US 7,460,265 B2 · Apparatus and methods for printing a print job over a network

Abstract

The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for printing print jobs over a communications network. In particular, the present invention enables a user to obtain print jobs at a location which may be unspecified, and which may be remote from the source of the print job. A spooling server is used to store a print job received via the network from a print job source. A printer polling device, which may be used at a location remote from the client device, is capable of polling the spooling server via the network to identify whether any print jobs associated with the printer polling device are available for printing at a printer currently associated with the polling device. The spooling server need not initiate contact with the printer through a firewall, since it is polled by the printer polling device. Thus, network security is maintained.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A network printing method comprising:

forwarding a print job to a spooling server;
initiating the print job at the spooling server for printing a document at a designated printer;
automatically sending to the spooling server a polling request for any initiated print jobs from a printer polling device associated with the designated printer;
and
forwarding the requested initiated print job from the spooling server to the printer polling device in response to the polling request.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

11/329,993Filed 11 Jan 2006 · continuation

Priority

16 Oct 2000

Published

US 2006/0114508 A11 Jun 2006

Granted

2 Dec 2008

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification7 codes

G06F 3/1204
Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. print management: resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic…
G06F 3/1222
Specifically adapted to achieve a particular effect: increasing security of the print job
G06F 3/1238
Print job management: secure printing, e.g. user identification, user rights for device usage, unallowed content, blanking portions or fields of a…
G06F 3/126
Print job management: job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device

Apparatus and methods for printing a print job over a network

Life of this patent

Apparatus and methods for printing a print job over a network

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20