Printing system, portable terminal device, and print control program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016041798-A1
Application number	US-201514817407-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 4, 2015
Priority date	Aug 6, 2014
Publication date	Feb 11, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A printing system includes: a printing apparatus; a portable terminal device; and a server, which are connectable to each other, the printing apparatus including a profile creation unit, and a transmission unit, the portable terminal device including a display unit, a transfer request unit, a transfer unit, and a print instruction unit, the server including a saving unit, a reception unit, and a transmission unit, the printing apparatus further including a reception unit, and a print performing unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A printing system comprising:
a printing apparatus; a portable terminal device; and a server, which are connectable to each other, the printing apparatus including a profile creation unit configured to create a print setting profile, and a transmission unit configured to transmit the print setting profile created by the profile creation unit, and address information of the printing apparatus itself, to the portable terminal device, according to a request from the portable terminal device, the portable terminal device including a display unit, a transfer request unit configured to make a request, to the printing apparatus, for transfer of the created print setting profile and the address information of the printing apparatus to the portable terminal device itself, a transfer unit configured to transfer, to the server, the print setting profile and the address information created at and transferred from the printing apparatus, based on the request from the transfer request unit, and a print instruction unit configured to select a data set to be printed from one or more data sets to be printed stored in the server based on user's operation, and make a print instruction, to the server, for printing the selected data set to be printed using the print settings according to the print setting profile, the server including a storage unit configured to store the one or more data sets to be printed, a reception unit configured to receive the print setting profile and the address information transferred from the portable terminal device, and a transmission unit configured to transmit a print job including the selected data set to be printed, and the print setting profile received from the reception unit, to the printing apparatus indicated by the address information received by the reception unit, based on the print instruction from the portable terminal device, the printing apparatus further including a reception unit configured to receive the print job transmitted from the server, and a print performing unit configured to print the data set to be printed included in the received print job using the print settings indicated in the print setting profile included in the print job.

2 . The printing system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the portable terminal device further includes a print setting unit configured to set print settings from a print setting screen on the printing apparatus, based on user's operation on the display unit, and the transfer request unit makes a request, to the printing apparatus, for creating the print setting profile of the print settings set by the print setting unit.

3 . The printing system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the portable terminal device includes a first application configured to achieve a function of the print setting unit, a second application configured to achieve a function of the print instruction unit, and a third application configured to achieve functions of the transfer request unit and the transfer unit, and an icon representing the first application displayed on the display unit is superposed on an icon representing the second application by the user to perform predetermined operation of starting the third application, and the third application is started.

4 . The printing system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the portable terminal device includes a first application configured to achieve a function of the print setting unit, a second application configured to achieve a function of the print instruction unit, and a third application configured to achieve functions of the transfer request unit and a transfer unit, and the third application functions to determine whether the first application has been started, detect connectable printing apparatuses when the first application has not been started, and make a request for transfer of the print setting profile to a printing apparatus selected from the detected printing apparatuses by the user.

5 . The printing system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the portable terminal device includes a first application configured to achieve a function of the print setting unit, a second application configured to achieve a function of the print instruction unit, and a third application configured to achieve functions of the transfer request unit and a transfer unit, and the third application functions to determine whether the portable terminal device itself accesses an access destination preliminarily registered based on the first application and/or the second application, and register the access destination based on user's operation, when the portable terminal device accesses another access destination other than the access destination preliminarily registered.

6 . The printing system according to claim 1 ,
wherein an encryption key is added to the print setting profile transferred from the printing apparatus to the portable terminal device, and further to the server, and the printing apparatus confirms that the print setting profile is the print setting profile created by itself based on the encryption key added to the print setting profile transmitted from the server.

7 . The printing system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the transfer unit of the portable terminal device adds attribute information to the print setting profile and transfers the print setting profile to the server, and the print instruction unit adds attribute information the same as the above attribute information to selection information indicating a selected data set to be printed, and transmits the selection information to the server.

8 . The printing system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the printing apparatus includes a reporting unit configured to report a printable state of the printing apparatus to the portable terminal device, when the printable state is reported from the printing apparatus, the portable terminal device displays an icon indicating the printable state of the printing apparatus on the display unit, and when the user operates the icon, the portable terminal device instructs the server to transfer the print job to the printing apparatus.

9 . A portable terminal device connectable to a printing apparatus and a server, comprising:
a display unit; a transfer request unit configured to make a request, to the printing apparatus, for transfer of a print setting profile created at the printing apparatus and address information of the printing apparatus to the portable terminal device itself; a transfer unit configured to transfer, to the server, the print setting profile and the address information created at and transferred from the printing apparatus, based on a request from the transfer request unit; and a print instruction unit configured to select a data set to be printed from one or more data sets to be printed stored in the server, based on user's operation, and make a print instruction, to the server, for printing the selected data set to be printed using print settings according to the print setting profile.

10 . The portable terminal device according to claim 9 , further including a print setting unit configured to set print settings from a print setting screen on the printing apparatus, based on user's operation on the display unit,
wherein the transfer request unit makes a request, to the printing apparatus, for creating the print setting profile of the print settings set by the print setting unit.

11 . The portable terminal device according to claim 10 , further including a first application configured to achieve a function of the print setting unit, a second application configured to achieve a function of the print instruction unit, and a thir

Assignees

• Konica Minolta Inc

Inventors

• Maekawa Takeshi
• Akita Katsuhiko
• Hama Kenro
• Kawaguchi Toshikazu
• Takahashi Kazusei
• Sakiyama Daisuke
• Asai Yuki
• Tanaka Yuji

Classifications

• G06F3/1257

  by using pre-stored settings, e.g. job templates, presets, print styles · CPC title

• G06F3/1238

  Secure printing, e.g. user identification, user rights for device usage, unallowed content, blanking portions or fields of a page, releasing held jobs · CPC title

• G06F3/1288

  in client-server-printer device configuration · CPC title

• G06F3/1292

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

• G06F3/1287

  via internet · CPC title