U.S. patent application number 14/200558 was filed with the patent office on 2015-09-10 for system for suggesting network resource for use by a network terminal based on network resource ranking.
This patent application is currently assigned to Printeron Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Printeron Inc.. Invention is credited to Mark Burns, Dharmesh Krishnammagaru, Michael St. Laurent.
Application Number | 20150254248 14/200558 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52629449 |
Filed Date | 2015-09-10 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150254248 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Burns; Mark ; et
al. |
September 10, 2015 |
SYSTEM FOR SUGGESTING NETWORK RESOURCE FOR USE BY A NETWORK
TERMINAL BASED ON NETWORK RESOURCE RANKING
Abstract
A network resource access system for providing access by a user
to network resources over a communications network, the system
comprising: a resource registry including stored resource records
associated with each of the network resources and a stored user
profile containing a list of network resources such that the
network resources have a ranking relative to each other based at
least in part on user behaviour with respect to usage of each of
the network resources, the user profile associated with the user
such that the list of network resources contains the network
resources previously accessed by the user; and a resource service
for receiving an access query from a network terminal identifying
the user and associated with submission of application data for
processing by a selected network resource from the list, the
resource service further configured for accessing the user profile
to identify a suggested network resource from the list in view of
the relative ranking and for sending identification of the
suggested network resource to the network terminal in response to
the access query.
Inventors: |
Burns; Mark; (Ayr, CA)
; St. Laurent; Michael; (Baden, CA) ;
Krishnammagaru; Dharmesh; (Kitchener, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Printeron Inc. |
Kitchener |
|
CA |
|
|
Assignee: |
Printeron Inc.
Kitchener
CA
|
Family ID: |
52629449 |
Appl. No.: |
14/200558 |
Filed: |
March 7, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
707/749 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 16/24578 20190101;
G06F 16/248 20190101; G06F 3/1204 20130101; G06F 3/1287 20130101;
G06F 16/24 20190101; G06F 16/29 20190101; H04L 67/16 20130101; H04L
67/18 20130101; H04L 67/306 20130101; G06F 3/1288 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06F 17/30 20060101
G06F017/30; H04L 29/08 20060101 H04L029/08 |
Claims
1. A network resource access system for providing access by a user
to network resources over a communications network, the system
comprising: a resource registry including stored resource records
associated with each of the network resources and a user profile
containing a list of network resources such that the network
resources have a ranking relative to each other based at least in
part on user behaviour with respect to usage of each of the network
resources, the user profile associated with the user such that the
list of network resources contains the network resources previously
accessed by the user; and a resource service for receiving an
access query from a network terminal identifying the user and
associated with submission of application data for processing by a
selected network resource from the list, the resource service
further configured for accessing the user profile to identify a
suggested network resource from the list in view of the relative
ranking and for sending identification of the suggested network
resource to the network terminal in response to the access
query.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the resource service is further
configured to dynamically determine the ranking of each of the
network resources based on a plurality of resource parameters
associated with at least one of the application data, the user, or
an operational characteristic of one or more of the network
resources.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the ranking is a weighted
combination of the plurality of resource parameters based on a
weight assigned to each of the resource parameters.
4. The system of claim 3, wherein the weight is stored in the user
profile.
5. The system of claim 2, wherein a resource parameter of the
plurality of resource parameters is a frequency of usage of each of
the network resources by the user.
6. The system of claim 5, wherein the frequency of usage for each
of the network resources is stored in the user profile.
7. The system of claim 5 further comprising the resource service
configured for updating the frequency of usage of the suggested
network resource when selected by the user.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the access query is received from
a client application of the network service over the communications
network.
9. The system of claim 5, wherein a further resource parameter of
the plurality of resource parameters is geographical coordinates
based on a physical location of the network terminal.
10. The system of claim 5, wherein a further resource parameter of
the plurality of resource parameters is network segment coordinates
based on a network location of the network terminal.
11. A method for providing access of a user to network resources
over a communications network, the method comprising: receiving an
access query from a network terminal associated with the user and
associated with submission of application data for processing by a
network resource of the network resources; accessing a resource
registry including stored resource records associated with each of
the network resources and a stored user profile containing a list
of network resources such that the network resources have a ranking
relative to each other based at least in part on user behaviour
with respect to usage of each of the network resources, the user
profile associated with the user such that the list of network
resources contains the network resources previously accessed by the
user; accessing the user profile to identify a suggested network
resource from the list in view of the relative ranking; and sending
identification of the suggested network resource to the network
terminal in response to the access query.
12. The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of
dynamically determining the ranking of each of the network
resources based on a plurality of resource parameters associated
with at least one of the application data, the user, or an
operational characteristic of one or more of the network
resources.
13. The method of claim 11, wherein the ranking is a weighted
combination of the plurality of resource parameters based on a
weight assigned to each of the resource parameters.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the weight is stored in the
user profile.
15. The method of claim 12, wherein a resource parameter of the
plurality of resource parameters is a frequency of usage of each of
the network resources by the user.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the frequency of usage for each
of the network resources is stored in the user profile.
17. The method of claim 15 further comprising the step of updating
the frequency of usage of the suggested network resource when
selected by the user.
18. The method of claim 11, wherein the access query is received
from a client application of the network service over the
communications network.
19. The method of claim 15, wherein a further resource parameter of
the plurality of resource parameters is geographical coordinates
based on a physical location of the network terminal.
20. The method of claim 15, wherein a further resource parameter of
the plurality of resource parameters is network segment coordinates
based on a network location of the network terminal.
21. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the network
resources is a printer.
22. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the network
resources is any one of a facsimile machine, an image server, a
file server or a scanner.
23. A network resource access system for providing access by a user
to network resources over a communications network, the system
comprising: a resource registry including stored resource records
associated with each of the network resources; a stored user
profile accessible to a resource application on the network
terminal, the user profile containing a list of network resources
such that the network resources have a ranking relative to each
other based at least in part on user behaviour with respect to
usage of each of the network resources, the user profile associated
with the user such that the list of network resources contains the
network resources previously accessed by the user; and the resource
application on a network terminal for processing an access query of
the network terminal associated with the user and associated with
submission of application data for processing by a selected network
resource from the list, the resource application further configured
for accessing the user profile to identify a suggested network
resource from the list in view of the relative ranking and for
sending identification of the suggested network resource to a user
interface of the network terminal.
Description
FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a method and system for
facilitating access of network resources for application data
processing.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Local area networks are widely used as a mechanism for
making available computer resources, such as file servers,
scanners, and printers, to a multitude of computer users. Wide area
networks, such as the Internet, have evolved as a mechanism for
providing distributed computer resources without regard to physical
geography. Recently, the Internet Print Protocol ("IPP") has
emerged as a mechanism to control access to printing resources over
the Internet.
[0003] However, there exists disadvantages in prior art systems for
providing appropriate network resources to a user based on changing
circumstances of the user, where those network resources can be
accessible to the user via one or more extranets, intranets and/or
different geographical locations. This problem of determining an
appropriate network resource that is acceptable to the user for a
given circumstance can be exacerbated by having to continually scan
by the user's network terminal for available network resources when
the user wishes to change from one network resource to another
based on changes in user operation of the network terminal, such as
change in physical location of the user, change in network location
of the network terminal, etc.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to the invention, there is provided a network
resource access system and a method of network resource access
which addresses at least one deficiency of the prior art network
resource access systems.
[0005] A first aspect provided is a network resource access system
for providing access by a user to network resources over a
communications network, the system comprising: a resource registry
including stored resource records associated with each of the
network resources and a user profile containing a list of network
resources such that the network resources have a ranking relative
to each other based at least in part on a user state with respect
to usage of each of the network resources, the user profile
associated with the user such that the list of network resources
contains the network resources previously accessed by the user; and
a resource service for receiving an access query from a network
terminal identifying the user and associated with submission of
application data for processing by a selected network resource from
the list, the resource service further configured for accessing the
user profile to identify a suggested network resource from the list
in view of the relative ranking and for sending identification of
the suggested network resource to the network terminal in response
to the access query.
[0006] A further aspect is where the resource service is configured
to dynamically determine the ranking of each of the network
resources based on a plurality of resource parameters associated
with at least one of the application data, the user, or an
operational characteristic of one or more of the network
resources.
[0007] A further aspect is where the ranking is a weighted
combination of the plurality of resource parameters based on a
weight assigned to each of the resource parameters. A resource
parameter of the plurality of resource parameters is a frequency of
usage of each of the network resources by the user.
[0008] A further aspect is where the resource service is configured
for updating the frequency of usage of the suggested network
resource when selected by the user.
[0009] A further aspect is a method for providing access of a user
to network resources over a communications network, the method
comprising: receiving an access query from a network terminal
associated with the user and associated with submission of
application data for processing by a network resource of the
network resources; accessing a resource registry including stored
resource records associated with each of the network resources and
a user profile containing a list of network resources such that the
network resources have a ranking relative to each other based at
least in part on user behaviour with respect to usage of each of
the network resources, the user profile associated with the user
such that the list of network resources contains the network
resources previously accessed by the user; accessing the user
profile to identify a suggested network resource from the list in
view of the relative ranking; and sending identification of the
suggested network resource to the network terminal in response to
the access query.
[0010] A further aspect is a network resource access system for
providing access by a user to network resources over a
communications network, the system comprising: a resource registry
including stored resource records associated with each of the
network resources; a stored user profile accessible to a resource
application on the network terminal, the user profile containing a
list of network resources such that the network resources have a
ranking relative to each other based at least in part on user
behaviour with respect to usage of each of the network resources,
the user profile associated with the user such that the list of
network resources contains the network resources previously
accessed by the user; and the resource application on a network
terminal for processing an access query of the network terminal
associated with the user and associated with submission of
application data for processing by a selected network resource from
the list, the resource application further configured for accessing
the user profile to identify a suggested network resource from the
list in view of the relative ranking and for sending identification
of the suggested network resource to a user interface of the
network terminal.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] The preferred embodiment of the invention will now be
described, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings,
in which:
[0012] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the network resource access
system, according to the present invention, showing the network
terminals, the network resources, the resource registry, the
authorization server, the administration server, the proxy server,
and the polling server;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a schematic view one of the network terminals
depicted in FIG. 1, showing the driver application for use with the
present invention;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the format of the resource
records comprising the resource database of the resource registry
depicted in FIG. 1, showing the network address field, the resource
type field, the user access level field, the resource information
field, the pseudo-name field, the username/password field, and the
driver identification field;
[0015] FIGS. 4a,b are flow charts depicting the method of operation
of the network resource access system;
[0016] FIG. 5a shows a further embodiment of the network system of
FIG. 1;
[0017] FIG. 5b shows a further embodiment of the network system of
FIG. 1;
[0018] FIG. 6 an example configuration of network terminals of the
system of FIGS. 1 and 5a,b;
[0019] FIG. 7 shows a stage polling mechanism of FIG. 1;
[0020] FIG. 8 an example configuration of network service of the
system of FIGS. 1 and 5a,b;
[0021] FIG. 9 shows an example configuration of servers of the
system of FIGS. 1 and 5a,b; and
[0022] FIG. 10 shows an example operation of the system of FIG.
