Approach for collecting and reporting status data from network devices

• US 20060136424A1
• Filed: 06/29/2005
• Published: 06/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Nuggehalli, Jayasimha, Mirza-Baig, Attaullah
• Application Number:
  US11/172,558
• Publication Number:
  US 20060136424A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1222 Increasing security of the print job
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1231 Device related settings, e.g. IP address, Name, Identification
• 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 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity

Abstract

An approach is provided for collecting and reporting network device status data. Status data is received that indicates the status of one or more network devices. Report data is generated based upon the status data. Generating the report data may include formatting and translating the status data from one or more formats in which the status data was provided to one or more formats supported by one or more recipient devices. The report data may be provided to recipient devices immediately when generated or may be stored and provided to the recipient devices at a later time. Report data may also be retrieved remotely by recipient devices. In this situation, recipient devices are authenticated and request report data. The requests for report data are processed and report data is provided to the recipient devices.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for processing printing device status data, the computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving over a network, printing device status data that reflects the status of two or more printing devices, wherein each of the two or more printing devices includes a print process configured to process print data and generate a printed version of an electronic document;

authenticating a first recipient device;

authenticating a second recipient device;

receiving a request for report data from the first recipient device;

in response to receiving the request for report data from the first recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format, and

providing the first report data to the first recipient device;

receiving a request for report data from the second recipient device; and

in response to receiving the request for report data from the second recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a second data format that is different than the first data format, and

providing the second report data to the second recipient device.

2. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a non-XML format, the first report data conforms to a first XML schema, and the second report data conforms to a second XML schema.

3. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a first XML schema, the first report data conforms to a second XML schema, and the second report data conforms to a third XML schema.

4. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein the first and second requests are received from the first and second recipient devices and the first report data and second report data are provided to the first and second recipient devices using one or more secure connections.

5. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

6. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTPS GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

7. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request,

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in HTML form, and

providing the first report data to the first recipient device includes providing the first report data to a Web browser executing on the first recipient device.

8. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a first URL, and

the computer-implemented method further comprises;

receiving a second request for report data from the first recipient device, wherein the second request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a second URL that is different than the first URL;

in response to receiving the second request for report data from the first recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a third data format that is different than the first and second data formats, and

providing the second report data to the first recipient device;

.

9. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device specifies a URL, and

the computer-implemented method further comprises determining the first data format based upon the URL.

10. A computer-readable medium for processing printing device status data, the computer-readable medium carrying instructions which, when processed by one or more processors, cause:

receiving over a network, printing device status data that reflects the status of two or more printing devices, wherein each of the two or more printing devices includes a print process configured to process print data and generate a printed version of an electronic document;

authenticating a first recipient device;

authenticating a second recipient device;

receiving a request for report data from the first recipient device;

in response to receiving the request for report data from the first recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format, and

providing the first report data to the first recipient device;

receiving a request for report data from the second recipient device; and

in response to receiving the request for report data from the second recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a second data format that is different than the first data format, and

providing the second report data to the second recipient device.

11. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a non-XML format,

the first report data conforms to a first XML schema, and

the second report data conforms to a second XML schema.

12. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a first XML schema,

the first report data conforms to a second XML schema, and

the second report data conforms to a third XML schema.

13. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein the first and second requests are received from the first and second recipient devices and the first report data and second report data are provided to the first and second recipient devices using one or more secure connections.

14. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

15. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTPS GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

16. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request,

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in HTML form, and

providing the first report data to the first recipient device includes providing the first report data to a Web browser executing on the first recipient device.

17. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a first URL, and

the computer-readable medium further comprises additional instructions which, when processed by one or more processors, causes;

receiving a second request for report data from the first recipient device, wherein the second request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a second URL that is different than the first URL;

in response to receiving the second request for report data from the first recipient device,

generating, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a third data format that is different than the first and second data formats, and

providing the second report data to the first recipient device;

.

18. The computer-readable medium as recited in claim 10, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device specifies a URL, and

the computer-readable medium further comprises additional instructions which, when processed by one or more processors, causes determining the first data format based upon the URL.

19. An apparatus for processing printing device status data, the apparatus being configured to:

receive over a network, printing device status data that reflects the status of two or more printing devices, wherein each of the two or more printing devices includes a print process configured to process print data and generate a printed version of an electronic document;

authenticate a first recipient device;

authenticate a second recipient device;

receive a request for report data from the first recipient device;

in response to receiving the request for report data from the first recipient device,

generate, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format, and

provide the first report data to the first recipient device;

receive a request for report data from the second recipient device; and

in response to receiving the request for report data from the second recipient device,

generate, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a second data format that is different than the first data format, and

provide the second report data to the second recipient device.

20. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a non-XML format,

the first report data conforms to a first XML schema, and

the second report data conforms to a second XML schema.

21. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the printing device status data conforms to a first XML schema,

the first report data conforms to a second XML schema, and

the second report data conforms to a third XML schema.

22. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein the first and second requests are received from the first and second recipient devices and the first report data and second report data are provided to the first and second recipient devices using one or more secure connections.

23. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

24. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTPS GET request, and

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in XML form.

25. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request,

the generating, based upon the printing device status data, first report data that conforms to a first data format includes generating one or more Web pages that include the first report data in HTML form, and

providing the first report data to the first recipient device includes providing the first report data to a Web browser executing on the first recipient device.

26. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a first URL, and

the apparatus is further configured to;

receive a second request for report data from the first recipient device, wherein the second request for report data from the first recipient device includes an HTTP GET request that specifies a second URL that is different than the first URL;

in response to receiving the second request for report data from the first recipient device,

generate, based upon the printing device status data, second report data that conforms to a third data format that is different than the first and second data formats, and

provide the second report data to the first recipient device.

27. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein:

the request for report data from the first recipient device specifies a URL, and

the apparatus is further configured to determine the first data format based upon the URL.