US 7,096,280 B2 · Data output controller

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 PRn distributed and installed at various locations, and WWW servers DS1 through DSm 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.

Claims16

Dependent claims

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 more elements

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.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Data output controller

Life of this patent

Data output controller

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims16