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1. M US005175762A United States Patent 5 Patent Number 5 175 762 Kochis et al 45 Date of Patent Dec 29 1992 DIN N 54 REMOTE PRINTING USING FAX OTHER PUBLICATIONS 75 Inventors Richard L Kochis Brian L Hastings Introduction to the CCITT T 30 specification M both of Fort Collins Colo Erickson Feb 16 1990 Hewlett Packard Memo Adobe Demos Postscript Fax Printer Infoworld vol 73 Assi Hewlett Packard Co Pal 11 Issue 45 Nov 6 1989 p 12 Entire Article 73 IO e 5 Appendix and Appendix B Laserjet Printer User s Manual Hewlett Packard 1989 Terminal Equipment and Protocols for Telematic Ser 21 Appl No 865 794 vices Recommendations T 0 T 63 The International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee 22 Filed Apr 7 1992 IXth Plenary Assembly Melbourne Nov 14 25 1988 pp 77 118 Related U S Application Data Primary Examiner James L Dwyer 63 Continuation of Ser No 606 244 Oct 31 1990 aban 4Ssistant Examiner Wing Chan doned 57 ABSTRACT F Disclosed is a system having a Multi Functional Periph n rid ago e eral Device with a FAX transmitting facility attached 58 Field of Search DUET ARE 358 434 442 379 93 to a local computer and a compatible FAX receiving facility with an attached printer accessible remotely from the computer The local computer sends a com mand to the local FAX transmitti2. has been received block 612 transfers to block 624 which sets the remote print flag and block 626 uses the telephone number in the remote print command to dial the remote FAX and establish communication for the remote print After establishing communication with the remote FAX block 626 then returns to FIG 5 to wait for data to be sent If the command data received from the host was not a remote print command it is assumed that the command or data is to be sent to the local printer so block 612 transfer to block 614 which saves any change in the printer state in a buffer Block 616 then sends the commands or data to the PCL module for processing and block 618 sets a timer indicating that the host is using the printer This timer is always set to a new value when new commands or data are received for the printer Therefore after the host has completed using the printer the timer will time for a full five to ten seconds before the FAX will be allowed to use the printer This provides sufficient time for the host to re address the printer if more printing is to be done After setting the timer value or after sending com mands or data to the FCL or SCL modules FIG 6 returns to FIG 5 Facsimile communication using Group 3 protocol consists of five separate and consecutive pha ses as described in CCITT Terminal Equipment and Protocols for Telematic Services Volume VII Fascicle 3 Recommendation T 30 IXth Pl
3. and sending facsimile data receiving via said telephone communication system said remote printer command from said electronic source by said second facsimile system detecting said remote printer command from said electronic source by said second facsimile system receiving via said telephone communication system said electronic file from said electronic source by said second facsimile system transmitting said electronic file as said printer com mands control codes printable character codes and graphical codes from said second facsimile system directly to a printer without an intervening computer whenever said second facsimile system detects said remote printer command receiving said electronic file by said printer and translating said printer commands control codes printable character codes and graphical codes by said printer into a printed document 4 method in claim 3 further comprising saving a printer state whenever said second facsimile means detects said remote printer command and restoring said printer state whenever said printer completes printing said printed document
4. print the file that was transferred Some computer systems have facsimile transmission facilities called FAX boards built into them These FAX boards can send a file from the computer system to a remote FAX machine or another FAX board where the file is printed Significantly however these systems first convert the file being transmitted from the standard computer file format such as ASCII into a graphical image format and transmit the graphical image to the remote FAX system Since graphical im ages are much larger than standard files this method requires significantly more time to print a file remotely then would be required if the file were left in the stan dard format Also if the remote receiving FAX system is a FAX board in a computer the file may be stored on the remote system and a user of the remote system will still have to intervene to print the file before it is avail able There is a need in the art then for a system to print remotely without requiring user intervention There is further need for such a system that uses facsimile trans mission capability available on the local and remote computer systems A still further need is for such a system that transmits the data in a standard computer file format such as ASCII rather than converting the data into a graphical image format The present inven tion meets these needs SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an aspect of the present invention to allow re mote print