1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Network Resource Access System 100
[0023] Turning to FIG. 1, a network resource access system, denoted
generally as 100, is shown comprising network terminals 200 (e.g.
mobile communication device such as a smart phone) configured to
submit network resource requests 220 to one or more network
resources 104 (e.g. network printer) available over a
communications network 112, a resource registry 106 storing a
number of resource records 300 defining the network resources 104
and user profiles 450 (see FIG. 5a) defining a number of resource
parameters 456 associated with network resource 104 usage by the
user, an administration server 108 for administering contents of
the resource registry 106 and/or registration of the network
terminal 200 users with the system 100, and an authorization server
110 for providing access to the users of selected network
resource(s) 104 of the system and/or registration of the network
terminal 200 users with the system 100. Typically, the network
resource access system 100 comprises a plurality of network
terminals 200, and a plurality of network resources 104 coupled
together via a communications network 112, however for enhanced
clarity of discussion, FIG. 1 only shows a single network terminal
200 and multiple network resources 104 available for selection by
the user and/or for suggestion (based on a ranking system) by the
authorization server 110 to the network terminal 200, as further
described below. The suggestion of a particular network resource
104 to the user of the network terminal 200 by the authorization
server 110 (or the client application 390) can be based on the
resource parameters 456 (stored in the user profile 450 such as
last network resource 104, most frequent network resource 104 used,
etc. and/or contained in a resource access request 220, see FIG.
5a, such as geographic location of the network terminal 104,
current network 112 segment to which network terminal 200 is
connected, etc.).
[0024] It is recognised the server functionality of the
administration server 108 and the authorization server 110 can be
provided interchangeably by either server 108, 110 for facilitating
the interaction of access and/or usage of the network resources 104
by the network terminals 200, via the system 100. Example server
functionality can include registration of the user with the system
100, access request 220 receipt and processing, response
communications 220 formulated and sent to the network terminal 200
and/or to a building server 116,118 associated with the network
resource 104, etc. It is also recognised that the authorization
server 110 and the administration server 108 can be hosted services
on one physical computer or subdivided as services hosted on two or
more separate computers (e.g. in communication with one another via
the communications network 112), as desired.
[0025] The authorization server 110 is configured to communicate
with the network terminal 200 via the network 112, for example
where a network resource application 390 (see FIG. 6) is configured
as a client (e.g. registered) of the authorization server 110. As
such, the authorization server 110 (or the client application 390,
also referred to as a resource application 390 if acting
independently for one or more functions in determining the
suggested network resource 104) can have access to the user profile
450, via the resource registry 106, which defines ranking 454 of
various network resource IDs 402 (of the various network resources
104 described/defined in resource records 300) according to one or
more applicable ranking parameters 456 further defined below. Based
on the rankings (e.g. determined dynamically, statically, or both),
the authorization server 110 (or the client application 390) can
provide a suggested network resource 104 (e.g. as identified by a
network resource ID 452 corresponding with the network resource 104
listed in the resource records 300) in response to a network
resource access request 220 (e.g. printer access request), for
example submitted to the authorization server 110 via the client
application 390. Any access request 220 can also include network
resource parameters 456 as well (e.g. paper size selection, colour
printer requirements, etc.) for use in determining the network
resource 104 suggestion (e.g. response communication 220). It is
recognised that application 390 can be referred to as a client
application in those contexts in which it is interacting with the
resource service 458 and can also be referred to as a resource
application in those contexts in which it is interacting with the
user profile 450 stored in local memory 224 of the network terminal
200.
[0026] It is recognised that in some cases, the user may not be
part of the decision making process for network resource 104
suggestion other than the fact that user has the network device 200
in hand. In some cases permissions (e.g. authorized access to
private or restricted access network resources 104) can be relevant
as a factor in determining the suggested network resource 104 by
the resource access service 458 but in others (such as a hotel or
other public place) permissions may be anonymous and the network
device's 200 location and capabilities may be given greater weight
in determining the suggested network resource 104 by the resource
access service 458.
[0027] As further described below, the authorization server 110 (or
the client application 390) can access the resource records 300 of
the resource registry 106 to determine alternative or additional
network resources 104 that are not contained in the user profile
450, based on the resource parameters 456 of the access request
220. For example, the user could have only used black and white
printers in the past (represented as a list of one or more black
and white configured printers listed/named by the resource IDs 452
in the user profile 450, for example Resource ID1 could be a work
printer, Resource ID2 could be a home printer, and Resource ID3
could be a hotel lobby printer). When the user submits the access
request 220 containing a resource parameter 456 of colour printer,
the authorization server 110 could determine that the current list
of network resources 104 of the user profile 450 does not contain a
colour enabled printer 104 and therefore search the resource
registry records 300 for a network resource 104 compatible with the
resource parameter 456 of colour printer. It is recognised that
other resource parameters 456 of the user profile 450 could also be
used to select appropriate network resource 104 matches from the
network resource registry 106, based on checking the resource
records 300 of each network resource 104 listed in the resource
registry 106 with the resource parameters 456 obtained from the
access request 220 and/or the user profile 450.
