Dynamic scanner system

• US 8,014,040 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2006
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Haugen, Todd, Rosenfeld, Daniel Allen, Dietz, Robert Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Park; Chan S
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, DUNG D
• Application Number:
  US11/379,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20070247673A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,964 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 358/474
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00236 using an image reading or reproducing device, e.g. a facsimile reader or printer, as a local input to or local output from a computer image input to or image output from a computer via a network H04N1/00209

Abstract

A printer, scanner device and methods for using same are described herein. A printer device may include a dedicated input that, when actuated, generates and sends a request to a computer for known data or a predetermined print job, e.g., schedule information from a personal information management (PIM) application. A scanner device may include another dedicated input that, when actuated, automatically scans a document fed to the device by the user and sends the scanned image to IM (or other) software on a computer, bypassing the need to manipulate the scanned image using scanner software. The device may be used with printed metapaper, which includes a barcode or other indicia identifying the metapaper and corresponds to a stored template image of the metapaper. When the metapaper is rescanned, the scan can be compared to the stored template information to identify changes and synchronize the changes with the IM software.

Claims

1. A scanner device, comprising:

an interface module providing two-way communications between the scanner device and a separately housed user computer;

an input system providing a first input device;

a scanner module that, upon actuation of the first input device, scans a document to create a digital image of the document, wherein said document has predetermined information printed thereon, wherein said document further has handwritten changes to the predetermined information;

a storage module storing a database or lookup table for receiving a request to scan a particular document and for uniquely determining from the digital image of the scanned particular document a user related to the particular document, said storage module using the database or lookup table to determine a corresponding information management software application on the user computer, and to further determine a specific data type of the corresponding information management software application, wherein the scanner periodically synchronizes with the computer to update said database or lookup table, wherein the storage module further receives, via user input subsequent to the received request, a specified one view of a plurality of selectable views of the specific data type; and

a processor controlling operation of the scanner, said processor configured with instructions for;

sending data comprising the digital image and the specified one view to the user computer for delivery to the corresponding information management software application executing on the computer, wherein receiving the request and sending said data is based on completion of scanning the document after the actuation of the first input device; and

generating updated predetermined information formatted according to the specified one view and having a first portion of the handwritten changes incorporated therein as data values and having a remainder portion of the handwritten changes appended to the first portion as an image of a handwritten annotation.

2. The scanner of claim 1, wherein said first input device comprises a scan button.

3. The scanner of claim 1, wherein the specific data type corresponds to schedule information stored in the information management software application.

4. The scanner of claim 1, wherein the specific data type corresponds to task or to-do list information stored in the information management software application.

5. The scanner of claim 1, wherein said input system provides a second input device, said second input device usable by a user of the scanner to select the corresponding user.

6. The scanner of claim 5, wherein said input system provides a third input device, said third input device usable by a user of the scanner to select the corresponding information management software application, and wherein the third input device is the same as or different from the second input device.

7. The scanner of claim 1, wherein said input system provides a second input device, said second input device usable by a user of the scanner to select the corresponding information management software application.

8. The scanner of claim 1, wherein said input system provides a second input device, said second input device usable by a user of the scanner to select the specific data type from a plurality of specific data types of the corresponding information management software application.

9. The scanner of claim 8, wherein the plurality of specific data types comprise a weekly schedule and a monthly schedule.

10. The scanner of claim 1, further comprising a printer module, wherein the input system further comprises a second input device that, when actuated by a user, generates a request for the predetermined information, sends the request for the predetermined information to the information management software application, receives a print job from the information management software application in response to the request, and prints a document based on the specified one view and comprising the updated predetermined information based on the received print job.

11. A method for scanning a paper document, comprising:

at a scanner, receiving an indication that a user has actuated a predetermined input device corresponding to scanning a paper document having a predetermined type of printed information thereon;

scanning the document to create a digital image of the paper document;

sending data comprising the digital image to a predetermined software application executing on a separately housed user computer, said predetermined software application being other than a device driver and a scanner management application;

at the computer, comparing the digital image of the paper document to template information corresponding to the paper document to determine the predetermined type of printed information and to identify handwritten changes made to the predetermined type of printed information on the paper document by a user;

automatically interpreting and integrating a first portion of the identified handwritten changes into the predetermined type of printed information maintained by the information management software application, based on the comparing step; and

appending a remainder portion of the identified handwritten changes as an image of a handwritten annotation to the integrated first portion.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the predetermined input device comprises a print button.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the predetermined software application comprises an information management software application.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said data comprises an indication that the predetermined type of printed information comprises schedule information maintained by the information management software application.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said data further comprises an indication of a user, and wherein said schedule information corresponds to the user.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein said data comprises an indication that the predetermined type of printed information comprises to-do list information maintained by the information management software application.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step of generating and sending a print job to the scanner device for printing via a printer module of the scanner device, wherein said print job comprises updated schedule information based on the integrating step.

18. An image reproducing device, comprising:

an interface module providing two-way wireless communications between the image reproducing device and a separately housed user computer;

an input system providing first and second input devices;

a scanner module that, upon actuation of the first input device, scans a paper document to create a digital image of the paper document, wherein said paper document has predetermined information printed thereon, wherein said paper document further has handwritten changes to the predetermined information;

a storage module storing a database or lookup table for receiving a request to scan a particular document and for uniquely determining from the digital image of the scanned particular document a user related to the particular document, said storage module using the database or lookup table to determine a corresponding information management software application on the user computer, and to further determine a specific data type of the corresponding information management software application, wherein the scanner periodically synchronizes with the computer to update said database or lookup table, wherein the storage module further receives, via user input subsequent to the received request, a specification of one view of a plurality of selectable views of the specific data type;

a printer module; and

a processor controlling operation of the image reproducing device, said processor configured with instructions to wirelessly send data comprising the digital image to the computer for delivery to the corresponding information management software application executing on the user computer, wherein receiving the request and wirelessly sending said digital image is based on completion of scanning the document after the actuation of the first input device, and wherein the processor is further configured with instructions to, upon actuation of the second input device, generate a request for a print job comprising updated predetermined information and send the request to the information management software application, said updated predetermined information formatted according to the specified one view and having a first portion of the handwritten changes incorporated therein as data values and having a remainder portion of the handwritten changes appended to the first portion as an image of a handwritten annotation.

19. The image reproducing device of claim 18, wherein the predetermined information comprises schedule information maintained by the information management software application.