5. 232 it connects to the re mote printer 212 and reconfigures the printer 212 to allow it to receive data from the host 202 When the host system 202 sends printer data to the Multi Func tional Peripheral Device 204 the data is routed to the FAX section 232 which sends it to the remote FAX section 234 The remote FAX section 234 then sends the data to the printer 212 where it is printed switch 228 within the remote Multi Functional Peripheral Device 210 monitors all commands sent from a remote host system 224 to the remote printer 212 in order to keep a copy of the printer state within RAM contained in the device 210 Therefore after the remote print is complete the switch 228 uses its copy of the printer 212 state to place the printer 212 back into the state expected by the host system 224 In the same man ner host2 224 can print data on printer 206 20 25 30 35 45 50 55 60 65 4 FIG 3 shows a block diagram of the host computer system 202 of 2 which is typical of host computer systems The only requirement of a host system is that it have a parallel or serial interface to a printer Referring now to FIG 3 the host system 202 contains a processor 302 which is connected to the other components of the system over a system bus 304 A keyboard 306 allows a user of the host system 202 to enter information into the system A display 308 allows information to be pres ented to the user of the host syst
6. A printer interface 410 is used to send data to the printer 206 over the bus 216 Scanner system electronics 412 are used with a data scanning device which may also be part of the Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 A memory 414 contains a command interpreter 416 which routes PCL FCL and SCL commands between the PCL 318 FCL 322 and SCL 320 drivers in FIG 3 and the PCL 422 FCL 420 and SCL 424 modules of FIG 4 The PCL FCL and SCL modules within the Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 control the printer interface 410 the FAX electronics 408 and the scanner system electronics 412 respectively The com mand interpreter 416 will be described below with re spect to FIGS 5 and 6 An FCL module 420 is used to process commands sent by the FCL driver module 322 FIG 3 in order to perform FAX related functions including receiving and printing remote data and FAX messages on the shared printer 206 The FCL module 420 sends commands and status to the command inter preter 416 which processes those commands and sends them to the host system 202 The FCL module 420 when receiving remote print data or a FAX also sends data directly to a PCL module 422 The PCL module 422 receives commands and data from the command interpreter and the FCL module 420 and passes those commands through the printer interface 410 to the printer 206 FIG 2 An SCL module 424 receives scanner command language commands from the SCL driver modu
7. T Group 3 to transfer the file without converting it into a graphical image format Therefore using the NSF the file remains in the stan dard file format of the computer which saves consider able transfer time For example a typical page of data in graphics format may take 30 to 45 seconds to transmit whereas that same page in standard computer file for mat would take only 2 to 3 seconds to transmit The FAX facility in the preferred embodiment is a multi functional peripheral device which has the ability to share the printer with the host computer system along with FAX transmitting and receiving capability When the host computer wishes to print remotely it prefaces the print file with a setup command string giving the remote print command and the remote tele phone number The local multi functional peripheral device calls the remote multi functional peripheral de vice and transfers the file in the host computer file for mat The remote multi functional peripheral device receives the file and prints it on the remote printer BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and other objects features and advan tages of the invention will be better understood by read ing the following more particular description of the invention presented in conjunction with the following drawings wherein FIG 1 shows a block diagram of the concepts of the system of the present invention FIG 2 shows a block diagram of the system of the p
8. TYO W31SAS 103 105 194 40 LNAW3 13 ONISS320Ud coe PIC 305 835 AYOWAW Sheet 4 of 6 5 175 762 Dec 29 1992 U S Patent SOINOW123 l3 WALSAS YANNVOS u3LNISNd PEN 80 90 voz 22 757 JYVMLAOS AINGOW 3 1INGOW YANNVOS 124 194 LNAW3 13 0 15532089 1 1 Jos AYOWAW U S Patent Dec 29 1992 Sheet 5 of 6 5 175 762 INTERRUPT 508 HOST HOST i CMD DATA FIG 6 SEND CMD DATA TO FCL MODULE SIGNAL FAX ELECTRONICS TO BUFFER DATA 520 522 RETURN U S Patent Dec 29 1992 Sheet 6 of 6 5 175 762 6 PCL CMD DATA 02 Y 606 Y REMOTE ONE FLAG SEND CMD DATA TO FCL MODULE SEND CMD DATA TO SCL MODULE REMOTE CMD SAVE STATE CHANGE SEND TO PRINTER FORMAT DATA FOR NSF TRANSFER SET TIMER SEND DATA TO FCL MODULE SET REMOTE PRINT FLAG 622 CONNECT TO REMOTE FAX RETURN FIG 6 5 175 762 1 REMOTE PRINTING USING FAX This is a continuation of copending application 07 606 244 fi
9. ction has been made any data sent by the host system 102 is transferred over the telephone line 112 to the remote FAX facility 106 which then sends the data to the printer 108 where the data is printed Each time data is received by the local FAX facility 104 it sets a timer If the timer expires the local FAX facility 104 assumes that the host system 102 has completed printing and disconnects from the remote FAX facility 106 FIG 2 shows a block diagram wherein the present invention uses a pair of Multi Functional Peripheral Devices to print remotely Referring now to FIG 2 a host system 202 is connected via a bus 214 to a local Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 which contains a switch 230 and a FAX section 232 A remote Multi Functional Peripheral Device 210 is connected via wires 220 to a telephone system 208 The telephone system 208 is connected via wires 218 to the FAX sec tion 232 of the local Multi Functional Peripheral De vice 204 The switch 230 is also connected via a bus 216 to a local printer 206 The switch 232 allows the host system 202 to share the printer 206 with the FAX sec tion 232 A remote FAX section 234 within the remote Multi Functional Peripheral Device 210 performs the same function as the local FAX section 232 The FAX section 232 calls the FAX section 234 when the host system 202 sends a remote print command over the bus 214 When the remote FAX section 234 receives a call from the local FAX section