[0028] It is recognised that the location of the user profile 450
can be stored on the network device 200 (e.g. in memory 224). The
user profile 450 could also reside in the memory of the
authorization server 110 (e.g. memory 224) for direct access by the
resource access service 458. The user profile 450 could also be
independent and reside in the resource registry 106. It is
recognised that the user profile 450 could be in any one location,
e.g. network device 200 or authorization server 110, or resource
registry 106, could be shared across a pair of locations (e.g.
network device 200 and authorization server 110 or resource
registry 106), or could be shared across all of the locations. It
is described only by example that the user profile 450 is in the
resource registry 106, however it is recognised that the user
profile 456 could be stored on device of the network terminal 200
and used by the network terminal application client 390 to make a
determination of the suggested network resource 104 on behalf of
the resource access service 458, e.g. the client application 390
can also have some or all of the resource access service 458
functionality to analyze the resource access request 220 contents,
the user profile 450 contents and any network terminal 200
capabilities (e.g. location) as part of determining the user access
state and comparing that to the network terminals 104 listed in the
user profile 450 stored on the network terminal 200. Also
envisioned is that if the client application 390 cannot make a
proper determination for a suggested network resource 104 on its
own, then the client application 390 can request of the resource
access service 458 for additional details of available network
resources 104 (e.g. from the user profile 450 contents stored on
the authorization server 110 and/or in the resource registry 106,
and/or accessed n the records 300 of the resource registry
106).
[0029] As such, the user of the network terminal 200 is provided
with the suggested network resource 104 by the authorization server
110, upon inspection of the user profile 450 (and optionally
resource records 300) in view of factors of a user resource access
state, in order to make a determination of the which network
resource 104 to suggest to the user. User access state can be
defined as including one or more factors of: network accessibility
of the network terminal 200; capabilities of the network resource
104 in view of requirements to process the application data 221 of
the resource request 220; user behaviour such as last or most
frequent network resource 104 used, most frequent network resource
104 for a specific location (e.g. geographical, network, etc.);
other user profile 450 parameters 456; service/network
accessibility of the network terminal 200 to the network resource
104; service capabilities of the network resource 104 for
application data 221 processing; etc.
[0030] When a new network resource 104 (e.g. identified in the
resource records 300 and not in the user profile record 450) is
determined by the authorization server 110 (or the client
application 390) to be the most suitable match for the access
request 220, the authorization server 110 could forward the
corresponding resource ID 452 obtained from the resource records
300 to the network terminal 200 in the access response 220 along
with optionally any other network resource 104 information (e.g.
physical location, cost, etc.). If selected and used by the user of
the network terminal 200, then the authorization server 110 (or the
client application 390) would update the user profile 450 with the
additional resource ID 452 of the newly used network resource 104
(i.e. the new resource ID 456 would be added to the list of
resource IDs and would also receive an associated ranking 454 with
respect to all of the other ranked resource IDs of the user profile
450.
[0031] Alternatively, when a new network resource 104 (e.g.
identified in the resource records 300 and not in the user profile
record 450) is determined by the client application 390 to be the
most suitable match for the access request 220, the client
application 390 would receive the corresponding resource ID 452
obtained from the resource records 300 along with optionally any
other network resource 104 information (e.g. physical location,
cost, etc.). If selected and used by the user of the network
terminal 200, then the client application 390 could update the user
profile 450 with the additional resource ID 452 of the newly used
network resource 104 (i.e. the new resource ID 456 would be added
to the list of resource IDs and would also receive an associated
ranking 454 with respect to all of the other ranked resource IDs of
the user profile 450.
[0032] As such, it is recognised that the determination for the
suggested network resource 104 need not be done by the resource
service 458, as in some cases the client application 390 can
provide independent, or additional determinations and then use the
resource registry 106 to retrieve more information or a list of
network resources 104 from which to obtain the suggested network
resource 104 used to submit the application data 221 for
processing. It is recognised that there can be one or more
determination actors (e.g. resource service 458, client application
390, etc.) for identifying the suggested network resource 104. For
example an initial determination (trying to match the user
state--represented for example by the access request 220--with one
or more network resources 104 contained in the user profile 450) by
the client application 390, whereby if the determination of the
suggested network resource 104 is not suitable as a result of the
initial determination then the client application 390 can send the
access request 220 to the resource service 458 requesting a
suggested network resource 104 or if there are alternative network
resources 104 to match the user state other than the network
resources 104 identified in the initial determination done by the
client application 390.
[0033] For example, the mobile device application 390 can do the
first (e.g. initial) determination, filter our unwanted network
resources 104 and then refer to the authorization server 110 for a
second determination for additional or alternative suggested
network resource(s) 104 based on matching done by the resource
service 458. For example, the resource service 458 can do the first
(e.g. initial) determination, filter our unwanted network resources
104 and then refer to the network terminal 200 for a second
determination for additional or alternative suggested network
resource(s) 104 based on matching done by the mobile device
application 390.
[0034] As such, the authorization server 110 (and/or the client
application 390) implements an analytical method via a resource
access service 458 (see FIG. 8) for determining an appropriate
network resource 104 selection, selected as a particular network
resource 104 ranked over other network resources 104) to satisfy
the access request 220 (e.g. including resource parameters 456),
based on reviewing/comparing the available network resources 104 of
the user profile 450 and/or appropriate network resources 104
contained in the general resource records 300. It is recognised
that most of the network resources 104 contained in the resource
records 300 can represent those network resources 104 that are not
specifically listed in the user profile 450 and thus can represent
network resources 104 unused (e.g. thus far) by the user of the
network terminal 200. In terms of the rankings 454 assigned (e.g.
dynamically, statically) to the resource IDs 452 of the network
resources 104 used by the network terminal 200, and thus listed in
the user profile 450, it is understood that a weighting scheme can
be used by the authorization server 110 (and/or the client
application 390) to determine what is the most appropriate network
resource 104 to match the current access request 220 received from
the resource application 390 of the network terminal 200.
