GB2418761A

GB2418761A - Remote document processing

Info

Publication number: GB2418761A
Application number: GB0421897A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Muppirala Kishore Kumar; A N Naravanan; Anand Kuppuswamy; Sreedhar Cheekati
Original assignee: Hewlett Packard Development Co LP
Current assignee: Hewlett Packard Development Co LP
Priority date: 2004-10-02
Filing date: 2004-10-02
Publication date: 2006-04-05
Also published as: GB0421897D0

Abstract

A mobile phone sends an SMS message to a server located on an organisation's intranet requesting a list of documents available for printing, e-mailing or faxing 51. The server retrieves the document list and sends it back to the phone as an SMS message including a short document code for each document 57,58. The phone user selects a document to be printed, e-mailed or faxed by sending a further SMS message to the server specifying a document code. The server retrieves the document and sends it, depending on the form of the request, to a specified address, to a default printer or to a printer selected by the user.

Description

Remote Document Processing

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of remote document processing, s particularly but not exclusively to requesting and printing documents usmg SMS over a mobile telephone.

Background

Mobile devices are 1ncreasmgly being used by business professionals to accomplish JO their business tasks. While PDAs and laptops are common among business professionals in developed countries, mobile phones are far more common in both developed and developing countries. It IS increasingly likely that every member of a mobile workforce will be equipped with a mobile phone, while the cost of equipping the same people with laptops and Pl)As remains significant. Laptops and PDAs are often primarily used for document processing, to access business and technical materials such as presentations, marketing information, product data sheets and so on. Since the content of these materials changes fairly frequently, users that store these documents in their laptops and PDAs need to ensure that this information IS kept up to date. Often, the only task that users wish to perform IS to print out the latest versions of these documents or to send them to a selected recipient.

US6,744,528 discloses a method of remotely printing out documents stored on a mobile device. The mobile device commumcates with a separate wireless communication tag, which includes information on a print device destination address. The mobile device receives the destination device information and sends it together with the document to a remote data processing centre.

While the disclosed technique may be suitable for devices that are capable of storing documents to be printed, it does not address the problem of allowing users of much simpler devices, which may not have such storage capacity, to access and prmt documents available on a network such as a company ntranet. - 2 -

Summary of the Invention

The present invention alms to address the above problems.

According to a first aspect of the present mventlon, there Is provided a system for s remote document processing, comprising means for receiving a request from a mobile device, the request 1ncludmg a document code identifying a document to be processed, means for retrieving a document based on the document code and means for processing the document.

The request receiving means may be a server connected to a network such as a company mtranet, so allowing a user of the mobile device access to documents on the company intranet.

The system may be configured to determine whether the device IS authonsed to access the document, for example by comparing an identity such as the mobile phone number or IMSI with a list of authorlsed Identities.

The processing means may comprise means for sending the document for printing and the system may further comprise means for printing the document on a default printer In the event that the request does not specify a printer on which the document is to be printed. The user of the mobile device therefore need only specify a document code, for example, in an SMS message, providing a swift and simple technique for prmtmg a document, which can be delivered to a default printer associated with the user, for example one that the user regularly uses. The default printer could, for example, be a printer at the user's home, connected to the company intranet or available over the Intetnet, using a protocol such as Internet Print Protocol.

If the user is familiar with document and printer codes used within his or her organ1sat1on for particular documents of interest, he or she can print those documents without the need to go through additional procedures of obtaining lists of available documents, or available printers. - 3

Simllar techniques can be used to e-mall or fax a document to a specified or even a default recipient.

In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for enabhng remote s document processing, comprsmg means for rcceivlog a request from a mobile device for a list of available documents, means for retrieving document codes corresponding to the available documents and means for sending the document codes to the mobile device.

