Abstract: Provided is an industrial printing system that reduces the risk of delay due to proofreading in variable printing. This industrial printing system processes variable data for production printing. The status management unit manages the completion status of a plurality of records or a plurality of pages for the variable printing. A process control unit collectively acquires completed record(s) or completed page(s) managed by the status management unit and creates a job ticket. A process management unit performs a prepress process or a printing process by using a job ticket created by the process control unit. A post-processing unit performs post-processing according to the job ticket for a record or a page that has been performed prepress process or printing process by the process management unit.

Abstract: A printing system includes a printing device including a thermal head that prints print content on a print medium; and an information processing apparatus that controls the printing device. The information processing apparatus comprises a processor configured to detect, from print image data from a server, a position of a control target portion including a specific portion in a print image corresponding to the print image data. The processor is configured to generate printing control information for printing the control target portion. The processor is configured to transmit the print image data, the position of the control target portion, and the printing control information to the printing device. The printing device executes different printing controls for the control target portion and a portion other than the control target portion based on the print image data, the position of the control target portion, and the printing control information.

Abstract: A cloud printing method and a cloud printing system includes: sending a print request to a first server when a file is clicked at first application of a client to execute printing; determining whether a target printer supports printing the file; transmitting the file to the target printer to execute printout of the file based on that the target printer supports printing the file; transmitting the file to a printer manufacturer server or to a second application based on that the target printer does not support printing the file; converting a data format of the file into a data format supported by the target printer to generate a print job; sending the print request to the target printer, and transmitting the print job to the target printer to execute printout of the print job.

Abstract: An image forming control method is applied to an image forming apparatus. The method includes, after the image forming apparatus is connected to an image processing apparatus, sending information related to a halftone parameter of the image forming apparatus to the image processing apparatus for storage, obtaining halftone-processed intermediate data that is to be printed sent by the image processing apparatus, and outputting the halftone-processed intermediate data that is to be printed to an image generator to perform an image forming operation.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus generates a code for identifying images in imposition image data representing an image print region, determines candidate regions so that codes in print regions in pages represented by the imposition image data will not be printed at a same position, generates print data based on the imposition image data so that the code will be placed in at least one of the determined candidate regions. For the print data, up to a predetermined number of pages represented by pieces of the imposition image data, a print position of the code is same in a first page and a following second page. When a predetermined number of pages represented by the pieces of the imposition image data is reached, the print position of the code is different in the first page and the second page. The generated print data is output to a printing apparatus.

Abstract: Techniques and mechanisms are provided for causing a first terminal apparatus connected to a first network to: determine whether the first terminal apparatus is being used in a form in which a second terminal apparatus connected to a second network is remotely controlled, perform control, in a case where the first terminal apparatus is not being used in the form, so that a first driver is installed on the first terminal apparatus, the first driver being used by the first terminal apparatus to transmit a print job to a first image forming apparatus connected to the first network, and perform control, in a case where the first terminal apparatus is being used in the form, so that a second driver is installed on the second terminal apparatus, the second driver being used by the second terminal apparatus to transmit the print job to the first image forming apparatus.

Abstract: A method and system for operating an industrial printer includes obtaining initial data that indicates the industrial printer used on a production line at a facility and a product to be output. Target data is obtained indicating target start time and target number of the product and target duration. The industrial printer is operated to report a count of print operations for the product at regular time intervals. Actual data is stored indicating the count and the time interval. Upon a condition, a line report is determined based on the count and the target data. The line report is presented on a display device. The condition is one or more of passage of the target duration after the target start time, passage of the target duration after a first print operation, a change in shift workers on the production line, a time of day, and a predetermined event.

Abstract: A method for troubleshooting and maintaining printing devices is provided. The method includes identifying, by a service bot in a print device, a maintenance condition to be resolved, wherein the service bot comprises a processor executing instructions stored on a computer-readable medium in the print device; notifying, by the service bot, a client terminal of the maintenance condition and a resolution attempt; analyzing, by the service bot, the maintenance condition using an anomaly detection technique; referencing, by the service bot, a knowledge database to identify a resolution for the analyzed maintenance condition; implementing, by the service bot, the identified resolution at the print device; notifying the client terminal of the identified resolution; and updating the knowledge database with the analyzed maintenance condition and the identified resolution. A non-transitory computer-readable medium and print device are also provided.

Abstract: A method for generating a document with specialty imaging includes: receiving a document with three pages, including a content page, a mask page with a background color and a foreground color, and an effect page with special imaging effect(s); processing the mask and effect pages by hiding a portion of the effect page overlapped by the background color to form a transformed effect page with a remaining portion, wherein the foreground color at least partially unhides the remaining portion such that the transformed effect page includes at least one specialty imaging effect; and processing the transformed effect and content pages by overlaying the transformed effect page on the content page to generate a transformed content page that forms a transformed document with specialty imaging. A computing device for implementing the method is also provided. A non-transitory computer-readable medium associated with the method is provided.

