Print processing network

• US 9,069,499 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2011
• Issued: 06/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Infoprint Solutions Company LLC (Ricoh Company Limited)
• Inventors: Waller, Marquis G., Gaertner, Joseph P., Meilstrup, Jon A., Doyle, Brian P., Liebelt, Linda S.
• Primary Examiner(s): HON, MING Y
• Application Number:
  US13/053,725
• Publication Number:
  US 20120243026A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,561 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1207 resulting in the user being informed about print result after a job submission
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1229 Printer resources management or printer maintenance, e.g. device status, power levels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1259 Print job monitoring, e.g. job status
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration

Abstract

A method disclosed. The method includes downloading a first print job data stream from a cloud computing network, transmitting the first print job data stream to a printer, monitoring a printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a second print job and downloading a second print job data stream from the cloud computing network upon determining that the printer is ready to receive the second print job.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a secondary print server downloading a first print job data stream from a primary print server implemented in a cloud computing network;

transmitting the first print job data stream from the secondary print server to a printer;

the secondary print server monitoring a printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a second print job by;

calculating a time to complete printing the first print job;

calculating a time to download a second print job data stream from the primary print server and begin printing the second print job data stream; and

comparing the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream to the time to complete printing the first print job; and

the secondary print server downloading a second print job data stream from the primary print server upon determining that the printer is ready to receive the second print job.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting the second print job data stream to the printer; and

monitoring the printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a third print job.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein monitoring the printing status of the printer comprises monitoring the status of the first print job and the second print job at the printer.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising converting the first and second print job data streams to a second data stream format prior to transmitting to the printer.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating the time to download and begin printing a second print job data stream is based on the size of the print job data stream and a data transfer speed between the primary and secondary print servers.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the printer is ready to receive the second print job when the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream is equal to the time to complete printing the first print job.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein downloading the first and second print job data streams comprises performing a secure copy from a Network File System (NFS) directory at a cloud server.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the secure copy is performed via a virtual private network (VPN).

9. A printing system, comprising:

a printer to apply data to a print medium; and

a secondary print server to download a first print job data stream from a primary print server implemented in a cloud computing network, transmit the first print job data stream to the printer, monitor a printing status of the printer by calculating a time to complete printing the first print job by calculating a time to download a second print job data stream from the primary print server and begin printing the second print job data stream, and comparing the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream to the time to complete printing the first print job, and download a second print job data stream from the cloud computing network upon determining that the printer is ready to receive a second print job.

10. The printing system of claim 9 wherein the server further transmits the second print job data stream to the printer and monitors the printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a third print job.

11. The printing system of claim 10 wherein the server monitors the status of the first print job and the second print job at the printer.

12. The printing system of claim 9 wherein the first and second print job data streams are Advanced Function Presentation (AFP) data streams.

13. The printing system of claim 12 wherein the server converts AFP data streams to Intelligent Printer Data Stream (IPDS) data streams prior to transmitting to the printer.

14. The printing system of claim 9 wherein calculating the time to download and begin printing a second print job data stream is based on the size of the print job data stream and a data transfer speed between the primary and secondary print servers.

15. The printing system of claim 9 wherein the server determines that the printer is ready to receive the second print job when the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream is equal to the time to complete printing the first print job.

16. The printing system of claim 9 wherein the server downloads the first and second print job data streams by performing a secure copy from a Network File System (NFS) directory at a cloud server.

17. The printing system of claim 16 wherein the secure copy is performed via a virtual private network (VPN).

18. The printing system of claim 9 further comprising a second printer.

19. The printing system of claim 18 wherein the server monitors the first and second printers during printing of the first and second print job data streams.

20. An article of manufacture comprising a non-transitory machine-readable medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

a secondary print server downloading a first print job data stream from a primary print server implemented in a cloud computing network;

transmitting the first print job data stream from the secondary print server to a printer;

the secondary print server monitoring a printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a second print job by;

calculating a time to complete printing the first print job;

calculating a time to download a second print job data stream from the primary print server and begin printing the second print job data stream; and

comparing the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream to the time to complete printing the first print job; and

the secondary print server downloading a second print job data stream from the primary print server upon determining that the printer is ready to receive the second print job.

21. The article of manufacture of claim 20 comprising a machine-readable medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, further cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

transmitting the second print job data stream to the printer; and

monitoring the printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a third print job.

22. The article of manufacture of claim 20 wherein monitoring the printing status of the printer comprises monitoring the status of the first print job and the second print job at the printer.

23. The article of manufacture of claim 20 comprising a machine-readable medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, further cause the machine to perform operations comprising converting the first and second print job data streams to a second data stream format prior to transmitting to the printer.

24. The article of manufacture of claim 20 wherein calculating the time to download and begin printing a second print job data stream is based on the size of the print job data stream and a data transfer speed between the primary and secondary print servers.

25. The article of manufacture of claim 20 wherein the printer is ready to receive the second print job when the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream is equal to the time to complete printing the first print job.

26. The article of manufacture of claim 20 wherein downloading the first and second print job data streams comprises performing a secure copy from a Network File System (NFS) directory at a cloud server.

27. A printing network, comprising:

a primary print server implemented in a cloud computing network including a printing software product to process print job data streams;

a second server to download a first print job data stream from the cloud computing network server, convert the first print job data stream to a second data stream format and transmit the first print job data stream; and

a printer to apply the first print job data stream to a print medium,

wherein the server monitors a printing status of the printer by calculating a time to complete printing the first print job by calculating a time to download a second print job data stream from the primary print server and begin printing the second print job data stream, and comparing the time to download and begin printing the second print job data stream to the time to complete printing the first print job, and downloads a second print job data stream from the cloud computing network server upon determining that the printer is ready to receive a second print job.

28. The printing network of claim 27 wherein the first and second print job data streams are Advanced Function Presentation (AFP) data streams.

29. The printing network of claim 28 wherein the second server converts AFP data streams to Intelligent Printer Data Stream (IPDS) data streams.

30. The printing network of claim 27 wherein calculating the time to download and begin printing a second print job data stream is based on the size of the print job data stream and a data transfer speed between the primary and secondary print servers.