Resource Registry 106
[0035] The resource registry 106 (e.g. a database or data store)
can be used to store pertinent information about each of the
network resources 104, including resource records 300 including: a
user access field 306 containing access information used to
authenticate and/or make available the network resource 104 to a
particular user via their network terminal 200; a resource type
field 304 containing resource features/capabilities information
(e.g. laser, inkjet, colour, black and white, collation, paper
quality, paper size, etc.); and a physical location information
field 309 that can contain geographic location information 309a
(e.g. latitude and longitude), and can contain metadata 309b
concerning a description of the physical location of the network
resource 104 such as but not limited to the location within a
building (e.g. particular room location within a multi-room
building), directions within the building that the network resource
104 is located (e.g. go to second floor and turn left from the main
elevator and second office/store on your right), street address of
the building that the network resource 104 is located in, a
sequence of directions to follow in order once the building is
entered by the user (e.g. turn left, turn right, walk 20 meters
straight ahead, etc.) and/or a building map showing an internal
layout of the building and indicating the location of the network
resource 104 on the layout. As such, the resource records 300 can
be used to match against any resource parameters 456 that are part
of the access request 220 and/or part of the user profile 450 when
the resource service 458 of the authorization server 110 (or the
client application 390) determines the appropriate network resource
104 to suggest in order to satisfy the access request 220.
[0036] It is recognised that the resource records 300 can contain
the actual information (e.g. user access data, resource type data,
physical location data) as discussed above, can contain link(s) or
other electronic reference(s) to the actual information that is
stored in another record of the registry 106 and or other storage
(e.g. database, table, list, etc.) located locally and/or remotely
from the resource registry 106, or a combination thereof. For
example, the network resource registry 106 can contain the
geographic location 309a (can be also a parameter 456 considered in
the determination) and a link (e.g. URL) to the actual metadata
309b that is provided by a Website and/or Web service (facilitated
by a building server 116 that can be the same or different from the
polling server 116 and/or the enterprise server 118) that is
associated with, and/or maintained by, the building that
houses/owns the network resource 104. In the case of the metadata
309b being supplied by the building server 116,118 a directions
information request 250 (see FIG. 5b) can be provided by the
network terminal 200 directly and/or by the authorization server
110 to the building server 116,118, in order for the network
terminal 200 to receive a directions response 251 containing the
directions metadata/information 309b for use in guiding the user of
the network terminal 200 once they arrive at the building (housing
the network resource 104) as specified by the physical location
information/data 309a. In this manner, the building (housing the
network resource 104) can control the content of, and degree of
access to, the metadata/information 309b. For example, access to
the metadata/information 309b can be controlled by the building
server 116,118 based on the real time geographic location (e.g.
supplied by the GPS information of the network terminal 200 itself)
of the user as the approach to and navigate within the building,
for example including the ability of the user to retain a copy of
the metadata/information 309b (or portions thereof) on the network
terminal 200 once the user has arrived at the network resource 104.
As such, it is recognised that a number of factors/parameter 456
can affect the definition of the user state, which can impact the
determination of which suggested network resource 104 is chosen
from the user profile 450 and/or the resource records 300.
[0037] Further to the above, the resource registry 106 comprises a
resource database 120, a driverdatabase 222, and a user
registration database 124. The resource database 120 includes the
resource records 300 identifying parameters associated with the
network resources 104. As shown in FIG. 3, each resource record 300
can comprise the network address field 302, the resource type field
304, and the user access level field 306 for the associated network
resource 104. The network address field 302 identifies the network
address of the network resource 104. Each network resource 104 can
comprises an IPP-compliant printer, in which case the network
address field 302 identifies comprises the network resource IPP
address. However, in the case where the network resource 104
comprises a non-IPP-compliant device and the communications network
112 comprises the Internet, preferably the network resource 104 is
linked to the communications network 112 via a suitable server, and
the network address field 302 for the network resource 104
identifies the Internet Protocol ("IP") address of the server.
[0038] The resource type field 304 identifies the type of data
communication device of the network resource 104. For instance, the
resource type field 304 may specify that the network resource 104
is a printer, an image server, a file server, an e-mail pager, or
an e-mail enabled wireless telephone. Further, the resource type
field 304 may include a resource type sub-field specifying a
sub-class of the network resource type. For example, the resource
type sub-field may specify that the network resource 104 is an
IPP-capable printer, or a non-IPP-capable printer.
[0039] The user access level field 306 identifies the type of
communications access which the network terminals 200 are allowed
to have in regards to the associated network resource 104. In the
embodiment, as presently envisaged, the user access level field 306
establishes that the network resource 104 allows one of: (a)
"public access" in which any network terminal 200 of the network
resource access system 100 can communicate with the network
resource 104; (b) "private access" in which only members (e.g.
employees) of the enterprise associated with the network resource
104 can communicate with the network resource 104; and (c)
"authorized access" in which only particular network terminals 200
can communicate with the network resource 104.
[0040] If the user access level field 306 specifies "authorized
access" for a network resource 104, preferably the user access
level field 306 includes a sub-field which lists the names of the
network terminals 200 authorized to access the network resource
104, and a sub-field which includes an authorization password which
the identified network terminals 200 must provide in order to
access the network resource 104. If the user access level field 306
specifies "private access" for a network resource 104, preferably
the user access level field 306 includes a sub-field which lists
the network address of the network terminals 200 which are deemed
to members of the enterprise.
