Method and system for providing contract-free “pay-as-you-go” options for utilization of multi-function devices

• US 8,215,548 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2009
• Issued: 07/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Gnanasambandam, Shanmuga-nathan, Kleiman, Warren, DeYoung, Dennis C., Neville, Russell, Murthy, Ashok, Jenkins, Jack Douglas Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sharifzada, Ali
• Application Number:
  US12/424,820
• Publication Number:
  US 20100264214A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,181 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/383, 235/385, 235/380, 235/382
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/28 Pre-payment schemes, e.g. "pay before"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/266 for the use of a photocopier or printing device photocopiers H04N1/00

Abstract

A method and system including a plurality of multifunctional devices being operatively associated with at least one controller and each having a preset amount of preloaded consumables at a time of initial use; and a software application for enabling at least one user to access the plurality of multifunctional devices, the software application being configured to receive information from a prepaid card, the information including a financial value relating to usage of some of the preset amount of preloaded consumables in the plurality of multifunctional devices; wherein the financial value of the prepaid card is applied by the at least one user across the plurality of multifunctional devices in any desired uniform or non-uniform financial proportions in accordance with usage determinations; and wherein the at least one user is enabled to pay for access to the plurality of multifunctional devices in time staggered installments without pre-established contractual obligations.

Claims

1. A printing system comprising:

a plurality of multifunctional printing devices, said plurality of multifunctional printing devices being operatively associated with at least one controller and each one of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices having a preset amount of preloaded consumables at a time of initial use; and

a software application for enabling at least one user to access said plurality of multifunctional printing devices, said software application being configured to receive information from a prepaid card, the information including a financial value relating to usage of some of the preset amount of preloaded consumables in said plurality of multifunctional printing devices, and the prepaid card being used (i) for activating said software application and (ii) for selectively authorizing access of the at least one user to the at least one controller of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices;

wherein the financial value of the prepaid card is applied by the at least one user across said plurality of multifunctional printing devices in any desired uniform or non-uniform financial proportions in accordance with usage determinations of the at least one user; and

wherein the at least one user is enabled, through use of the prepaid card, to pay for access to said plurality of multifunctional printing devices in time staggered installments without pre-established contractual obligations.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the prepaid card is a virtual card for usage across the plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein a selected action by the at least one user at one or more of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices causes one of the time staggered installments to be discounted.

4. The system according to claim 3, wherein said selected action includes printing selected advertisements on one or more of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said software application verifies authorization capabilities with respect to the at least one user by transmitting a serial number specific acknowledgment to the at least one user and determining whether the serial number exists in a database.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the software application verifies availability of prepaid funds.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the software application includes a counter function for both incrementing a count when a first print quantity is paid for by the at least one user and decrementing the count when a second print quantity is obtained by the at least one user.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the print quantity varies as a function of pages.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the print quantity varies as a function of picture elements.

10. The system according to claim 7, wherein the count is incremented when the at least one user prints one or more selected advertisements at one or more of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

11. The system according to claim 7, wherein the prepaid card is automatically inactivated when the count is decremented below a selected value.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein the application software is in electrical communication with a server in order to verify authorization and provide the server with information relating to financial values of prepaid cards.

13. The system according to claim 1, wherein the software application enables the at least one user to access said plurality of multifunctional printing devices according to a page coverage function in which a page counter counts actual printed volume by pages or page coverage by pixels deposited to measure usage for one of the multifunctional printing devices, and wherein the software application accounts for fractional pages with very little pixel coverage by incrementing the page counter where fractions add up to a full page.

14. A method of operating a printing system, comprising:

operatively associating a plurality of multifunctional printing devices with at least one controller, wherein each one of the multifunctional printing devices has a preset amount of preloaded consumables at a time of initial use;

enabling at least one a user, with a software application, to access at least one of the plurality of multifunctional printing devices with a prepaid card, the prepaid card including a financial value relating to usage of some of the preset amount of preloaded consumables in said plurality of multifunctional printing devices;

using the prepaid card to (1) activate the software application, (2) provide the at least one user with access to the at least one controller of the plurality of multifunctional printing devices, and (3) pay for access to the plurality of multifunctional printing devices in time staggered installments without pre-established contractual obligations; and

applying the financial value of the prepaid card across the plurality of multifunctional printing devices in any desired uniform or non-uniform financial proportions in accordance with usage determinations of the at least one user.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the prepaid card is a virtual card for usage across the plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein a selected action by the at least one user at one or more of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices causes one of the time staggered installments to be discounted.

17. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

causing one of the time staggered installments to be discounted in response to a selected action being performed by the at least one user at one or more of the plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein said selected action includes printing selected advertisements on one or more of the plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

19. The method according to claim 14, further comprising verifying authorization of the at least one user to access the plurality of multifunctional printing devices by matching a user provided number with a pre-approved number in a database.

20. The method according to claim 14, wherein the software application verifies availability of prepaid funds.

21. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

verifying availability of prepaid funds.

22. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

incrementing a count when a first print quantity is paid for by the at least one user; and

decrementing the count when a second print quantity is obtained by the at least one user.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the print quantity varies as a function of pages.

24. The system according to claim 22, wherein the print quantity varies as a function of picture elements.

25. The method according to claim 22, wherein the count is incremented when the at least one user prints one or more selected advertisements at one or more of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices.

26. The method according to claim 22, further comprising:

automatically inactivating the prepaid card when the count is decremented below a selected value.

27. The method according to claim 14, wherein the application software is in electrical communication with a server in order to verify authorization and provide the server with information relating to financial values of prepaid cards.

28. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

enabling the at least one user to access said plurality of multifunctional printing devices according to a page coverage function using a page counter to count actual printed volume by pages or page coverage by pixels deposited to measure usage for a given one of the multifunctional printing devices; and

accounting for fractional pages with very little pixel coverage by incrementing the page counter where fractions add up to a full page.

29. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

defining and estimating a lifetime'"'"'s supply of a given consumable that is shipped in a first or original consignment.

30. A computer-readable medium storing programmable instructions configured for being executed by at least one processor for enabling printing capabilities, the method comprising the steps of:

enabling a plurality of multifunctional printing devices to be operatively associated with at least one controller where each one of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices includes a preset amount of preloaded consumables at a time of initial use; and

enabling at least one user to access said plurality of multifunctional printing devices via a software application, said software application being configured to receive information from a prepaid card, the information including a financial value relating to usage of some of the preset amount of preloaded consumables in said plurality of multifunctional printing devices, and the prepaid card being used (i) for activating said software application and (ii) for selectively authorizing access of the at least one user to the at least one controller of said plurality of multifunctional printing devices;

wherein the financial value of the prepaid card is applied by the at least one user across said plurality of multifunctional printing devices in any desired uniform or non-uniform financial proportions in accordance with usage determinations of the at least one user; and

wherein the at least one user is enabled, through use of the prepaid card, to pay for access to said plurality of multifunctional printing devices in time staggered installments without pre-established contractual obligations.