Ricoh Company, Ltd.

International Business Machines Corporation

Ricoh Production Print Solutions LLC

Infoprintsolutions Company, LLC

Linda Sue Liebelt

Marquis G Waller

Michael Glen Lotz

Jeffrey Alan Sikkink

Kyle P Manning

Dwight Ross Palmer

Scott Thomas Ziegler

Thomas Nathan Bilan

Janeen Elizabeth Jahn

Simon P Jones

Eric M Sigler

Matthew M Walli

Robert Patrick Smyth

Charles D Johnson

Dennis Carney

Leonard Corning Lahey

Joseph P Gaertner

Ned Otey

Brian Paul Doyle

Joseph Wayne Stradling

Ryan Hoa Nguyen

Walter R Albers

Karen Lynn Harrison

David Laurence Wagner

Jon Andrew Meilstrup

Amber Joy Watkins

Jason Robert Nielsen

Ioana C Nagy

Scott Matthew Jones

Marc A Willson

Jennifer Skiendzielewski

Embodiments described herein modify AFP translations of non-AFP print jobs in order to ensure that exceptions in the non-AFP print jobs are handled correctly. One embodiment comprises a controller that receives a job ticket for a non-AFP print job, where the job ticket defines at least one page exception for the non-AFP print job. The controller receives an AFP translation of the non-AFP print job, where the AFP translation does not implement the at least one page exception defined in the job ticket for the non-AFP print job. The controller modifies the AFP translation to include one or more structured fields based on the at least one page exception, and provides the modified AFP translation to a print server to generate a printed output that represents the non-AFP print job as specified by the job ticket.

Modification of advanced function presentation (AFP) print jobs for exception handling

Systems and methods are provided for handling print jobs. One embodiment is a system that includes a print server that serves a print shop having printers which exhibit different capabilities. The print server includes an interface that receives print jobs that each include content in the form of a Job Definition Format (JDF) job ticket and Portable Document Format (PDF) print data, a memory that stores the print jobs, and a controller. The controller schedules the print jobs for printing at the printers, and converts content of at least one of the print jobs to a different implementation, such that print jobs scheduled for printing at different printers include different implementations of content, based on the capabilities of the printer that they are scheduled for printing at.

Print job modification in a print shop environment

Methods and systems disclosed provide for visually displaying a graphical representation of two or more print workflows to a user with a Graphical User Interface (GUI), analyzing the two or more print workflows to determine the differences between them, and visually displays the differences to the user with the GUI.

Print workflow visualization and comparison

A print server is disclosed. The print server includes a printing software product that generates an object including one or more attributes defining work expected to be received in a printing system, assigns the object to an input device associated with a folder designated to receive the work, monitors the received work and provides a notification if the received work does not match the attributes of the object.

Workflow notification mechanism

Systems and methods are provided for replacing preprinted forms with blank print media. One embodiment is a system that includes a memory that stores entries which include Page Description Language (PDL) instructions for marking blank print media to match different types of preprinted forms, and an interface that receives a print job comprising PDL print data. The system also includes a controller that determines that the print job includes a media callout referring to one of the types of preprinted forms, consults an entry that corresponds with the type of preprinted form, integrates PDL instructions from the entry into PDL print data for an existing page of the print job to match an appearance of the type of preprinted form at the existing page, selects a printer, and transmits the print job to the printer for printing after the PDL instructions have been integrated.

Dynamic revision of page description language print jobs that use preprinted forms

Systems and methods are provided for generating printed samples of a print job. The system receives a print job, and generates samples for the print job according to different sets of printing parameters. The system determines estimates of printing resource usage based on each set of printing parameters, and initiates printing of the samples along with the resource usage estimates. Further, the system receives user input selecting one of the samples, and initiates printing of the print job according to the printing parameters of the selected sample.

Generation of samples for a print job that include resource usage estimates

A system is described. The system includes a memory to store print performance recommendation logic, including a file handler, a printer acquisition module and a recommendation engine, and one or more processors to execute the file handler to receive print data, printer acquisition module to receive printer configuration information including performance data for each of a plurality of printers and the recommendation engine to generate a printer recommendation including one or more of the plurality of printers based on the print data and the printer configuration information.