[0041] It should be understood, however, that the user access level
field 306 is not limited to identifying only the foregoing
predefined user access levels, but may instead identify more than
one of the predefined user access levels, or other user access
levels altogether. For instance, the user access level field 306
may identify that the associated network resource 104 allows both
private access to all employees of the enterprise running the
network resource 104, and authorized access to other pre-identified
network terminals 200. Further, the user access level field 306 may
also include one or more sub-fields (not shown) which provide
additional restrictions/permissions on the type of communications
access which the network terminals 200 are allowed to have in
regards to the associated network resource 104. For instance, the
user access level sub-fields may limit the hours of operation of
the network resource 104, or may place restrictions on the type of
access limitations on a per-user basis, or per-group basis. Other
variations on the type of access will be readily apparent, and are
intended to be encompassed by the scope of the present
invention.
[0042] Preferably, each resource record 300 includes an information
field 308, 309 which provides information on the network resource
104, such as data handling capabilities, resource pricing and/or
geographical co-ordinates. This latter parameter is particularly
advantageous for use with mobile network terminals 200, such as a
wireless-enabled personal data assistant or an e-mail-enabled
wireless telephone, since it allows the network terminal 200 to
identify the nearest one of a plurality of available network
resources 104.
[0043] It is recognised that the information field 309, containing
(and/or associated with) the physical location information 309a, is
the record 300 used by the authorization server 110 to match the
one or more respective network resources 104 that are
available/accessible (e.g. nearest) to the user of the network
terminal 200, based on geographical location information 119 (see
FIG. 5b) of the user that is supplied with the access electronic
communications 220 to the system 100. It is recognised that the
geographical location information 119 can be supplied by the user
and/or network terminal 200 (i.e. manually an/or automatically) as
GPS information indicative of the real time location of the network
terminal 200 (e.g. a PDA), as street address or other physical
location (e.g. intersection, postal/zip code, etc.), or in other
forms (e.g. triangulation information) as is known in the art. For
example, the user provides in their communication 220 their user
ID, their geographical location 119, and optionally any
features/capabilities desired of the network resource 104. The
authorization server 110 is configured to receive the network
resource access request communication 220 and to match one or more
network resources 104 using at least the geographical location 119
compared to the geographical information 309a. The response of the
system 100 (e.g. via the authorization server 110) to the network
terminal 200 can include a list of one or more network resources
104 (e.g. provided as a results list including the respective
locations 309a of each of the network resources 104 in the results
list, and optionally and features/capabilities of the network
resource 104 deemed pertinent to the network resource access
request communication 220).
[0044] Each resource record 300 can also include a pseudo-name
field 310, a username/password field 312 and a network driver
identifier field 314. The pseudo-name field 310 contains a resource
pseudo-name which identifies the network resource 104 to the
network terminals 200. Preferably, the pseudo-name is a network
alias that identifies the physical location and properties of the
network resource 104, but does not identify the network address of
the resource 104. Further, preferably each pseudo-name uniquely
identifies one of the network resources 104, however a group of the
network resources 104 may be defined with a common pseudo-name to
allow communication with a group of network resources 104. This
latter feature is particularly advantageous since it allows the
administrator of an enterprise associated with the group of network
resources to dynamically allocate each network resource 104 of the
group as the demands for the network resources 104 or maintenance
schedules require.
[0045] In addition, preferably the resource record 300 includes a
plurality of the pseudo-name fields 310 to allow the administrator
of the associated network resource 104 to update the name assigned
to the network resource 104, while also retaining one or more
previous pseudo-names assigned to the network resource 104. As will
be explained, this feature is advantageous since it allows the
administrator to update a resource name without the risk that
network terminals 200 using a prior pseudo-name will be unable to
locate or communicate with the network resource 104.
[0046] The username/password field 312 contains a unique username
and password combination which allows the administrator of the
associated network resource 104 to prevent authorized access and
alteration to the data contained in the resource record 300.
Preferably, each resource record 300 also includes an e-mail
address field (not shown) which the network resource access system
100 uses to provide the administrator of the associated network
resource 104 with a notification e-mail message when a message is
successfully transmitted to the network resource 104.
[0047] The driver identifier field 314 contains a resource driver
identifier which is used in conjunction with the driver database
122 to provide the network terminals 200 with the appropriate
resource driver for communication with the network resource 104.
The driver database 122 includes resource drivers which allow
software applications installed on the network terminals 200 to
communicate with the network resources 104. As will be explained
below, in order for a network terminal 200 to communicate with a
selected network resource 104, the network terminal 200 first
downloads a driver application data from the administration server
108 over the communications network 112. The network terminal 200
may also download the appropriate resource driver from the driver
database 122 (via the authorization server 110 over the
communications network 112), and then allow the authorization
server 110 to configure the downloaded resource driver in
accordance with the access level field 306 of the resource record
300 associated with the selected network resource 104. Preferably,
each resource driver includes a resource driver identifier which
allows the authorization server 110 to identify the resource driver
which the network terminal 200 has downloaded. It is also
recognised that the driver database 122 can contain generic drivers
to permit appropriate consumption/processing of the application
data 221 by the receiving network resource 104.