10. em 202 A disk 310 is used to store software and data for the host system 202 and a peripheral interface 324 is used to communicate over a bus 214 to the Multi Functional Peripheral De vice 204 containing the switch of the present invention The peripheral interface 324 may be a serial interface such as RS 222 or a parallel interface such as the Cen tronics parallel printer interface A memory 312 contains user software 314 and an operating system 316 Printer Command Language PCL driver software 318 is used by the user software 314 to communicate to the printer 206 through the switch 230 of the present invention A Scanner Com mand Language SCL driver module 320 is used to communicate to a scanner device within the Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 A FAX Command Language FCL driver module 322 is used by the user software 314 to control all FAX functions within the Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 FIG 4 shows a block diagram of the Multi Func tional Peripheral Device 204 which contains the system of the present invention Referring now to FIG 4 the Multi Functional Peripheral Device 204 contains a pro cessor 402 which communicates to other elements of the system over a system bus 404 A host system inter face 406 is used to communicate with the host system 202 over the bus 214 FAX electronics 408 are used to communicate to the remote FAX section 234 FIG 2 via the telephone system 208 FIG 2 over the bus 218
11. enary Assembly Melbourne 14 25 November 1988 published in Geneva 1989 phase A includes call set up dialing answering and establishing a connection phase B includes pre message procedure for identifying and selecting fea tures such as fine mode non standard features NSF etc phase C includes data transmission phase D in cludes post message procedures including end of page page confirmation and multi document messages and phase E includes call release hang up In the present invention phases A and B will follow the normal FAX protocol The NSF command exchange in phase B will establish the use of the NSF for remote printing A code in the NSF field will indicate that the receiver is capable of remote printing and the sender will send a CCITT NSS command indicating that remote printing will be performed Phase C will then send the data in the computer stan dard format typically ASCII and the receiver will print the data on its attached printer thus providing faster transmission and higher print quality This data will comprise 1 The number of packets to be sent continued 2 Number of bytes per packet 3 Packet one followed by a 2 byte checksum 4 Packet two followed by a 2 byte checksum n Last packet followed by 2 byte checksum Phase D is entered automatically when the proper number of packets have been sent and received Phase D will be performed the same as for other normal FAX transmissio
12. her a print request has been received from the FAX section of the Multi Functional Peripheral De vice If a FAX print request has not been received then a command or data has been received from the FAX section so block 510 transfers to block 512 to send the command or data to the FCL module for processing If a FAX print request has been received from the FAX section block 510 transfers to block 514 which deter mines if time has expired on the timer If time has not expired the host is still printing so block 514 transfers to block 516 which signals the FAX electronics 408 to buffer the incoming FAX data Then block 518 sets the FAX flag to indicate that the FAX is waiting to print If the timer has expired block 514 transfers to block 520 which reserves the printer for the FAX and block 522 sets a busy signal in interface 214 to indicate to the host that the printer is busy Block 524 sends commands to the printer to set the printer state to allow a FAX print and block 526 sends the first FAX data to the printer Block 528 determines if all FAX data has been sent and if not block 528 transfers back to block 526 to send more data After all FAX data has been sent block 528 transfers to block 530 which sends commands to the printer to restore the printer state and then block 532 removes the busy signal from interface 214 before re turning from the interrupt FIG 6 shows a flowchart of the host data command processing module called b
13. ing of a file It is another aspect of the invention to provide such remote printing without requiring user intervention 20 25 30 45 50 55 60 65 2 Another aspect of invention 15 to provide remote printing while sharing the remote printer with a remote computer system A further aspect is to provide such remote printing using facsimile transmission facilities attached to the computer A further aspect of the invention is to provide remote printing using the Non Standard Facility NSF of the CCITT Group 3 FAX transmission protocol A further aspect is to provide remote printing using CCITT Group 3 FAX without converting the file to a graphical image format A still further aspect is to provide remote printing capability having print quality superior to standard FAX printers The above and other objects of the invention are accomplished in a system having a FAX transmitting facility attached to a computer and a compatible FAX receiving facility with an attached printer accessible remotely from the computer The computer sends a command to the local FA X transmitting facility causing it to connect to the remote FAX receiving facility The computer then sends the file to the local FAX facility which sends the file to the remote FAX facility where it is printed on the printer I Both FAX facilities use a FAX transmission protocol CCITT Group 3 however they use the Non Standard Facility NSF within CCIT
