Document server for processing a distribution job in a document processing system

• US 5,781,711 A
• Filed: 08/12/1997
• Issued: 07/14/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kulbida, Christopher, Austin, Paul R., Kibler, Wendell L., Bunker, Keith G., Haehn, Steven E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Moore, David K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Garcia, Gabriel I.
• Application Number:
  US08/909,604
• Time in Patent Office: 336 Days
• Field of Search: 395/101, 395/102, 395/106, 395/109, 395/114, 395/112, 395/113, 395/117, 395/200.3, 395/200.31, 395/200.32, 395/200.33, 395/200.76, 395/200.79 , 395/200.8, 395/728, 395/800.15, 395/800.28, 345/501, 345/502, 345/335, 382/175, 382/277, 382/284, 382/303, 382/304, 382/133, 364/133, 364/231.8, 364/948.34, 364/949.91, 364/949.5
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1211 Improving printing performance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/126 Job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A document server is provided for processing a distribution job in a document processing system. The document processing system includes a document manager, communicating with first and second virtual services, for coordinating the storing or processing of first and second copies of an image data set at the first and second virtual services, respectively. The document processing system further includes a distribution agent, communicating with the document manager, for receiving a first job ticket, including attributes for controlling the storing or processing of the first copy of the image data set at the first virtual service and a second job ticket for controlling the storing or processing of the second copy of the image data set at the second virtual service. The document manager and the distribution agent function cooperatively to provide the document server with the capability to halt the processing of the first and second copies of the image data set in order for altering attributes of the first and second job tickets, and to determine the status of the processing of the first and second copies of the image data set. Moreover, the distribution agent can provide values for attributes of the first and second job tickets when a user does not program those values in the first and second job tickets.

Claims

1. A document server, including a client, for processing a distribution job in a document processing system, the distribution job including an image data set as well as a first job ticket and a second job ticket, the first and second job tickets including first and second sets of attributes, respectively, each of the first and second attribute sets describing a manner in which first and second copies of the image data set are to be stored in or processed by the document processing system, the document processing system including a first virtual service for storing or processing the first copy of the image data set in accordance with the first attribute set and a second virtual service for storing or processing the second copy of the image data set in accordance with the second attribute set, comprising:

a document manager, communicating with the first and second virtual services, for coordinating the storing or processing of the first and second job copies in the first and second virtual services;

a distribution agent, communicating with said document manager, for receiving the first and second job tickets of the distribution job as a single package, said distribution agent transmitting a copy of the first job ticket of the single package to said document manager so that said document manager facilitates routing of both the first copy of the image data set and the copy of the first job ticket to the first virtual service, and said distribution agent transmitting a copy of the second job ticket of the single package to said document manager so that said document manager facilitates routing of both the second copy of the image data set and the copy of the second job ticket to the second virtual service; and

said distribution agent receiving a distribution job alteration request after the copies of the first and second job tickets have been transmitted to said document manager, the distribution job alteration request including information indicating an alteration to be made in one or more of the attributes of each of the first and second attribute sets, said distribution agent, in response to receiving the distribution job alteration request, transmitting a task halting request to said document manager, said document manager, in response to receiving the task halting signal, causing any ongoing activities, relative to the first and second copies of the image data set, to be halted.

2. The document server of claim 1, in which the task halting request includes a first halt command signal directing said document manger to cause any processing of the first copy of the image data set to be halted at the first virtual service and a second halt command signal directing said document manger to cause any processing of the second copy of the image data set to be halted at the second virtual service.

3. The document server of claim 2, wherein said distribution agent transmits the first and second halt command signals to said document manager in series.

4. The document server of claim 2, in which each of the first and second copies of the image data set are transmitted to an image data set interpretation service prior to being transmitted to the first and second virtual services, wherein said document manager causes any current interpretation of the first copy of the image data set to be halted in response to receiving the first halt command and any current interpretation of the second copy of the image data set to be halted in response to receiving the second halt command.

5. The document server of claim 1, in which the single package is provided with an identifier, wherein the single package is transmitted from the client to said document manager for reading thereof, wherein, when said document manager reads the identifier, said document manager routes the single package to said distribution agent without further processing of the distribution job.

