AUTOMATED PRINT SHOP SERVICE CAPABILITY DETERMINATION

• US 20090066992A1
• Filed: 09/11/2007
• Published: 03/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Shepherd, Michael David, Gombert, Barry Glynn
• Granted Patent: US 8,705,080 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.150
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

A print shop management method or system is used for a print shop. The method or system uses a knowledge base containing device data elements and service data elements. Each device data element represents a device in the print shop, and each service data element represents a service that may be implemented by one or more of the devices. A workflow management system implements an automated reasoner that, when a new device is added or one or more parameters of a device in the print shop are modified, uses semantic reasoning to select a service that may be implemented by the modified device, updates the knowledge base to include a new device element for the new or modified device; and automatically associates the new device element and the selected service.

Claims

1. A method of automatically managing a configuration change in a print shop, comprising:

maintaining a knowledge base containing a plurality of product data elements, a plurality of device data elements and a plurality of service data elements, wherein each device data element represents a device that is available to process a print job in a print shop, wherein each product data element represents a product that can be produced by the print shop and wherein each service data element represents a service that may be implemented by a group of the devices available in the print shop;

receiving an updated product data element, wherein the updated product element corresponds to a new or changed product to be produced in the print shop;

selecting, using an automated semantic reasoner in a workflow management system, a device and a service that may be used to produce the product;

updating the knowledge base to include the updated product element; and

automatically associating, in the knowledge base, the updated product element, the selected service and the selected device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving comprises receiving an identification of a device configuration for a product that is available in the print shop.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

inferring, using the semantic reasoner, a profile for the selected service; and

automatically associating the selected service and the updated product element, either directly or indirectly via the selected service, with the inferred profile.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the workflow management system, an instruction to perform a print job, wherein the print job includes the selected service; and

implementing, by the workflow management system, the selected service on the device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each service data element in the knowledge base is associated with a process, a profile and a grounding, and the updating comprises automatically associating the selected service and the updated product element, either directly or indirectly via the selected service, with the selected service'"'"'s process, profile and grounding.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the selecting comprises accessing the knowledge base for assertions relating to services available for products that are of similar type as the new or changed product.

8. A print shop management system, comprising:

a print shop comprising a plurality of devices that are configured to process a plurality of print job types;

a knowledge base containing a plurality of product data elements, device data elements and service data elements, wherein each device data element represents a device in the print shop, wherein each product data element represents a product that can be produced by the print shop, and wherein each service data element represents a service that may be implemented by one or more of the devices;

a workflow management system that includes a processor and a computer-readable storage medium, the storage medium programmed with instructions to cause the processor to implement an automated reasoner that, when an updated product element is received by the print shop;

selects, using semantic reasoning, a device and service that may be used to produce the product;

updates the knowledge base to include the updated product element; and

automatically associates, in the knowledge base, the updated product element, the service data element for the selected service, and the device element for the selected device.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the knowledge base includes, for each service data element, an associated process, profile and grounding, wherein:

each process represents one or more actions that make up its associated service;

each profile represents the one or more devices that are used to implement the process that is associated with the profile'"'"'s associated service; and

each grounding represents its associated service in an executable code format.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein each profile further includes at least one device configuration required to implement its associated service.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the knowledge base further comprises a plurality of workflow data elements and a plurality of device configuration data elements, wherein each workflow is associated with one or more service data elements and one or more device configuration data elements.

12. A method of automatically managing a configuration change in a print shop, comprising:

maintaining a knowledge base containing a plurality of product data elements, device data elements and service data elements,

receiving an updated product data element, wherein the updated product data element comprises an updated print shop device configuration;

selecting, using an automated semantic reasoner in a workflow management system, a device and a service that may be used to produce a product that corresponds to the updated product element;

updating the knowledge base to include the updated product element; and

automatically associating, in the knowledge base, the updated product element, the selected service and the selected device.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

inferring, using the semantic reasoner, a profile for the selected service; and

automatically associating the selected service and the updated product element, either directly or indirectly via the selected service, with the inferred profile.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving, by the workflow management system, an instruction to perform a print job, wherein the print job includes the selected service; and

implementing, by the workflow management system, the selected service on the device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein each service data element in the knowledge base is associated with a process, a profile and a grounding, and the updating comprises automatically associating the selected service and the updated product element, either directly or indirectly via the selected service, with the selected service'"'"'s process, profile and grounding.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the selecting comprises accessing the knowledge base for assertions relating to services available for products that are of similar type as the new or changed product.