JP3997823B2 - Structured document processing system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Field of the Invention]
The present invention relates to a structured document, and more particularly to a structured document processing method and program for managing and operating a plurality of files in association with each other, and a structured document and its data structure.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Standards such as JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) and GIF (Graphic Interchange Format) do not have the concept of a page in an image. Therefore, when managing a plurality of image images, it is necessary to convert to a format with a page concept such as TIFF (Tag Image File Format) or PDF (Portable Document Format). By the way, TIFF and PDF have the concept of a page, but it is necessary to overwrite the file even if only a part of the page is reprocessed or the order of the images is simply changed. In general, an image file is a large and heavy file, so it is difficult to change the file.
[0003]
[Problems of the Invention]
An object of the present invention is to allow a plurality of files to be handled as if they were one file while being physically separated .
Another object of the present invention is to make it possible to easily specify a job using a plurality of files, and to eliminate the need to transfer a job target file between the job instructing side and the instructed side. The object is to eliminate the need to store the job target file until execution .
[0004]
[Structure of the invention]
The structured document processing system of the present invention is a system in which a facsimile transmission or printing using a plurality of files is executed by the facsimile server in accordance with an instruction from a client terminal to a facsimile server having a facsimile function and a printing function. The job type of facsimile transmission or print, link information to each of the plurality of files, the order of processing between the plurality of files in the job, and the plurality of jobs in the job. Structured document creating means for creating a job structured document in which the range of pages to be processed of each file is described as attribute information, and transfer means for transferring the job structured document to the facsimile server And providing
An access means for accessing each of the plurality of files according to the link information to the facsimile server, and a range of pages to be processed for each of the plurality of files according to an order of processing between the plurality of files, And a processing means for facsimile transmission or printing by the facsimile server according to the type of the job.
[0005]
[Operation and effect of the invention]
In the present invention, a plurality of files are physically separated into separate files, and are linked with a predetermined relationship by a description in a structured document. For this reason, the following effects are obtained.
A process combining a plurality of files can be specified only by describing the job structured document, and the files themselves may be scattered in different places.
-There is no need to unify the file format, and different types of files such as text files and image files can be combined.
-If the description of the job structured document is changed, the specification and combination of files can be easily changed.
-Even in a file format that does not have the concept of a page, such as some image files, the order of files can be given using a structured document, and images can be arranged in a predetermined order.
-A plurality of files can be accessed and arranged in a predetermined order without being combined into one physical file.
-By describing the link information in the job structured document and describing the processing, these files can be created even if the storage location is scattered or the file format is different without physically configuring one file. Can be processed in combination.
The file is processed by the facsimile server, and only the job structured document needs to be transferred from the client to the facsimile server, and the file itself does not need to be transferred from the client to the facsimile server.
The facsimile server does not need to store the file itself until the process is executed .
[0006]
Further, according to the present invention, the job type, the order of execution within the job, and the processing range for each file are described in the job structured document, so that the processing contents in the facsimile server can be designated.
[0007]
In this invention, the job is a facsimile transmission and printing at the facsimile server, and the execution order of the facsimile transmission and printing and the number of pages to be processed are described in the job structured document. it can.
[0008]
【Example】
1 to 6 show an embodiment. FIG. 1 shows structured documents 2 and 4 of the embodiment. These are described in XML (Extensible Markup Language), for example, and the language type of the structured document itself is arbitrary. Those having the above extensibility (definition of attribute information definition) are preferable. For example, HTML is difficult to apply, but XHTML is applicable. The structured document 2 is a management structured document for managing a plurality of files, and the structured document 4 is a structured document for designating jobs for the plurality of files. The file managed by the structured document 2 forms one block with a plurality of files, and FIG. 1 shows, for example, three blocks 6 to 8. In general, a plurality of blocks are managed by one structured document 2, but at least one block is sufficient. Further, when the path from the structured document 2 to each file is regarded as a tree structure, a group is provided between the structured document 2 and a plurality of blocks, and the plurality of blocks may be associated with each other as one group. good.
[0009]
The type of file in each block is arbitrary. For example, it may include an image file, and may include a text file, an audio file, and the like. The file format is arbitrary, and in the case of an image file, it may be a JPEG file, a PDF file, or a TIFF file. There are a plurality of files in one block, and these files are associated with each other in the sense that they are in a predetermined order within the block or the files are related to each other. In the structured document 2, a plurality of files are associated with each other to form one block, and it is described that one or more such blocks exist. For example, the block ID and each file constituting the block are described. The file name and link information (address for accessing the file) and the position of each file within the block (relationship between files) are structured as block attribute information. When a plurality of blocks are grouped together and associated with each other, the group ID, attribute information of each block constituting the group, and information indicating the relationship between the blocks such as the order of the blocks in the group are displayed. And stored as group attribute information.
[0010]
Since the structured document 2 has such a data structure, it has the following characteristics.
• Each file in the block is physically a separate file. Therefore, it is not necessary to create a new file by combining a plurality of files constituting a block.