6. The document server of claim 1, wherein said document manager causes one or both of the first and second job tickets to be altered, in accordance with the distribution job alteration request, at one or both of the first and second virtual services.

7. The document server of claim 1, wherein:

said document manager causes any processing of the first and second copies of the image data set to be halted at the first and second virtual services;

in response to said halting, said document manager transmits a confirmation to said distribution agent indicating that the storing of or processing of the first and second copies of the image data set has been halted; and

in response to receiving the confirmation, said distribution agent alters one or more attributes in each of the first and second attribute sets.

8. The document server of claim 1, wherein the alteration of one or more attributes by said distribution agent includes modifying one or more attributes in each of the first and second attribute sets.

9. The document server of claim 1, wherein the alteration of one or more attributes by said distribution agent includes cancelling one or more attributes from each of the first and second attribute sets.

10. The document server of claim 1, wherein each of said first and second virtual services, said document manager and said distribution agent all communicate with one another by way of a first interface.

11. The document server of claim 10, wherein each of the client, said distribution agent and said document manager communicate with one another by way of a second interface.

12. A document server, including a client, for processing a distribution job in a document processing system, the distribution job including an image data set as well as a first job ticket and a second job ticket, the first and second job tickets including first and second sets of attributes, respectively, each of the first and second attribute sets describing a manner in which first and second copies of the image data set are to be stored in or processed by the document processing system, the document processing system including a first virtual service for storing or processing a first copy of the image data set in accordance with the first attribute set and a second virtual service for storing or processing a second copy of the image data set in accordance with the second attribute set, comprising:

a document manager, communicating with the first and second virtual services, for coordinating the storing or processing of the first and second copies of the image data set in the first and second virtual services;

a distribution agent, communicating with said document manager, for receiving the first and second job tickets of the distribution job as a single package, said distribution agent transmitting a copy of the first job ticket of the single package to said document manager so that said document manager facilitates routing of both the first copy of the image data set and the copy of the first job ticket to the first virtual service, and said distribution agent transmitting a copy of the second job ticket of the single package to said document manager so that said document manager facilitates routing of both the second copy of the image data set and the copy of the second job ticket to the second virtual service; and

said distribution agent receiving a first distribution job status request after the copies of the first and second job tickets have been transmitted to said document manager, said distribution agent transmitting a second distribution job status request, to said document manager, for directing said document manager to determine an extent to which each of the first copy of the image data set and the second copy of the image data set has been processed by the document server, said document manager, in response to receiving the second distribution job status request, causing the extent to which each of the first copy of the image data set and the second copy of the image data set has been processed by the document server to be determined.

13. The document server of claim 12, wherein the distribution job status request includes a first job status request signal directing said document manger to obtain a first determination as to an extent to which the first copy of the image data set has been processed by the first virtual service and a second job status request signal directing said document manger to obtain a second determination as to an extent to which the second copy of the image data set has been processed by the second virtual service.

14. The document server of claim 13, wherein said distribution agent transmits the first and second job status request signals to said document manager in series.

15. The document server of claim 13, in which said document manager receives a status indication, from the first and second virtual services, indicating the extent to which the first copy of the image data set has been processed at the first service and the extent to which the second copy of the image data set has been processed at the second service, wherein said distribution agent and said document manager, by reference to the status indication, function cooperatively to inform the client of the status of the first copy of the image data set and the second copy of the image data set.

16. The document server of claim 12, in which the single package is provided with an identifier, wherein the single package is transmitted from the client to said document manager for reading thereof, wherein, when said document manager reads the identifier, said document manager routes the single package to said distribution agent without further processing of the distribution job.

17. The document server of claim 12, in which the first and second copies of the image data set are transmitted to an image data interpretation service prior to being transmitted to the first and second virtual services, wherein said document manager, in response to receiving the second distribution job status request, obtains a determination as to an extent to which the first copy of the image data set has been processed by the image data interpretation service and a determination as to an extent to which the second copy of the image data set has been processed by the image data interpretation service.

18. The document server of claim 12, wherein each of the first and second virtual services, said document manager and said distribution agent all communicate with one another by way of a first interface.

19. The document server of claim 18, wherein each of the client, said distribution agent and said document manager communicate with one another by way of a second interface.