Universal mobile print agent

• US 8,571,602 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2007
• Issued: 10/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Han, Charles Seunghwan, Horton, Stephen W., Yates, Timothy James
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, MAHENDRA R
• Application Number:
  US11/760,150
• Publication Number:
  US 20080004075A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,335 Days
• Field of Search: 455/450, 455/509, 455/16, 455/62, 455/445, 455/551, 455/557, 455/434, 455/456.1, 455/456.6, 323/282, 375/211, 375/267, 375/347, 385/132, 264/328, 370/455, 370/315, 370/408, 358/1.15, 709/218
• US Class Current: 455/557
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00137 Transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00145 from a remote location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00188 Printing, e.g. prints or reprints H04N1/0019, H04N1/00196 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3253 Position information, e.g. geographical position at time of capture, GPS data

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for enabling output from a mobile device are described herein. A mobile device having an image capture device can selectively generate a hard copy output of a captured image by interfacing with an output device. The mobile device can selectively interface with the output device directly or indirectly via one or more intermediate devices and/or systems. The mobile device can interface directly with an output device using a wired or wireless connection, and can selectively operate as a host or client. The mobile device can selectively couple the stored image to a remote output device via a wireless connection. The mobile device can select the remote output device from a predetermined list of devices, or can be supplied a dynamic list of remote output devices. The dynamic list of output devices can be updated, for example, based on a location of the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method of operating a mobile device for providing print output, the method comprising:

initializing a print output from the mobile device;

determining a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

querying a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

determining the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

determining whether a selected output device is local or remote, the selected output device being selected from among the output device options;

determining that a connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is wireless based on an identity of the selected output device, wherein the connection to the selected output device is available at the determined location of the mobile device; and

communicating, via a print application interface to a wireless transceiver for transmission over the connection, at least one image stored within the mobile device to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining, the wireless transceiver within the mobile device through which the at least one image is communicated to the selected output device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a transceiver configured to communicate with a wireless telephone system.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a transceiver configured to communicate over a packet-based network.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a transceiver configured to support an IEEE 802.11 wireless communication standard.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a transceiver configured to support a Bluetooth communication standard.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the output device options includes:

determining an output device list that lists a set of output devices satisfying the one or more filtering criteria, wherein the output device options are determined from the output device list.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the mobile device operates as a host device or a client device based in part on the selected output device.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one image is communicated from the mobile device to the selected output device via the connection while the mobile device remains located at the determined location.

29. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a cellular telephone.

30. The method of claim 1, wherein the querying queries the local database without relying upon a network connection.

9. A method of operating a mobile device for providing print output, the method comprising:

determining a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

querying a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

determining the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

receiving a selection of one of the output device options for printing an image stored within the mobile device;

enabling, by the mobile device from the determined location, a connection to the selected output device via a wireless transceiver within the mobile device, wherein the connection is determined to be wireless based on an identity of the selected output device; and

communicating, via a print application interface to the wireless transceiver for transmission over the wireless connection, the image to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.

10. An apparatus configured to provide mobile print output, the apparatus comprising:

an image capture device;

a wireless transceiver;

a communication processing module coupled to a wired communication port;

a position location module configured to support location determination of the apparatus; and

a Universal Print Agent (UPA) configured to utilize a determined location of the apparatus by initiating a position location procedure via the position location module, to query a local database that is maintained by the apparatus to determine a list of output devices from which an output device can be selected based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options, to determine the list of output devices from the local database in response to the query, and to selectively communicate, to the wireless transceiver for transmission over a connection between the apparatus and the selected output device that is available at the determined location, an image captured by the image capture device to a selected output device for conversion into a hard copy, wherein the connection is determined to be wireless based on an identity of the selected output device.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the position location module comprises a GPS receiver.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the position location module supports A-GPS position determination.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a wireless telephone transceiver.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a Bluetooth enabled transceiver.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the wireless transceiver comprises an IEEE 802.11 enabled transceiver.

16. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the communication processing module comprises a Universal Serial Bus host communication module.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the communication processing module comprises a Universal Serial Bus peripheral communication module.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the UPA is associated with print application interfaces to each of the wireless transceiver and the communication processing module via a corresponding Application Program Interface module.

19. An apparatus comprising a machine-readable memory storing a set of processor executable instructions, which, when executed by a mobile device, cause the mobile device to perform a method comprising:

receiving a command to initialize a print output from the mobile device;

determining a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

querying a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

determining the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

determining whether a selected output device is local or remote, the selected output device being selected from among the output device options;

determining that a connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is wireless based on an identity of the selected output device, wherein the connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is available at the determined location of the mobile device; and

communicating, via a print application interface to a wireless transceiver for transmission over the connection, at least one image stored within the mobile device to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises establishing the connection by controlling a communication processing module corresponding to the connection.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises determining the wireless transceiver within the mobile device through which the at least one image is communicated to the selected output device.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises determining a configuration as a host device or a client device based in part on the identity of the selected output device.

23. An apparatus configured to provide mobile print output, the apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a command to initialize a print output from a mobile device;

means for determining a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

means for querying a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

means for determining the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

means for determining whether a selected output device is local or remote, the selected output device being selected from among the output device options;

means for determining that a connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is wireless based on an identity of the selected output device, wherein the connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is available at the determined location of the mobile device; and

means for communicating, via a print application interface to a wireless transceiver for transmission over the connection, at least one image stored within the mobile device to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising means for processing the at least one image to a communication protocol.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the means for determining the location of the mobile device includes:

means for initiating the position location procedure.

26. An apparatus configured to provide mobile print output, the apparatus comprising:

logic configured to initialize a print output from the mobile device;

logic configured to determine a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

logic configured to query a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

logic configured to determine the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

logic configured to determine whether a selected output device is local or remote, the selected output device being selected from among the output device options;

logic configured to determine that a connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is wireless based on an identity of the selected output device, wherein the connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is available at the determined location of the mobile device; and

logic configured to communicate, via a print application interface to a wireless transceiver for transmission over the connection, at least one image stored within the mobile device to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.

27. A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by an apparatus configured to provide mobile print output, cause the apparatus to perform operations, the instructions comprising:

program code to initialize a print output from the mobile device;

program code to determine a location of the mobile device by initiating a position location procedure;

program code to query a local database that is maintained by the mobile device to determine output device options based, at least in part, on the determined location of the mobile device and one or more filtering criteria which include at least a threshold proximity of the determined location of the mobile device to one or more of the output device options;

program code to determine the output device options from the local database in response to the query;

program code to determine whether a selected output device is local or remote, the selected output device being selected from among the output device options;

program code to determine that a connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is wireless based on an identity of the selected output device, wherein the connection from the mobile device to the selected output device is available at the determined location of the mobile device; and

program code to communicate, via a print application interface to a wireless transceiver for transmission over the connection, at least one image stored within the mobile device to the selected output device for conversion into a hard copy.