Apparatus, method and program for processing information acquired through a network

• US 7,317,549 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2003
• Issued: 01/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Naito, Kikuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Douglas Q.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SINGH, SATWANT K
• Application Number:
  US10/442,233
• Publication Number:
  US 20030223094A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,693 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.15, 358/1.14, 358/1.12, 358/1.9, 709/238
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1204 resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic actions, using hardware token storing data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/121 Facilitating exception or error detection and recovery, e.g. fault, media or consumables depleted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1236 Connection management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1287 via internet

Abstract

An information processing system appropriately switches communication protocols to acquire content printing information or printing service information from one of a content provider and a printing service provide via a network when contents are to be printed using a number of content providers via the network.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus for communicating with a plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide content printing information required to perform a printing operation based on content data, the information processing apparatus comprising:

a communication protocol storage unit adapted to link the plurality of content-providing apparatuses and the corresponding types of communication protocols, respectively, and to store information for the plurality of content-providing apparatuses;

a communication protocol determining unit adapted to determine, when a print order is received from a user terminal, a type of communication protocol that is used to communicate with one of the plurality of the content-providing apparatuses, which provides the content ordered to be printed, based on the information stored in the communication protocol storage unit;

an acquisition unit adapted to acquire the content printing information from the content-providing apparatus using the type of communication protocol determined by the communication protocol determining unit; and

a generating unit adapted to generate screen data representing a screen for setting printing conditions of the content data, based on the content printing information acquired by the acquisition unit.

2. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a conversion unit adapted to convert an address of the content-providing apparatus in accordance with the type of communication protocol determined by the communication protocol determining unit.

3. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a content data acquisition unit adapted to acquire content data from the content-providing apparatus using the type of communication protocol determined by the communication protocol determining unit; and

a printing unit adapted to perform a printing operation under the printing conditions set on the screen, based on the content data acquired by the content data acquisition unit.

4. A method of processing information, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a type of communication protocol based on information representing at least one communication protocol when data is acquired from a plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide content printing information required to perform a printing operation based on content data;

acquiring the content printing information from one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses using the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step; and

generating screen data representing a screen for setting printing conditions of the content data, based on the content printing information acquired in the acquiring step.

5. A method according to claim 4, further comprising the steps of:

acquiring content data from one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses using the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step; and

performing a printing operation under the printing conditions set on the screen, based on the content data acquired in the step of acquiring content data.

6. A method according to claim 4, further comprising the step of converting an address of one of the plurality of content providing apparatuses in accordance with the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step.

7. A computer-program product stored on a computer-readable medium, the computer-program product embodying computer-executable program codes for implementing a method of processing information, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a type of communication protocol based on information representing at least one communication protocol when data is acquired from a plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide content printing information required to perform a printing operation based on content data;

acquiring the content printing information from one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses using the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step; and

generating screen data representing a screen for setting printing conditions of the content data, based on the content printing information acquired in the acquiring step.

8. An information processing apparatus for communicating with a plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide content data, the information processing apparatus comprising:

a communication protocol storage unit adapted to link the plurality of content-providing apparatuses and the corresponding types of communication protocols, respectively, and to store information for the plurality of content-providing apparatuses;

a communication protocol determining unit adapted to determine, when a print order is received from a user terminal, a type of communication protocol that is used to communicate with one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses which provide the content data ordered to be printed, based on the information stored in the communication protocol storage unit; and

an acquisition unit adapted to acquire the content data from the content-providing apparatus using the type of communication protocol determined by the communication protocol determining unit.

9. An information processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a conversion unit adapted to convert an address of the content providing apparatus in accordance with the type of communication protocol determined by the communication protocol determining unit.

10. A method of processing information, the method comprising the steps of:

determining, when a print order is received from a user terminal, a type of communication protocol that is used to communicate with one of a plurality of content-providing apparatuses which provide content data ordered to be printed, based on information representing at least one communication protocol when the content data is acquired from the plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide the content data;

acquiring the content data from one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses using the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step.

11. A method according to claim 10, further comprising the step of converting an address one of the plurality of content providing apparatuses in accordance with the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step.

12. A computer-program product stored on a computer-readable medium, the computer-program product embodying computer-executable program codes implementing a method of processing information, the method comprising the steps of:

determining, when a print order is received from a user terminal, a type of communication protocol that is used to communicate with one of a plurality of content-providing apparatuses which provide content data ordered to be printed, based on information representing at least one communication protocol when the content data is acquired from the plurality of content-providing apparatuses that provide the content data;

acquiring the content data from one of the plurality of content-providing apparatuses the apparatus using the type of communication protocol determined in the determining step.