US 5,682,540 A · System for representing electronic files using a paper based medium

Abstract

The present invention involves a novel form and methods for creating and using such forms. These forms are summaries (hereinafter "document surrogates") of associated objects, such as original documents, processes, or their copies, stored in a document processing system. A document surrogate made in accordance with the principles of the present invention comprises at least one sheet of a information storing substrate material that has a human readable area and a machine readable area. The human readable area may contain at least one area of material which summarizes the associated object. Such a summary may either be made manually by the user or created automatically by the document processing system. The machine readable area comprises a document reference code that is readable and recognizable by the document processing system. The code is located by the system and recognized from an image of the entire page. The reference code encodes an indicator to the storage location of the associated object. Upon encountering a document surrogate, the system may interpret the surrogate to be the equivalent of its associated object and uses the indicator to access the appropriate object. A mechanism may be provided to the system to either enable or disable this equivalence. If disabled, the system would treat the document surrogate like a typical page in a document.

Claims40

Dependent claims

A method for creating an instance of a hardcopy medium representing an electronic file received by a document processing system, said document processing system having an input device, an output device, a processor for executing document processing functions upon an input object, and a storage area for storing said electronic file, the steps of said method comprising:

(A) receiving an electronic file;
(B) storing said electronic file in said storage area;
and
(C) outputting at least one piece of hardcopy medium representing said electronic file, said hardcopy medium having thereon a machine readable code, said code comprising an indicator to said electronic file stored in said storage area, a flag which instructs said document processing system to retrieve said electronic file and use instead of said hardcopy medium as an input object for a document processing function and human readable information for indicating the contents of said electronic file.

1 more element

A document processing system comprising:

a storage means for storing a plurality of electronic files;
a source medium for representing electronic files stored in said storage area, said source medium capable of having a first indicator indicating that said source medium has a second indicator, said second indicator indicating one of said plurality of electronic files, said source medium further capable of having human readable information for indicating the contents of said one of said plurality of electronic files;
an input means for receiving a representation of a source medium;
a function selection means for indicating a document processing function to be performed on one of said plurality of electronic files;
a processing means coupled to said input means, said storage means, and said function selection means, said processing means comprised of:
a plurality of document processing function means each for performing a corresponding document processing function on said source medium;
means for identifying an instance of said first indicator on said representation of said source medium;
means for identifying one of said plurality of electronic files corresponding to an instance of said second indicator on said representation of said source medium;
and
means for substituting said identified one of said plurality of electronic flies for said source medium for processing by said document processing function;
and
an output means coupled to said processing means, said output means for providing an output of a document processing function.

9 more elements

A method for specifying documents stored in a document processing system as the object of a document processing function, said method comprising the steps of:

a) generating an electronic representation of a document for storing in said document processing system;
b) storing said electronic representation in said document processing system;
c) generating a form for accessing said stored electronic document, said form having thereon machine readable information comprised of a flag for indicating said form represents a stored electronic document, and file identifier information for accessing said stored electronic document, said form further comprising human readable information for indicating the contents of the stored electronic document that said form represents;
d) requesting a first document processing function to said document processing system;
e) inputting said form as the object of said first document processing function;
f) said document processing system detecting that said form represents said stored electronic file;
g) said document processing system retrieving said electronic filed represented by said form based on said file identifier information;
and
h) said document processing system performing said first document processing function on said retrieved electronic file.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

System for representing electronic files using a paper based medium

Life of this patent

System for representing electronic files using a paper based medium

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims40