatus; a network interface; and a processor
configured to execute the external program and the .[.printing.].
.Iadd.instruction .Iaddend.program, .[.when the printing program
which is installed in the computer is executed by the computer, the
printing program causing the computer to execute first user
interface displaying process of displaying, on the display a first
user interface which allows a user to select a first type of print
data,.]. when the external program is executed by the
.[.computer.]. .Iadd.processor.Iaddend., the external program
causing the .[.computer.]. .Iadd.processor .Iaddend.to execute
.[.second user interface.]. .Iadd.external program screen
.Iaddend.displaying process of displaying, on the display, .[.a
second user interface.]. .Iadd.an external program screen
.Iaddend.which allows the user .Iadd.interface to receive a second
operation .Iaddend.to a second type of .[.print.]. .Iadd.image
.Iaddend.data.[.different from the first type of print data.].,
wherein the .[.printing.]. .Iadd.instruction .Iaddend.program when
executed by the processor, causes the information processing
apparatus to execute: .Iadd.determination processing of determining
whether the external program is stored in the storage; list display
processing of displaying, on the display, a basic object and an
external object on an instruction program screen, the external
object representing the external program stored in the storage, in
the list display processing, only an external object of a specific
external program which is determined to be stored in the storage in
the determination processing is displayed on the display as the
external object, .Iaddend. .[.third user interface displaying
process of display, on the display, a third user interface.].
.Iadd.the instruction program screen .Iaddend.which allows the user
.Iadd.interface to receive an operation .Iaddend.to select an
activation of the external program .Iadd.via the external
object.Iaddend.; external program executing processing of executing
the external program when the user selects the activation of the
external program through the .[.third user interface.].
.Iadd.instruction program screen.Iaddend.; after the external
program is activated, external acquisition processing of acquiring
the second type of the .[.print.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.data
selected by the .[.user.]. .Iadd.second operation received
.Iaddend.through the .[.second.]. user interface; preview display
processing of displaying a preview image on the display, the
preview image representing a state where .[.a print.]. .Iadd.an
.Iaddend.image represented by one of .[.the.]. .Iadd.a
.Iaddend.first type of .[.the print.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.data
selected by .[.the user.]. .Iadd.a first operation received
.Iaddend.through the .[.first.]. user interface, .Iadd.the first
type of image data different from the second type of image data,
.Iaddend.and the second type of the .[.print.]. .Iadd.image
.Iaddend.data selected by the .[.user.]. .Iadd.second operation
received .Iaddend.through the .[.second.]. user interface .[.is
recorded on a sheet.]. .Iadd.is subjected to an image processing
.Iaddend.according to the specified setting value, by an image
.[.recording.]. .Iadd.processing .Iaddend.apparatus which is
configured to perform wireless communication with the network
interface; first reception processing of receiving a first touch
operation through the user interface at a state where the preview
image is displayed on the display, the first touch operation
instructing execution of the .[.recording.]. .Iadd.image
.Iaddend.processing of the .[.print data user interface.].
.Iadd.image data.Iaddend.; and output processing of, when the first
touch operation is received in the first reception processing,
transmitting recording instruction information to the image
.[.recording.]. .Iadd.processing .Iaddend.apparatus through the
network interface, recording instruction information instructing
the image .[.recording .]. .Iadd.processing .Iaddend.apparatus to
execute the .[.recording.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.processing of the
.[.print.]. .Iadd.image.Iaddend..
20. .[.A recording.]. .Iadd.An information processing
.Iaddend.system comprising: an information processing apparatus
comprising a display, a user interface, a storage configured to
store an external program and .[.a printing.]. .Iadd.an instruction
.Iaddend.program which are independently installed in the
information processing apparatus, a first network interface, and a
first processor configured to execute the external program and the
.[.printing.]. .Iadd.instruction .Iaddend.program, .[.when the
printing program which is installed in the computer is executed by
the computer, the printing program causing the computer to execute
first user interface displaying process of displaying, on the
display a first user interface which allows a user to select a
first type of print data,.]. when the external program is executed
by the .[.computer.]. .Iadd.first processor.Iaddend., the external
program causing the .[.computer.]. .Iadd.first processor
.Iaddend.to execute .[.second user interface.]. .Iadd.external
program screen .Iaddend.displaying process of displaying, on the
display, .[.a second user interface.]. .Iadd.an external program
screen .Iaddend.which allows the user .Iadd.interface to receive a
second operation .Iaddend.to select a second type of .[.print.].
.Iadd.image .Iaddend.data.[.different from the first type of print
data.]., and an image .[.recording.]. .Iadd.processing
.Iaddend.apparatus comprising a recording unit configured to
execute .[.recording.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.processing of
recording an image, a second network interface, and a controller,
wherein the .[.printing.]. .Iadd.instruction .Iaddend.program when
executed by the .Iadd.first .Iaddend.processor, causes the
information processing apparatus to execute: .Iadd.determination
processing of determining whether the external program is stored in
the storage, list display processing of displaying, on the display,
a basic object and an external objection an instruction program
screen, the external object representing the external program
stored in the storage, in the list display processing, only an
external object of a specific external program which is determined
to be stored in the storage in the determination processing is
displayed on the display as the external object, .Iaddend. .[.third
user interface displaying process of display, on the display, a
third user interface.]. .Iadd.the instruction program screen
.Iaddend.which allows the user .Iadd.interface to receive an
operation .Iaddend.to select an activation of the external program
.Iadd.via the external object.Iaddend.: external program executing
processing of executing the external program when the user selects
the activation of the external program through the .[.third user
interface.]. .Iadd.instruction program screen.Iaddend.; after the
external program is activated, external acquisition processing of
acquiring the second type of .[.print.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.data
selected by the .[.user.]. .Iadd.second operation received
.Iaddend.through the .[.second.]. user interface; preview display
processing of displaying a preview image on the display, the
preview image representing a state where .[.a print.]. .Iadd.an
.Iaddend.image represented by one of .[.the.]. .Iadd.a first
.Iaddend.type of .[.the print.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.data selected
by .[.the user.]. .Iadd.a first operation received .Iaddend.through
the .[.first.]. user interface.Iadd., the first type of image data
different from the second type of image data, .Iaddend.and the
second type of the .[.print.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.data selected
by the .[.user.]. .Iadd.second operation received .Iaddend.through
the .[.second.]. user interface .[.recorded on a sheet.]. .Iadd.is
subjected to an image processing .Iaddend.according to the
specified setting value, by an image .[.recording.].
.Iadd.processing .Iaddend.apparatus which is configured to perform
wireless communication with the network interface; first reception
processing of receiving a first touch operation through the user
interface at a state where the preview image is displayed on the
display, the first touch operation instructing execution of the
.[.recording.]. .Iadd.image .Iaddend.processing of the .[.print
data user interface.]..Iadd.image data.Iaddend.; and output
processing of, when the first touch operation is received in the
first reception processing, transmitting recording instruction
information to the image .[.recording.]. .Iadd.processing
.Iaddend.apparatus through the network interface, recording
instruction information instructing the image .[.recording.].
.Iadd.processing .Iaddend.apparatus to execute the .[.recording.].
.Iadd.image .Iaddend.processing of the .[.print.]. .Iadd.image
.Iaddend.data, and wherein the controller is configured to cause
the recording unit to execute the .[.recording.]. .Iadd.image
.Iaddend.processing represented by the recording instruction
information when the recording instruction information is received
from the information processing apparatus through the second
network interface.
