Storage medium storing instructions using printing devices to create print labels to be used in overlaid state

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12079528-B2
Application number	US-202117388987-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 29, 2021
Priority date	Jul 30, 2020
Publication date	Sep 3, 2024
Grant date	Sep 3, 2024

Abstract

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores computer-readable instructions for a terminal device including a processor. The computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the terminal device to perform: generating a plurality of sets of label data for creating a plurality of print labels, each set of label data including print data and attribute specification information; acquiring a plurality of sets of medium type information for a plurality of printing devices, each set of medium type information indicating a type of a printing medium mounted in the corresponding printing device; determining a plurality of output destinations for the plurality of sets of print data from among the plurality of printing devices on the basis of the plurality of sets of label data and the plurality of sets of medium type information; and transmitting each of the plurality of sets of print data to the corresponding output destination.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a set of computer-readable instructions for a terminal device, the terminal device including a processor and a communication interface enabling the terminal device to communicate with a plurality of printing devices in which a printing medium is mountable,
the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causing the terminal device to perform:
(a) generating a plurality of sets of label data for creating respective ones of a plurality of print labels to be overlaid on each other, each set of label data including a respective set of print data, so as to provide a plurality of sets of print data, each of the plurality of sets of print data indicating a printing content for the corresponding print label, each set of label data further including attribute specification information specifying printing medium attributes to be used to create the corresponding print label;
(b) acquiring a plurality of sets of medium type information for respective ones of the plurality of printing devices through the communication interface, each set of medium type information indicating a type of the printing medium mounted in the corresponding printing device;
(c) determining a plurality of output destinations for respective ones of the plurality of sets of print data, and each of the plurality of output destinations, in such determining, selected from among the plurality of printing devices on the basis of the plurality of sets of label data generated in (a) and the plurality of sets of medium type information acquired in (b),
such that each of the plurality of output destinations corresponds to a respective printing device, of the plurality of printing devices; and

(d) transmitting each of the plurality of sets of print data to the respective output destination determined in (c),
wherein the processing of (c) and (d) is performed such that only after all of the plurality of output destinations for respective ones of the plurality of sets of print data are determined in (c), each of all the plurality of sets of print data is transmitted in (d) to the respective output destination determined in (c).

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein the determining in (c) comprises:
(e) determining, for each of the plurality of sets of medium type information, whether a matching condition is met between the medium type information and any of the plurality of sets of attribute specification information; and
(f) determining, when determining in (e) that the matching condition is met between one of the plurality of sets of medium type information and one of the plurality of sets of attribute specification information, the printing device corresponding to the one of the plurality of sets of medium type information as the output destination for the print data included in the label data containing the one of the plurality of sets of attribute specification information.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2 ,
wherein, when the matching condition is determined in (e) to be met between one set of attribute specification information and one of the plurality of sets of medium type information whereas the matching condition is determined in (e) not to be met between another set of attribute specification information and any of the plurality of sets of medium type information, the printing device corresponding to the one of the plurality of sets of medium type information is determined in (c) as not only the output destination for the print data included in the label data containing the one set of attribute specification information but also the output destination for the print data included in the label data containing the another set of attribute specification information.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the terminal device to further perform:
(g) acquiring a plurality of sets of printing resolution information for respective ones of the plurality of printing devices through the communication interface, each set of printing resolution information indicating a printing resolution of the corresponding printing device, and

wherein the plurality of output destinations are determined from among specific printing devices of the plurality of printing devices, the specific printing devices having equivalent printing resolutions.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 4 ,
wherein, in a case where the number of the specific printing devices is insufficient for the number of the plurality of sets of label data generated in (a), the printing device in which an absolute value of a deviation of the printing resolution indicated by the corresponding printing resolution information is greater than a predetermined threshold value is determined as the output destination in (c), the deviation of the printing resolution of a printing device being calculated by subtracting, from the printing resolution of the printing device, an average value of a group consisting of the printing resolution of the printing device and the printing resolutions of the specific printing devices already determined as the output destination in (c).

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 4 ,
wherein the terminal device includes a display unit, and
wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the terminal device to further perform:
(k) displaying, in a case where the number of the specific printing devices is insufficient for the number of the plurality of sets of label data, an inquiry as to whether to permit use of the printing device whose printing resolution is different from that of the specific printing device.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein each set of print data includes at least one of:
a character or a pattern or an image;
a printing color to be used when printing; and
a printing resolution to be used when printing, and

wherein each set of medium type information includes at least one of:
a width of a printing medium;
a color of a printing medium; and
material of a printing medium.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein each printing device includes a mounting portion in which a medium accommodation body capable of supplying the printing medium is detachably mountable, and
wherein each set of medium type information is accommodation body type information indicating a type of the medium accommodation body mounted in the mounting portion of the corresponding printing device.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein the terminal device includes a display unit, and
wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the terminal device to further perform:
(h) acquiring a plurality of sets of device identification information for respective ones of the plurality of printing devices through the communication interface; and
(i) displaying, on the display unit, the device identification information for each printing device determined as the output destination in (c).

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1 ,
wherein the terminal device includes a display unit, and
wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the terminal device to further perform:
(h) acquiri

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Fukui Tomoyasu
• Kanda Ryuichi
• Kondo Koichi
• Nampo Hiromichi

Classifications

• G06F3/1206

  resulting in increased flexibility in input data format or job format or job type · CPC title

• B41J11/009

  Detecting type of paper, e.g. by automatic reading of a code that is printed on a paper package or on a paper roll or by sensing the grade of translucency of the paper · CPC title

• G06F3/1292

  Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing · CPC title

• G06F3/1208

  resulting in improved quality of the output result, e.g. print layout, colours, workflows, print preview · CPC title

• G06F3/126

  Job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device · CPC title