Systems and methods for simplified scanning using multi-function devices

• US 20020085244A1
• Filed: 12/28/2000
• Published: 07/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gladiator IP LLC (IP Edge LLC)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Blasio, Anthony, Hayward, Ken, Krolczyk, Marc J., Litwiller, Debora M., Peskor, Steven
• Granted Patent: US 7,139,094 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/474
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00209 Transmitting or receiving image data, e.g. facsimile data, via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network, the internet, I-fax
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00236 using an image reading or reproducing device, e.g. a facsimile reader or printer, as a local input to or local output from a computer image input to or image output from a computer via a network H04N1/00209
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00241 using an image reading device as a local input to a computer input via network, e.g. network scanners H04N1/00225
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/33376 according to characteristics or state of one of the communicating parties, e.g. available memory capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0015 Control of image communication with the connected apparatus, e.g. signalling capability
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0027 Adapting to communicate with plural different types of apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0068 Converting from still picture data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0074 Arrangements for the control of a still picture apparatus by the connected apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/33328 Resolution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/33378 Type or format of data, e.g. colour or B/W, halftone or binary, computer image file or facsimile data

Abstract

A scanner is connected to a host computer. A scanner control routine is installed onto the host computer and used to generate and forward control signals to the scanner or multi-function device. Using the scanner control system, manager or routine, one or more scanned image destinations are defined and one or more scanning parameters are defined that are particularly appropriate for each such scanned image destination. Each scanned image destination is associated with one of a number of pre-named scanner destinations that can be selected using the scanner. These pre-named destinations usually have generic or otherwise meaningless names that are not associated with any particular destination or location. The user uses the control panel of the scanner or multi-function device to select one of the pre-named destinations. The scanner or multi-function device forwards this selected destination to the host computer. The scanner control system, manager or routine on the host computer converts the selected destination to the actual destination or location previously associated with that selected destination. The scanner control system, manager or routine then causes the host computer to “pull” a scanned image from the scanner or multi-function device based on the scanner parameters previously defined for the actual destination or location corresponding to the selected pre-named destination.

Claims

1. A scanning system comprising:

a scanning device, comprising;

at least one input device usable to input data, and

a memory, the memory storing at least one destination indicator, wherein the at least one input device is usable to select one of the at least one destination indicator; and

a host device connectable to the scanning device, comprising;

a controller, and

a memory, the memory storing;

at least one destination to which scanned data can be directed, and

data relating each of the at least one destination to one of the at least one destination indicator.

2. The scanning system of claim 1, wherein, in response to a user using the at least one input device to select one of the at least one destination indicator, the host device controls the scanning device to obtain scanned data based on the destination related to the selected destination indicator.

3. The scanning system of claim 2, wherein, in response to the user using the at least one input device to input a start signal, the scanning device outputs the start signal and the selected destination indicator to the host device.

4. The scanning system of claim 2, wherein the controller comprises a scanned data manager that inputs the selected destination indicator, determines the destination relating to the selected destination indicator, and obtains the scanned data from the scanning device based on the determined destination.

5. The scanning system of claim 4, wherein:

the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, at least one scan parameter corresponding to that destination; and

the scanned data manager comprises;

a destination manager that determines the destination relating to the selected destination indicator; and

a scanned data processor that, based on the at least one scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination, obtains the scanned data and that processes the scanned data.

6. The scanning system of claim 5, wherein the at least one scan parameter comprises at least one of a type of destination, a scan resolution, at least one image correction parameter, a color space, a color depth, a facsimile transmission resolution, gamma, an original image type, and an original substrate type.

7. The scanning system of claim 6, wherein the type of destination is one of an application, a folder, a remotely located computer, a network node, a network path, and a memory drive.

8. The scanning system of claim 5, wherein the scanned data processor obtains the scanned data from the scanning device by generating control signals based on the at least one scan parameter and outputting the control signals to the scanning device.

9. The scanning system of claim 8, wherein the scanning device scans an original document based on the control signals to obtain the scanned data.

10. The scanning system of claim 8, wherein the scanned data processor stores the obtained scanned data from the scanning device in the memory of the host device and processes the stored scanned data based on the at least one scan parameter to generate processed scanned data.

11. The scanning system of claim 10, wherein the destination manager outputs the processed scanned data to the destination related to the selected destination indicator.

