Local-remote apparatus with specialized image storage modules

• US 5,321,816 A
• Filed: 12/09/1992
• Issued: 06/14/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Burroughs Incorporated (Terreno Realty Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Inventors: Forbes, Brian K., Birdsall, Michael G., Rogan, James D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dixon, Joseph L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim, Matthew M.
• Application Number:
  US07/988,365
• Time in Patent Office: 552 Days
• Field of Search: 364/200 MS File, 364/900 MS File, 395/200
• US Class Current: 705/42
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking

Abstract

An apparatus provides a network combining a local site having a host computer and a specialized storage and retrieval module for storing image information which is connected to a remote site having document processing equipment working with remote specialized storage retrieval modules for storage of image and information data. The single local main host computer can operate the network such that documents which are converted to digitized packets can be stored in and retrieved from both the remote storage retrieval modules and also stored int eh local storage retrieval module for use of the remote and the local peripheral devices.

Claims

1. A banking system financial network using a single local host computer means for managing specialized digital storage-retrieval module means at a local site and at a remote site, said system network comprising:

(a) a local subsystem means for storing and making humanly readable packets of digital information and image data stored at said remote site, and including;

(a1) a local host computer means at said local site communicating with a local digital storage-retrieval module means including;

(a1a) a local communication means for information and image data transfer to and from a remote subsystem at said remote site;

(a1b) means to transmit and receive instructions and management data to and from said remote subsystem;

(a2) said packets providing digital images of bank checks and/or financial documents;

(a3) local specialized digital storage-retrieval module means for storing and retrieving said packets of digital information and image data as copied from a remote specialized digital storage retrieval module means;

(a4) local peripheral device means including work stations and printers for accessing said packets for transformation into humanly readable form in real time;

(b) remote subsystem means for transforming bank checks and financial documents into digital information and image data packets for storage in said remote specialized digital storage retrieval module means including;

(b1) remote document processor means for reading and converting each incoming check and financial document into a digital packet of image and information data as digital optical signals and including;

(b1a) means to transmit said digital packets to said remote specialized storage-retrieval means at a rate of "R" packets per second where each packet includes "K" kilobytes of data;

(b2) remote communication transfer means including;

(b2a) means for enabling commands and data transfers between said local host computer means and said remote document processor means;

(b2b) means for enabling transfer of said packets between said remote specialized storage-retrieval means and said local specialized storage-retrieval means;

(c) said remote specialized digital storage-retrieval module means for converting said digital optical signals, from said remote document processor means, into digital electrical signal pockets of digital image and information data for transmission to said remote peripheral device means and to said local specialized storage retrieval means;

(d) remote peripheral device means including work stations and printers for accessing said packets into humanly readable form in real time.

2. The banking system financial network of claim 1 wherein each of said remote and local specialized digital storage retrieval means includes:

(a) a plurality of storage/retrieval module means connected in a cluster wherein said plurality of storage/retrieval module means are connected to each other via a local area network controller means and function without need to interrupt said host computer means in storage/retrieval operations, wherein each of said storage/retrieval module means includes;

(a1) means for receiving digitized optical signals containing packets of image data and information data in real time, said digitized optical signals transmitting at least 30 packets of image data per second;

(a2) means for converting said digitized optical signals to digitized electrical signals;

(a3) means for storing said electrical signals in real time on identified areas of disk units organized into files within a file system and which separates non-image information data and image data into separate files;

(a4) means for retrieving in real time, and without alteration, said electrical signals from said separate files as identified image data and non-image information data packets concurrently while storage operations are also taking place;

(a5) means for transmitting retrieved image data packets to a work station for display or to a printer for printout;

(a6) means for communicating with said host computer means to receive operational instructions and to transmit said non-image information data for storage and use by said host computer means;

(a7) parallel system bus means for interconnecting said means of (a1) through (a6);

(b) said local area network controller means for enabling communication from any one storage/retrieval module means to another storage/retrieval module means in a clustered group of storage/retrieval module means.

3. The banking system financial network of claim 1 wherein said local and remote storage-retrieval module means each includes:

(a) means for secure storage, without alteration, of said digital packets;

(b) a plurality of disk units for storing said digital packets;

(c) means for storing said digital packets in real time on identified areas of said disk units organized into files within a file system and which separates non-image information and image data into separate files;

(d) means for retrieving in real time and without alteration said digital packets from said separate files as identified image data and non-image information data packets concurrently while storage operations are also taking place.

4. The banking system financial network of claim 1 wherein "R" is equal to 30 packets per second and "K" is equal to 40 kilobytes.