Methods and systems for imaging device document translation

• US 7,969,596 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2004
• Issued: 06/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Laboratories of America Incorporated (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Chrisop, Roy, Nguyen, Uoc, Stevens, Mark, Richardson, Tanna, Plewnia, Bogdan, Lum, Joey, Schacht, Bryan K., Mathieson, Rono, Yamamura, Shinichi, Sojian, Lena
• Primary Examiner(s): Haskins; Twyler L
• Assistant Examiner(s): RODRIGUEZ, LENNIN R
• Application Number:
  US10/962,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20060077411A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,454 Days
• Field of Search: 358 11- 19, 358 111- 118, 703/23, 382/229, 382/305
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/58 Use of machine translation, e.g. for multi-lingual retrieval, for server-side translation for client devices or for real-time translation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0039 Connection via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0094 Multifunctional device, i.e. a device capable of all of reading, reproducing, copying, facsimile transception, file transception

Abstract

Aspects of the present invention relate to systems, methods and devices for translating documents through the use of an imaging device. Some aspects relate to the receipt of a document at an imaging device, in some cases in conjunction with language selection parameters, and the transmission of that document and any accompanying language parameters to a remote computing device at which the document is translated and then sent to a destination.

Claims

1. A method for imaging device document translation, said method comprising:

receiving, at an imaging device (IDev), document translation menu content from a remote computing device (RCD), wherein said document translation menu content comprises prompt content for prompting a user to select translation options offered via a translation application on said RCD, wherein said IDev comprises an application programming interface (API) allowing control of IDev functions by said RCD and wherein said document translation menu content configures said IDev via said API to route user input to said translation application on said RCD;

displaying said document translation menu content on a display of said IDev;

receiving a document at said IDev and a document translation request and image send parameters at said IDev UI, in response to said displaying of said document translation menu content on said display, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

sending said document, said image send parameters and said document translation request from said IDev to said RCD;

processing said document according to said image send parameters;

translating said document according to said translation request at said RCD, thereby generating a translated document; and

sending said translated document to a destination.

2. A method as described in claim 1 further comprising identifying image elements in said document.

3. A method as described in claim 1 wherein said receiving comprises scanning a document.

4. A method as described in claim 1 wherein said receiving a document comprises receiving a document transmitted over a network connection.

5. A method as described in claim 1 wherein said receiving a document comprises receiving an imaging job.

6. A method as described in claim 1 wherein said receiving a document comprises retrieving a stored document.

7. A method for imaging device document translation, said method comprising:

receiving, at an imaging device (IDev), document translation menu content from a remote computing device (RCD), wherein said document translation menu content comprises prompt content for prompting a user to select translation options offered via a translation application on said RCD, wherein said IDev comprises an application programming interface (API) allowing control of IDev functions by said RCD and wherein said document translation menu content configures said IDev via said API to route user input received at an IDev user interface (IDev UI) to said translation application on said RCD;

displaying said document translation menu content on a display of said IDev;

receiving user input comprising a document translation request, a target language and image send parameters at said IDev UI, in response to said displaying of said document translation menu content on said display, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

scanning a document with said IDev, thereby creating a scanned document;

identifying a language element in said document;

sending said scanned document to said RCD;

processing said scanned document, at said RCD, according to said image send parameters; and

translating at least a portion of said scanned document from an initial language to said target language at said RCD, wherein said initial language is identified by said language element, thereby generating a translated document.

8. A method as described in claim 7 wherein said identifying occurs on said RCD.

9. A method as described in claim 7 further comprising sending said translated document to a destination.

10. A method as described in claim 7 further comprising outputting said translated document using an imaging device imaging function.

11. A method for imaging device document translation, said method comprising:

receiving, at an imaging device (IDev), image send parameter menu content and document translation menu content from a remote computing device (RCD), wherein said document translation menu content comprises prompt content for prompting a user to select translation options offered via a translation application on said RCD, wherein said IDev comprises an application programming interface (API) allowing control of IDev functions by said RCD and wherein said document translation menu content configures said IDev via said API to route user input received at an IDev user interface (IDev UI) to said translation application on said RCD;

displaying said image send parameter menu content and document translation menu content on a display of said IDev;

receiving user input comprising a document translation request and image send parameters at said IDev UI, in response to said displaying of said image send parameter menu content and document translation menu content on said display, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

identifying a target language from said user input received at said IDev UI in response to said displaying;

receiving a document at said IDev;

identifying a language element in said document;

sending said received document, said language element and said image send parameters to said RCD;

processing said received document, at said RCD, according to said image send parameters; and

translating at least a portion of said document from an initial language to a target language at said RCD, wherein said initial language is identified by said language element, thereby generating a translated document.

