(12) United States Patent ao) Patent No.: us 6,587,971 Bi
Kai (45) Date of Patent: *Jul. 1,2003
(54) PRINT CONTROL METHOD AND PRINT CONTROL APPARATUS
(75) Inventor: Hiroshi Kai, Kawasaki (JP)
(73) Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo (JP)
( * ) Notice: This patent issued on a continued prosecution application filed under 37 CFR 1.53(d), and is subject to the twenty year patent term provisions ol 35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2).
Subject to any disclaimer, the term ol this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days.
(21) Appl. No.: 08/896,623
(22) Filed: Jul. 18, 1997
(30) Foreign Application Priority Data
Jul. 31, 1996 (JP) 8-216954
Jul. 2, 1997 (JP) 9-176922
(51) Int. CI.7 H02H 3/05; H03K 19/003;
H04B 1/74; H04L 1/22
(52) U.S. CI 714/48; 714/47
(58) Field of Search 395/101, 107,
395/110, 114, 115, 116, 117; 358/1.14, 1.15, 1.16, 1.17, 1.12, 443, 109, 426.01, 450, 453, 494, 451; 714/48, 47, 49, 50, 51, 55; 382/232
(56) References Cited
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
3,633,178 A * 1/1972 Zoft 340/172.5
4,884,147 A 11/1989 Arimoto et al 358/1.9
5,452,419 A * 9/1995 Di Giulio et al 395/200.01
5,467,434 A * 11/1995 Hower, Jr. et al 395/114
5,504,929 A * 4/1996 Blair et al 395/885
5,566,351 A * 10/1996 Crittenden et al 395/867
5,726,769 A * 3/1998 Imai et al 358/442
5,943,503 A 8/1999 Kai 708/833
* cited by examiner
Primary Examiner—Christine T. Tu
Assistant Examiner—Guy Lamarre
(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto
(57) ABSTRACT
Disclosed are a print control method and a print control apparatus capable ol recognizing status information pertaining to a printer, and selecting a time interval at which the transmission ol updated status information is to be requested ol the printer Irom among a plurality ol preset time intervals, in accordance with the current status information ol the printer. This reduces the time lag between a change ol status ol the printer and the status information ol the printer displayed by the print control apparatus, and avoids deterioration ol the performance ol the print control apparatus and the printer.
33 Claims, 16 Drawing Sheets
