Methods for universal data output

• US 20020097415A1
• Filed: 01/18/2002
• Published: 07/25/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Flexiworld Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Flexiworld Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Chang, William Ho, Liu, Christina Ying
• Granted Patent: US 7,609,402 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1203 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. print management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1205 resulting in increased flexibility in print job configuration, e.g. job settings, print requirements, job tickets
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1208 resulting in improved quality of the output result, e.g. print layout, colours, workflows, print preview
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/122 with regard to computing resources, e.g. memory, CPU
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1226 Discovery of devices having required properties
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1228 Printing driverless or using generic drivers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1229 Printer resources management or printer maintenance, e.g. device status, power levels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1236 Connection management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1238 Secure printing, e.g. user identification, user rights for device usage, unallowed content, blanking portions or fields of a page, releasing held jobs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1245 by conversion to intermediate or common format
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1247 by conversion to printer ready format
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1253 Configuration of print job parameters, e.g. using UI at the client
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1258 by updating job settings at the printer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/128 Direct printing, e.g. sending document file, using memory stick, printing from a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1284 Local printer device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1286 via local network
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 : in client-server-printer device configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 : Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 : Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/162 : Interface to dedicated audio devices, e.g. audio drivers, interface to CODECs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 : Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/02 : using printers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/181 : Receiving print data characterized by its formatting, e.g. particular page description languages
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/1836 : Rasterization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 : specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 : Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/30 : Distributed recognition, e.g. in client-server systems, for mobile phones or network applications
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/223 : Execution procedure of a spoken command
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 : Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 : Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 : with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00283 : with a television apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 : with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00403 : Voice input means, e.g. voice commands
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00411 : the display also being used for user input, e.g. touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00488 : providing an audible output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00854 : Recognising an unauthorised user or user-associated action
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00938 : Software related arrangements, e.g. loading applications program loading in general G06F9/445
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32534 : details of interfacing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32582 : Output interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4413 : involving the use of passwords, ID codes or the like, e.g. PIN
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/442 : using a biometric data reading device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0039 : Connection via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0041 : Point to point H04N2201/0039 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0053 : Optical, e.g. using an infrared link
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0055 : By radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0082 : Image hardcopy reproducer H04N2201/0091 - H04N2201/0094 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0094 : Multifunctional device, i.e. a device capable of all of reading, reproducing, copying, facsimile transception, file transception
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/16 : Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 : using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 : Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 : Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 : Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 : Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 : Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A data output method for rendering at an output device content accessible with an information apparatus, includes obtaining at the information apparatus one or more rasterization parameters corresponding to the output device and conforming at the information apparatus at least part of the data content into one or more output images with said one or more rasterization parameters. An intermediate output data is transmitted from the information apparatus to an output controller that is distinct from the information apparatus and associated with the selected output device, the intermediate output data including said one or more output image. The intermediate output data is converted at the output controller into an output data acceptable for rendering at the output device.

Claims

1. A data output method for rendering at an output device content at least partly accessible with an information apparatus, comprising:

obtaining at the information apparatus one or more rasterization parameters corresponding to the output device;

conforming at the information apparatus at least part of the data content into one or more output images with said one or more rasterization parameters;

transmitting an intermediate output data from the information apparatus to an output controller that is distinct from the information apparatus and associated with the selected output device, the intermediate output data including said one or more output image;

converting at the output controller, the intermediate output data into an output data acceptable for rendering at the output device.

2. The method of claim 1 comprising obtaining the one or more rasterization parameters from one or more of the output device or user input or default value.

3. The method of claim 1 in which the one or more output images are associated with different slides, pages or cards.

4. The method of claim 1 in which the conforming includes one or more of a rasterization operation, a scaling operation, an interpolation operation, and a compression operation.

5. The method of claim 1 in which the content includes text or graphics elements and the conforming of at least part of the content include rasterizing the content into image form.

6. The method of claim 1 comprising transmitting the intermediate output data by wireless communication.

7. The method of claim 1 in which the output controller is included in the output device.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising performing at the output controller one or more image processing operations on the one or more output images included in the intermediate output data, the one or more image processing operations including one or more of a color correction operation, a color matching operation, a color management operation, a scaling operation, an interpolation operation, a color space conversion, a compression operation, and a halftoning operation.

9. The method of claim 1 in which the output device is a printing device and the method further comprising conforming the intermediate output data into a print data that is acceptable to a printer controller associated with the output device.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising obtaining at the information apparatus a data content for rendering at the selected output device.

11. A data output method for rendering content at least partly accessible with an information apparatus, comprising:

establishing a communication channel between the information apparatus and one or more output devices with short range wireless communication;

conforming at the information apparatus at least part of the data content into one or more output images with at least one predefined or standard rasterization parameters;

generating at the information apparatus a device independent intermediate output data, the intermediate output data including the one or more output images;

delivering via the established communication channel the intermediate output data from the information apparatus to said one or more output devices for rendering; and

converting at said one or more output devices the intermediate output data into an output data acceptable for rendering by an output engine included in said one or more output devices.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising discovering the selected output device as one of one or more output devices that are discovered by the information apparatus as being available for rendering the output content.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising discovering the selected output device as one of one or more output devices that are discovered by the information apparatus as being available for rendering the output content.

15. The method of claim 13 in which the information apparatus discovers the one or more output devices with wireless communication.

16. The method of claim 13 in which discovering the one or more output devices includes the information apparatus sending an output service request and awaiting a response from one or more output devices.

17. The method of claim 13 in which discovering the one or more output devices includes one or more output devices posting their availability and the information apparatus contacting one or more of the one or more output devices.

18. The method of claim 13 in which discovering the one or more output devices includes the information apparatus obtaining from a service node information about the one or more output devices and the information apparatus contacting one or more of the one or more output devices.

19. The method of claim 13 in which discovering one or more output devices involves determining if the one or more output devices satisfy one or more output service requirements.

20. The method of claim 13 further comprising obtaining at least partial output device profile form the one or more output devices that are discovered.

21. The method of claim 13 further comprising providing at the information apparatus information related to the one or more output devices discovered by the information apparatus and obtaining from a user a selection of the selected output device.

22. The method of claim 13 in which the selecting includes automatic selection by one or more components of the information apparatus.

13. A data output method for rendering at an output device content at least partly accessible with an information apparatus, comprising:

selecting an output device with an output engine for rendering the data content;

conforming at least part of the content into one or more output images with at least one rasterization parameter related at least in part to the selected output device;

generating an intermediate output data that includes said one or more output images;

delivering the intermediate output data for rendering by the selected output device;

receiving at the selected output device the intermediate output data;

performing one or more image processing operations on said one or more output images; and

converting at the selected output device the intermediate output data into an output data acceptable for rendering by the output engine included in the selected output device.