0 In the event that the user of the device is unfamiliar with document codes for documents of interest, they can obtain a 11st of available documents by sendmg a simple request, for example as an SMS message, from their mobile phone to a server connected to their organisatlon's network. A 11st of available printers may be similarly obtained. The document codes can then be used to order printing of selected documents. Alternatively, a 11st of available e-mall addresses or fax numbers can be obtained in a similar way and the document codes subsequently used to send the selected documents electronically to their destinations.

The system may further comprise means for detetmmlog whether the user is authorlsed to access the system, for example by comparing an identity such as the mobile phone number or IMSI with a list of authorlsed identities.

The mobile device may be a mobile phone, which may send requests and receive information m the form of an SMS message.

According to the invention, there is further provided a method of operating a server to enable remote processing of documents on request by a mobile device, comptlsmg receiving a request from a mobile device, the request including a document code identifying the document to be processed, retrieving the document based on the document code and seodmg the document for processing.

The processing can comprise printing, e-malling, faxing or any other type of remote document handling.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 illustrates a first embodiment of a system according to the 1nvcntton that includes a punt server to permit remote document printing; s lilgure 2a IS a first message sequence chart Illustrating the operation of the system of Figure 1 where a mobile device makes a request for a 11st of documents or 11st of printers; Figure 2b is a second message sequence chart Illustrating the operation of the system of Figure 1, where a mobile device makes a request for a specific document 0 to be printed; Figure 3 Is a flow diagram illustrating the operation of the system of Figure 1; and Figure 4 Illustrates a second embodiment of the invention that Includes a plurality of servers for remote document handling, including a print server, mall server and fax server.

Detailed Description

Referring to Figure 1, an example of a system according to the invention comprises an authorlsatlon server 1, a document server 2 and a print server 3, which may be interconnected via an organlsat1on's intranet 4. The author1satlon server 1 is configured to receive Short Message Service (SMS) messages from a mobile device 5, for example a mobile phone, via a mobile service provider MSP 6. The mobile service provider 6 is, for example, configured to convert SMS messages to e-mail and vice-versa, so that an SMS message from the mobile phone 5 is converted to an e-mail for transmission to the authorlsation server 1, while e-mals from the authonsation server 1 to the mob1lc phone 5 are converted to SMS messages at the mobile service provider 6.

The document server 2 controls access to a plurality of documents 2a - n, while the print server 3 controls access to a plurality of printers 3a n.

Access to the Internct 7 Is also ava1lablc via the organlsatlon's mtranet 4. - 5

The opcraton of the system of Figure 1 will now be explained with reference to Figures 2a, 2b and 3.

The remote printing procedure Is initiated by a mobile phone 5 sending a service request to an authorlsatlon server 1 via an SMS message (step s1). The service request may be for a list of available documents 2a - n and/or list of available printers 3a - n, or may be a request for a specific document.

Figure 2a is a message sequence chart Illustrating the flow of messages within the 0 system when the service request is for a document 11st or a printer list. Figure 2b is a message sequence chart illustrating the flow of messages wlthm the system when the service request Is for a specific document to be punted.

As mentioned above, in one embodiment of the invention, the mobile service provider MSP G converts the SMS message to an e-mall message for transmission to the authorisatlon server 1. The authorisatlon server 1 receives the request (step s2) and determines whether the mobile phone Is authorlsed to make the request, for example by determining whether the mobile phone number or mobile phone SIM Identity, such as the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) number, is on an authorlscd list of identities held at the server 1 (step s3). If not, the authonsation falls and a message IS sent back to the mobile phone 5 indicating authorisation failure (step s4).

If authorisatlon succeeds, the authonsatlon server 1 determines the type of request (step s5). The service request may be one of a number of different types. lthe request may be for a 11st of available documents 2a - n, which may be different for different users based on their profile, for example position within the orgamsation.

The request may alternatively or in addition be for a list of available printers 3a - n.

Finally, the user may know the document and printer that they wish to use, so that the request may be for one or more spccfic documents to be printed.

