System for automatically monitoring copiers from a remote location

• US 5,214,772 A
• Filed: 08/14/1990
• Issued: 05/25/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Imaging Portals Inc. (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Joseph Weinberger
• Inventors: Laird, James, Weinberger, Joseph, Bricault, Gary
• Primary Examiner(s): Kulik, Paul V.
• Application Number:
  US07/567,388
• Time in Patent Office: 1,015 Days
• Field of Search: 371/16.4, 371/29.1, 395/200, 395/575, 395/560, 395/725, 355/200, 355/202, 355/203, 355/204, 355/205, 355/207
• US Class Current: 714/47.2
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5075 Remote control machines, e.g. by a host
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/55 Self-diagnostics; Malfunction or lifetime display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0733 in a data processing system embedded in an image processing device, e.g. printer, facsimile, scanner
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0748 in a remote unit communicating with a single-box computer node experiencing an error/fault remote testing G06F11/2294
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2294 by remote test
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/34 Recording or statistical evaluation of computer activity, e.g. of down time, of input/output operation ; Recording or statistical evaluation of user activity, e.g. usability assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 3/00 Registering or indicating the condition or the working of machines or other apparatus, other than vehicles

Abstract

A system for automatically, remotely monitoring the operational status of and initiating operational commands in one or more copy machines each having a copier computer therein for determining copier status and controlling operation of the copy machine comprising interface means in the copier to monitor status information of the remote location from the copier computer and receive and input operational commands from the remote location into the copy machine and communication means between the individual copiers and the remote location. The system utilizes a scanner to respectively monitor the copiers which can poll each of the copiers at a uniform rate or, when requested by the user at the central location, vary the poll rate of one or more of the copiers to poll the selected copier with increased regularity, slowing the polling rate of the other copiers, to provide a real-time monitoring of the selected copier. The system provides for the operation of the copier from the remote location to allow the user at the remote location to operate the copier, i.e. for the diagnosis and correction of a detected problem.

Claims

1. A system for automatically monitoring the operational status of and initiating operational commands in one or more copy machines from a remote location, each copy machine having a copy machine control computer for monitoring copy machine status information and controlling operation of the copy machine and a control panel for user interaction at the copy machine, comprising interface means associated with each copy machine including means to access status information rom the copy machine control computer for transmission to the remote location and means to receive operation commands from the remote location for execution by the copy machine control computer, communication means between the interface means and the remote location, means to remotely monitor the status information from the copy machine control computer at the remote location and means to initiate operation commands at the remote location for execution by the copy machine control computer thereby remotely activating copy machine functions wherein the means to initiate operation commands at the remote location comprises means to remotely input copy machine commands at the remote location, means to direct the commands to a specific copy machine from the remote location and means to simulate keystrokes on the copy machine control panel at the copy machine comprising a set of latches in the interface means in parallel with copy machine operations keys on the copy machine control panel, read by the copy machine control computer.

2. A system for automatically monitoring the operational status of and initiating operational commands in one or more copy machines from a remote location, each copy machine having a copy machine control computer for monitoring copy machine status information and controlling operation of the copy machine and a control panel for user interaction at the copy machine, comprising interface means associated with each copy machine including means to access status information from the copy machine control computer for transmission to the remote location and means to receive operation commands from the remote location for execution by the copy machine control computer, communication means between the interface mans and the remote location, means to remotely monitor the status information from the copy machine control computer at the remote location, means to initiate operation commands at the remote location for execution by the copy machine control computer thereby remotely activating copy machine functions and means to read keystrokes entered on the copy machine control panel from the remote location comprising a predetermined number of latches within the interface means, said latches capturing column sense signals generated by keystrokes on the copy machine control panel and read by the copy machine control computer to activate a specific function, which are read by the interface means for transmission to the remote location.