.Iadd.21. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 1, wherein the display includes a touch screen
that receives an input through at least one of the first user
interface, the second user interface, and the third user interface.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.22. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium
storing an instruction program configured to be executed by a
computer comprising a display, a user interface, a storage
configured to store an external program which is installed in the
computer and a network interface, when the external program is
executed by the computer, the external program causing the computer
to execute external program screen displaying process of
displaying, on the display, an external program screen which allows
the user interface to receive a first operation to select a first
type of image data, when the instruction program which is installed
in the computer is executed by the computer, causing the computer
to execute: determination processing of determining whether the
external program is stored in the storage, list display processing
of displaying, on the display, a basic object and an external
object on an instruction program screen, the external object
representing the external program stored in the storage, in the
list display processing, only an external object of a specific
external program which is determined to be stored in the storage in
the determination processing is displayed on the display as the
external object, the instruction program screen which allows the
user interface to receive an operation to select an activation of
the external program via the external object; external program
executing processing of executing the external program when the
user selects the activation of the external program through the
instruction program screen, after the external program is
activated, external acquisition processing of acquiring the first
type of the image data selected by the first operation received
through the user interface; first reception processing of receiving
a first touch operation through the user interface at a state where
a preview image is displayed on the display, the first touch
operation instructing execution of the image processing of the
image data; and output processing of, when the first touch
operation is received in the first reception processing,
transmitting recording instruction information to the image
processing apparatus through the network interface, recording
instruction information instructing the image processing apparatus
to execute the image processing of the image data. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.23. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to execute: preview display processing of displaying the
preview image on the display, the preview image representing a
state where an image represented by one of a second type of image
data selected by the second operation received through the user
interface, the first type of image data different from the second
type of image data and the first type of the image data selected by
the first operation is subjected to an image processing according
to the specified setting value, by an image processing apparatus
which is configured to perform wireless communication with the
network interface. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.24. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 23, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to execute: in a state that the instruction program screen
is displayed on the display, second reception processing of
receiving, through the user interface, a second touch operation of
selecting one of the basic object and the external object which are
displayed on the display in the list display processing; basic
acquisition processing of, when the second touch operation of
selecting the basic object is received in the second reception
processing, receiving, through the user interface, a designation
operation of designating data which can be acquired from an
acquisition source and acquiring, as the second type of the image
data which is acquired, the data designated in the designation
operation from the acquisition source without intervention of the
external program, and the external acquisition processing by using
the external program represented by the external object when the
second touch operation of selecting the external object is received
in the second reception processing. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.25. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 23, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to execute: the external acquisition processing of
acquiring program identifying information of the executed external
program from the external program, the identifying information
identifying the external program that can be executed in the
external acquisition processing; readout processing of, when the
first setting value associated with the acquired program
identifying information is stored in the storage, reading out the
first setting value from the storage; the preview display
processing of displaying the preview image, which is generated
according to the first setting value read out in the readout
processing, on the display, and the output processing of
transmitting, to the image processing apparatus through the network
interface, the recording instruction information for executing the
image processing of the first type of the image data according to
the first setting value used for generation of the preview image.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.26. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 25, wherein in the preview display processing
that is executed when a designated setting value, which is the
setting value to be used in the image processing of the first type
of the image data, is acquired from the external program, the
instruction program displays the preview image generated according
to the designated setting value on the display, regardless of
whether the first setting value is stored in the storage.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.27. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 26, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to store the designated setting value in the storage as
the first setting value. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.28. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to execute identification information acquisition
processing of acquiring a plurality of program identifying
information for identifying each of the external programs that can
be executed in the external acquisition processing, and in the
determination processing, it is determined whether the external
program identified by the program identifying information is stored
in the storage. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.29. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the instruction program causes the
computer to execute: object acquisition processing of attempting to
acquire first object data from the specific external program, the
object data representing a first object; display the first object
on the display, as the external object, in the list display
processing when the first object data is acquired in the object
acquisition processing, and the first object represents the
specific external program. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.30. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 29, wherein second object data representing a
second object for distinguishing one of the external programs from
another external program is stored in the storage, and third object
data representing a third object for distinguishing the external
programs from the basic object is stored in the storage, the
instruction program causes the computer to display one of the
second object and the third object on the display, as the external
object, in the list display processing. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.31. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 30, wherein when the first object data is
acquired in the object acquisition processing, the instruction
program causes the computer to display the first object on the
display, as the external object, in the list display processing,
and when the first object data cannot be acquired in the object
acquisition processing, the instruction program causes the computer
to display one of the second object and the third object on the
display, as the external object, in the list display processing.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.32. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 31, wherein the second object data and the third
object data are stored in the storage when the instruction program
is installed in the computer or when the instruction program is
updated. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.33. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein when it is notified from an OS
(Operation System) of the computer that the external program is
deleted from the storage, the instruction program causes the
computer to set the external object, which represents the specific
external program, to a non-display state in the list display
processing. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.34. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein when it is determined in the
determination processing that the external program is not stored in
the storage, the instruction program causes the computer to display
a notification object, which notifies that there is the external
program capable of being installed in the computer, on the display
in the list display processing. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.35. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the external object is provided to
an area of the storage allotted to the external program when the
external program is installed in the computer, and the instruction
program reads out the external object from the storage from an area
of the storage allotted to the external program. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.36. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the external program is called by
the instruction program as a plug-in. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.37. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein the external program is activated by
the instruction program through an Operating System (OS).
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.38. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium
according to claim 22, wherein wherein the instruction program
causes the computer to execute: notifying process of activating the
external program and notifying, of the external program, a
selectable range of the setting values to be used in the output
processing; after notifying the selectable range of the setting
values, setting value acquiring process of acquiring, from the
external program, the setting value selected from the selectable
range by the external program as the specified setting value.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.39. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium
storing an external program that is to be executed by the computer
with an instruction from the instruction program according to claim
22, wherein when the user interface receives a touch operation of
designating the first type of the image data, the external program
causes the computer to execute notification processing of notifying
the instruction program of data identifying information
representing the first type of the image data. .Iaddend.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application .Iadd.is a reissue application of U.S. Pat. No.
9,733,879, which issued on Aug. 15, 2017, having a U.S application
Ser. No. 14/966,063 which .Iaddend.is based .[.upon.]. .Iadd.on
.Iaddend.and claims the benefit of priority of Japanese Patent
Application No. 2014-250921 filed on Dec. 11, 2014, the contents of
which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
The disclosure relates to a computer readable medium storing a
printing program configured to cause an image recording apparatus
to execute recording processing of print data acquired from a data
acquisition source.
In the related art, a program configured to cause an image
recording apparatus to execute recording processing of recording an
image, which is represented by data acquired from a data
acquisition source, on a sheet has been known. A program is known
which is capable of allowing a user to select photograph data
stored in a mobile terminal, data stored in a storage server, HTML
data configuring a WEB page and the like and causing an image
recording apparatus to execute recording processing of the selected
data.
SUMMARY
Here, an appropriate interface for enabling the user to select the
print data is different depending on data types, for example. For
instance, in order to select one of a plurality of photograph data,
an interface is appropriate which is configured to display a list
of a plurality of icons, which represents the respective photograph
data, and to receive a user's operation of selecting one of the
listed icons. In another example, in order to extract a desired
area from a map image, an interface is appropriate which is
configured to display the map image and to receive a user's
operation of designating a print range on the map image.
However, it is a heavy burden for a program developer to implement
the plurality of interfaces in one program. The burden increases as
types of the print data to be supported increase.
It is therefore an object of the disclosure to provide a printing
program configured to provide an interface for appropriately
selecting print data without excessively increasing a developer's
burden.
An aspect of the present disclosure provides the following
arrangements:
A non-transitory computer readable recording medium stores a
printing program configured to be executed by a computer comprising
a display, an user interface, a storage configured to store an
external program and a network interface configured to perform
wireless communication with an image recording apparatus which
configured to execute recording processing of recording an image,
represented by print data, on a sheet according to setting values,
the printing program, when executed by the computer, causing the
computer to execute: external acquisition processing of executing
the external program for determining the print data, which is a
target of the recording processing, based on a user's operation and
acquiring the print data determined with the external program;
preview display processing of generating a preview image
representing a state where a print image represented by the print
data is recorded on the sheet, and displaying the preview image on
the display; first reception processing of receiving a first touch
operation of instructing execution of the recording processing of
the print data through the user interface at a state where the
preview image is displayed on the display; and output processing
of, when the first touch operation is received in the first
reception processing, transmitting recording instruction
information for executing the recording processing of the print
data to the image recording apparatus through the network
interface.
An information processing apparatus comprises: a display; an user
interface; a storage configured to store an external program; a
network interface configured to perform wireless communication with
an image recording apparatus configured to execute recording
processing of recording an image, which is represented by print
data, on a sheet according to a setting value; and a control unit
configured to execute: external acquisition processing of executing
the external program for determining the print data, which is a
target of the recording processing, based on a user's operation and
acquiring the print data determined with the external program;
preview display processing of generating a preview image
representing a state where a print image represented by the print
data is recorded on the sheet, and displaying the preview image on
the display; first reception processing of receiving a first touch
operation of instructing execution of the recording processing of
the print data through the user interface at a state where the
preview image is displayed on the display; and output processing
of, when the first touch operation is received in the first
reception processing, transmitting recording instruction
information for executing the recording processing of the print
data to the image recording apparatus through the network
interface.
A recording system comprises: an information processing apparatus
comprising a display, an user interface, a storage configured to
store an external program, a first network interface, and a first
control unit; and an image recording apparatus comprising a
recording unit configured to execute recording processing of
recording an image, which is represented by the print data, on a
sheet according to a setting value, a second network interface, and
a second control unit. The first control unit is configured to
execute: external acquisition processing of executing the external
program for determining the print data, which is a target of the
recording processing, based on a user's operation and acquiring the
print data determined with the external program; preview display
processing of generating a preview image representing a state where
a print image represented by the print data is recorded on the
sheet, and displaying the preview image on the display; first
reception processing of receiving a first touch operation of
instructing execution of the recording processing of the print data
through the user interface at a state where the preview image is
displayed on the display; and output processing of, when the first
touch operation is received in the first reception processing,
transmitting recording instruction information for executing the
recording processing of the print data to the image recording
apparatus through the first network interface. The second control
unit is configured to cause the recording unit to execute the
recording processing represented by the recording instruction
information when the recording instruction information is received
from the information processing apparatus through the second
network interface.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a recording system 100 according to an
illustrative embodiment.
