Data output controller

• US 7,096,280 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2001
• Issued: 08/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Taniguchi, Shinya, Aoki, Mikio
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): WON, MICHAEL YOUNG
• Application Number:
  US09/892,886
• Publication Number:
  US 20020002592A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,881 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/205, 709/226, 709/213, 709/229, 709/200, 709/203, 709/211, 709/216, 709/232, 709/246, 709/228, 342/457, 358/1.15, 358/1.18, 712/225
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

An objective of the present invention is to provide a data output controller ideally suited for easily obtaining detailed information available on a network.

A data output control terminal 300 is communicably connected to a portable terminal 100 possessed by a user, printing devices PR₁ through PR_n distributed and installed at various locations, and WWW servers DS₁ through DS_m via the Internet 400, acquires data regarding a data print request from the portable terminal 100 from the WWW servers DS, selects a printing device PR, which is considered to be optimum for the user of the portable terminal 100 to receive provided output data, from among a plurality of printing devices PR, and outputs the acquired data to the selected printing device PR. Regarding the selection of a printing device PR, data on a printing device position is retrieved from the storage device 62 on the basis of, for example, data on a desired providing area indicating a desired providing area where output data is desired to be provided, and a printing device PR located in an area specified by the data on a desired providing area is selected.

Claims

1. A data output controller that is communicably connected, via a network, to a portable terminal that is possessed by a user and that issues a data print request, and a plurality of output terminals that is distributed and installed at various locations to print data, receives a data print request from the portable terminal, and outputs data regarding the data print request to the output terminals, the data output controller comprising:

a storage device that stores output terminal information regarding the output terminals for each of the output terminals;

a selecting device that selects one of the plurality of output terminals;

a data format converting device that converts the output data into a format according to the output terminal information; and

an output device that outputs the data regarding the data print request to the output terminal selected by the selecting device, the data print request including search data necessary for the selecting device to select the output terminal, and the selecting device retrieving output terminal information from the storage device on the basis of the search data contained in the data print request and on the basis of a capability of the data format converting device so as to select an output terminal considered to be the best suited for the user of the portable terminal to receive provided output data.

2. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output terminal information including data on an output terminal position to determine the location where the output terminal is installed,

the search data including data on a portable terminal position to determine the position of the portable terminal, and

the selecting device retrieving output terminal position data from the storage device on the basis of data on a portable terminal position contained in the search data, to thereby select an output terminal considered to be the closest distance-wise or time-wise, taking the position of the portable terminal as a reference.

3. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output terminal information including data on an output terminal position to determine a location where the output terminal is installed,

the search data including data on a desired providing area that indicates a desired providing area, which is an approximate place where output data is desired to be provided, and

the selecting device retrieving data on an output terminal position from the storage device on the basis of the data on a desired providing area included in the search data to thereby to select an output terminal located in an area specified by the data on a desired providing area.

4. The data output controller according to claim 3,

the selecting device not performing search based on the data on a portable terminal position if the position specified by the data on a portable terminal position is not included in the area specified by the data on a desired providing area included in the search data.

5. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output terminal information including printing format data indicating a data format that can be printed by the output terminal among data formats of data regarding the data print request,

the search data including the printing format data, and

the selecting device retrieving printing format data from the storage device on the basis of the printing format data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal associated with the printing format data.

6. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output terminal information including printing specification data indicating the printing specification of the output terminal,

the search data including the printing specification data, and

the selecting device retrieving printing specification data from the storage device on the basis of printing specification data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal associated with the printing specification data.

7. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output terminal information including output terminal identifying data that identifies the output terminals,

the search data including the output terminal identifying data, and

the selecting device retrieving output terminal identifying data from the storage device solely on the basis of output terminal identifying data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal that coincides with the output terminal identifying data.

8. The data output controller according to claim 1,

the output device outputting output terminal information corresponding to an output terminal selected by the selecting device to the portable terminal.

9. A data output controller that is communicably connected, via a network, to a portable terminal that is possessed by a user and that issues a data output request, and a plurality of output terminals that are distributed and installed at various locations to output data, receives a data output request from the portable terminal, and outputs data regarding the data output request to the output terminals, the data output controller comprising:

a storage device that stores output terminal information regarding the output terminals for each of the output terminals;

a selecting device that selects one of the plurality of output terminals;

a data format converting device that converts the output data into a format according to the output terminal information, and

an output device that outputs the data regarding the data output request to an output terminal selected by the selecting device, the data output request including search data necessary for the selecting device to select the output terminal, and the selecting device retrieving output terminal information from the storage device on the basis of the search data contained in the data output request and on the basis of a capability of the data format converting device so as to select an output terminal considered to be the best suited for the user of the portable terminal to receive provided output data.

10. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output terminal information including data on an output terminal position to determine the location where the output terminal is installed,

the search data including data on a portable terminal position to determine the position of the portable terminal, and

the selecting device retrieving data on an output terminal position from the storage device on the basis of the data on a portable terminal position contained in the search data, to thereby select an output terminal considered to be the closest distance-wise or time-wise, taking the position of the portable terminal as a reference.

11. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output terminal information including data on an output terminal position for determining a location where the output terminal is installed,

the search data including desired providing area data that indicates a desired providing area, which is an approximate place where output data is desired to be provided, and

the selecting device retrieving data on an output terminal position from the storage device on the basis of the data on a desired providing area included in the search data to thereby select an output terminal located in an area specified by the data on a desired providing area.

12. The data output controller according to claim 11,

the selecting device not performing a search based on data on a portable terminal position if the position specified by the data on a portable terminal position is not included in the area specified by data on a desired providing area included in the search data.

13. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output terminal information including output format data indicating a data format that can be output by the output terminal among data formats of data regarding the data output request,

the search data including the output format data, and

the selecting device retrieving output format data from the storage device on the basis of the output format data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal associated with the output format data.

14. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output terminal information including output specification data indicating the output specification of the output terminal,

the search data including the output specification data, and

the selecting device retrieving output specification data from the storage device on the basis of output specification data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal associated with the output specification data.

15. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output terminal information including output terminal identifying data that identifies the output terminals,

the search data including the output terminal identifying data, and

the selecting device retrieving output terminal identifying data from the storage device solely on the basis of output terminal identifying data included in the search data, and selecting an output terminal that coincides with the output terminal identifying data.

16. The data output controller according to claim 9,

the output device outputting output terminal information corresponding to an output terminal selected by the selecting device to the portable terminal.