[0048] The resource registry 106 can also contain user profiles 450
(see FIG. 3) for each user that is registered with the system 100
(e.g. with the authorization server 110). The user profile 450 can
have a number of data fields including references 402 (e.g. network
resource ID 402 such as an alias name, printer ID, etc.) for the
network resources 104 that have been utilized by the user of the
network terminal 200 in the past. For example, the user profile 450
for each of the users could contain a list of network resource IDs
452 (e.g. printers) that the user has used in the past, such that
each of the network resource IDs 452 also has a ranking 454 that
defines which are the network resources 104 is more preferred by
the user. The ranking 454 of a particular network resource ID as
higher (e.g. more preferred or suitable for user needs) as compared
to lower (e.g. less preferred or suitable for user needs) in the
network resource list of the user profile 450 can be dependent upon
one or more factors 456 such as but not limited to: geographic
location of the network terminal 200 obtained via GPS or other
network terminal 200 location information; geographic location of
the network resource 104 obtained via GPS or other network resource
104 location information (e.g. from the registry data 300); number
of times the user has submitted network resource data (e.g. print
data) to the network resource 104; network assignment of the
network terminal 104, for example the network terminal is connected
to a home Wifi network 112 as compared to a workplace network 112
(e.g. Wifi) or generally only the Internet 112; whether
authentication is required by the user or not for network resource
104 access; most recently used network resource 104; most recently
used network resource 104 matching resource requirements (e.g.
resource parameters 456) of the access request 220; as well as any
other user behaviour data that can be used to determine a
preference for the user of one network resource 104 as compared to
a different network resource 104.
[0049] It is recognised that the ranking 404 for each of the
network resources 104 with respect to one another can be determined
statically by the resource service 458 in advance of receiving the
resource request 220, such that any resource parameters 456
contained in the access request 220 do/does not affect/change the
rankings 404 used by the resource service 458 (or the client
application 390) to determine the suggested network resource 104
(e.g. selected resource ID based on the rankings 454).
Alternatively, the ranking 454 for each of the network resources
104 with respect to one another can be determined dynamically by
the resource service 458 (or the client application 390) after
receiving the resource request 220, such that any resource
parameters 456 contained in the access request 220 do/does
affect/change the rankings 454 used by the resource service 458 (or
the client application 390) to determine the suggested network
resource 104 (e.g. selected resource ID based on the rankings 454),
e.g. the resource parameters 456 of the access request 220 are used
in combination with resource parameters 456 stored in the user
profile 450 to dynamically calculate weighted rankings 454 of the
network resources 104 (via the resource IDs 452) stored in the user
profile 450. Alternatively, the ranking 454 for each of the network
resources 104 with respect to one another can be determined
dynamically by the resource service 458 (or the client application
390) after receiving the resource request 220, such that any
resource parameters 456 contained in the access request 220 do/does
affect/change the rankings 454 used by the resource service 458 (or
the client application 390) to determine the suggested network
resource 104 (e.g. selected resource ID based on the rankings 454),
e.g. the resource parameters 456 of the access request 220 are used
in substitution of resource parameters 456 stored in the user
profile 450 to dynamically calculate weighted rankings 454 of the
network resources 104 (via the resource IDs 452) stored in the user
profile 450. Alternatively, the ranking 454 for each of the network
resources 104 with respect to one another can be determined
dynamically by the resource service 458 (or the client application
390) after receiving the resource request 220, such that any
resource parameters 456 contained in the access request 220 do/does
not affect/change the rankings 454 used by the resource service 458
(or the client application 390) to determine the suggested network
resource 104 (e.g. selected resource ID based on the rankings 454),
e.g. the resource parameters 456 of the access request 220 are not
used and instead the resource parameters 456 stored in the user
profile 450 are used to dynamically calculate weighted rankings 454
of the network resources 104 (via the resource IDs 452) stored in
the user profile 450.
[0050] Once the suggested network resource 104 is selected by the
resource service 458, the corresponding network resource ID 452 is
submitted to the network terminal 200 via the access response 220
(along with any further optional network resource 104 information)
over the communications network 112. Preferably the user of the
network terminal 200 is registered with the authorization sever 110
and thus has their user profile 450 (containing ranked network
resource IDs 452) stored in the resource registry 106 and available
to the resource service 458 (or the client application 390) in
communication with the network client application 390 provisioned
on the network terminal 200.
Resource Client Application 390
[0051] Referring to FIG. 6, the resource client application 390 is
installed on the network terminal 200 and is configured to
communicate over the communications network 112 with the resource
service 458. The application 390 receives a request by the user
(e.g. via the user interface 204) and/or by an application running
on the device infrastructure 206 for submitting application data
221 (e.g. a document) to a network resource 104 (e.g. a printer)
available via the resource service 458. For example, the resource
service 458 can receive the application data 221 (e.g. as part of
the access request 220 or follow up communication to the access
request 220) from the network terminal 220 and then forward the
application data 221 to the network resource 104 selected by the
network terminal 200 for processing (e.g. printing). Alternatively,
the resource service 458 can provide the network 112 address of the
network resource 104 in the resource response 220 and then the
network terminal 200 could submit the application data 221 directly
to the network resource 104 in a network 112 path that bypasses the
resource service 458, as desired, using the network interface
202.
[0052] The client application 390 provides (e.g. displays) on the
user interface 204 a resource access (e.g. virtual button, menu
selection, etc.) option 460 used to submit selected application
data 221 to the network resource 104 associated with the access
option 460. It is recognised that the application data 221 could be
stored in storage associated with the device framework 206 or could
be stored off-device (e.g. via another network 112 connected device
not shown).