FIGS. 2A and 2B depicts examples of information stored in a data
storage area 62B, in which FIG. 2A depicts the information of an
external program that can be executed by a printing program 65 and
FIG. 2B depicts a setting value list that can be used by a complex
machine 10.
FIGS. 3A to 3C depicts examples of setting values stored in the
data storage area 62B, in which FIG. 3A depicts a first setting
value, FIG. 3B depicts a second setting value and FIG. 3C depicts a
designated setting value.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of image recording processing according to a
first illustrative embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of menu screen display processing.
FIGS. 6A and 6B depicts display examples of a menu screen, in which
FIG. 6A depicts a state before a paint program is installed and
FIG. 6B depicts a state after the paint program is installed.
FIGS. 7A and 7B depicts display examples of a display 53, in which
FIG. 7A depicts a photograph data selection screen and FIG. 7B
depicts a preview screen displayed when a photograph icon 121 is
selected.
FIGS. 8A and 8B depicts display examples of the display 53, in
which FIG. 8A depicts a data selection screen and FIG. 8B depicts a
preview screen displayed when a data icon 131 is selected.
FIGS. 9A and 9B depicts display examples of the display 53, in
which FIG. 9A depicts a printing area determination screen and FIG.
9B depicts a preview screen of a map image 142.
FIG. 10 depicts a sharing function that is to be implemented by a
sharing API.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart of the image recording processing according
to a second illustrative embodiment.
FIGS. 12A and 12B depicts display examples of the display 53, in
which FIG. 12A depicts a temporary saving inquiry screen and FIG.
12B depicts a scan execution screen.
FIGS. 13A and 13B depicts display examples of the display 53, in
which FIG. 13A depicts a saving destination selection screen and
FIG. 13B depicts a temporary saving inquiry screen.
DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS
Hereinafter, illustrative embodiments of the disclosure will be
described with reference to the drawings. Meanwhile, the
illustrative embodiments, which will be described later, are just
examples of the disclosure, and the illustrative embodiments of the
disclosure can be appropriately changed without changing the gist
of the disclosure.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a recording system 100 according to an
illustrative embodiment. The recording system 100 shown in FIG. 1
includes a complex machine 10, a mobile terminal 50, and a service
provision apparatus 70. The complex machine 10, the mobile terminal
50 and the service provision apparatus 70 are connected in
communication with each other through a communication network 102.
Although not particularly limited, a specific example of the
communication network 102 may be the Internet, a mobile
communication network, a wired LAN (abbreviation of Local Area
Network), a wireless LAN or a combination thereof
[Complex Machine 10]
As shown in FIG. 1, the complex machine 10 mainly has a printer
unit 11, a scanner unit 12, a display 23, an user interface 24, a
network interface 25, a CPU 31, a storage 32, and a communication
bus 33. The respective constitutional elements configuring the
complex machine 10 are connected each other through a communication
bus 33. The complex machine 10 is an example of the image recording
apparatus or the reading apparatus.
[Printer Unit 11, Scanner Unit 12]
The printer unit 11 is configured to execute recording processing
of recording an image, which is represented by image data, onto a
recording sheet that is an example of the sheet. Although a
recording method of the printer unit 11 is not particularly
limited, a well-known method such as an inkjet method and an
electrophotographic method may be adopted. The scanner unit 12 is
configured to execute scan processing of reading an image recorded
on a recording sheet to generate image data. The complex machine 10
may further have a FAX function of transmitting and receiving
facsimile data, a copy function of reading an image recorded on a
recording sheet and recording the same onto another recording
sheet, and the like.
[Display 23]
The display 23 has a display screen for displaying a variety of
information. Although a specific configuration of the display 23 is
not particularly limited, an LCD (abbreviation of Liquid Crystal
Display), an OLED (abbreviation of Organic Electro-Luminescence
Display) and the like may be adopted, for example.
[User Interface 24]
The user interface 24 is configured to receive a user's operation
of selecting an object displayed on the display screen of the
display 23. Specifically, the user interface 24 has push buttons,
for example, and is configured to output a variety of operation
signals associated with the pressed push buttons to the CPU 31. The
user interface 24 may have a film-shaped touch sensor superimposed
on the display screen of the display 23. That is, the display 23
may be configured as a touch panel display. As the touch sensor, a
well-known sensor such as an electrostatic capacitance type, a
resistance film type and the like may be adopted.
In the meantime, the term `object` indicates an image that can be
selected by a user's operation on the user interface 24. For
example, the object may be a character string displayed on the
display 23. When a direction key of the user interface 24 is
pressed, one of the objects may be highlighted, and when an enter
button of the user interface 24 is pressed, the highlighted object
may be selected. In another example, when the user interface 24 may
be configured as a touch panel, the object may be an icon, a
button, a link and the like displayed on the display 23, and the
object displayed at a touched position may be selected.
[Network Interface 25]
The network interface 25 includes an interface for performing
communication with an external apparatus through the communication
network 102. That is, the complex machine 10 is configured to
output a variety of information to the mobile terminal 50 or the
service provision apparatus 70 through the network interface 25 and
to receive a variety of data or information from the mobile
terminal 50 or the service provision apparatus 70 through the
network interface 25. Although the specific communication protocol
of the network interface 25 is not particularly limited, Wi-Fi
(registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance) may be adopted, for
example.
[CPU 31]
The CPU (abbreviation of Central Processing Unit) 31 is configured
to control the entire operations of the complex machine 10. The CPU
31 is configured to acquire and execute a variety of programs
(which will be described later) from the storage 32, based on the
variety of information output from the user interface 24 and the
variety of information acquired from the external apparatus through
the network interface 25. That is, the CPU 31 and the storage 32
configure an example of the control unit.
[Storage 32]
The storage 32 has a program storage area 32A and a data storage
area 32B. In the program storage area 32A, an OS (abbreviation of
Operating System) 34 and a control program 35 are stored. In the
meantime, the control program 35 may be a single program or a
combination of a plurality of programs. In the data storage area
32B, data or information necessary to execute the control program
35 is stored.
In the meantime, `data` and `information` in the specification have
a common feature that `data` and `information` are bits or bit
string, which can be handled by a computer. The term `data`
indicates that a semantic content represented by each bit can be
handled by a computer without considering the semantic content. In
contrast, the term `information` indicates that an operation of the
computer is branched by a semantic content represented by each bit.
Further, the term `instruction` indicates a control signal for
urging an apparatus of a transmission destination to perform a next
operation, and may include the information or may have a property
as the information.
`Data` and `information` are handled as the same data and
information even though the formats (for example, a text format, a
binary format, a flag format and the like) are changed for each
computer, inasmuch as they are recognized as the same semantic
content. For example, the information representing `two` may be
kept as information of a text format "0.times.32", which is the
ASCII code, in one computer and may be kept as information of a
binary format "10", which is the binary representation, in another
computer.
However, the distinction of `data` and `information` is not strict,
and an exceptional handling is also allowed. For example, the data
may be temporarily handled as the information, and the information
may be temporarily handled as the data. One that is handled as the
data in an apparatus may be handed as the information in another
apparatus. Further, the information may be extracted from the data,
and the data may be extracted from the information.
The storage 32 is configured by a RAM (abbreviation of Random
Access Memory), a ROM (abbreviation of Read Only Memory), an EEPROM
(abbreviation of Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only
Memory), an HDD (abbreviation of Hard Disk Drive), a buffer
provided for the CPU 31 or a combination thereof.
In the meantime, the storage 32 may be a computer-readable storage
medium. The computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory
medium. The non-transitory medium includes a recording medium such
as a CD-ROM and a DVD-ROM, too. The non-transitory medium is a
tangible medium. In the meantime, an electric signal for carrying a
program to be downloaded from a server and the like on the Internet
is a computer-readable signal medium, which is one kind of the
computer-readable medium, but is not included in the non-transitory
computer-readable storage medium.
The program stored in the program storage area 32A is configured to
be executed by the CPU 31. However, in the specification, the
operations of each program may be described while omitting the CPU
31. That is, in below descriptions, the description `program A is
configured to execute processing A` may indicate that `CPU 31 is
configured to execute processing A described in the program A`.
This is also the same for the mobile terminal 50, which will be
described later.
The OS 34 is a basic program for providing an API (abbreviation of
Application Programming Interface) configured to control the
printer unit 11, the scanner unit 12, the display 23, the user
interface 24, the network interface 25 and the like, which are the
hardware configuring the complex machine 10. That is, each program
described above is configured to call the API provided by the OS
34, thereby controlling the respective hardware. However, in the
specification, the operations of each program may be described
while omitting the OS 34. That is, in below descriptions, the
description `program B is configured to control hardware C` may
indicate that `program B is configured to control hardware C
through the API of the OS 34`. This is also the same for the mobile
terminal 50, which will be described later.
[Mobile Terminal 50]
As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile terminal 50 mainly has a display 53,
an user interface 54, a network interface 55, a CPU 61, a storage
62 and a communication bus 63. Since the display 53, the user
interface 54, the network interface 55, the CPU 61, the storage 62
and the communication bus 63, which are included in the mobile
terminal 50, are common to the display 23, the user interface 24,
the network interface 25, the CPU 31, the storage 32 and the
communication bus 33, which are included in the complex machine 10,
the overlapping descriptions are omitted. The CPU 61 and the
storage 62 configure an example of the control unit. The mobile
terminal 50 is an example of the information processing apparatus.
However, the specific example of the information processing
apparatus is not limited to the mobile terminal 50 such as a smart
phone, a mobile phone and a tablet terminal, and may be a PC
(abbreviation of Personal Computer) and the like.
The user interface 54 of the mobile terminal 50 includes a
film-shaped touch sensor superimposed on a display screen of the
display 53. The user interface 54 is configured to receive a user's
operation of touching the display screen of the display 53. The
user interface 54 is configured to output position information
indicating a position on the display screen touched by the user.
The position information can be expressed by coordinates (x, y) on
an x-y plane in which a left and upper end of the display screen is
defined as an origin, a right direction is defined as a positive
direction of an X axis and a down direction is defined as a
positive direction of a y axis.
In the specification, the term `touch` includes a variety of
operations of contacting an input medium to the display screen.
That is, a tap operation of separating a touched input medium from
the display screen within a predetermined time period, a long touch
operation of immobilizing a touched input medium on the display
screen, a slide operation of sliding a touched input medium on the
display screen, a flick operation where an acceleration of an input
medium sliding on the display screen is equal to or greater than a
threshold, a pinch-in operation of sliding two input media touched
at different positions on the display screen in a direction of
bringing the same into close to each other, a pinch-out operation
of sliding two input media touched at different positions on the
display screen in a direction of separating the same from each
other, and the like are examples of the touch.
An operation of bringing an input medium close to a position spaced
from the display screen by an extremely slight gap even though the
input medium is not contacted to the display screen may be included
to the concept of the `touch`. The input medium may be a user's
finger, a touch pen and the like.
The network interface 55 is configured to perform wireless
communication with the complex machine 10 or the service provision
apparatus 70 through the mobile communication network or wireless
LAN. In the meantime, the description `the mobile terminal 50
performs wireless communication with the external apparatus` is not
limited to a configuration where the wireless communication is
performed over the entire communication zone between the mobile
terminal 50 and the external apparatus. That is, a zone between the
mobile terminal 50 and a relay apparatus (for example, an access
point, a base station and the like) just adjacent to the mobile
terminal may be at least a wireless zone.
In the program storage area 62A of the storage 62, an OS 64, a
printing program 65 and a map program 66 are stored. In the data
storage area 62B of the storage 62, a variety of information shown
in FIGS. 2 and 3 is stored. The data storage area 62B may be
provided therein with a photograph data folder in which photograph
data is to be stored.
The printing program 65 is a program for causing the complex
machine 10 to execute the recording processing of the acquired
print data. The map program 66 is a program for enabling a user to
designate any area of a map image and transferring print data,
which represents a map image of the designated area, to the
printing program 65. The map program 66 is an example of the
external program for determining print data, which is a target of
the recording processing, based on a user's operation. In the
meantime, the specific example of the external program is not
limited to the map program 66, and may be a paint program for
editing an image according to a user's operation and transferring
print data, which represents the edited image, to the printing
program 65, for example.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the data storage area 62B is configured to
associate and store therein a program ID, an application name,
install information, a first icon data, a second icon data and a
third icon data. The image data, which represents the first icon
data, may be acquired from a corresponding external program, for
example. The other information or data shown in FIG. 2A may be
acquired from a server apparatus (not shown) upon install or update
of the printing program 65, for example.
The program ID is an example of the program identifying information
for uniquely identifying the external program. The application name
indicates a name of an application that is to be implemented by a
corresponding program. The install information is information
indicative of whether a corresponding program is installed in the
mobile terminal 50. The install means that a state, in which the
CPU 61 of the mobile terminal 50 can execute the program, is made.
In the example of FIG. 2A, the map program 66 identified by a
program ID "001" has been already installed, and the paint program
identified by a program ID "002" has not been installed yet.
A first icon of the first icon data is an icon for identifying a
corresponding external program, and is acquired from the external
program. A second icon of the second icon data is an icon for
identifying a corresponding external program from the other
external programs. A third icon of the third icon data is an icon
for distinction from a basic icon, which will be described later.
The third icon is commonly used for all the external programs. The
first icon, the second icon and the third icon are examples of the
external object indicative of the external program. In the data
storage area 62B, the image data representing the respective icons
shown in FIG. 2A is stored.
As shown in FIG. 2B, the data storage area 62B is configured to
associate and store therein a printer ID and a setting value list.
The printer ID is an example of the apparatus identifying
information for uniquely identifying the complex machine 10 capable
of performing communication through the communication network 102.
The printer ID "printer A" indicates the complex machine 10 shown
in FIG. 1, for example. The setting value list can be acquired from
the complex machine 10, for example. Meanwhile, in the data storage
area 62B, a plurality of printer IDs and a plurality of setting
values lists each of which corresponds to each printer ID may be
stored. In this case, one of the plurality of printer IDs may be
designated as a default printer, and each printer ID and the
program ID may be associated.
The setting value list is a list of setting values that can be used
in the recording processing by the printer unit 11 of the complex
machine 10. The setting value is a value indicating an execution
condition when the complex machine 10 is caused to execute the
recording processing. In the example of FIG. 2B, the setting value
includes a value indicating "sheet size" (for example, A4, B4, L
size and the like), a value indicative of "sheet type" (for
example, glossy sheet, normal sheet and the like), and a value
indicating "number of colors" (for example, full color, 256 colors,
monochrome and the like). The specific example of the setting value
is not limited thereto, and may include values indicative of a
sheet direction, a resolution, a magnification, the number of
sheets to be printed and the like. That is, the printer unit 11 of
the complex machine 10 can execute the recording processing by
using the setting values selected from the setting value list shown
in FIG. 2B.
As shown in FIG. 3, in the data storage area 62B, the plurality of
setting values is stored. FIG. 3A depicts a first setting value
associated with the program ID. FIG. 3B depicts a second setting
value associated with format information. FIG. 3C depicts a
designated setting value associated with a setting value ID.
The format information is information indicative of a data format
of the print data. In the example of FIG. 3B, the format
information indicates "PNG", which is an example of the data format
of image data, "PDF", which is an example of the data format of
document data, and "TXT", which is an example of the data format of
text data. However, the specific example of the format information
is not limited thereto.
The setting value ID is an example of the setting value identifying
information for uniquely identifying a designated setting value. In
the example of FIG. 3C, the setting value ID is configured by
combining the program ID "001", "002" and a sub-ID "A", "B" for
uniquely identifying the designated setting value of each program
ID. The sub-ID is an example of the sub identifying information.
The specific example of the setting value ID is not particularly
limited, and may not include the program ID if the designated
setting value stored in the data storage area 62B can be uniquely
identified. The setting value ID including the program ID may also
be designated only by the external program that is to be identified
by the program ID. In the meantime, the setting value ID, which
does not include the program ID, may also be designated by all the
external programs.
All of the first setting value, the second setting value and the
designated setting value are examples of the setting value.
However, the information to be associated is different. In FIGS. 3A
to 3C, the same setting value may also exist. The respective
setting values shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C may be programmed in advance
in the printing program 65, may be acquired from the server
apparatus upon the install or update of the printing program 65, or
may be acquired from the server apparatus at any timing such as
upon activation of the printing program 65.
In the meantime, the respective setting values shown in FIGS. 3A to
3C may be acquired from the server apparatus by the printing
program 65 or from the server apparatus by a program configured to
install or update the printing program 65. Each setting value may
be set or changed at any timing by the user. Further, each setting
value may be stored in an area of the data storage area 62B
allotted to the printing program 65 from the OS 64 upon the install
or update of the printing program 65.
[Service Provision Apparatus 70]
The service provision apparatus 70 is an apparatus configured to
provide a service that is to be used by the mobile terminal 50. The
service provision apparatus 70 is provided on the Internet, and is
configured to provide a variety of services according to requests
from the mobile terminal 50. The service provision apparatus 70 is
an apparatus configured to provide a storage service such as
`Evernote (registered trademark of Evernote Corporation)`, `Dropbox
(registered trademark of DropBox, Inc.)`, `Google Drive (Google is
a registered trademark of Google, Inc.)` and the like, for
example.
[Operations of Recording System 100]
Image recording processing according to the first illustrative
embodiment is described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 9. The image
recording processing is processing where the complex machine 10 is
caused to execute the recording processing of the print data
determined at the mobile terminal 50, based on the user's
operation.
First, the printing program 65 of the mobile terminal 50 executes
menu screen display processing (S11). The menu screen display
processing is processing of displaying a menu screen shown in FIG.
6 on the display 53, for example. The menu screen display
processing is described in detail with reference to FIG. 5.
The printing program 65 acquires the program ID of the external
program from the data storage area 62B shown in FIG. 2A (S31). The
processing of step S31 is an example of the identification
information acquisition processing. The printing program 65 of the
first illustrative embodiment reads out the program IDs "001",
"002" shown in FIG. 2A from the data storage area 62B, in step S31.
Meanwhile, the acquisition destination of the program ID in step
S31 is not limited to the data storage area 62B and may be the
server apparatus (not shown), for example.
Then, the printing program 65 determines whether the external
program identified by the program ID acquired in step S31 is stored
in the program storage area 62A, more specifically, whether the
external program is installed (S32). Specifically, the printing
program 65 may inquire of the OS 64 whether the external program
identified by the program ID acquired in step S31 is installed, and
may receive reply information from the OS 64. The printing program
65 may compare whether the program ID, which is read out from each
external program stored in the program storage area 62A, coincides
with the program ID acquired in step S31. The processing of step
S32 is an example of the determination processing.
When it is determined that the external program identified by the
acquired program ID is stored in the program storage area 62A (S32:
Yes), the printing program 65 determines an external icon that is
to be included in the menu screen (S33 to S37). On the other hand,
when it is determined that the external program identified by the
acquired program ID is not stored in the program storage area 62A
(S32: No), the printing program 65 includes a notification icon in
the menu screen (S38). The notification icon is an example of the
notification object for notifying that there is an external program
capable of being installed in the mobile terminal 50.
Specifically, when it is possible to acquire the first icon data
from the external program (S33: Yes), the printing program 65
adopts the first icon data (S34). The first icon data may be
acquired upon the install of the external program or may be
acquired in step S34. For example, the printing program 65 may read
out the first icon data from the area of the data storage area 62B
allotted to the external program from the OS 64. The printing
program 65 may request the first icon data from the external
program and receive the first icon data from the external program.
Further, the printing program 65 may request the first icon data of
the external program from the OS 64, and receive the first icon
data from the external program via the OS 64.
When it is not possible to acquire the first icon data and the
second icon data corresponding to the external program is stored in
the data storage area 62B (S33: No & S35: Yes), the printing
program 65 adopts the second icon data (S36). In the meantime, the
second icon data may be stored in the area of the data storage area
62B allotted to the printing program 65 from the OS 64 at the same
timing or with the same method as each setting value shown in FIGS.
3A to 3C, for example. Further, when the second icon data
corresponding to the external program is not stored in the data
storage area 62B (S35: No), the printing program 65 adopts the
third icon data (S37). The third icon data can be commonly used for
all the external programs without being associated with a specific
program ID.
The printing program 65 executes the processing of steps S32 to S38
for the external programs identified by all the program IDs
acquired in step S31 (S39: No). The printing program 65 of the
first illustrative embodiment determines that the map program 66
identified by the program ID "001" is stored in the program storage
area 62A, and adopts the first icon data acquired from the map
program 66. The printing program 65 determines that the paint icon
data identified by the program ID "002" is not stored in the
program storage area 62A, and includes the notification icon in the
menu screen.
Then, the printing program 65 displays the menu screen on the
display 53 (S40). FIG. 6 depicts an example of the menu screen. The
menu screen shown in FIG. 6A includes a plurality of acquisition
source icons 111, 112, 113 and a notification icon 115. The menu
screen shown in FIG. 6B includes a plurality of acquisition source
icons 111 to 114. The acquisition source icons 111 to 114 are icons
indicative of methods of acquiring the print data. On the menu
screen, a list of the acquisition source icons 111 to 114 is
displayed, and the notification icon 115 is displayed at a position
deviating from the area in which the list of the acquisition source
icons 111 to 114 is displayed. The processing of step S40 is an
example of the list display processing.
The acquisition source icon 111 is associated with processing of
acquiring the photograph data stored in the photograph data folder
of the data storage area 62B, as the print data. The acquisition
source icon 111 is configured by combining an icon representing the
photograph data folder and a character string "photograph album."
The acquisition source icon 112 is associated with processing of
acquiring the data stored in the service provision apparatus 70, as
the print data. The acquisition source icon 112 is configured by
combining an icon representing the service provision apparatus 70
and a character string "cloud service."
In the meantime, the correspondence relation between the
acquisition source icons 111, 112 and the processing of acquiring
the print data may be defined in the printing program 65, or a
definition file in which the correspondence relation is defined may
be read by the printing program 65. The definition file may be
stored in the area of the data storage area 62B allotted to the
printing program 65 from the OS 64 at the same timing or with the
same method as each setting value shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, for
example.
The processing of acquiring the print data associated with the
acquisition source icon is not limited to the above example. For
instance, the printing program 65 may activate a camera (not shown)
mounted to the mobile terminal 50, and acquire photograph data
captured by the camera, as the print data. In another example, the
printing program 65 may operate as a Web browser and acquire Web
data provided by a Web server, as the print data. In another
example, the printing program 65 may operate as an email client and
acquire email data accumulated in an email server, as the print
data. In another example, the printing program 65 may acquire
hysteresis data registered in a clipboard of the mobile terminal
50, as the print data.
The acquisition source icon 113 is associated with processing of
operating the map program 66 and acquiring the print data
determined with the map program 66. The acquisition source icon 113
is configured by combining the first icon acquired from the map
program 66 and an application name "map application" of the map
program 66 shown in FIG. 2A. The acquisition source icon 114 is
associated with processing of operating the paint program and
acquiring the print data determined with the paint program. The
acquisition source icon 114 is configured by combining the second
icon of the paint program shown in FIG. 2A and an application name
"image editing application" of the paint program.
The processing of acquiring the print data from the photograph data
folder and the service provision apparatus 70 is implemented in
advance in the printing program 65. That is, the menu screen always
includes the acquisition source icons 111, 112. The acquisition
source icons 111, 112 are examples of the basic icon. When the
processing of acquiring the photograph data captured with the
camera as the print data, the processing of acquiring the Web data
provided by the Web server as the print data or the processing of
acquiring the email data accumulated in the email server as the
print data is implemented in the printing program 65, the
acquisition source icon corresponding to the processing is included
in the menu screen. The corresponding processing can be executed
without calling the external program.
In the meantime, the processing of acquiring the print data
determined with the map program 66 and the paint program can be
used by the printing program 65 as the corresponding program is
installed in the mobile terminal 50. That is, the menu screen that
is displayed at a state where the map program 66 is installed and
the paint program is not installed includes only the acquisition
source icon 113 corresponding to the map program 66 installed in
the mobile terminal 50, as shown in FIG. 6A. The acquisition source
icons 113, 114 are examples of the external icon. The processing
associated with the acquisition source icons 113, 114 is
implemented in the external program, not the printing program 65.
In other words, processing of handing over an activation argument
to activate the external program and processing of acquiring a
return value from the external program only have to be implemented
in the printing program 65.
The printing program 65 stands by a state where the user's
operation of selecting the acquisition source icons 111 to 114 or
the notification icon 115 can be received through the user
interface 54, with displaying the menu screen on the display 53
(S43). Then, when the user's operation of tapping a position of one
of the icons 111 to 113, 115 is received through the user interface
54 (S43: Yes), the printing program 65 ends the menu screen display
processing. The processing of step S43 is an example of the second
reception processing. The user's operation of tapping one of the
icons 111 to 113, 115 is an example of the second touch
operation.
The printing program 65 stands by a state where a deletion
notification can be received from the OS 64, while displaying the
menu screen on the display 53. The deletion notification is a
notification indicating that the external program has been deleted
from the program storage area 62A, i.e., the external program has
been uninstalled. The deletion notification includes the program ID
of the uninstalled external program, for example. When the deletion
notification is acquired from the OS 64 (S41: Yes), the printing
program 65 sets the acquisition source icon to a non-display state,
which corresponds to the external program identified by the program
ID of the acquisition source icons 111 to 114 included in the menu
screen (S42).
Returning to FIG. 4, when the user's operation of tapping one
position of the acquisition source icons 111, 112 included in the
menu screen (S12: the basic icon), the printing program 65 executes
basic acquisition processing (S13). The basic acquisition
processing is processing of enabling the user to designate one of
the data acquirable from the acquisition source corresponding to
the selected basic icon and acquiring the designated data as the
print data. The basic acquisition processing is implemented in the
printing program 65.