12. A method as described in claim 11 wherein said identifying occurs on said RCD.

13. A method as described in claim 11 further comprising sending said translated document to a destination.

14. A method as described in claim 11 further comprising outputting said translated document using an imaging device imaging function.

15. A method for imaging device document translation, said method comprising:

assigning control of an imaging device (IDev) user interface (UI) and at least one IDev function to a remote computing device (RCD) application through an IDev application programming interface (API);

receiving UI display content, from said RCD, at said IDev;

displaying said UI display content on said IDev UI;

receiving user input identifying a selected document, a target language and image send parameters at said IDev UI, in response to said displaying of said document translation menu content on said display, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter a schedule send time parameter a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

sending said user input to said RCD, wherein said at least one IDev function comprises said sending;

retrieving said selected document with said RCD;

identifying a language element in said selected document;

processing said document according to said image send parameters; and

translating at least a portion of said selected document from an initial language to said target language at said RCD, wherein said initial language is identified by said language element, thereby generating a translated document.

16. A method as described in claim 15 wherein said language element is a word.

17. An imaging device, said device comprising:

a. an imaging device user interface (IDev UI) comprising a display and an input device;

b. a UI application programming interface (API) for allowing a remote application to control said IDev UI;

c. a UI receiver for receiving image send parameter menu content and document translation menu content from a remote computing device (RCD), wherein said document translation menu content comprises prompt content for prompting a user to select translation options offered via a translation application on said RCD, wherein said document translation menu content configures said IDev via said API to route user input received at said IDev UI to said translation application on said RCD and wherein said UI receiver also receives user input comprising a document translation request, a target language and image send parameters at said IDev UI, in response to said displaying of said image send parameter menu content and document translation menu content on said display, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

d. a sender for sending input received from said IDev UI to said RCD; and

e. a document receiver for receiving a translated document from said RCD.

18. A remote computing device (RCD) for performing functions in conjunction with an imaging device, said RCD comprising:

a UI sender for sending image send parameter menu content and imaging device (IDev) user interface (UI) display content, wherein said IDev UI display content comprises document translation menu content for display on an IDev UI display and wherein said document translation menu content configures said IDev, via an IDev API to route user input received at said IDev UI to said RCD;

a receiver for receiving IDev UI input and image send parameters from said IDev, wherein said image send parameters consist of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

a document repository for storing documents;

a retriever for retrieving a document stored in said repository;

a processor for processing said document according to said image send parameters;

a translator for translating documents from one language to another language; and

a sender for sending a document to said IDev.

19. An RCD as described in claim 18 further comprising an identifier for identifying language elements in documents.

20. An imaging system comprising:

a. an imaging device (IDev), said IDev comprising;

i. an IDev UI display for displaying UI display content received from a remote computing device (RCD);

ii. an IDev UI input device;

iii. an IDev application programming interface (IDev API);

iv. an IDev UI display content receiver for receiving UI display content from said RCD, wherein said IDev UI display content comprises image send parameter menu content;

v. an IDev UI sender for sending UI input to a remote computing device (RCD), wherein said UI input comprises image send parameters consisting of a color or B/W parameter, an image mode parameter designating text, text/photo, photo and exposure level, a resolution parameter, a file format parameter indication file type, compression and pages per file, an original parameter indicating original size, simplex/duplex and rotation, a filename parameter, a subject parameter, a message parameter, a sender parameter, a schedule send time parameter, a page division/book scanning parameter, a cover page parameter, a transmission message parameter, a thin paper parameter, a destination parameter and a document filing parameter;

vi. an IDev output device for outputting a document;

b. a remote computing device (RCD), said RCD comprising;

i. a UI sender for sending said imaging device (IDev) user interface (UI) display content comprising image send parameter menu content;

ii. a receiver for receiving said IDev UI input from said IDev, wherein said IDev UI input comprises said image send parameters;

iii. a document repository for storing documents;

iv. a retriever for retrieving a document stored in said repository;

v. a sender for sending a document to said IDev; and

c. a communication link between said IDev and said RCD;

d. a translator; and

e. a processor for processing said documentation according to said image send parameters.

21. An imaging system as described in claim 20 wherein said translator is part of said IDev.

22. An imaging system as described in claim 20 wherein said translator is part of said RCD.

23. An imaging system as described in claim 20 further comprising a language element identifier.

24. An imaging system as described in claim 23 wherein said identifier is part of said IDev.

25. An imaging system as described in claim 23 wherein said identifier is part of said RCD.