GB2436635A

GB2436635A - Transferring print jobs between networked printers

Info

Publication number: GB2436635A
Application number: GB0606561A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Benjamin John Parks
Original assignee: Canon Europa NV
Current assignee: Canon Europa NV
Priority date: 2006-03-31
Filing date: 2006-03-31
Publication date: 2007-10-03
Anticipated expiration: 2026-03-31
Also published as: GB2436635B; GB0606561D0

Abstract

A network imaging system includes a plurality of networked peripheral devices (3, 5), such as a printer each peripheral device having a data storage means (21) for storing one or more document or image data files together with data sufficient to identify a current user for each file. The peripheral devices have a means (61) to convert document or image data files into binary image data, and image formation means (63) for creating a document or image from the binary image data. A selected peripheral device can retrieve or receive image data from one or more other peripheral devices at the request of the current user, the image data being converted into a different data format which the selected peripheral device can recognize and use for creating a document or image.

Description

A NETWORK IMAGING SYSTEM

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to an imaging system including a plurality of peripheral devices and a communications network which allows the peripheral devices to exchange information, and print images or documents. The present invention also relates to a peripheral for use in such a system, and a method for printing a print job stored on one peripheral device at another.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

[0002] Many computer networks today comprise intranets, where many computers and peripheral devices are networked together so that several users can share resources. In such systems, many users can typically access a small number of printers, so that a user can choose to send a print job to a conveniently located printer. Some known muitifunction printer/copiers include a mailbox function, so that users can send a number of print jobs to be stored on a given peripheral device, to be printed at a later time by the user.

Such a peripheral device is the Canon iR 5000-60001 series of multifunctional peripheral devices (known as MFPs), which can operate as a printer, scanner, copier, etc. (0003] However, a problem with all network printers or multifunctjonal devices is that once one or more print jobs have been sent to the printer or NFP device, they cannot be retrieved. Thus, if the device breaks down before the jobs stored on it are printed, or runs out of toner or paper, or if the device is being used by someone else when the user wants to print the stored print jobs, the user has to either wait until the printer is free or mended, or has to go back to his or her computer and send the documents to another printer to be printed. At this point the user is delayed and inconvenienced, and may not remember exactly which print jobs have been sent to the printer.

[0004] To mitigate these problems, it would be desirable to be able to use one of the other printers on the network to retrieve or print the print jobs stored on the unavailable printer. However, the print jobs stored on one printer are, in general, pre-processed into an intermediate data format close to the binary image data, or as binary image data, or otherwise only retrievable from the printer in a format that cannot be recognized by another printer or MFP as a print job.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a remote printing software application as claimed in claim 1 to 3. According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a method as claimed in claims 4 to 6. According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an imaging system as claimed in claims 7 to 10. According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a peripheral device as claimed in claims 11 to 13.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a network imaging system according to a first aspect of the present invention, Figure 2 shows a block diagram of a peripheral device according to the present invention, Figure 3 shows a user interface for a conventional device driver, Figure 4 shows a further known user interface, Figure 5 shows a workstation and peripheral device, Figure 6 shows a block diagram of two peripheral devices (3, 5) according to the present invention connected together via a network 7, Figure 7 shows a flow diagram of the operations occurring in the Remote Print MEAP application running on the local/source device, Figure 8 shows a flow diagram of the operations occurring in the Remote Print MEAP application running on the remote/target device, and Figure 9 shows a Unified Modeling Language (UML) sequence diagram of a method according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0007] Figure 1 shows a network imaging system according to a first aspect of the present invention. The imaging system 1 includes a plurality of peripheral devices 3, 5 and a communications network 7 which allows the peripheral devices to exchange information. The network also includes a number of standard personal computer workstations 9 and a server 16. A first peripheral device 3 has a data storage means 21 for storing one or more document or image data files together with data sufficient to identify a current user for each file. The first peripheral device 3 and the second peripheral device 5 each have software application means 11 (such as a printer driver) to convert document or image data files into binary image data, and image formation means 12 (such as a print engine) for creating a physical document or image from the binary image data. The system is constructed and arranged such that the second peripheral device 5 can receive binary image data from the first peripheral device 3 at the request of the current user 14, said binary image data being converted into a different data format for creating a document or image at said second peripheral device. The actual data conversion step can happen at either peripheral device.

[0008] If a user 14 wishes to use one of the workstations 9, the system can optionally be set up so that they must first log on, for example by entering their user name and a password using the workstation 9. These credentials are then transmitted to the server for authorization by a security module 18, such as an Active DirectoryTM in the Windows Server 2003(TM) operating system, or W1nNT4(TM).