14. le 320 FIG 3 and passes those commands 5 175 762 5 to scanner system software 426 which interfaces to the scanner system electronics 412 FIGS 5 and 6 show flowcharts of the software of the command interpreter 416 of FIG 4 This software is used to perform the remote printing and switch func tions of the present invention in conjunction with hard ware described by the block diagram of FIG 4 Refer ring now to FIGS 5 and 6 this flowchart is entered when an interrupt occurs The interrupt indicates that a command or data has arrived from either the host sys tem or the FAX section of the Multi Functional Periph eral Device Affer entry block 502 determines whether a timeout has occurred A timeout will occur when the host system has completed using the printer If a time out has occurred block 502 transfers to block 504 which determines if the FAX is waiting to print If the FAX is waiting to print block 504 transfers control to block 520 to start the FAX print otherwise block 504 transfers to block 506 Block 506 determines whether data or commands have been received from the host over the host interface 406 If data or a command has been received from the host block 506 transfers to block 508 which calls FIG 6 to process the data or command from the host before returning from the inter rupt command has been received from host block 506 transfers to block 510 which determines whet
15. led on Oct 31 1990 now abandoned FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to computer systems and more particularly to printing on such systems Even more particularly the invention relates to printing data on a remote printer using facsimile data transmission BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In small or personal computer systems modems or other data transmission capability is increasingly being built into or attached to the computer system These systems sometimes have the ability to transfer files from one computer system to another through a software program running in the computer system Although these systems can transfer a file to a remote computer system and the remote computer system can print the file transferred this type of operation requires consider able expertise and intervention by the user of the sys tem For example in order to print a file created by word processing software on a remote computer the user of the word processing software must first format the file using the word processing software into a file that is compatible with a printer and then place the file on a disk The user then unloads the word processing software loads the file transfer software telephones the remote computer system and uses the file transfer soft ware to transfer the printer compatible file to the re mote computer system The user must then telephone another user at the remote computer system and ask this se ond user to
16. m mand from said first facsimile means and for receiving said electronic file from said first facsimile means and for transmitting said electronic file directly to said remote printer means without an intervening computer as said printer commands control codes printable character codes and graphical codes whenever said second facsimile means detects said remote printer command so that said remote printer means prints a document in accordance with said electronic file 2 A system as in claim 1 further comprising means for saving and restoring a printer state when ever said second facsimile means detects said re mote printer command 3 method for remotely printing an electronic file from an electronic source said electronic file compris ing printer commands control codes printable charac ter codes and graphical codes the method comprising the steps of transmitting a remote printer command and said elec tronic file from said electronic source to a first facsimile system said first facsimile system capable of receiving and sending facsimile data detecting said remote printer command by said first facsimile system transmitting via a telephone communication system said remote printer command and said electronic file as said printer commands control codes print able character codes and graphical codes from said first facsimile system to a second facsimile system said second facsimile system capable of receiving
17. ng facility causing it to 379 96 98 100 56 References Cited connect to the remote FAX receiving facility The U S PATENT DOCUMENTS computer then sends data to the local FAX facility which sends the data to the remote FAX facility where eee ndo D ME it is printed on printer Both FAX facilities use 4 827 449 5 1989 Ogata et al 777 258 434 transmission protocol CCITT Group 3 however 4 860 110 8 1989 Kokubu 358 434 use the Non Standard Facility NSF within 4 907 094 3 1990 Mishima et al FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS 0283295 9 1988 European Pat Off 379 96 4 Claims 6 Drawing Sheets t 358 437 CCITT Group 3 to transfer the file without converting it into a graphical image format MULTI FUNCTIONAL PERIPHERAL DEVICE SWITCH FAX SECTION 204 206 PRINTER PRINTER FUNCTIONAL PERIPHERAL DEVICE U S Patent Dec 29 1992 Sheet 1 of 6 5 175 762 102 104 106 HOST SYSTEM FACILITY FACILITY PRINTER FIG 1 U S Patent Dec 29 1992 Sheet 2 of 6 5 175 762 MULTI 204 FUNCTIONA 202 ide PERIPHERAL DEVICE 214 nou 232 218 TELEPHONE 208 SYSTEM 220 224 END 234 212 210 SECTION MULTI FUNCTIONAL PERIPHERAL DEVICE FIG 2 Sheet 3 of 6 5 175 762 Dec 29 1992 U S Patent ASIQ 14519 OTE 80 90 etc ore 70 cce 0 ee YAYA YSA