12. The scanning system of claim 1, wherein the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, a destination indicator that is able to meaningfully indicate that destination to a user of the scanning device.

13. The scanning system of claim 12, wherein, in response to the user using the at least one input device to input a signal indicating the user intends to scan a document, the host device outputs, for each destination in the memory, the corresponding destination indicator to the scanning device.

14. The scanning system of claim 13, wherein, in response to the host device outputting the destination indicators corresponding to the at least one destination, the scanning device stores the received destination indicators in the memory of the scanning device as the destination indicators of the scanning device and displays the destination indicators to the user.

15. The scanning system of claim 1, wherein, in response to a user using the at least one input device to select one of the at least one destination indicator and at least one input scan parameter, the host device controls the scanning device to obtain scanned data based on the destination related to the selected destination indicator and the at least one scan parameter.

16. The scanning system of claim 15, wherein, in response to the user using the at least one input device to input a start signal, the scanning device outputs the start signal, the at least one input scan parameter and the selected destination indicator to the host device.

17. The scanning system of claim 16, wherein the controller comprises a scanned data manager that inputs the selected destination indicator and the at least one input scan parameter, determines the destination relating to the selected destination indicator, and obtains the scanned data from the scanning device based on the determined destination and the at least one input scan parameter.

18. The scanning system of claim 17, wherein:

the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to that destination; and

the scanned data manager comprises;

a destination manager that determines the destination relating to the selected destination indicator; and

a scanned data processor that, based on at least one of the at least one input scan parameter and the at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination, obtains the scanned data and that processes the scanned data.

19. The scanning system of claim 18, wherein, when one of the at least one input scan parameter defines a value that is different from a value of a corresponding predefined scan parameter, the scanned data processor at least one of obtains and processes the scanned data based on the input scan parameter.

20. The scanning system of claim 18, wherein the scanned data processor obtains the scanned data from the scanning device by generating control signals based on at least one of the at least one input scan parameter and the at least one predefined scan parameter and outputting the control signals to the scanning device.

21. The scanning system of claim 18, wherein the at least one input scan parameter comprises at least one of a scan resolution, at least one image correction parameter, a color space, a color depth, a facsimile transmission resolution, gamma, an original image type, and an original substrate type.

22. The scanning system of claim 1, wherein the scanning device is one of a scanner, a flatbed scanner, a facsimile machine, a multi-function device, and a digital copier.

23. The scanning system of claim 1, wherein the host device is one of a directly-connected computer, a remotely-located computer, a computer connected to the scanning device over a distributed network, and a node of a distributed network.

25. The scanner host device of claim 24, wherein, in response to the scanner host device receiving a destination indicator from the scanning device, the host device controls the scanning device to obtain scanned data based on the destination related to the received destination indicator.

26. The scanner host device of claim 24, wherein the controller comprises a scanned data manager that inputs the received destination indicator, determines the destination relating to the selected destination indicator, and obtains the scanned data from the scanning device based on the determined destination.

27. The scanner host device of claim 26, wherein:

the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, at least one scan parameter corresponding to that destination; and

the scanned data manager comprises;

a destination manager that determines the destination relating to a destination indicator from the scanning device; and

a scanned data processor that, based on the at least one scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination, obtains the scanned data from the scanning device and that processes the scanned data.

28. The scanner host device of claim 27, wherein the at least one scan parameter comprises at least one of a type of destination, a scan resolution, at least one image correction parameter, a color space, a color depth, a facsimile transmission resolution, gamma, an original image type, and an original substrate type.

29. The scanner host device of claim 28, wherein the type of destination is one of an application, a folder, a remotely located computer, a network node, a network path, and a memory drive.

30. The scanner host device of claim 27, wherein the scanned data processor generates control signals based on the at least one scan parameter and outputting the control signals to the scanning device.

31. The scanner host device of claim 30, wherein the scanned data processor stores scanned data obtained from the scanning device in the memory of the host device and processes the stored scanned data based on the at least one scan parameter to generate processed scanned data.

32. The scanner host device of claim 31, wherein the destination manager outputs the processed scanned data to the destination related to the received destination indicator.

24. A scanner host device connectable to a scanning device, comprising:

a controller, and

a memory, the memory storing;

at least one destination to which scanned data can be directed, and

data, for each of the at least one destination, relating that destination to a destination indicator of the scanning device.