[0009] Peripheral devices (3, 5) are for example Canon iR 5020 or iR-6020i multifunctional devices, although a conventional printer or other imaging device may be used as an alternative. A block diagram of such a device is shown in Figure 2. The peripheral device includes a control unit 22 having a microprocessor (not shown) which runs the Multifunction Embedded Application Platform (MEAP) known in the art. The MEAP Platform 23 allows applications written in an object-oriented programming language such as Java to be installed and run on the peripheral device. These applications (called MEAP Applications) can then control the operation of the peripheral device, and can display information, and receive input instructions from a user, via a touch sensitive display screen 24.

[0010] The peripheral device (3, 5) further includes a data storage means, such as for example a hard disc (not shown), on which data files representing documents can be stored before being printed. Each data file contains a variety of information including the actual content to be printed, and other attributes such as the author and/or user of the document, the number of copies, etc. . The data files are preferably stored in a number of separate storage areas on the hard disc, which are known as Mailboxes (21) . Each peripheral device might typically have 100 Mailboxes, each being capable of holding 100 documents. Each Mailbox can be assigned a name and/or a personal identification number or PIN. If a Mailbox has been assigned a PIN, the contents of that Mailbox can only be accessed by a user who knows that PIN, for example by inputting the PIN using the touch sensitive screen when requested by the program, or by a MEAP Application using the PIN when accessing the Mailbox via the MEAP Platform. Items 25, 26 and 27 are optional MEAP Applications such as "Personal Mailbox" (25), having a login ciirity program 26, and "Quick Print" (27) [0011] Any of the workstations 9 is able to send documents to be stored and/or printed on the peripheral device 3 or 5 via the network 7. The sett.ings used for printing a document are controlled on the workstation 9 by a peripheral device driver, such as a printer driver or photocopier driver. A user interface for such a device driver is shown in Figure 3.

Amongst other things, a user can control the destination for a document via the print destination box 31.

[0012] If the "store" option is selected in the print destination box 31, a further user interface as shown in Figure 4 is displayed. This shows the mailboxes, with names if assigned. The user can then select a Mailbox on the peripheral device 3, 5 in which to store the print job prior to printing. Typically, a Mailbox will be assigned to a person or group of people, and given a PIN. Thus that person or group of people are able to store their documents as print jobs on the peripheral device without them being accessible to people who do not know the PIN.

[0013] Once a document has been "printed" (i.e. sent from the workstation 9 and stored on the peripheral device as a print job in a given Mailbox), the user can at a later time access their Mailbox from the peripheral device 3, 5 using their PIN, and cause the document to be printed out onto paper. In this way the user is able to get a hard copy of their document at a time convenient to them without it being accessible to others who do not know the relevant PIN. This is all done using the standard functionality of the iR MFP device.

[0014] Figure 5 shows workstation 9 and peripheral device 3 in more detail. Workstation 9 includes a CPU (central processing unit) 51 which executes data processing on documents containing elements such as graphic images, characters, spreadsheets etc., based on a document processing program stored in a read only memory (RON) 52 or an external memory means 53 comprising a hard disk, optical disk, tape etc.. The CPU controls each of the devices connected to a system bus 54. Also, the program RON 52 or external memory means 53 stores an operating system (OS), which is the control program of the CPU 51. A part of the RON 52 or external memory 53 also stores font data, and other data to be used for the document processing. Reference numeral 55 denotes a random access memory (RAN), and functions as a work area and main memory for the CPU 51.

[0015] Keyboard controller 56 controls input from a keyboard 57 and an optional pointing device (not shown) . The display 59 is controlled by a display controller 58. The display can be a liquid crystal panel, cathode ray tube, or other suitable device. Reference numeral 60 denotes a disk controller, which controls the access to and from the externAl rnemory such as a hard disk, USB memory chip, etc. which stores a boot program arid various applications programs, including applications programs requiring print facilities arid print drivers, font data, user files, edit files, etc. [0016] Reference numeral 61 denotes a print driver, which is connected to the peripheral device 3 via network 7. The print driver executes communication control processing with peripheral devices 3, 5. In this regard, CPU 51 executes, for example, outline-font expansion (rasterisation) processing into a display information RAM, which is set in RAM 55, and provides "what you see is what you get" (WYSIWYG) on display 59. Also, CPU 51 opens various registered windows, and executes various data processing steps based on the commands instructed by the pointing device (not shown) on display 59. The user can perform a print process for peripheral device 3 described below.

[0017] In peripheral device 3, reference numeral 62 is a CPU, which outputs an image signal as output information to a printer engine 63 connected to a system bus 64 based on the control program etc. stored in hard disk 66. Also, the program RON of RON 65 or the control program etc. stored on hard disk 66. Also, the program ROM of ROM 65 stores a control program etc. of the CPU 62. A font RON part of the RON 65 stores font data, etc. to be used when the above described output information is created. A data RON part of the ROM 65 stores information to be used when the peripheral device 3 does not have a hard disk.

[0018] CPU 62 is capable of performing communication processing with the workstation 9 through an interface unit 67. Reference numeral 68 denotes a RAM which functions as a main memory and as a work area etc. for CPU 62. The memory capacity of this RAM may be expanded by connecting optional additional RAM. In this regard, the RAM 62 is used for an output information expansion area, environmental data storage area, etc. [0019] Hard disk 66 stores font data and document files in mailboxes as described previously. Reference numeral 68 denotes a scanner part interface and controls documents scanned by scanner part 69 (scanner engine) . The scanned document may be printed by print engine 63 or sent to a [0020] The above-described system, using multi-function peripheral devices provides the ability for users to store documents temporarily on the peripheral device before printing. Up until now, they have been limited to printing the document on the local device to which the workstation has sent the print job.

[0021] Figure 6 shows a block diagram of two peripheral devices 3, 5 according to the present invention connected together via a network 7. The present invcntion solves this problem by allowing users to print documents or print jobs stored on one peripheral device (for example in a Mailbox 21 as described above), called the source device (3) for -10 -clarity, at another peripheral device on the network, called the target device (5) (0022] This is achieved, in one embodiment, by means of a MEAP software application 100 (called, for example, Remote Print) which can be run on the source device. Using this application the user first selects the document or print job they wish to print. In the present embodiment this is done from the target device 5, which allows documents or print jobs stored on the source device 3 to be identified. As an alternative this may be done at the source device. The identity of the target device to be used for printing is communicated to the source device. The source device then communicates with the target device to notify it that it is about to receive a document to print. This is preferably achieved using a Java Remote Method Invocation (Java RMI(TM)) technology based application in which the methods of remote Java objects can be invoked from other Java virtual machines.

However, other technologies such as the Canon Peripheral Controller Architecture (CPCA) printing interface, or other methods of providing a network connection can be used as an alternative.

[0023] The target device 5 Lhen creates and initializcs a new PDI (page description language) print job by sending the appropriate PDL start job commands to its printer. Any suitable page description languages can be used, including -11 -for example, PCL 5e, PCL 5c, PCL 6 or Postscript.

[0024] The Remote Print MEAP application 100 on the source device 5 loads the raw document data (such as for example TIFF or JPEG data) from the Mailbox storage area page by page. This page data then sent to the target device. The raw data can be converted to a different format before being sent. This conversion can include compression using A row compression, Huffman coding, or the like. If the amount of data is large (for example a large high definition photograph) the data can be additionally compressed using a separate compression step.

[0025] When the Remote Print MEAP application on the target device receives the page data, it is submitted to the printer with the appropriate PDL commands row by row. When all the pages have been printed, the target device ends the print job by sending the appropriate PDL commands to the printer.

[0026] A flow diagram showing the operations occurring in the Remote Print MEAP application running on the source device when printing a document is shown in Figure 7, whilst Figure 8 shows a flow diagram of the operations occurring in the Remote Print MEAP application running on the target device when printing a document.

[0027] In figure 7, in step Si CPU 62 detects a user selection of a document stored on the source device (from -12 -inputting instructions at the source or target device) . The application then in step S2 opens a connection between the source device and the target device to initialize the print on the target device and send any print settings which may be required. In step S3 the application loads page data from the mailbox/storage area. In step S4 the application optionally compresses this page data row by row. Step S5 denotes sending the compressed page data to the target device. In step S6, the application checks to see whether more page data needs to be sent. If so, the application repeats steps S3 to S6. If not, the application proceeds to step S7, and the application sends a message to the target device that the job is finished, and terminates the connection.

[0028] In Figure 8, step S21 occurs in response to step S2 on the source device as shown in Figure 7. Step 21 denotes connecting to the source device and initializing a new print job. In step S22 the application running on the target device then waits for page data to be sent from the source device. In step S23, the binary row data is converted to the appropriate format (for example raster row PDL) for the target device. If the PDL used is PCI. 5e, the PCL interpreter can decompress the compression present in TIFF data without a separate decompression step (i.e. the interpreter accepts S row compressed data) . If additional -13 -compression has been used which the PDL interpreter can not support, a separate decompression step may be required (not shown) . The data in this new format is then submitted to the printer engine in step S24. In step S25, the application checks to see whether more row data is being received. If so, the application repeats steps S23 to S25. If not, the application goes to step S26, and checks to see whether more pages are being received. If so, the application repeats steps S22 to S26. If not, the application waits for data indicating the end of the print job. When this data is received from the source device, the target device terminates the print job on the target device using the appropriate PDL command in step S27.