If the request Is for a document list, the authorlsatlon server 1 contacts the document server 2 (step s6), which has access to the available documents or URLs - 6 of the documents, which may, for example, be located on the organtsatton's intranet or on the Internet. The document server 2 may m turn contact further document servers (not shown). The document server 2 returns a 11st of documents 2a - n available to the specified user (step s7). Each document has a short code associated s with it. The authorisation server returns the document list to the mobile phone 5 together with the corresponding short codes (step s8).

There are many ways of detctmlnmg the list of documents available to the specified user. For example, each document is categorised as either openly available or as restricted, for example to a particular 11st of mdlviduals or to members of a particular group/department or to individuals having a predefined level of seniority.

If restricted, the document server can then compare the identity of the individual attempting to access the document with the restrictions, to determine whether the user should have the right to access the document. Alternatively, the document server returns a 11st of documents, together with associated restrictions, and the authorisation server cartles out the comparisons as to whether all of the returned documents should be made available to the user.

If the request is for a printer list, the authorisatton server 1 contacts the prmt server 3 (step s9). The print server 3 returns a 11st of available printers 3a - n (step s10).

Each printer has a short code associated with it. The authorization server returns the printer list to the mobile phone 5 together with the corresponding short codes (step sit).

It will be appreciated that, as with the document server 2, it is possible for the printer server 3 to only return an available printer 11st based on a user identity.

Furthermore, while the document list is shown as bemg sent to the mobile phone 5 separately from the prmter list (steps s8/s11), it is of course possible for tints information to be combined in a single message.

The request may alternatively be for one or more documents to be printed. This may occur either following a request for a document list, or independently of this, for example where a user is already familiar with document and punter codes used - 7 withln the orgamsation. In this case, the request will be in the format punt<document code, printer code>, or simply prmt<document code>, where the document and printer codes are the short codes used to identify documents and ptlnters within the system.

On receipt of such a request, the authorisatlon server 1 sends the received document code to the document server 2 (step s12), which determines If the user Is authorised to access the document (step s13). This may be done In exactly the same way as described above for dctermlnlng whether a user is authorlsed to access 0 documcots m a document 11st. If the user Is not authonsed to access the document, an authorlsatlon failure message is returned (step s4). Othcrwlse, the document or a reference to the document, for example the document's URL, IS returned to the authorlsation server 1. The authorisatlon server 1 determines whether the user has specified a printer code for printing the document (step s15).

If not, the authorlsatlon server 1 sets the punter code to be the default code associated with the user (step s16). It then sends the document to the print server 3 together with the printer code (step s17). The print server uses the printer code to send the document to the correct prluter for printing (step s18). Where the prmter IS available on the Internet, the print server 3 can use a protocol such as the Internet Print Protocol to send the document to the printer.

When the print server 3 sends the document to the selected ptlnter for printing, it also sends an acknowledgement to the authorisation server 1 (step sly), which in turn sends an acknowledgement SMS to the mobile phone 5 (step s2()).

In an alternative embodiment of the invention shown In Figure 4, a mail server 8 and fax server 9 are available in addition to the punt server 3, allowing documents to be e-matled or faxed to spcclfled destinations. The user of the mobile device 5 can, for example, query the mail server 8 for a 11st of e-mall allascs. This query can be based on a category, such as marketing or sales, which Is provided by the user in the lmtlal SMS message. 'lihc mail server 8 returns a list of e-mal aliases to the authorlsatlon server 1 in an analogous way to the print server 3 returning a list of printers (step s10 In lilgure 3). Each e-mall alias can be associated with a short tag - 8 that Is sent to the user and can be used by the user to request a document to be e- ma1led to a specific e-ma1l address, avoiding the need to send a long SMS message.

For example, when the user wishes to e-ma1 a document, he or she may issue an SMS command In the form email<document code, ema11 tag> to the authorisatlon server 1, which forwards it to the e-ma1 server 8, which in turn e-mals the document to the e-mail address corresponding to the email tag.