Printer model recommendation mechanism

Systems and methods are provided for merging print data and metadata for a print job processed in a print workflow. One system is a print server that monitors an input device that receives print files and metadata files, groups at least one print file and at least one metadata file into a batch based on a predetermined pattern defined for the input device, and initiates processing of the batch as a print job in a print workflow in response to a determination that the batch meets a threshold condition. A step of the print workflow is configured to merge document properties from the at least one print file and the at least one metadata file into a single document properties file. Subsequent steps in the print workflow process the print job according to the single document properties file.

Merging print data and metadata for a print job processed in a print workflow

Systems and methods are provided for a document audit trail for print jobs in a workflow. One system includes a controller that directs a device of a print shop in accordance with a workflow. The controller detects a deletion event of a document of the print job while the document is in the workflow, advances the document to a store step defined in the workflow, identifies document properties to record for the document based on configurable parameters of the store step, and to record values of the document properties in a history file.

Document audit trail for print jobs in a workflow

Systems and methods are provided for managing individual documents of a print job based on recipient preferences. One system is a workflow server that includes an interface able to receive print data defining a print job that includes documents that each indicate an intended recipient for delivery. The workflow server also includes a controller able to direct devices of a print shop in accordance with a workflow that comprises an ordered set of activities to perform upon the documents. The controller is further able to acquire preferences for the intended recipients, to correlate documents in the print job with the acquired preferences, and to alter processing of the correlated documents in the workflow, based on the preferences of the intended recipients.

Dynamic workflow control based on recipient preferences for documents

Systems and methods are provided for generating document-specific histories for multi-document print jobs. One system is a workflow server with an interface and a controller. The interface receives a print job that defines multiple documents, and the controller directs devices of a print shop in accordance with a print workflow. The controller identifies properties of each of the documents to track while the print job is being processed in the workflow, receives progress information from the devices, and analyzes the progress information to detect a triggering event indicating that a document in the workflow has transitioned to a new state at an activity. When recording criteria direct the controller to update the history, the controller adds an entry to a history file while the document is in the workflow. The entry indicates values of the properties of the document, as well as a current workflow activity for the document.

Document-specific workflow histories for multi-document print jobs

Systems and methods are provided for utilizing a workflow activity to suppress individual documents of a print job prior to printing. One embodiment is a workflow server that includes an interface and controller. The interface receives a print job that defines documents which each indicate an intended recipient for delivery. The controller directs devices of a print shop by following a print workflow that comprises an ordered set of activities to perform upon the documents. The controller also detects that the print job has reached a scheduled activity of the workflow for pulling documents from the print job based on criteria, identifies documents of the print job that match the criteria indicated by the activity, and removes the identified documents from the print data for the print job before the print job is printed, preventing printing of the identified documents.

Workflow activities for suppression of documents inside of a print job

System and methods for flexible attribute tracking and report generation for a workflow. One embodiment is a workflow server that receives a selection of attributes to track for print jobs as the print jobs are processed in a print system, and generates print reports based on the attributes being tracked. The workflow server receives an indication to remove a first attribute from tracking, receives an instruction to include data for the first attribute in a print report, retrieves the data for the first attribute that was recorded before removal of the first attribute from tracking, and includes the data for the first attribute in the print report while the first attribute remains removed from tracking.

Flexible attribute tracking and report generation for a workflow

System and methods for presentation of predicted steps in a print workflow. One embodiment is a system that identifies a print workflow with interconnected steps of multiple potential paths. The system identifies a print job, generates a copy of the print job, and simulates execution a step in the print workflow with the copy of the print job. The execution comprises: determining whether the step includes conditional branching, and, when the step includes conditional branching, predicting a subsequent step by evaluating conditions of the step against property values of the copy of the print job. The execution also comprises updating the property values based on the execution of the step. The system repeats the execution for each subsequently predicted step to predict a path of the print job. The system includes a graphical user interface to display the path that is predicted for the print job in the print workflow.

Presentation of predicted steps in a print workflow

A method disclosed. The method includes downloading a first print job data stream from a cloud computing network, transmitting the first print job data stream to a printer, monitoring a printing status of the printer to determine when the printer is ready to receive a second print job and downloading a second print job data stream from the cloud computing network upon determining that the printer is ready to receive the second print job.

Growing community of inventors

Boulder, CO, United States of America

Linda Sue Liebelt