Abstract: An image-formation system includes an image display function which displays, at a display section, images of a plurality of desired original monochromatic images for output among original monochromatic images for output which are stored in an image storage means; a page combining function which forms an original multicolor image for output by combining, in page units, a plurality of images which are displayed at the display section; a color setting function which sets colors at a time of output from an image output means, for a plurality of images which are displayed at the display section; and a preview function which superposes images, which have been colored by the color setting function, so as to be in a state at the time of output from the image output means, and displays the images at the display section.

Abstract: What is disclosed is a system and method for minimizing the Inter-Document Zone (IDZ) in printing system architectures with print engines running at constant speed. The asymmetric IDZ precession disclosed herein is intended for those multi-pass systems where there is a difference in required start and stop durations of various transition subsystems such as transfer engagement and disengagement processes. This mode reduces the required inter-document zone region by shifting the zone in accordance with asymmetric timing of start and stop times of processes that must occur during this time. Advantageously, productivity gains are effectuated without altering process speeds.

Abstract: A computing system including a printer capable of retaining print jobs, a first computer and a second computer. The first computer is capable of transmitting a print job to the printer that causes the printer to retain the job. The first computer is also operable to cause the second computer to store a record of the job. A user of the first computer can later retrieve this record in order to identify the job. The user can also interact with the first computer to re-print the job.

Abstract: Provided is a printing system capable of printing, when one or more pages are replaced after raster image processing (RIP), by performing RIP of only the page(s) to be replaced. A job ticket is issued from a printing apparatus. In a printing data creating apparatus, information of page data for replacement is added to the content of the job ticket and then sent to the printing apparatus together with the page data for replacement. In the printing apparatus, only the received page data for replacement is subjected to RIP, and then printing after replacement processing is executed in accordance with the job ticket. It is unnecessary to perform again RIP of printing data irrelevant to the replacement. This increases the efficiency of processing and also lowers the cost.

Abstract: JPEG data is efficiently recompressed and transmitted to a remote color facsimile device. Before transmission of recompressed JPEG data, an anticipated transmission time is displayed for enabling the user to easily select the desired compression ratio. To generate recompressed JPEG, a Huffman decoder is provided for decoding encoded data and temporarily generates decoded data. Table generator multiplies the predefined quantization table values by the prescribed value to generate the modified quantization table. Intermediate data generator generates the intermediate data by dividing the encoded data by ratio n, which is derived by dividing predefined quantization table by the modified quantization table. Huffman encoder encodes the intermediate data to create new encoded data. Recompressed JPEG data includes the newly coded data and the modified quantization table.

Abstract: In a method for generating an IPDS data stream, different levels are defined with level numbers, whereby in each level a group of print data is combined on which the same operation is implemented. The operations are defined by operation numbers. A linkage exists between the level numbers and the operation numbers such that an operation number can be unambiguously assigned to a level number so that it can be determined using the linkage which level is provided for which operation. It is not necessary to generate and to maintain complex tables in order to be able to administrate the level corresponding to the required specification.

Abstract: In a printing apparatus having full-color and monochrome print processes and a method therefor, whether a page to be printed is color or monochrome is checked. The presence of an immediately preceding page which is successively printed before a page to be printed that is determined to be monochrome, and the attribute of the immediately preceding page are determined. The presence of a succeeding page which is successively printed after the page to be printed, and the attribute of the succeeding page are determined. The number of pages corresponding to the determination results is set. The print process of the page to be printed is decided on the basis of the presence of succeeding pages corresponding to the number of pages and their attributes.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first memory for storing image data, a second memory for storing image forming conditions, an image output unit for outputting the image data stored in the first memory under the image forming conditions stored in the second memory, and command means for generating a command of discarding the image data being output from the image output unit. The apparatus also has a controller. If a command of discarding the image data is generated by the command means, the controller discards the image data stored in the first memory, while it maintains the associated image forming conditions stored in the second memory.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes an apparatus body. An image forming device included in the apparatus is at least partly implemented by a replaceable part. A counter counts prints output by the apparatus with the replaceable part. A memory and a first nonvolatile memory are built in the apparatus body. A second nonvolatile memory is built in the replaceable part. A controller writes a limit number of prints particular to the replaceable part in the first nonvolatile memory, stores, after image forming operation, a cumulative number of prints counted by the counter in the memory and second nonvolatile memory, and reports the time for replacing the replaceable part when the cumulative number stored in the memory exceeds the limit number of prints stored in the first nonvolatile memory.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is disclosed for color balancing page data, from a variety of input sources having non-consistent device color profiles, among a plurality of individually accessible print engines arranged in a system for color printing multiple copies of multiple page documents. Input page data is converted to a common color space, rasterized and routed to a selected print engine. Page data routed to each marking engine is color balanced to the selected marking engine where at least a portion of the color balancing occurs following the rasterizing of the page data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for raster processing print data wherein multiple print-processing nodes process a print stream serially as it passes through those nodes. For instance, a client generates a print job with some pages in raster format and some pages in a Page Description Language (PDL) format, e.g., every other page. The pages are encapsulated with Printer Job Language commands that allow a printer to detect which pages in the mixed-format stream are in which format. The printer prints raster-format pages directly, and sends PDL-format pages to an internal renderer before submitting them to its marking engine. This arrangement allows printing, e.g., at full-marking-engine speed, on a printer with a low-speed renderer and from a client that can only render pages at low speed.