In the basic acquisition processing that is executed as the
acquisition source icon 111 is selected, the printing program 65
displays a photograph data selection screen on the display 53. FIG.
7A depicts an example of the photograph data selection screen. The
photograph data selection screen shown in FIG. 7A includes a
plurality of photograph icons 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126. The
photograph icons 121 to 126 correspond to the photograph data
stored in the photograph data folder. The photograph icons 121 to
126 may be thumbnail images obtained by reducing sizes or
resolutions of corresponding photograph images.
The printing program 65 stands by a state where the user's
operation of selecting one of the photograph icons 121 to 126 can
be received through the user interface 54, with displaying the
photograph data selection screen on the display 53. For example,
when the user's operation of tapping a position of the photograph
icon 121 is received through the user interface 54, the printing
program 65 acquires the photograph data corresponding to the
photograph icon 121 from the photograph data folder, as the print
data. Meanwhile, in the first illustrative embodiment, it is
assumed that the format information of the photograph data is
"PNG."
In the basic acquisition processing that is executed as the
acquisition source icon 112 is selected, the printing program 65
displays a data selection screen on the display 53 so that the user
is enabled to select the data stored in the service provision
apparatus 70. Although the specific example of the data stored in
the service provision apparatus 70 is not particularly limited, the
document data, the image data, the text data and the like may be
exemplified. FIG. 8A depicts an example of the data selection
screen. The data selection screen shown in FIG. 8A includes a
plurality of data icons 131, 132, 133. The data icons 131 to 133
correspond to the data stored in the service provision apparatus
70.
The printing program 65 stands by a state where the user's
operation of selecting one of the data icons 131 to 133 can be
received through the user interface 54, with displaying the data
selection screen on the display 53. For example, when the user's
operation of tapping a position of the data icon 131 is received
through the user interface 54, the printing program 65 receives the
PDF data "recipe.pdf" corresponding to the data icon 131 from the
service provision apparatus 70 through the network interface 55, as
the print data.
In the meantime, when print data of a data format that is not
supported is received, the printing program 65 may cause the server
apparatus (not shown) to convert the data format of the print data.
For example, the printing program 65 transmits conversion
instruction information, which includes print data of a first
format, to the server apparatus through the network interface 55,
and receives print data converted into a second format different
from the first format from the server apparatus through the network
interface 55. The first format indicates format information of
print data with which the printing program 65 cannot generate a
preview image. The second format indicates format information of
print data with which the printing program 65 can generate a
preview image.
When the user's operation of tapping a position of the acquisition
source icon 113 is received through the user interface 54 (S12: the
external icon), the printing program 65 executes external
acquisition processing (S14). The external acquisition processing
is processing of acquiring the print data determined with the
external program. That is, the printing program 65 operates the map
program 66 corresponding to the acquisition source icon 113, and
acquires the print data determined with the map program 66. In the
meantime, the printing program 65 may operate the map program 66
through a plug-in manner or the OS 64.
In the meantime, the printing program 65 may hand over the map
program 66 by using the setting value list shown in FIG. 2B as an
activation argument, for example. In the meantime, when a plurality
of setting value lists is stored in the data storage area 62B of
FIG. 2B, the printing program 65 may set a setting value list of
the default printer as an activation argument, or may set a setting
value list associated with the program ID of the map program 66 as
an activation argument. However, the specific example of the
activation argument is not limited thereto and may be the list of
the setting value IDs shown in FIG. 3C, for example. While the map
program 66 is being executed, the printing program 65 may be
retreated to the background or may be over.
The map program 66 executed by the printing program 65 displays a
printing area determination screen on the display 53. FIG. 9A
depicts an example of the printing area determination screen. The
printing area determination screen shown in FIG. 9A includes a map
display area 141 and a [preview] icon. The map program 66 stands by
at a state where the user's operation on the map display area 141
and the [preview] icon can be received through the user interface
54.
In the map display area 141, a part of a map image capable of
displaying the map program 66 is displayed. In the map display area
141 upon the activation of the map program 66, a map image 142
including a current position of the mobile terminal 50 acquired
from a GPS (abbreviation of Global Positioning System) is
displayed. The map program 66 acquires map image data, which
represents the map image 142 of a display target, from the server
apparatus (not shown) through the network interface 55.
When the user's operation on a position of the map display area 141
is received through the user interface 54, the map program 66
changes the map image 142 that is to be displayed in the map
display area 141. The map image 142 that is to be displayed in the
map display area 141 is slid according to a slide operation, is
reduced according to a pinch-in operation and is expanded according
to a pinch-out operation, for example. In addition, the map program
66 may receive the user's operation of instructing rotation of the
map image or setting of a landmark icon and reflect the same on the
map image 142 included in the map display area 141.
When the user's operation of tapping a position of the [preview]
icon is received through the user interface 54, the map program 66
stores the map image data, which represents the map image 142
displayed in the map display area 141, in the data storage area
62B, as the print data. Meanwhile, in the first illustrative
embodiment, it is assumed that the format information of the map
image data is "PNG". The map program 66 notifies the printing
program 65 of the program ID "001" of the map program and the file
name of the print data stored in the data storage area 62B, as the
return value, and is over. The file name of the print data is an
example of the data identifying information. The processing of
notifying the program ID and the like is an example of the
notification processing.
In the meantime, the information to be handed over to the printing
program 65 as the return value is not limited to the above example.
For instance, the map program 66 may include the designated setting
value, which is a setting value to be used in the recording
processing of the print data, in the return value. The designated
setting value may be selected from the setting value list acquired
as the activation argument by the map program 66 or the user, for
example. In another example, the map program 66 may include a
setting value ID of the designated setting value to be used in the
recording processing of the print data, in the return value. The
setting value ID may be selected from the setting value IDs
acquired as the activation argument by the map program 66 or the
user, for example.
Although not shown, when the user's operation of tapping a position
of the notification icon 115 is received through the user interface
54, the printing program 65 displays a screen, which urges the user
to install an external program not installed yet, on the display
53. For example, when the user's operation of instructing an
install of a paint program is received through the user interface
54, the printing program 65 installs the paint program into the
mobile terminal 50, and displays a menu screen shown in FIG. 6B on
the display 53. The menu screen shown in FIG. 6B is different from
the menu screen shown in FIG. 6A, in that the acquisition source
icon 114 corresponding to the paint program is displayed and the
notification icon 115 is set to a non-display state.
Then, the printing program 65 specifies the setting value that is
to be used in the recording processing of the acquired print data
(S15, S18). The printing program 65 generates a preview image of
the print data according to the specified setting value, and
displays the preview screen on the display 53 (S16, S17, S19).
Then, the printing program 65 stands by at a state where the user's
operation of tapping a position of a [print] icon included in the
preview screen can be received through the user interface 54, with
displaying the preview screen on the display 53 (S20).
The preview image included in the preview screen is an image
representing a state where a print image represented by the print
data is recorded on the sheet. The user's operation of tapping a
position of the [print] icon included in the preview screen is an
example of the first touch operation of instructing execution of
the recording processing of the print data. The processing of steps
S15 to S19 is an example of the preview display processing, and the
processing of step S20 is an example of the first reception
processing.
In the first illustrative embodiment, after the basic acquisition
processing is performed in S13, in S22, the printing program 65
generates the preview image of the print data according to the
second setting value, and displays the preview screen on the
display 53 in the same manner as in S17. For example, when the
photograph data corresponding to the photograph icon 121 is
acquired as the print data, the printing program 65 generates a
preview image 127 of the photograph data according to the second
setting value corresponding to the format information "PNG". In
another example, when the PDF data corresponding to the data icon
131 is acquired as the print data, the printing program 65
generates a preview image 134 of the PDF data according to the
second setting value corresponding to the format information
"PDF".
FIG. 7B depicts a preview screen of the photograph data
corresponding to the photograph icon 121. The preview image 127
included in the preview screen of FIG. 7B represents a state where
the photograph corresponding to the photograph icon 121 is printed
on a glossy sheet having an L size in full colors without an edge.
FIG. 8B depicts a preview screen of the PDF data corresponding to
the data icon 131. The preview image 134 included in the preview
screen of FIG. 8B represents a state where an image represented by
the PDF data is printed on a normal sheet having an A4 size in 256
colors.
Here, when the print data consists of a plurality of pages, the
printing program 65 generates preview images 135, 136 corresponding
to the plurality of pages, respectively, and displays a list of the
preview images, as shown in FIG. 8B. In the meantime, when page
break information, which represents a border position of a first
page and a second page, is included in the print data, the printing
program 65 may generate the preview images 135, 136 according to
the page break information. On the other hand, when the page break
information is not included in the print data, the printing program
65 may determine a border position of the pages based on a
corresponding sheet size or a number of lines to be included in one
page.