In the case of the fax server, the fax server 9 returns a 11st of available names together with a short fax code representing the fax number. When the user requires a document to be faxed, he or she sends an SMS message In the form fax<document code, fax code> to the authorisaton server 1, which forwards it to the fax server 9, which in turn faxes the document to the number corresponding to the fax code.

In the light of the above disclosure, it will be apparent to the skilled person that a system according to the invention can be used to Initiate any remote document processing or handling task, Including but not limited to the printing, faxing and e- malllog of documents accessible over a network.

It will further be appreciated by the sklllecl person that many variants of the above described embodiments are possible, while still falling within the scope of the claims. For example, although the invention has been described in terms of various servers, such as an authorlsatlon server and a document server, these terms do not necessarily imply physically separate hardware or software. The functionality of the various servers can be implemented In hardware and/or software, can be combined into a single module or distributed throughout the network as necessary.

Similarly, the levels of restrictions on documents, the nature of the document codes and so on, may all be determined by the policies of the organisatlon implementing them.

While embodiments of the Invention have been primarily described by reference to the sending of SMS messages from a mobile telephone, it will be apparent to the skilled person that the invcoton IS Intended to cover any protocol permitting a similar functionality, including the MMS protocol and any other way of sending short messages to initiate remote document processing, rather than storing and senclng the entire document from the mobile device. s - 10

Claims

Claims 1. A system for remote document processing, comprising: means for

receiving a request from a mobile device, the request including a s document code identifying a document to be processed; means for retrieving a document based on the document code; and means for processing the document.
2. A system according to claim 1, configured to determine whether the device IS 0 author1sed to access the document.
3. A system according to claim 1 or 2, wherem the processing means comprise means for sending the document for prmt1ng.
4. A system according to claim 3, further comprising means for printing the document on a default printer m the event that the request does not specify a printer on which the document Is to be printed.
5. A system according to claim 1 or 2, wherem the processing means comprise means for electronically sending the document to a selected address.
6. A system for enabling remote document processing, composing: means for receiving a request from a mobile device for a list of available documents; means for retrieving document codes corresponding to the available documents; and means for sending the document codes to the mobile device.
7. A system according to claim 6, further comprising means for retrieving a 11st of available printers in response to a request from the mobile device.
8. A system according to claim G. further composing means for retrieving a 11st of available destination addresses in response to a request from the mobile device. - 11
9. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the receiving means further comprises means for determining whether the user is author1sed to access the documents. s
10. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the mobile device comprises a mobile phone.
11. A system according to claim 10, wherein the mobile device sends requests and receives information in the form of an SMS message.
12. A method of operating a server to enable remote processing of documents on request by a mobile device, comprising: receiving a request from a mobile device, the request including a document code identifying the document to be processed; retrieving the document based on the document code; and sending the document for processing.
13. A method according to claim 12, further comprising, in response to the request, determining whether the device is authorised to access the document.
14. A method according to claim 13, comprising sending the document for processing only if the device IS authorised to access the document.
15. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein the request includes a printer code specifying a prmter on which the document is to be punted, the method further comprising the step of printing the document on the specified printer.
16. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, further composing punting the document on a default printer m the event that the request does not include a printer code specifying a pr1ntet on which the document IS to be printed. - 12
17. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, whetem the request includes an e-ma1 Identifier specifying an e-ma1 address, or a fax code specifying a fax number, to which the document is to be sent, the method comprising sending the document to the specified address. s
18. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 17, including receiving a request for a 11st of documents.
19. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 18, including receiving a request for a 11st of printers, a list of e-ma1l identifiers or a 11st of fax numbers.
20. A method according to claim 18 or 19, further comprising determmlng if the device is authorised to make the request.
21. A method according to any one of claims 18 to 20, comprising retrieving the list and sending it to the device.
22. A method according to claim 21, wherem the 11st is sent from the server in a form that enables it to be received by the mobile device as an SMS message.
23. A method according to any one of claims 12 to 22, wherein the request is sent from the mobile device to the server as an SMS message.