18. ns and phase E will hang up in the same manner as other FAX transmissions The state information for a printer includes print resolution such as 300 dots per inch page orientation such as portrait or landscape paper margins selected fonts and page size Other parameters may also be included in the printer state depending upon the type of printer being used Different state information might be needed for other peripheral devices For example a disk would have selected read write head and current cylin der as state information Having thus described a presently preferred embodi ment of the present invention it will now be appreci ated that the objects of the invention have been fully achieved and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that many changes in construction and circuitry and widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention The disclosures and the description herein are intended to be illustrative and are not in any sense limiting of the in vention more preferably defined in scope by the fol lowing claims TABLE 1 Remote Print Command Esc 419999999999 gt Enter remote Printing Mode What is claimed 15 1 remote printing system for printing an electronic file hat is transmitted through a telephone communica tion system said electronic file comprising printer com mands cont
19. resent invention being used to print data on a remote printer by using a FAX section of a Multi Function Peripheral Device FIG 3 shows a block diagram of the host computer system of FIG 2 FIG 4 shows a block diagram of the Multi Func tional Peripheral Device of FIG 2 which includes the present invention FIG 5 shows a flowchart of the top level of the software of the present invention and 5 175 762 3 FIG 6 shows a flowchart of the host data command processing software of the present invention DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The following description is of the best presently contemplated mode of carrying out the present inven tion This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense but is made merely for the purpose of describing the general principles of the invention The scope of the invention should be determined by referencing the ap pended claims FIG 1 shows a block diagram depicting the concept of the present invention and its environment Referring now to FIG 1 a host system 102 is connected over a bus 110 to a FAX facility 104 The FAX facility 104 is connected via a telephone line 112 to a remote FAX facility 106 which is connected via bus 114 to a printer 108 The host system 102 sends data over the bus 110 to the local FAX facility 104 This data contains a com mand that causes the FAX facility 104 to connect via the telephone line 112 to the remote FAX facility 106 After the conne
20. rol codes printable character codes and graphical codes said remote printing system compris ing electronic source means for transmitting a remote printer command and said electronic file first facsimile means connected to said electronic source means and connected to said telephone communication system for receiving and transmitting facsimile images via said telephone communication system and for receiving and detecting said remote printer command from said electronic source means and for receiving said electronic file from said elec tronic source means and for transmitting said remote printer command and said electronic file as said printer commands control codes printable character codes and graphical codes via said telephone communica tion system whenever said first facsimile means detects said remote printer command remote printer means for receiving said electronic file and for translating said printer commands control 5 175 762 5 25 30 35 40 45 65 8 codes printable character codes and graphical codes into a printed document and second facsimile means compatible with said first facsimile means connected to said telephone com munication system and connected directly to said remote printer means without an intervening com puter for receiving and transmitting facsimile data via said telephone communication system and for receiving and detecting said remote printer co
21. y block 508 FIG 5 Refer ring now to FIG 6 after entry block 602 determines whether printer command language commands or data were received If not block 602 transfers to block 604 which determines whether FAX command language commands or data were received If FAX command language commands or data were received from the host block 604 transfers to block 608 which sends the command or data to the FCL module for processing FCL command data information was not received the system assumes that the command data is for the SCL module and control goes to block 610 to send the command or data to the SCL module for processing 20 25 35 40 45 55 60 65 6 1f PCL commands or data were received block 602 transfers to block 606 which determines whether the remote print flag is set If the remote print flag is set block 606 transfers to block 620 which formats the data for transmission to the remote FAX unit and block 622 sends the data to the FCL module for transmission to the remote FAX unit where it will be printed Contro then returns to FIG 5 If the remote print flag is not set control goes to block 612 which examines the PCL command data to determine if a remote print command has been received Table 1 shows an example of a remote print command which is an escape sequence sent before the data is sent In Table 1 9999999999 represents the telephone num ber of the remote printer If a remote print command
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