Image forming system and image forming apparatus

• US 20020123839A1
• Filed: 02/14/2002
• Published: 09/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation), Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ogura, Kazuhiro, Iwase, Akinori, Haraguchi, Tatsuya
• Granted Patent: US 6,990,408 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

An image forming system and an image forming apparatus are provided, which utilizes a cellular phone, etc. that enable extremely free operability when printing and outputting map data, etc. on a network by separating the operation through cellular phones from the operation through a terminal printer. The image forming system comprises: a portable terminal that is connected to a network via a gateway through the radio communication and provides a desired map destination data to a server; a server that receives the destination data via the network and stores in a prescribed area; and an image forming apparatus that is connected to the server through the network corresponding to the user'"'"'s operation and supplies a data to designate the position data of the image forming apparatus and the destination data stored to the server and receives a map data comprising the position data of the image forming apparatus as a starting point and the destination data as an ending point and prints this map data. Such operations as designation of a destination on a map can be made freely from a cellular phone and the printing operation can be separately executed from the image forming apparatus.

Claims

1. An image forming system comprising:

a portable terminal connected to a network through a radio communicaition to transmit a desired destination data via the network by the operation of a user;

a server connected to the network to receive the destination data from the portable terminal via the network and store the destination data in a prescribed area; and

an image forming apparatus connected to the network to receive map data comprising a position data of the image forming apparatus as a starting point and the destination data stored in the server as an ending point via the network, and form a map image on a recording medium based on the map data.

2. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus transmits the position data of the image forming apparatus that is set by the GPS (Global Positioning System) to the server and receives the map data comprising the position data of the image forming apparatus as the starting point and the destination data as the arriving point from the server, and forms the map image on the recording medium based on the received map data.

3. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the server stores the destination data in the prescribed area corresponding to a user ID and a password that are set by the user who operates the portable terminal.

4. The image forming system according to claim 3, wherein the user ID and the password are once set by the user who operates the portable terminal, the server is not required to set the user ID and the password for the second time and thereafter.

5. The image forming system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a money receiver connected to the image forming apparatus to urge the user to put money corresponding to the map data provided and an image formed in response to the direction by the user to form the map image on the recording medium.

6. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus further includes a charging unit to charge a part of the fee for telephone calls by the portable terminal for the map data provided and image formed in response to the direction by the user to form the map image on the recoding medium.

7. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus further includes a charging unit to charge a sponsor of the server for the map data provided and image formed in response to the direction by the user to form the map image on the recording medium.

8. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus forms an image with an advertisement of a prescribed facilities available in the guide route of the map data attached and includes a charging unit to charge a sponsor a fee for the advertisement of the facilities corresponding to the map data provided and the image formed when the image forming apparatus is directed by a user to form the map data on the recording medium corresponding to the map data.

9. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus further includes a unit to set the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data and it is directed by the user to form the image on the recording medium corresponding to the map data.

10. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus further includes a unit to set a time elapsed by a prescribed time from the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data and it is directed by the user to form the image on the recording medium corresponding to the map data.

11. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus further includes a unit to set a time elapsed by a prescribed time from the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data and it is directed by the user to form the image on the recording medium corresponding to the map data, and when the map data comprising the position data of the image forming apparatus as the starting point and the destination data as the ending point is supplied from the server, forms the map data and a time schedule corresponding to the set time of departure on the recording medium.

12. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the server further includes a unit to receive the destination data from the portable terminal and store a destination data of a desired map data in a prescribed area and informs a prescribed point that the destination data can be deleted when a prescribed time is passed after stored.

13. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the server further includes a unit to store a destination data of a desired map data in a prescribed area for every user ID that is set according to the user'"'"'s operation through the portable terminal and inform a prescribed point that the destination data can be deleted when a prescribed time is passed after stored.

15. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

an image forming unit supplies the position data of the image forming apparatus that is set by the GPS (Global Positioning System) to the server and is supplied the map data comprising the position data of the image forming apparatus as the starting point and the destination data as the ending point from the server and forms the image on the recording medium correspondingly.

16. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a money receiver that urges a user to put money therein according to the map data provided in response to the direction by the user for the map data formed on the recording medium.

17. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a charging unit to charge as a part of the fee for telephone calls of the portable terminal according to the map data provided and the image formed in response to the direction by the user for the map data formed on the recording medium.

18. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a charging unit to charge a sponsor of the server according to the map data provided and the image formed in response to the direction of the user for an image forming of the map data on the recording medium.

19. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a unit that forms an image with an advertisement of a prescribed place in the guide route of the map data when a direction by the user for forming the image on the recording medium according to the map data is received and charges a sponsor of the place according to the map data provided and the image formed.

20. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a unit to set the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data when a direction is received from the user to form the image on the recording medium according to the map data.

21. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a unit to set a time after elapsed by a prescribed time from the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data when a direction is received from the user to form the image on the recording medium according to the map data.

22. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:

a unit to set a time after elapsed by a prescribed time from the current time of the image forming apparatus in the server as a time of departure when utilizing the map data when a direction is received from the user to form the image on the recording medium according to the map data; and

a unit to form the map data and a time table corresponding to the set time of departure on the recording medium when the map data comprising the position data of the image forming apparatus as the starting point and the destination data as the ending point.

14. An image forming apparatus in an image forming system including a portable terminal that is connected to a network through a radio communication, a server and the image forming apparatus that are connected to the network, comprising:

a data supply unit that is connected to the server through the network according to user'"'"'s operation and supplies a position data of the image forming apparatus and a data to designate destination data stored in a prescribed area to the server; and

an image forming unit that is supplied with a map data comprising a position data of the image forming apparatus as a starting point and the destination data as an ending point from the server and according to the supplied map data, forms an image on a recording medium.