SYSTEM AND METHOD TO DEVELOP A CUSTOM APPLICATION FOR A MULTI-FUNCTION PERIPHERAL (MFP)
First Claim
1. A method of customizing multi-function peripherals (MFPs), the method comprising:
- exposing functionality, through a software interface, of an MFP device to one or more custom applications hosted on one or more host devices remote to the MFP device; and
registering the one or more custom applications for use by users of the MFP device via a proxy device in communication with the one or more host devices.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In general, the invention relates to adding custom applications to multi-function peripheral (MFP) devices. In some embodiments, a proxy device is used to provide registration and routing functions to third-party applications operating on host sites. Thus, the proxy device relieves the MFP device of the processing burden associated with application registration and message routing between multiple custom applications and the MFP device. In some embodiments, user interface (UI) templates are used to customize application displays on the MFP device. By using standard templates, such as templates based on XML, the MFP devices may include minimal support for parsing the templates, thereby reducing the burden placed on the device to accommodate the custom applications.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of customizing multi-function peripherals (MFPs), the method comprising:
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exposing functionality, through a software interface, of an MFP device to one or more custom applications hosted on one or more host devices remote to the MFP device; and registering the one or more custom applications for use by users of the MFP device via a proxy device in communication with the one or more host devices. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A method of executing a custom application on a multi-function peripheral (MFP), the method comprising:
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registering the custom application on a proxy device in data communication with the MFP; making the registered custom application available to MFP users based on communication between the MFP and the proxy device; receiving, via the MFP, data from an MFP user; and routing, through the proxy device, the data from the MFP to a host device hosting the custom application. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6)
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7. A system for providing custom applications on multi-function peripherals (MFPs), the system comprising:
a proxy device, the proxy device configured to register the one or more custom applications for use by users of an MFP, wherein the MFP functionality is exposed, through a software interface, to one or more custom applications hosted on other devices. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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10. A multi-function peripheral (MFP) that supports custom applications, the MFP comprising:
an interface with one or more custom applications executed on other devices, the interface configured to make the one or more custom applications available to users of the MFP after receiving an update from a proxy device indicating that the proxy device has registered the one or more custom applications for use on the MFP. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12)
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13. A method of providing custom applications on multi-function peripherals (MFPs), the method comprising:
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defining a template for user input at an MFP, the template comprising a set of configurable user interface features; receiving machine readable instructions originating from a custom application operating on a device other than the MFP, the machine readable instructions specifying user interface settings; determining whether the received instructions correspond to the defined template; and if there is a correspondence, configuring a user interface of the MFP based on the specified user interface settings. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16)
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17. A computer readable medium having machine loadable software for multi-function peripheral (MFP) application customization, wherein the software is configured to perform a method comprising:
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defining a template for user input at an MFP, the template comprising a set of configurable user interface features; receiving machine readable instructions originating from a custom application operating on a device other than the MFP, the machine readable instructions specifying user interface settings; determining whether the received instructions correspond to the defined template; and if there is a correspondence, configuring a user interface of the MFP based on the specified user interface settings.
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18. A multi-function peripheral (MFP) that supports custom applications, the MFP comprising:
an interface with one or more custom applications executed on other devices, the interface configured to process XML-based instructions corresponding to one or more predefined templates that arrange the user interface display of the MFP, the XML-based instructions being received from the one or more custom applications. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
Specification