When the external acquisition processing is executed, the printing
program 65 acquires at least the file name of the print data and
the program ID of the external program, as the return value. The
printing program 65 may further acquire the designated setting
value or the setting value ID, as the return value. Then, the
printing program 65 acquires the print data specified by the
acquired file name from the data storage area 62B. The printing
program 65 of the first illustrative embodiment acquires the map
image data generated by the map program 66.
Then, when the designated setting value is included in the return
value (S18: Yes), the printing program 65 generates a preview image
143 of the map image data according to the designated setting
value. When the setting value ID is included in the return value
(S18: Yes), the printing program 65 reads out the designated
setting value corresponding to the setting value ID from the data
storage area 62B, and generates a preview image 143 of the map
image data according to the read designated setting value. The
processing of reading out the designated setting value is an
example of the readout processing.
On the other hand, when the designated setting value or the setting
value ID is not included in the return value and the first setting
value of the map program 66 is stored in the data storage area 62B
shown in FIG. 3A (S18: No&S15: Yes), the printing program 65
reads out the first setting value from the data storage area 62B,
and generates a preview image 143 of the map image data according
to the read first setting value. On the other hand, when the first
setting value of the map program 66 is not stored in the data
storage area 62B (S15: No), the printing program 65 reads out the
second setting value corresponding to the format information "PNG"
from the data storage area 62B, and generates a preview image 143
of the map image data according to the read second setting value.
The processing of reading out the first setting value or the second
setting value is another example of the readout processing.
FIG. 9B depicts a preview screen of the map image data representing
the map image 142 shown in FIG. 9A. In the example of FIG. 9B, it
is assumed that the first setting value associated with the program
ID "001" is used. That is, the preview image 143 shown in FIG. 9B
represents a state where the map image 142 represented by the map
image data is printed on an A4 normal sheet 144 in 256 colors.
Then, when the user's operation of tapping a position of the
[print] icon is received through the user interface 54 (S20: Yes),
the printing program 65 transmits recording instruction information
to the complex machine 10 through the network interface 55 (S21).
The recording instruction information is information for causing
the complex machine 10 to execute the recording processing of the
print data according to the setting value used for generation of
the preview image. The recording instruction information includes
the print data acquired in steps S13, S14 and the setting value
used for generation of the preview image, for example. The
processing of step S21 is an example of the output processing.
When the recording instruction information is received from the
mobile terminal 50 through the network interface 25, the control
program 35 of the complex machine 10 causes the printer unit 11 to
execute the recording processing represented by the recording
instruction information. That is, the printer unit 11 executes the
recording processing of the print data included in the recording
instruction information according to the setting value included in
the recording instruction information.
Operational Effects of First Illustrative Embodiment
When the print data is acquired from the photograph data folder or
the service provision apparatus 70, the user may be enabled to
select one of the icons in the list, as described in FIG. 7A or 8A.
In the meantime, when the map image data representing a desired map
image is acquired as the print data, a variety of user's operations
on the map display area 141 may be received, as described in FIG.
9A. That is, the interface appropriate to the selection of the
print data is largely different depending on the type of the
data.
Therefore, like the first illustrative embodiment, it is possible
to provide the interface appropriate to the selection of the print
data without largely modifying the printing program 65 by calling
the external program from the printing program 65, even though the
types of the print data to be supported increase. In particular,
when the activation argument to be handed over to the external
program, the return value to be acquired from the external program
and the like are published in advance, it is possible to promote
the development of the external program having an interface
appropriate to selection of a new type of print data.
In the menu screen of the first illustrative embodiment, only the
external icon indicating the external program already installed is
shown and the external icon indicating the external program not
installed yet is not shown. The external icon indicating the
external program uninstalled during the display of the menu screen
is set to a non-display state. As a result, the user can easily
find out a desired acquisition source icon from the acquisition
source icons listed in the menu screen.
The menu screen of the first illustrative embodiment can enable the
user to recognize that there is the installable external program by
the notification icon 115. As a result, it is possible to provide
the interface appropriate to the selection of the print data.
Further, the notification icon 115 is arranged at the position
deviating from the area, in which the acquisition source icons 111
to 114 are listed, in the menu screen. Therefore, the effect that
the user can easily find out the desired acquisition source icon is
not deteriorated.
According to the first illustrative embodiment, it is possible to
execute the recording processing of the print data, which is
selected by the user through the external program, according to the
designated setting value designated by the user through the
external program or the first setting value optimized for each
external program. Further, even when the designated setting value
is not designated and the first setting value is not stored, it is
possible to execute the recording processing according to the
setting value optimized for each data format of the print data. For
example, although both the photograph data described in FIG. 7 and
the map image data described in FIG. 9 have the "PNG" format, the
setting value appropriate to each data is applied.
The setting value that is to be stored in the data storage area 62B
is not limited to the example of FIG. 3. For example, the first
setting value that is to be used in the recording processing of
recording an image only on one page and the second setting value
that is to be used in the recording processing of recording images
on a plurality of pages may be stored in the data storage area 62B.
When the print data includes only an image that is to be recorded
on one page, the printing program 65 may display the preview image
generated according to the first setting value on the display 53.
On the other hand, when the print data includes images that are to
be recorded on a plurality of pages, the printing program 65 may
display the preview image generated according to the second setting
value on the display 53.
The external program of the first illustrative embodiment can
customize the interface for selecting the print data according to
the functions of the complex machine 10, based on the setting value
list acquired from the printing program 65. As a result, it is
possible to provide the interface more appropriate to the selection
of the print data.
In the first illustrative embodiment, the example where the
printing program 65 activates the map program 66 in the plug-in
manner has been described. However, the method of calling the map
program 66 from the printing program 65 is not limited to the above
example. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, it is possible to call
the map program 66 from the printing program 65 by a sharing
function that is to be implemented by an API provided by the OS 64
of the mobile terminal 50.
First, an application 41 of a sharing source executes an API of the
OS 64 (hereinafter, referred to as `sharing API`) for implementing
the sharing function (S1). When executing the sharing API, a URI
(abbreviation of Uniform Resource Identifier), a type and an action
are required as an input argument. The URI is information
indicating a location of sharing data. The type is information
indicating a data format of sharing data. The action is information
indicating a type of processing (for example, browsing, editing,
transmitting, printing and the like) of sharing data that is to be
executed by an application of a sharing destination.
In the meantime, applications 42, 43, 44, . . . , which are
candidates of the application of a sharing destination, declare in
advance a data format of sharing data that can be processed and a
type of processing that can be executed for the OS 64. Therefore,
the OS 64 specifies applications, which can execute processing
(represented by the action) for sharing data of a data format
represented by the type, from the applications 42, 43, 44, . . .
(S2), and displays a list of the specified applications on the
display 53 (S3). Then, the OS 64 stands by at a state where the
user's operation of selecting one of the listed applications can be
received through the user interface 54 (S4).
Then, when the user's operation of selecting one of the listed
applications is received through the user interface 54 (S4), the OS
64 activates the corresponding application by using the URI, the
type and the action as the activation argument (S5). Meanwhile, in
the example of FIG. 10, the application 41 corresponds to the
printing program 65, and the applications 42 to 44 correspond to
the external program. The information handed over between the
printing program 65 and the map program 66 may be described in the
URI.
Second Illustrative Embodiment
The external program not only may be called and activated from the
printing program 65 but also may be independently activated
according to a user's instruction to the OS 64. The image recording
processing of a second illustrative embodiment is described with
reference to FIG. 11. In the meantime, the descriptions of the
common points to the first illustrative embodiment are omitted and
the differences are mainly described. The image recording
processing of the second illustrative embodiment is different from
the first illustrative embodiment, in that the map program 66
independently executed calls the printing program 65 as the
plug-in.
When the map program 66 of the second illustrative embodiment is
activated by the user, the map program 66 displays the printing
area determination screen shown in FIG. 9A on the display 53. Then,
when the user's operation of tapping a position of the [preview]
icon is received through the user interface 54, the map program 66
activates the printing program 65 of the second illustrative
embodiment as the plug-in. In the meantime, the map program 66
hands over the program ID "001" of the map program 66 and the file
name of the print data stored in the data storage area 62B to the
printing program 65, as the activation argument. The activation
argument may include the designated setting value or the setting
value ID, too.
The printing program 65 activated by the map program 66 executes
the image recording processing shown in FIG. 11. In the meantime,
processing of steps S52 to S54 is described later. First, the
printing program 65 acquires the print data, based on the
activation argument acquired from the map program 66 (S51). Then,
the printing program 65 generates a preview image of the print data
according to the designated setting value, the first setting value
or the second setting value, and displays a preview screen
including the preview image on the display 53 (S55 to S60). Since
the processing of steps S55 to S60 is common to the processing of
steps S18, S19 and S15 to S17 of FIG. 4, the overlapping
descriptions are omitted.
