Printer voice portal

• US 8,462,367 B2
• Filed: 02/10/2005
• Issued: 06/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Burke, Paul Michael, McGlashan, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Zheng, Jacky X
• Application Number:
  US11/054,551
• Publication Number:
  US 20060176505A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,043 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.15, 358/1.14, 704/235, 704/246, 704/260, 379/907, 705/235, 705/246, 705/260
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/44 Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms having dual functions or combined with, or coupled to, apparatus performing other functions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1204 resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic actions, using hardware token storing data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1253 Configuration of print job parameters, e.g. using UI at the client
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1293 Printer information exchange with computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/16 Sound input; Sound output speech processing G10L
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

A printer portal including a network connection arranged to transfer user voice command input and printer portal output, a telephony system arranged to receive user voice command input and generate printer portal output via the network connection, a printing device arranged to print information responsive to the telephony system based on the user voice command input, and an access module arranged to control user access to portions of the printer portal is described. The printer portal stores location information about the printer portal. A method for printing information at a printer portal is described. A user voice command input is received at a printer portal. The printer portal analyzes the command input using a telephony system. Information is printed at the printer portal if the command input includes a print request to print information at the printer portal.

Claims

1. A printer portal, comprising:

a network connection arranged to transfer user voice command input and printer portal output;

a telephony system arranged to receive said user voice command input via the network connection from a telephonic device used by a user of the printer portal and to generate a printer portal output via said network connection;

a printing device arranged to print documents stored at the printer portal or documents accessible via the network and responsive to the printer portal output from said telephony system based on said user voice command input;

an access module arranged to control user access to portions of said printer portal;

electronic storage for storing physical location information for the printer portal; and

a processor configured to compare a received location of the telephonic device used by the user with the printer portal'"'"'s physical location information, configured to determine the proximity of the telephonic device to the location of the printer portal and, based on at least the proximity of the telephonic device to the printer portal, configured to selectively enable and disable particular functionality of the printer portal.

2. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein said telephony system includes an interactive voice response system.

3. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein the printer portal stores a selective menu of services based on the proximity of a telephonic device used by the user to the printer portal location.

4. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein said printing device includes a print queue for storing information to be printed at a later time.

5. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein said access module controls user access to a print queue.

6. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein said access module controls user access to previously queued items to be printed.

7. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein said network connection transfers a request for a document from the said telephony system to the printer portal.

8. The printer portal of claim 1, wherein a transferred information request is based on said received user voice command input.

9. A method for printing information at a printer portal, comprising the steps of:

receiving via a telephonic device a user voice call at the printer portal;

retrieving from electronic storage a physical location of the printer portal;

comparing the retrieved physical location of the printer portal to location of the telephonic device to determine a proximity of the telephonic device to the printer portal;

selectively enabling and disabling particular functionality of the printer portal, based on the proximity of the telephonic device to the printer portal,

transmitting a menu of available services to the user via the telephonic device;

receiving voice command input; and

printing a document at said printer portal if the voice command input includes a print request to print the document at said printer portal.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

transmitting from a user telephone a user voice command input to the printer portal.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

requesting voice command input of user access information.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the menu of services is also based on the received user access information.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the printer portal includes printer portal location.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

transmitting a menu of services to a user based on the printer portal location.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

requesting a document to be printed from a server by the printer portal in response to said received user voice command input.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising the steps of:

receiving a requested document to be printed from the server; and

printing a formatted version of the received document.

17. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

receiving information to be printed at the printer portal; and

storing the received information in a print queue.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of:

printing a stored received information in response to receipt of user access information in a user voice command input.