Abstract: A request is transferred from a first information processing apparatus to a second one, and document data for printing is generated in accordance with the print request by a generating program provided in an image generating apparatus, and then the generated document data is transferred from the second information processing apparatus to the first one so that the document data is printed out. A type of input data or a type of output data processable by the generating program provided in the image generating apparatus is registered in the second information processing apparatus. A type of input data necessary to generate the document data and a type of the document data generated is specified in accordance with the print request. A generating program for generating the document data is selected by comparing the specified type to the registered type. A generating request for generating the document data is transferred to the image generating apparatus having the selected generating program.

Abstract: In a multi-exposure drawing method for drawing a pattern on a drawing surface, using an exposure unit including a plurality of optical modulation elements arranged in a matrix manner, the unit is continuously and relatively moved at a constant velocity with respect to the drawing surface in an array-direction defined by a matrix-arrangement of the modulation elements. Optical modulation elements, spaced at a regular interval in an alignment of optical modulation elements along the array-direction, are successively and selectively driven based on a same bit datum, to thereby modulate a light beam made incident thereon, whenever the exposure unit is moved by a distance corresponding to the regular interval, resulting in the production of a pixel dot on the drawing surface in a multi-exposure manner by the modulated light beams.

Abstract: A server computer acquires printer information containing printer position information from a printer and stores the printer information in a printer information table. When the printer information is request by a print client, the printer information is provided after authentication as required. The print client generates print transmitting data by adding the printer position information to print data and transmits the print transmitting data to the printer. The printer which has received the print transmitting data acquires printer position information at this point in time, and when the printer position information at this point in time coincides with the printer position information contained in the print transmitting data, the print data is printed by the printer.

Abstract: Disclosed is a printing control apparatus in which a printing instruction is once converted into an intermediate code format and then converted into a printer control command, and which can correctly print an embedded font. In this invention, a spooler for converting a printing instruction into an intermediate code format and storing this intermediate code format detects the presence/absence of an embedded font on the basis of font attributes contained in the printing instruction. If an embedded font is detected, the spooler acquires the embedded font (S3.3) and spools the font by the intermediate code format (S3.4). The despooler registers the spooled embedded font in a graphic engine (D3), and a printer driver generates a control command by using the registered embedded font (Drv3.1).

Abstract: A spool file (303) holds intermediate data of a print job to be executed. When a test print process is executed while designating this intermediate data, the intermediate data is converted into a command to be sent to a printer (1500), thus executing the test print process. In this case, the number of sets of copies set in the print job is decremented by 1. When an actual print process is done after the test print process, the number of sets of copies is reset to the designated value, and the print process then starts.

Abstract: A combined flat bed scanner/printer machine having: a moving body; a scan module connected to the moving body to read a document; and a recording head connected to the moving body adjacent to the scan module, to print on a paper. The moving body is moved by a moving body transfer unit made up of a belt to which the moving body is secured, a guide rod to guide the moving body, and a motor to move the belt.

Abstract: An N-page printing function set on the basis of a physical sheet is provided by a printing control program installed in an information processing apparatus. In the information processing apparatus when designating of N-page printing, in which drawing data of N pages (N>1, N is an integer) is to be printed on one print sheet, the drawing data of each page is arranged in each of equal N-divided areas of a physical sheet by scaling-down. Print data is produced based on the arranged drawing data.

Abstract: Systems and methods for dynamically installing or updating a printer driver on a computer device without requiring a user to initiate the installation or update. In a system that includes a computer device, a printer device and a printer driver source, a print job is initiated and a connection with a printer driver source is established. A request is made for information relating to the performance of an automatic update of a dynamic printer driver. A determination is made as to whether or not an update is available. If the update is available, a determination is optionally obtained relating to whether or not the system may proceed in performing the automatic and dynamic update. The update includes obtaining dynamically linkable object components and linking the object components with a main entry object to form a dynamic printer drive that may be used to execute the print job.

Abstract: A print driver user interface method for printing copies of a document, which includes receiving a number corresponding to the number of copies to be printed from an application, receiving at least one command relating to an operation to be performed on each of the number of copies to be printed, and displaying a first feature to a user informing the user that the application may have a problem printing multiple copies. The method also includes offering the user a choice relating to printing copies of the document and transferring control of printing the copies from the application to the print driver.