JP2000222150A - Printing system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To print a confidential document in a printing system including a host computer and a printing device connected to a network, and to eliminate the burden of a user storing a password and to provide security. To secure. A host computer has a means for creating a password for each print job, a means for adding the password to the print job and sending the print job to a printing apparatus.
Means for recording a password on a floppy disk. The printing apparatus 2 is provided with a unit for extracting a password from a print job received from the host computer, a unit for extracting a password from a floppy disk, and a unit for checking these passwords. Is configured to print an image created from a print job only when there is a print job.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a printing system for transmitting print data created by a host computer to a printing apparatus for printing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is known a printing system including a host computer connected to a network and a printing apparatus. In this printing system, a host computer creates a print job including print data specified by a user and transmits the print job to a printing apparatus. The printing apparatus receives the received print jobs, processes the print jobs in order, creates an image from print data included in the print job, and prints the image. Since it takes time from when the user instructs printing to when the last page of the print job is printed, the user goes to the printing apparatus and retrieves the printed paper after a suitable time.

In a printing system including a host computer and a printing device connected via a network, the host computer and the printing device are often separated from each other, and it is confirmed that a print job input by a user has been printed. Therefore, printed sheets are often left in the paper output tray of the printing apparatus. When printing is in progress, the paper in the course of course is in the discharge tray and is left as it is. In such a situation, the paper on the paper output tray can be picked up and referenced by a third party other than the user who submitted the print job, and if the content of the printed paper is confidential. Cannot keep confidentiality.

Conventionally, as a printing system which considers the case of printing print data which is confidential and which is not desired to be seen by others, conventionally, even if a user submits a print job, the user does not print immediately. There is a printing system in which a user goes in front of a printing apparatus to issue an instruction and then starts printing. In this system, a password is added to a print job, and printing is started when a user inputs the password from an input device such as a keyboard of the printing device.

[0005]

However, in such a printing system, the user needs to go to the printing device and enter a password, and the user needs to memorize the password in the meantime. This puts a burden on the user. Also, the password is added to the user, and if the same password is used repeatedly every time printing is performed, the user only needs to remember one password, but since the same password is used repeatedly It is not preferable from the viewpoint of security.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to print a confidential document.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a printing system that eliminates the burden of a user storing a password and can ensure security.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing system in which a plurality of host computers used by a plurality of users and a printing apparatus are connected via a network. The host computer has a unit for creating a password for each print job, a unit for adding the password to the print job and transmitting the password to the printing device, and a unit for recording the password on a floppy disk. Means for extracting a password from a print job received from a computer, means for extracting a password from a floppy disk, and means for checking the two passwords, and only when the two passwords match. An image created from a print job is printed.

[0008] The printing system according to the second aspect is the first aspect.
Wherein the host computer includes means for encrypting a password added to the print job transmitted to the printing device, and the printing device extracts the encrypted password added to the print job received from the host computer. Features.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing system.
Means for detecting the ejection of the floppy disk and temporarily printing the image created from the print job matching the password detected from the floppy disk when the ejection of the floppy disk is detected. Stopping means.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. First Embodiment FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a host computer 1 and a printing device 2 connected to a network. The host computer 1 is an ordinary personal computer equipped with a floppy disk drive. Host computer 1
The printer driver creates a print job as well as a general printer driver, creates a password, encrypts the password, and adds it to the print job. The password is created using two parameters, the host computer ID uniquely identified on the network and the time at that time.

FIG. 2 shows a software configuration of the printing system. In this software, the password is also written via the floppy disk driver 13 to the floppy disk inserted therein. The print job created by the printer driver 11 is passed to a print spooler 12 that holds the print job, spooled, and sequentially transferred to a printing device via a network driver 14.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the controller of the printing apparatus. The print job received through the network I / F 24 is stored in a print job queue on the RAM 26. The stored print jobs are sequentially taken out and processed. The print data included in the print job is interpreted according to the specification of the page description language, an image to be printed is created, and is sequentially stored in the frame buffer area on the RAM 26. The encrypted password is extracted from the print job, converted into a password before encryption, and recorded in the RAM 26 as job information. Reference numeral 25 denotes a ROM.

On the other hand, when the floppy disk is inserted and ejected, the floppy disk controller 22 controls the CPU.
21 is interrupted. In that case, the status is inquired to the floppy disk controller 22. When a floppy disk is inserted, the password is taken out from the floppy disk and stored in the RAM 26. If no floppy disk is inserted, it is stored that there is no password.

The images created in the frame buffer are sequentially sent to the print engine I / F 23 for printing. At this time, a password (password 1) recorded as job information and a floppy disk controller 22 are stored.
The password (Password 2) received via is checked.

If the password 1 does not match the password 2 or if the password 2 does not exist, the image is not sent to the print engine I / F 23. If the password 1 and the password 2 match, the image is sent to the print engine I / F 23 and printed on paper.

In this printing system, printing of a print job will not be performed unless the two passwords, password 1 and password 2, match. That is, printing can be performed when the host computer inserts the floppy disk in which the password is written at the time of creating the print job into the floppy disk drive of the printing apparatus.

Further, the password transferred from the host computer to the printing device is encrypted, and is restored to the original password by the printing device. further,
Password 2 in conjunction with insertion / ejection of floppy disk
Therefore, if a floppy disk is not inserted, printing is not performed (claim 3).

[0018]

As apparent from the above description, the following effects can be obtained according to the present invention. (1) Advantageous Effects of the Invention According to the first aspect, in the printing system according to the first aspect, printing is not started until the user who creates the print job inserts a floppy disk created when the print job is created into the printing apparatus. The confidentiality can be maintained without the printed matter being seen by others. In addition, a password can be created for each print job, and the security can be maintained, thereby eliminating the burden of the user remembering the password.

(2) Effect of the Second Invention In the printing system according to the second invention, since the password flowing on the network is encrypted, the security can be further increased without imposing a burden on the user. it can.

(3) Advantageous Effects of the Invention According to the third aspect of the invention, in the printing system according to the third aspect, the printing can be stopped by ejecting the floppy disk. Therefore, when the user leaves the printing apparatus, the user can remove the floppy disk. By discharging and storing, security of confidentiality can be enhanced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a host computer and a printing device connected to a network.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a software configuration of a printing system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a controller of the printing apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SYMBOLS 1 Host computer 2 Printing device 11 Printer driver 12 Print spooler 13 Floppy disk driver 14 Network driver 21 CPU 22 Floppy disk controller 23 Print engine I / F 24 Network I / F 25 ROM 26 RAM

Claims (3)

[Claims] In a printing system in which a plurality of host computers used by a plurality of users and a printing apparatus are connected via a network, the host computer includes: means for creating a password for each print job; The printer has means for adding a password and transmitting the password to the printing apparatus, and means for recording the password on a floppy disk. The printing apparatus extracts the password from the print job received from the host computer and extracts the password from the floppy disk. And means for checking the two passwords,
A printing system for printing an image created from a print job only when two passwords match. 2. The host computer includes means for encrypting a password to be added to a print job to be transmitted to the printing device, and the printing device transmits the encrypted password to the print job received from the host computer. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the extraction is performed. 3. A printing apparatus comprising: means for detecting the ejection of a floppy disk; and detecting, when the ejection of the floppy disk is detected, printing an image created from a print job matching a password detected from the floppy disk. 2. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising means for temporarily stopping the printing.