The printing program 65 of the second illustrative embodiment
stores the designated setting value used for generation of the
preview image in step S56 in the data storage area 62B shown in
FIG. 2A, as the first setting value of the map program 66 (S57).
That is, when the designated setting value or the setting value ID
is acquired from the external program as the return value, the
printing program 65 overwrites the first setting value of the
external program with the designated setting value. At this time,
like the first illustrative embodiment, the processing of step S57
may be omitted.
Then, when the user's operation of tapping a position of the
[print] icon included in the preview screen is received through the
user interface 54 (S61: Yes), the printing program 65 transmits the
recording instruction information to the complex machine 10 through
the network interface 55 (S62). Since the processing of steps S61
and S62 is common to steps S20 and S21 of FIG. 4, the overlapping
descriptions are omitted. Since the processing of the complex
machine 10 having received the recording instruction information is
also common to the first illustrative embodiment, the overlapping
descriptions are omitted.
In the meantime, when the OS 64 of the mobile terminal 50 has a
multitask function, the processing of steps S52 to S54 may be
executed. For example, the user of the mobile terminal 50 can
retreat the printing program 65 of displaying the preview screen on
the display 53 into the background, activate the map program 66 and
tap a position of the [preview] icon. At this time, the printing
program 65 called as the plug-in of the map program 66 executes the
image recording processing shown in FIG. 11.
The preview image included in the preview screen, which is
displayed before the printing program 65 is retreated to the
background, is an example of the first preview image. The print
data used for generation of the first preview image is an example
of the first print data. The print data, which is called and
acquired from the map program 66 during the display of the first
preview image, is an example of the second print data.
In this case, the printing program 65 determines that the first
print data is not saved yet (S52: Yes) and displays a temporary
saving inquiry screen on the display 53 (S53). FIG. 12A is an
example of the temporary saving inquiry screen. The temporary
saving inquiry screen shown in FIG. 12A includes a message
`Not-saved print data is temporarily saved?`, a [save] icon and a
[cancel] icon. Then, the printing program 65 stands by at a state
where the user's operation on the temporary saving inquiry screen
can be received through the user interface 54.
When the user's operation of tapping a position of the [save] icon
is received through the user interface 54 (S53: Yes), the printing
program 65 temporarily stores the first print data in a
predetermined area of the data storage area 62B (S54). On the other
hand, when the user's operation of tapping a position of the
[cancel] icon is received through the user interface 54 (S53: No),
the printing program 65 skips over the processing of step S54. That
is, the first print data is deleted. The processing of step S53 is
an example of the inquiry processing, and the processing of step
S54 is an example of the storage control processing.
Then, the printing program 65 executes the processing of step S55
and thereafter. That is, the printing program 65 displays the
preview screen, which includes the second preview image generated
based on the second print data, on the display 53 (S55 to S60), and
instructs the complex machine 10 to execute the recording
processing of the second print data (S61, S62). Although not shown,
after the recording processing of the second print data is over,
the printing program 65 may generate a first preview image based on
the temporarily stored first print data and display a first preview
screen including the first preview image on the display 53.
Operational Effects of Second Illustrative Embodiment
According to the second illustrative embodiment, it is possible to
the not-saved first print data from being erroneously deleted even
though the map program 66 is called during the execution of the
preview display processing, in addition to the operational effect
that the preview display processing and the recording processing
can be executed according to the appropriate setting value. The
user is inquired whether or not to temporarily store the first
print data. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the unnecessary
first print data from being temporarily stored.
In the meantime, when the first print data is acquired from the
service provision apparatus 70 through the network interface 55,
when the first print data is edited by the external program or when
the first print data is converted by the server apparatus (not
shown), for example, the printing program 65 may execute the
processing of steps S52 to S54. In the meantime, the printing
program 65 may skip over the processing of steps S52 to S54 when
the first print data does not meet the above conditions.
According to the above configuration, it is not necessary to again
execute the processing of receiving the first print data from the
service provision apparatus 70, the processing of causing the
external program to edit the first print data or the processing of
causing the server apparatus (not shown) to convert the first print
data. In step S54, the data to be temporarily stored is not limited
to the first print data. That is, the setting value used for
generation of the first preview image may be further temporarily
stored, and the image data representing the first preview image may
be temporarily stored instead of the first print data.
In the meantime, the processing of steps S52 to S54 may also be
applied to processing, in addition to the processing of temporarily
storing the not-saved print data. For example, as described in
detail later, the printing program 65 may further have functions of
acquiring scan data generated with the scanner unit 12 of the
complex machine 10 from the complex machine 10 and storing the scan
data in a location designated by the user. The printing program 65
may temporarily store the not-saved scan data in the processing of
steps S52 to S54.
First, the printing program 65 displays a scan execution screen on
the display 53. FIG. 12B depicts an example of the scan execution
screen. The scan execution screen shown in FIG. 12B includes a
pull-down menu for receiving a selection of the complex machine 10
to execute the scan processing, a message `Please set a document on
selected MFC` and a [scan] icon. Then, the printing program 65
stands by at a state where the user's operation on the scan
execution screen can be received through the user interface 54.
Then, when the user's operation of tapping a position of the [scan]
icon is received through the user interface 54, the printing
program 65 transmits scan instruction information, which instructs
execution of the scan processing, to the complex machine 10
selected through the pull-down menu, through the network interface
55. Then, the printing program 65 stands by at a state where the
scan data generated by the complex machine 10 can be received
through the network interface 55. The corresponding processing is
an example of the reception processing.
When the scan instruction information is received from the mobile
terminal 50 through the network interface 25, the control program
35 of the complex machine 10 causes the scanner unit 12 to read a
document set on a contact glass or ADF (abbreviation of Auto
Document Feeder) and transmits the scan data generated by the
scanner unit 12 to the mobile terminal 50 through the network
interface 25. The corresponding processing is an example of the
reading processing.
Then, when the scan data is received from the complex machine 10
through the network interface 55, the printing program 65 displays
a saving destination selection screen on the display 53. FIG. 13A
depicts an example of the saving destination selection screen. The
saving destination selection screen shown in FIG. 13A includes one
or more saving destination icons 151, 152, 153. The saving
destination icons 151 to 153 correspond to saving destinations of
the scan data. For example, the saving destination icon 151
corresponds to the data folder provided for the data storage area
62B. Also, the saving destination icons 152, 153 correspond to the
storage servers such as the service provision apparatus 70. Then,
the printing program 65 stands by at a state where the user's
operation on the saving destination selection screen can be
received through the user interface 54. The corresponding
processing is an example of the reception processing.
Then, when the user's operation of tapping a position of one of the
saving destination icons 151 to 153 is received through the user
interface 54, the printing program 65 stores the scan data in the
saving destination corresponding to the saving destination icon. In
the meantime, when the printing program 65 displaying the scan
execution screen or the saving destination selection screen is
retreated to the background and is called as the plug-in of the map
program 66, the printing program 65 executes the image recording
processing shown in FIG. 11.
In this case, the printing program 65 determines that the scan data
is not saved yet (S52: Yes) and displays a temporary saving inquiry
screen shown in FIG. 13B on the display 53 (S53). When the user's
operation of tapping a position of the [save] icon is received
through the user interface 54 (S53: Yes), the printing program 65
temporarily stores the scan data in the data storage area 62B
(S54). On the other hand, when the user's operation of tapping a
position of the [cancel] icon is received through the user
interface 54 (S53: No), the printing program 65 skips over the
processing of step S54. Thereby, it is not necessary to cause the
complex machine 10 to again execute the scan processing.
In the meantime, in the complex machine 10 and the mobile terminal
50 of the respective illustrative embodiments, the various programs
stored in the program storage areas 32A, 62A of the storages 32, 62
are executed by the CPUs 31, 61, so that the respective processing,
which is to be executed by the control unit of the disclosure, is
implemented. However, the configuration of the control unit is not
limited thereto and a part or all of the control unit may be
implemented by the hardware such as an IC (abbreviation of
Integrated Circuit).
Further, the disclosure can be implemented as not only the complex
machine 10 or the mobile terminal 50 but also a program for causing
the complex machine 10 or the mobile terminal 50 to execute the
processing. The program may be recorded and provided in a
non-transitory recording medium. The non-transitory may include a
CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, and a storage mounted on a server apparatus that
can be connected to the complex machine 10 or the mobile terminal
50 through the communication network 102. The program stored in the
storage of the server apparatus may be delivered through the
communication network 102 such as the Internet, as the information
or signals representing the program.
Incidentally, in the above description, a term "icon" represents an
image to be displayed, and a term "icon data" is data representing
the icon, and is an example of object data. As a matter of
convenience, "icon" and "icon data" may be used without distinction
in the embodiment.
* * * * *
References