[0029] Figure 9 shows a Unified Modeling Language (UML) sequence diagram of the remote printing process described above.

[0030] The present system can he used for remote printing with normal MFP devices. In this case the user will go to the source peripheral device and input instructions for a given print job stored on that device to be printed at a remote target device on the network.

[0031] As an alternative, the present system can be used with MFP devices running the "Personal Mailbox" MEAP application. r[he operation of printers with personal mailbox functions is described in more detail in US 6,745,334.

-14 - [0032] When used in conjunction with Personal Mailbox, the Remote Print MEAP software application has a number of important features. Firstly, it enables a user to browse the network for other devices that are running Personal Mailbox applications in which documents may be stored. Thus it becomes possible for a user at a target MFP device to retrieve print jobs stored on a source device elsewhere on the network. By pressing a button on the user interface of the target peripheral device, a search dialog appears on the display. The user may then be provided with a number of searching options. The simplest search would take the form of a simple User Datagram Protocol (UDP) broadcast. However, if the user knows the IP address of the device, it can be used to connect to the device directly. The user can also enter a range of IP addresses to search. The range of available searches can be configured as required by an administrator [0033] The user starts Lhe search by selecting an item from the search dialog. As other network devices are found icons are added to the list, each icon representing a peripheral device running the Personal Mailbox software application, the icons also being provided with descriptive information. The user then selects one or more of the source devices to which they wish to connect, and instructs the target device to connect to the selected device(s) -15 - [0034] Once the user has successfully connected to one or more peripheral devices, the normal Personal Mailbox document list on the current device is replaced by a "tabbed" list box. This is a user interface control that has a number of tab buttons, each showing a descriptive label (and optionally an icon) along one edge of the list box. The user can select a tab by pressing the appropriate tab button.

The contents of the list box is then updated to display the contents of the selected list.

[0035] A tab is displayed for each of the devices to which the user has connected. Each tab button represents a Personal Mailbox on a peripheral device. An additional tab labeled "local" will represent the user's Personal Mailbox on the local device where the user is inputting instructions.

When a user presses a tab button, the list shows the documents stored in the user's Personal Mailbox on another (i.e. remote) device. The user can then print, delete, and preview the selected documents as if they were being stored on the local device.

[0036] When the user presses the print button on the local target device, the Personal Mailbox application running on the remote source device loads the image data for the selected documents form the Mailbox one page at a time. The page data is then compressed and transferred to the Personal Mailbox application running on the local target device (at -16 -which the user is standing), and submitted on the local printer.

[0037] The device on which the source document is stored may have different features to the target device which will be performing the printing. For example, a user might have stored a document with stapling enabled on a device which supports stapling. Then using Personal Mailbox, the user decides to print on a target device which does not support stapling.

[0038] To avoid conflicts such as these, the user can be presented with a SPrint Settings" dialog box on the local device before prInting is started. They will then confirm the printing and finishing settings they require based upon the available features of the target printing device. The application will try to match as closely as possible the settings chosen when the user first stored the document on the source peripheral device by automatically selecting wanted features which are available on the target device.

[0039] In the present invention, the target peripheral device doing the printing loads the raster page data of the document stored by the source peripheral device. It then creates a cornp]etely new print job, and then submits the new print job to its own print engine. In broad terms this is similar to a Windows printer driver taking a document in one format (e.g. WORD) and converting it to a format which can -17 -be interpreted by the printing device.

[0040] In the present system, data is taken one page at a time from the storage area on one peripheral, optionally compressed, converted into a new print job, sent to a second peripheral device, and submitted as a print job on this second peripheral device. The operation is done by request from the second peripheral device in the case of peripheral devices having a "Personal Mailbox" facility, and/or from the first peripheral device for peripheral devices having a normal Mailbox. The actual conversion into a new print job can be performed by either the first or second peripheral device, whichever is more efficient in a given case. If the data has been compressed before being sent to the second peripheral device then the second peripheral device will decompress the data. As mentioned previously, the PDL interpreter on the target device can perform some types of decompression as part of the data format conversion process.

[0041] Instead of printing the document on the source peripheral device, the data is moved over the network to another (target) peripheral device. However, the present invention is also applicable to the case where image data or print job settings need to be modified "on the fly" i.e. after the document has been sent to the source peripheral device and before printing. For example if the user decides that the first and last pages of a document need to come -18 -from a different paper source to the rest of the document.