-Since each file in the block has an associated relationship, they are not separate files. For example, a large document can be configured using a document file or an image file by specifying the order between files or assigning pages to files.
These files are related by the relationship between the files in the block, but it is possible to easily delete or add files constituting the block.
The format of the files constituting the block is arbitrary, and it is possible to recognize files of different formats or a mixture of text files and image files, and there is no need to unify the file formats.
Even if the number of blocks is large, files can be easily managed by providing groups, and the relationship of blocks is described in the group attribute information.
[0011]
The structured document 4 is a structured document for designating a job for the file managed by the structured document 2. The language of the structured document 4 is, for example, XML, and an extensible language similar to XML such as XHTML is preferable, and the HTML language is not preferable. In the structured document 4, the type of job is specified, the file used for each job, the processing range of the file in the job, and the relevance between files, for example, file processing, for a plurality of files used for the job. Specify the order. Although there are a plurality of files used for a job in principle, a job for processing only one file may be used.
[0012]
The solid line in FIG. 1 indicates the relationship between the structured document 2 and each file, and the broken line indicates the relationship between the structured document 4 and each file. In the structured document 4, a file is specified for each job, so that link information is specified and the relationship between files in the job is described. If necessary, describe actions for events such as actions after the end of a job or occurrence of trouble during job execution.
[0013]
As described above, in the structured document 4, the contents of the job, the file name and link information used for the job, and the relationship between the files in the job are structured as attribute information. In addition to this, when describing processing after job execution or processing for event occurrence during job execution, describe the content of the processing after execution as attribute information, and describe the event and the content of processing for it as attribute information . In the structured documents 2 and 4, the file name is used as attribute information, but the file name itself is not necessarily required.
[0014]
In the structured document 4 as well, a plurality of files may be combined to specify a job as one block, and a plurality of blocks may be combined to specify a job as one group. In this case, the attribute information of the block describes link information to a plurality of files constituting the block and the relationship between the files in the job, for example, the order of processing the files in the job. The group attribute information describes the attribute information of the blocks in the group and the relationship between the blocks in the job.
[0015]
When a job is specified using the structured document 4, the following operation is obtained.
-A file to be processed can be easily specified by picking up a file to be processed from the structured document 2 or the like.
When specifying a job for processing a plurality of files, there is no need to actually configure a single file by combining a plurality of files.
-By specifying the processing range in the file, the job contents can be specified in detail.
Only the structured document 4 needs to be transferred to a server or the like that executes job processing, and it is not necessary to transfer the processing target file itself.
・ On the side of the server that executes the job, when the structured document 4 is input, the job is reserved, and the necessary files are acquired from the document management server only when the job can be executed. Just do it. For this reason, it is not necessary to store a large file at the stage of waiting for execution.
Even when there are a plurality of jobs using a large number of files, the related files can be handled together in one block, and the files in the block can be associated according to the necessity of the job.
-Since a plurality of blocks can be grouped together to describe the relationship between the blocks, large-scale jobs can be managed efficiently.
[0016]
FIG. 2 shows an example of a LAN 10 suitable for using the structured documents 2 and 4 of FIG. Reference numeral 12 denotes, for example, a mail server, and reference numeral 14 denotes a facsimile server, which transmits and receives G3 facsimile and the like, and also transmits and receives Internet facsimile via the mail server 12 and the like. The facsimile server 14 is a multifunction machine having a printer function, a copy function, and an image scanner function in addition to the facsimile, and functions as an image input / output server for the LAN 10. Reference numeral 16 denotes a document management server. Image data processed by the facsimile server 14 is managed by, for example, the document management server 16. A client terminal 18 uses a personal computer or the like to create the structured documents 2 and 4 shown in FIG. 1 according to a user input (not shown), and the structured document 2 is stored in the document management server 16 and the like. Is created by referring to the structured document 2, and a job such as “facsimile” or “print” is designated and executed by the facsimile server 14 or the like.
[0017]
As a result, in the case of FIG. 2, the structured document describing the job in the XML format is created by the client terminal 18 and transferred to the facsimile server 14 in charge of executing the job. When the facsimile server 14 becomes ready to execute a job, for example, when the corresponding job reaches the head of the queue, the link information described in the structured document for job management is sent to the document management server 16. To request transfer of the corresponding file. On the other hand, the document management server 16 transfers the corresponding file, and the facsimile server 14 executes a job such as facsimile or printing.
[0018]
FIG. 3 shows an algorithm for creating a structured document for file management. First, link information and relevance are described for a file of one block. Therefore, a file to be added to the block is selected, for example, the file name is input (step 1), and then the link information is described. (Step 2) Describe the relevance such as the order of files in the block (Step 3). If there is another file to be accommodated in the corresponding block, the same processing is performed (step 4). When the input of the attribute information of the file for one block is finished, the subroutine for creating the file block is finished.
[0019]
In this way, for the required number of blocks, file name, link information, and attribute information such as relevance within the block are input (step 5), and blocks of a plurality of files are grouped (step 6). Blocks to be grouped are designated by, for example, block IDs, and their relationships are described. The designation of block IDs and their relevance become group attribute information. When the creation of the group is completed in this way (steps 7 and 8), the structured document 2 shown in FIG. 1 can be created.
