System and method for interfacing with a production scanner
AssigneeNexPress Digital LLC
InventorDavid R. Hansen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and method for interfacing with production scanners is disclosed. A driver is provided which enables real-time communications between a scanning application and scanner devices. The driver includes an application program interface which is coupled with one or more personality modules, one for each scanner device. The personality module facilitates the command and control of a particular scanner device. The application program interface can communicate with more than one personality module at any given time to enable parallel simultaneous operation of multiple scanner devices. The driver delivers resultant image data from the scans to a commonly accessible buffer where the scanning application can asynchronously retrieve it.
Claims29
A driver for interfacing a first application program to a first scanner, said first application program operative to transmit commands to said first scanner and said first scanner operative to scan a document and transmit image data and status data from said scan to said first application program, said driver comprising:
- an application program interface (“API”) coupled with said first application program and operative to receive said commands from said first application program;
- a first scanner personality module (“SPM”) coupled with said API and said first scanner and operative to receive said image data and said status data from said first scanner and provide said image data and said status data to said first application program and transmit said commands to said first scanner;
- and
- wherein said API and said first SPM facilitate real time communication between said first application program and said first scanner.
A system implemented in a computer workstation for interfacing one or more application programs executing on said workstation to one or more scanners coupled with said workstation, each of said one or more scanners comprising a scanner interface, said system comprising:
- a first module operative to receive commands from said one or more application programs;
- a second module coupled with said first module and associated with a first of said one or more scanners, said second module being coupled with said scanner interface of said first of said one or more scanners and operative to receive said commands from said first module and translate said commands to said scanner interface, said second module further operative to receive image data and status data from said first of said one or more scanners via said scanner interface and provide said image data and said status data to said one or more application programs;
- and
- wherein said second module is capable of translating said commands to said scanner interface and receiving said image data and said status data while a scan is in progress on said first of said one or more scanners;
- and
- wherein said second module is capable of translating said commands to said scanner and providing said image data and said status data to said one or more application programs while a scan is in progress on said first of said one or more scanners.
A method of interfacing a first application program to a first scanner, said first application program executing on a first computer coupled with said first scanner, said method comprising:
- (a) initiating a first scan of a first document on said first scanner as directed by said first application program;
- (b) receiving first image data generated by said first scan as said first scan progresses;
- (c) receiving first status data from said first scanner as said first scan progresses;
- (d) providing said first image data and said first status data to said first application program as said first scan progresses;
- and
- (e) adjusting said first scan as said first scan progresses.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.