[0042] The above description of a preferred embodiment of the invention has described the invention from the point of view of allowing users to access documents or print jobs stored on one peripheral device (for example in a Mailbox 21 as described above), called the source device (3) for clarity, from another peripheral device on the network, called the target device (5) . This can be considered as "pulling" a print job from a source device remote from the user to be printed on a target machine where the user is located. However, if there are several MFPs on the network running the same software application, it would be equally possible to "push" a print job stored on a source device where the user is located so that it is printed on a target device remote from the user, for whatever reason. Thus the source device can be either local to or remote from the user.

Likewise, the target device can be either remote from or local to the user, as appropriate.

[0043] If the source device is remote from the user, as described above it is necessary for the local target device to he able to display a list of documents stored on the one or more other peripheral devices on the network which arc candidates for becoming the source device. The user can then select which print jobs stored on which devices are to be printed at the local target device, as described in -19 -paragraphs 31 to 38 above.

[0044] If the source device is the local device where the user is located, the user is able to select the documents or files to be printed at the remote target device using the display and user input features of the local device (such as a touch sensitive display, or the like), which can be configured to show the print jobs stored on the source device.

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Claims

CLAIMS

1. A printing software application for use by a network peripheral device to enable printing of a print job stored on a first network peripheral device at a further network peripheral device on the network, the printing software application being arranged such that when loaded and executed on said first or further network peripheral device the software application executes the following steps: arranging for the further peripheral device to receive data from the first networked peripheral device, the data corresponding to a selected print job; converting said data from a first binary image data format into a different format at either the first network peripheral device or the further network peripheral device, the different data format being capable of being recognized as a print job at the further network peripheral device; and printing the document or image using the converted different data format data at said further network peripheral device.

2. A printing software application as claimed in claim 1 in which the first binary image data format comprises the raw document data provided on a page -21 -by page basis.

3. A printing software application as claimed in claim 1 or 2 in which the different data format is provided on a row by row basis having appropriate PDL commands inserted therein.

4. A method of printing a print job stored on a first network peripheral device at a further network peripheral device on the network, the method comprising the following steps: arranging for the further network peripheral device to receive data from the first network peripheral device, the data corresponding to a selected print job; converting the data from a first binary image data format into a different format at either the first network peripheral device or the further network peripheral device, the different data format being capable of being recognized as a print job at the further network peripheral device; and printing the document or image using the converted different data format data at said further network peripheral device.

5. A method as claimed n claim 4 in which the first binary image data format comprises the raw document data provided on a page by page basis.

6. A method as claimed in claim 4 or 5 in which the -22 -different data format is provided on a row by row basis having appropriate PDL commands inserted therein.

7. An imaging system, consisting of or including: one or more computers; a plurality of peripheral devices; and a communications network which allows the peripheral devices to exchange information with the one or more computers and/or one another; a first peripheral device of said plurality having a data storage means for storing one or more document or image data files, said first peripheral device and a second peripheral device of said plurality each having means to convert document or image data files into binary image data, and image formation means for creating a physical document or image from the binary image data, characterized in that the system is constructed and arranged such that the second peripheral device can receive or retrieve binary image data from the first peripheral device at the request of the current user, said binary image data being converted at nither the first peripheral device or the second peripheral device into a different data format for creating a document or image at said second peripheral device.

-23 - 8. An imaging system as claimed in claim 7 in which the binary image data comprises the raw document data provided on a page by page basis.

9. An imaging system as claimed in claim 7 or 8 in which the different data format is provided on a row by row basis having appropriate POL commands inserted therein.

10. An imaging system as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 9, in which the data storage means stores data sufficient to identify a current user for each said one or more document or image data files.

11. A peripheral device for use in a computer network, the peripheral device comprising means for inputting and outputting data to a network, data storage means for storing one or more document or image data files together with data sufficient to identify a current user for each file, means to convert said document or image data files into binary image data, and image formation means for creating a physical document or image from the binary image data, characterized in that the peripheral device is constructed and arranged to retrieve or receive binary image data from the network at the request of the current user, the peripheral device including conversion means for -24 -converting said binary image data into a different data format such that the peripheral device can create a document or image from the data in said different data format.

12. A peripheral device as claimed in claim 11 in which the binary image data comprises the raw document data provided on a page by page basis.

13. A peripheral device as claimed in claim 11 or claim 12 in which the different data format is provided on a row by row basis having appropriate PDL commands inserted therein.

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