[0020]
An example of creating the structured document 4 of FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. A block of the first job is created, and the type is described for each job in step 11, and this is used as job attribute information. Next, select the file to be executed in this job, specifically describe the file name and link information, and the relationship with the job, such as the order of execution within the job, the range in which the file is processed by the job, etc. Is described (step 12). In this way, the file name, the link information, and the relationship are described for at least one file and a plurality of files in principle for one job. These pieces of data become job block attribute information (step 13). If there are a plurality of job blocks, the same procedure is performed for each job (step 14). When grouping job blocks (step 15), in step 16, the attribute information of each block in the group and the relationship between the blocks are described as group attribute information. The creation is repeated (step 17).
[0021]
When the grouping is completed, the process proceeds from connector 1 to step 18 where post-processing after job execution is required (step 18). The content of post-processing is described for each job type, and this is set as post-processing attribute. Information (step 19). Also, when describing a measure for an event occurrence such as a trouble during job execution, the type of event and the measure for the event are described as attribute information. When the structured document 4 of FIG. 1 is created in this way, the structured document is transferred to a server that executes processing (step 20). At this time, the files to be processed do not need to be transferred, and the files to be processed themselves are physically separated, and it is not necessary to create a single file. Further, which file is to be processed and how it can be designated and changed easily, and the processing range within the file can be easily designated.
[0022]
Upon receiving the transfer of the structured document 4 in FIG. 1, the server side obtains and executes a necessary file after waiting for the execution order of the corresponding job. For this reason, it is not necessary to store a large image file or the like until a job is executed after receiving a job instruction on the server side.
[0023]
FIG. 5 shows an example of a structured document for file management. This structured document is described in XML format, and has three blocks centered on image data, and their block IDs are 001 to 003. For each block, the name of the file constituting the block and link information are described. Here, the page occupied by each file is described as the relationship between the files. For example, “file01234” is assigned to one page of <FileID> 001, the format is “jpg”, “file01235” is assigned to the second to fourth pages, and the format is “tif”. Thus, the file format is arbitrary, and files other than image files may be mixed, such as “file01239” in <FileID> 002 (block 2).
[0024]
In FIG. 5, block 1 of <FileID> 001 and block 3 of <FileID> 003 constitute a group “G01”, and the address of the terminal having authority regarding the group is designated. , <FileID> 001 block is designated to be placed after <FileID> 001 block. The block of <FileID> 002 constitutes one group “G02” by itself.
[0025]
FIG. 6 shows a structured document in which a job including G3 facsimile and Internet facsimile is specified for such a file. This structured document is also written in the XML language, and “SendFaxJob” is specified as the first job. By sending a G3 facsimile, one page is extracted from “file01234” of block “001”, and the facsimile is “ It is specified that 2 to 4 pages are extracted from “file01235” to perform facsimile, and the fifth page is extracted from “file01236” to perform facsimile. Note that it is not necessary to specify all the pages as the facsimile range for each file, and it is sufficient to specify the unit in the file processing range, for example, in units of pages. In the job designation of “SendFaxJob” for G3 facsimile transmission, file names and their order are designated. Here, the block is specified before the file is specified, but the block need not be specified.
[0026]
The next job is specified by sending an Internet facsimile, so that the block “003” is specified, one page is extracted from “file01240”, and 2-10 pages are extracted from “file01241” and transmitted. . “File01240” and “file01241” have different formats, but this is not a problem.
[0027]
As auxiliary post-processing at the time of job execution, a job related to countermeasures in the event of a trouble is specified, and regarding facsimile transmission, it is specified that a report is transmitted to a specified destination when a trouble occurs. For Internet facsimiles, it is specified to create a list report in a predetermined format.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing that a plurality of files are managed by blocking a structured document according to the embodiment, and jobs for these files are designated. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating how a structured document according to the embodiment is a LAN. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a structured document creation algorithm for file management in the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an algorithm for creating a structured document for job management in the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a structured document for file management in the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a structured document for job management in the embodiment.
2,4 Structured document 6-8 File block 10 LAN
12 Mail server 14 Facsimile server 16 Document management server 18 Client terminal

Claims (1)

In the system for causing the facsimile server to execute facsimile transmission or printing using a plurality of files in response to an instruction from a client terminal to a facsimile server having a facsimile function and a print function.
To the client, the type of job for facsimile transmission or print, link information to each of the plurality of files, the order of processing among the plurality of files in the job, and the plurality of files in the job A structured document creating means for creating a job structured document describing the range of pages to be processed as attribute information, and a transferring means for transferring the job structured document to the facsimile server. While providing
An access means for accessing each of the plurality of files according to the link information to the facsimile server, and a range of pages to be processed for each of the plurality of files according to an order of processing between the plurality of files, A structured document processing system, comprising: processing means for performing facsimile transmission or printing by the facsimile server according to the type of job.

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