DEVICES AND METHODS FOR USING AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE AS A PRINT JOB TICKET

• US 20120320405A1
• Filed: 06/14/2011
• Published: 12/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Giannetti, Fabio, Amir, Gidi
• Granted Patent: US 8,848,220 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• 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 3/1207 resulting in the user being informed about print result after a job submission
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1211 Improving printing performance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1259 Print job monitoring, e.g. job status
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1275 Print workflow management, e.g. defining or changing a workflow, cross publishing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1282 High volume printer device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

Devices and methods for using an electronic device for a print job ticket. Such an electronic device may include a network interface, a display, and an input device. The network interface may receive an assignment of the electronic device to a print job from a print service provider controller, receive workflow instructions associated with the print job from the print service provider controller, and send job status information associated with the print job to the print service provider controller. The display may display a representation of the workflow instructions and a user-selectable representation of the job status information. The input device may register a user selection of the representation of the job status information.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

a network interface configured to receive an assignment of the electronic device to a print job from a print service provider controller, receive workflow instructions associated with the print job from the print service provider controller, and send job status information associated with the print job to the print service provider controller;

a display configured to display a representation of the workflow instructions and a user-selectable representation of the job status information; and

an input device configured to register a user selection of the representation of the job status information.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the job status information comprises:

an indication that the print job has been picked up by a worker;

an indication that the print job is located at a print machine;

an indication that the print job is loaded in the print machine;

an indication that the print job is scheduled to be processed by an unavailable print machine;

an indication that a set-up procedure associated with a next process indicated by the workflow instructions has begun;

an indication that the set-up procedure associated with the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has ended;

an indication that the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has begun;

or

an indication that the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has ended;

or

any combination thereof.

3. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the workflow instructions comprise:

an indication of subsequent processes of a workflow associated with the print job;

an indication of worker instructions to perform a particular workflow process associated with the print job;

an indication of worker instructions to operate a print machine associated with the print job;

or

an indication of worker instructions to take the print job to a new print machine;

an indication of a specification associated with the print job;

or

any combination thereof.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the job status information or the workflow instructions, or both, comprise data in the job description format (JDF) or the job management format (JMF), or both.

5. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the network interface is configured to receive the assignment of the electronic device to the print job as a JobID of the job description format (JDF) or the job messaging format (JMF), or both.

6. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electronic device comprises a mobile device in the form of a notebook computer, a slate computer, a handheld computer, or an e-reader, or any combination thereof, configured to be physically coupled with the print job.

7. A method comprising:

receiving first workflow instructions from a print service provider controller onto an electronic device associated with a print job, wherein the first workflow instructions comprise an indication of a first print machine where the print job should next be taken;

displaying a representation of the first workflow instructions on the electronic device;

displaying a user-selectable representation of a job status associated with the print job on the electronic device, wherein the user-selectable representation of the job status comprises a representation that the print job has been picked up by a worker to be carried to the first print machine where the print job should next be taken;

registering a user selection of the user-selectable representation of the job status using the electronic device; and

sending an indication of the job status from the electronic device to the print service provider controller.

8. The method of claim 7, comprising receiving second workflow instructions from the print service provider controller that comprise an indication of a second print machine where the print job should next be taken when the first print machine becomes unavailable.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the user-selectable representation of the job status comprises a representation that the first print machine is unavailable, wherein the user-selectable representation of the job status that is registered comprises the representation that the first print machine is unavailable, and comprising receiving second workflow instructions from the print service provider controller that comprise an indication of a second print machine where the print job should next be taken instead.

10. The method of claim 7, comprising displaying on the electronic device, after the registration of the user-selectable representation of the job status, another user-selectable representation of the job status, wherein the other user-selectable representation of the job status indicates that the print job has been carried to the first print machine where the print job should next be taken.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein sending the indication of the job status comprises sending a time stamp indicating when the user selection of the user-selectable representation of the job status was selected.

12. An article of manufacture comprising:

at least one tangible, machine-readable medium at least collectively storing processor-executable instructions, the instructions comprising;

instructions to determine workflow instructions associated with a print job;

instructions to assign an electronic device to operate as a job ticket associated with the print job; and

instructions to send the workflow instructions to the electronic device.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to receive a job status indication from the electronic device indicating that the print job has been picked up by a worker, that the print job is located at a print machine, that the print job is loaded in the print machine, that the print job is scheduled to be processed by an unavailable print machine, that a set-up procedure associated with a next process indicated by the workflow instructions has begun, that the set-up procedure associated with the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has ended, that the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has begun, or that the next process indicated by the workflow instructions has ended, or any combination thereof.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein, when the workflow instructions comprise instructions to process the print job on a first print machine, the instructions comprise instructions to receive an indication from the first print machine of whether the first print machine is currently unavailable and to determine new workflow instructions associated with the print job when the first print machine is currently unavailable.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the print job comprises a ganged print job incorporating at least two sub-jobs and the instructions to determine the workflow instructions associated with the print job comprise instructions to determine the workflow instructions such that the print job will be split into the at least two sub-jobs at some point in production, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to assign another electronic device to operate as another job ticket associated with at least one of the at least two sub-jobs after the print job is split into the at least two sub-jobs.