Facsimile and static presentation processing – Static presentation processing – Communication
Reexamination Certificate
1997-10-23
2001-09-25
Coles, Edward (Department: 2622)
Facsimile and static presentation processing
Static presentation processing
Communication
C358S001130, C358S001180, C345S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06295136
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique of specifying various pieces of information used for printing in a predetermined printer and controlling the printer based on the specified information.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is generally required to incorporate the software called a printer driver into a computer, when printing data generated by the computer are printed by a printer connected to the computer. The printer driver is a computer program for setting various pieces of information regarding the printer, such as functions of the printer, an interface, font information, and control codes, in the computer so as to control the printer, and is provided for each model of the printer.
FIG. 33
shows a Properties dialog box
900
displayed by a conventional printer driver. The operator activates the printer driver incorporated in the computer through an operation of the computer and sets various pieces of information using the printer driver. In accordance with a concrete procedure, the operator opens the Properties dialog box
900
shown in
FIG. 33
to set such information. The various pieces of information include those relating to the paper settings, such as the size and orientation of paper, and those relating to the graphics, such as the printing resolution and color adjustment, and are divided into a plurality of groups according to the functions. In the example of
FIG. 33
, the Properties dialog box
900
has a plurality of tabs
901
through
905
corresponding to the plurality of groups. The operator selects one tab among the plurality of tabs
901
through
905
with a pointing device, such as a mouse, in order to open and display the selected tab.
The operator inputs data on the displayed tab and thereby enables the information allocated to the tab to be set into the printer driver.
The prior art technique informs the operator of only pieces of information allocated to one selected and displayed tab during data input on the selected tab. In many cases, however, there is a demand for other pieces of information allocated to another tab during the data input on the selected tab. In these cases, the operator should select another tab including required pieces of information and change the display to another tab. When the change of display is carried out in the middle of data input on the selected tab, the operator should return the display to the selected tab. This structure requires the repeated operations of the pointing device for the change of display and consumes much labor of the operator.
When the operator desires to change the printing quality, the prior art technique requires the operator to input data regarding a number of items on a specific tab. Such data input consumes much labor of the operator.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is thus to save the labor of an operator in the process of inputting data into a printer driver.
Part of the above and the other related objects is realized by a first printer control apparatus for setting various pieces of information required for printing in a predetermined printer. The first printer control apparatus comprises: tab image selection means for dividing the various pieces of information into a plurality of groups, providing image data that represent a plurality of tabs for various settings, each tab corresponding to each of the plurality of groups, and selecting specific image data of a desired tab among the image data representing the plurality of tabs in response to an external instruction; display control means for displaying the specific image data of the desired tab as display image data on a screen of a display unit; and additional information display means for displaying at least one piece of information, which is selected among plural pieces of information specified in another tab expressed by another set of image data that are different from the specific image data of the desired tab, in a predetermined area of the display image data.
In the first printer control apparatus of the present invention, an image expressed by image data representing at least one piece of information, which is selected among plural pieces of information specified in another tab expressed by another set of image data that are different from the specific image data of the desired tab selected by the tab image selection means, is displayed in a predetermined area of the image data representing the desired tab on the screen of the display unit.
This structure enables some pieces of information specified on another tab to be displayed on the screen of the display unit, while the operator carries out the data input operations on the desired tab. The first printer control apparatus significantly reduces the number of change of the tabs displayed on the screen, thereby saving the labor of the operator.
In accordance with one preferable application of the first printer control apparatus of the present invention, the desired tab corresponding to the specific image data selected by the tab image selection means specifies information on main settings relating to print quality, and another tab corresponding to another set of image data specifies information on paper settings relating to paper.
This structure enables some pieces of information specified, for example, on a Paper tab to be displayed on the screen of the display unit, while the operator carries out data input, for example, on a Main tab.
In accordance with another preferable application of the first printer control apparatus of the present invention, the desired tab corresponding to the specific image data selected by the tab image selection means has a switch for opening a customized settings dialog box, in which an operator can input plural pieces of information among the various pieces of information, and another set of image data representing another tab constitutes the customized settings dialog box.
While the operator carries out data input on the desired tab, this structure enables the operator to check the plural pieces of information specified on the customized settings dialog box that is open on the desired tab, without opening the customized settings dialog box.
The present invention is also directed to a second printer control apparatus for setting various pieces of print quality information that define printing quality by a predetermined printer as quality control information for controlling the predetermined printer. The second printer control apparatus comprises: first storage means for storing a plurality of parameters that represent the printing quality in a stepwise manner; second storage means for storing values of the print quality information that are set corresponding to each of the parameters and determine the printing quality defined by each parameter; print quality specifying means for specifying the printing quality desired by an operator by selecting one parameter among the plurality of parameters, in response to an operation of the predetermined printer by the operator; print quality information setting means for extracting the values of the print quality information corresponding to the parameter selected by the print quality specifying means from the second storage means, and setting the extracted values of the print quality information as the quality control information; range limiting means for restricting parameters selectable by the print quality specifying means to a plurality of predetermined parameters among the plurality of parameters stored in the first storage means; media type setting means for setting a type of media used in the predetermined printer; and limited range changing means for changing the selectable parameters restricted by the range limiting means according to the type of media set by the media type setting means.
In the second printer control apparatus of the present invention, the print quality specifying means selects a parameter representing the desired printing quality among the plurality of parameters, in response to an opera
Nishimura Kiyotaka
Ono Katsuhiro
Coles Edward
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
Seiko Epson Corporation
Wallerson Mark
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