33. A scanning device, comprising:

at least one input device usable to input data;

a destination manager that, in response to the user using the at least one input device to input a signal indicating the user intends to scan a document, generates and outputs a first signal to a host device; and

a memory, the memory storing at least one destination indicator received from the host device in response to the first signal, wherein the at least one input device is usable to select one of the at least one destination indicator.

34. The scanning system of claim 33, wherein the scanning device is one of a scanner, a flatbed scanner, a facsimile machine, a multi-function device, and a digital copier.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein:

transmitting the selected destination indicator to the host device comprises;

inputting a start indication from a user, and

outputting, in response to the start indication, a start signal and the selected destination indicator to the host device; and

determining the destination comprises determining the destination in response to the start signal and the selected destination indicator.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein:

the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, at least one scan parameter corresponding to that destination; and

controlling the scanning device based on the determined destination comprises at least one of;

obtaining scanned data from the scanning device based on at least one of the at least one scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination, and

processing the obtained scanned data based on at least one of the at least one scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the at least one scan parameter comprises at least one of a type of destination, a scan resolution, at least one image correction parameter, a color space, a color depth, a facsimile transmission resolution, gamma, an original image type, and an original substrate type.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the type of destination is one of an application, a folder, a remotely located computer, a network node, a network path, and a memory drive.

40. The method of claim 37, wherein obtaining the scanned data from the scanning device comprises:

generating control signals based on the at least one of the at least one scan parameter; and

outputting the control signals to the scanning device.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein obtaining the scanned data from the scanning device further comprises scanning an original document based on the control signals to obtain the scanned data.

42. The method of claim 37, further comprising outputting the scanned data to the destination related to the selected destination indicator.

43. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

inputting an scan indication from the user indicating the user intends to scan a document;

outputting a first signal to the host device;

outputting from the host device to the scanning device, in response to the first signal, for each destination stored in the memory of the host device, a destination indicator that is able to meaningfully indicate that destination to a user of the scanning device.

44. The method of claim 43, further comprising:

storing the received destination indicators in the memory of the scanning device as the destination indicators of the scanning device; and

displaying the destination indicators to the user.

45. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

selecting least one input scan parameter;

transmitting the selected at least one input scan parameter with the selected destination indicator; and

controlling the scanning device based on the at least one input scan parameter along with the determined destination.

46. The method of claim 45, wherein:

the memory of the host device stores, for each destination, at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to that destination; and

controlling the scanning device based on the at least one scan parameter along with the determined destination further comprises controlling the scanning device based on at least one of the at least one input scan parameter and the at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination along with the determined destination.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein controlling the scanning device based on the at least one scan parameter along with the determined destination further comprises controlling the scanning device based on at least one of the at least one input scan parameter and the at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination along with the determined destination comprises:

determining, for each of the at least one input scan parameter, whether that input scan parameter corresponds to a predefined scan parameter;

replacing the corresponding predefined scan parameter with that input scan parameter when that input scan parameter corresponds to a predefined scan parameter;

adding that input scan parameter to the at least one predefined scan parameter when that input scan parameter does not correspond to a predefined scan parameter; and

controlling the scanning device based on the at least one predefined scan parameter corresponding to the determined destination along with the determined destination

48. The method of claim 45, wherein the at least one input scan parameter comprises at least one of a scan resolution, at least one image correction parameter, a color space, a color depth, a facsimile transmission resolution, gamma, an original image type, and an original substrate type.

49. The method of claim 35, wherein the scanning device is one of a scanner, a flatbed scanner, a facsimile machine, a multi-function device, and a digital copier.

50. The method of claim 35, wherein the host device is one of a directly-connected computer, a remotely-located computer, a computer connected to the scanning device over a distributed network, and a node of a distributed network.

35. A method for scanning a document using a scanner device, the scanner device having a memory storing at least one destination indicator and a host device having a memory storing at least one destination to which scanned data can be directed and data relating each of the at least one destination to one of the at least one destination indicator, the method comprising:

selecting one of the at least one destination indicator;

transmitting the selected destination indicator to the host device;

determining a destination corresponding to the selected destination indicator; and

controlling the scanning device based on the determined destination.