Abstract: This specification discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a set of program instructions for a computer configured to manage rental printers. The computer includes a controller and a memory. The set of program instructions, when executed by the controller, causes the computer to perform: referring to history information indicating a printer use history of each of a plurality of users; and determining, for a part of a target printer to be rented to a target user, whether the part satisfies a replacement condition by using the history information and a scheduled rental period. The scheduled rental period is a rental period during which the target printer is scheduled to be rented. The replacement condition indicates that the part should be replaced before the target printer is rented to the target user.

Abstract: A control system includes a control target device communicable with an information terminal and a server system. The server system includes an issue unit issuing a registration code in accordance with an input format of the information terminal in response to an issue request of a registration code from the control target device and a reply unit replying the registration code to the control target device. The control target device presents the replied registration code. If the presented registration code is inputted to the information terminal, information including the inputted registration code and an ID of the information terminal is transmitted to the server system. If the registration code transmitted from the information terminal and an input format thereof coincide with the registration code issued from the issue unit and an input format thereof, the server system performs registration processing for associating the information terminal with the control target device.

Abstract: A job processing apparatus that communicates with a control apparatus connected to a first network via a second network different from the first network and a first network interface, and communicates with an external apparatus on a third network via a second network interface includes at least one memory that stores a set of instructions, and at least one processor that executes the instructions, the instructions, when executed, causing the job processing apparatus to perform operations including acquiring information regarding the first network from the control apparatus and, based on the acquired information, setting, in a routing table, route information for transmitting data addressed to an external apparatus connected to the first network via the second network and the control apparatus.

Abstract: A job management apparatus includes a processor configured to: attach an order identifier, linked to a production order, to a job that has been created in response to the production order of a printed material; transmit the job and the order identifier attached to the job to one of printing systems to perform the job; when one of the order identifiers is specified and a reproduction order of the printed material corresponding to the specified order identifier is received, make an inquiry to the printing systems as to whether the printing systems have the job with the specified order identifier attached; and in response to a reply from each of the printing systems responding to the inquiry, detect a printing system storing the job corresponding to the reproduction order.

Abstract: The method for asset routing can include: determining a digital asset, routing the digital asset to a print partner based on the mail parameters, optionally printing a physical version of each digital asset, and optionally drop-shipping the physical assets. However, the method can additionally or alternatively include any other suitable elements.

Abstract: An operating method of an image forming apparatus includes: receiving an input to select a selective eco mode which selectively applies an eco mode during an image forming job of a document; obtaining at least one area to be excluded from application of the eco mode from a preview of the document according to execution of the selective eco mode; generating a mask in which an area corresponding to at least one area of the document is set in an array corresponding to a preview image of the document, based on information about the at least one area of the document; and outputting the document to which the selective eco mode is applied based on the mask.

Abstract: An information processing device includes a storage and a controller. The storage stores identification information and registration information of an image forming device in association with each other. The controller connects to the image forming device, based on the identification information, to acquire device information of the image forming device. If the acquired device information does not match the registration information, the connected image forming device announces that the connected image forming device is different from the image forming device identified by the registration information.

Abstract: A printing system includes a plurality of image forming apparatuses capable of mutually communicating with a portable terminal device and a client terminal device. The client terminal device generates a print job that includes print data and job information. The portable terminal device stores job information transmitted from the client terminal device. The image forming apparatus acquires the job information from the portable terminal device, acquires the print data corresponding to the job information from the client terminal device, and execute image output the print data.

Abstract: Print jobs may be broken down according to consumable types, job cost categories, and print speed to determine job costing information. Using this information, an operator can see how resources are being used for printing print jobs. After a print job is completed, the total number of pages, an amount of ink, or an amount of toner is allocated to at least one job costing category. Job costing categories include good use of the consumable type or waste. Waste is further broken down into additional job costing categories. This information also is broken into print speeds based on different media types, media trays, or printing devices. This process provides a more holistic overview of the costs incurred to finish a print job.

Abstract: A system includes a first cloud print service and a second cloud print service, the first cloud print service connected with a client terminal via a network and the second cloud print service connected with an image forming apparatus via the network. The first cloud print service stores print job data received from the client terminal in one or more first memories, requires the second cloud print service to issue a job code of the print job data, associates the job code issued by the second cloud print service with the print job data, and transmits the stored print job data to the second cloud print service when receiving information indicating the stored print job data from the second cloud print service.

Abstract: An image forming system includes a terminal device, a management apparatus, and a plurality of image forming apparatuses. The terminal device includes a first controller that generates a print job, and transmits the print job to the management apparatus. The management apparatus includes a storage queue, and a second controller that stores the print job in the storage queue upon receipt thereof, determines one of the image forming apparatuses that completes a printing operation based on the print job most rapidly, as transfer destination, on a basis of printing ability of each of the image forming apparatuses, and transmits the print job to the image forming apparatus determined as the transfer destination. The image forming apparatuses each include an image forming device, and a third controller that causes the image forming device to execute the printing operation based on the print job, upon receipt thereof.