[0053] For example, the user could launch the resource client 390
on the network terminal 200 via the user interface 204 (e.g. select
application 390 icon) and the resource application 390 could ask
the user to select or otherwise indicate the application data 221
desired for processing by a network resource 104. Otherwise, the
user could access application data 221 on the network terminal 200
via a framework application associated with the application data
221 (e.g. a spreadsheet document being manipulated by the user via
a spreadsheet application hosted on the network terminal 200) and
once data processing (e.g. printing) is selected by the user within
the framework application, the framework application could launch
(either directly, or indirectly via the operating system) the
resource client application 390 noting the selected application
data 221.
[0054] Once the application data 221 is selected, the executing
client application 390 could send an access request 220 to the
resource service 458 along with any resource parameters 456
applicable to the application data 221. The resource service 458
would evaluate the user profile 450 contents along with any
appropriate resource parameters 456 (form the access request 220
and/or stored from the user profile 450) to determine the best
network resource 104 (e.g. highest ranked network resource 104
satisfying the access request 220 for the selected application data
221). As noted above, the ranking of the network resources 104
within the user profile 450 could be done dynamically (e.g. on an
access request 220 by access request 220 basis) and/or statically
(e.g. rankings established for use before receipt of the access
request 220).
[0055] Once the resource client application receives the access
response 220 from the resource service 458, the client application
390 would present on the user interface 204 a confirmation option
462 indicating the highest ranked network resource ID 452
suggested, chosen from the user profile 450 by the resource service
458 in consultation with the resource registry 106. The user could
select the confirmation option 462 in the positive, e.g. accept or
agree with the network resource 104 suggestion, and then the
application data 221 would be sent to the suggested network
resource 104 over the communications network 112 for subsequent
processing. Upon selection of the suggestion for network resource
104 by the user, the client application 390 could send this
suggestion selection to the resource service 458 for use in
updating the rankings 454 in the user profile 450 of the accepted
network resource 104, as further described below.
[0056] Alternatively, the user could select the confirmation option
462 in the negative, e.g. reject or disagree with the network
resource 104 suggestion. In this example, the network service 458
could provide the client application 390 with alternative network
resource 104 suggestions for presentation on the user interface
204. Upon selection of an alternative suggestion for network
resource 104 by the user, the client application 390 could send
this alternative suggestion selection to the resource service 458
for use in updating the rankings 454 in the user profile 450 of the
accepted network resource 104 selected and also for use in updating
the rankings 454 in the user profile 450 of the other network
resource 104 rejected, as further described below.
[0057] Alternatively, the client application 390 could present on
the user interface 204 an indication that the highest ranked
network resource 104 is currently unavailable (e.g. offline, etc.)
and instead suggest an alternative network resource 104 suggestion
as obtained from the resource service 458 (e.g. also chosen as the
second highest ranked network resource 104 from the user profile
450, or as chosen. As per above, the user has the option of
selecting the confirmation option 462 in either the positive or
negative. Upon selection of an alternative suggestion for network
resource 104 by the user, the client application 390 could send
this alternative suggestion selection to the resource service 458
for use in updating the rankings 454 in the user profile 450 of the
network resource 104, as further described below. In the case where
the highest ranked network resource 104 that was currently
unavailable (e.g. offline, etc.) is only temporarily unavailable,
the client application 390 and/or the resource service 458 may not
update the ranking of the alternatively suggested network resource
104 after use, as clearly the user does not prefer to use this
alternative network resource unless the original (i.e. best match)
network resource 104 is unavailable. In the case where the highest
ranked network resource 104 that was currently unavailable (e.g.
offline, etc.) is permanently unavailable or otherwise unavailable
for an extended period of time, the client application 390 and/or
the resource service 458 could update the ranking 456 of the
alternatively suggested network resource 104 after use, as clearly
the user will prefer to use this alternative network resource 104
in the future as the original (i.e. best match) network resource
104 is now unavailable. One example is where the alternatively
suggested network resource 104 assumes the ranking 456 of the
previous highest ranked network resource 104 that is now currently
unavailable.
[0058] As such, it is recognised that the client application 390
can provide for bandwidth usage and/or power savings for the
network terminal 200, as the system 100 leverages use of the
resource service 458 and associated resource registry 106 to seek
and find suitable (e.g. best or highest ranked 454 based on access
request 220) network resource(s) 104 on behalf of the network
terminal 200, rather than having the network terminal 200 actively
scan the network 112 to discover for available and suitable network
resources 104 for selected application data 221. It is also
recognised that the user profile 450 (or portions thereof) could
also be stored locally on in storage of the device framework 206
and thus the user profile 450 contents could be interrogated by the
source service 458 in determination of the highest ranked network
resource 104, based on resource parameters 456 and/or alternative
network resources 104 in the resource records 300.
[0059] Alternatively, the use of the resource registry records
300,450 by the client application 390 provides an advantage to the
user of the network terminal 200 of being able to suggest the most
relevant network resource 104 that matches the access request 220
and also user behaviour defined by the resource parameters 456
stored in the user profile 450, rather than have the network
terminal 200 itself scan/discover the network 112 for available
network resources 104. Further, the use of the user profile 450
provides for the client application 390 to suggest matching network
resources 104 (o the access request 220) based on resource
parameters 456 and rankings 454 contained in the user profile 450.
For example, when the user decides to submit application data 221
to an available/suitable network resource 104, the client
application 390 would suggest different "best matching" network
resources 104 for different resource parameter 456 fact scenarios,
based on the situation (e.g. particular network segment connection
such as work verses home verses roaming scenario, type of
application data 221 such as colour verses black and white print
data, last used network resource 104, etc.)
[0060] The network terminal 200 can use the client application 390
to determine the most appropriate rankings 454 of all the potential
resource IDs 452 that match the resource request 220, based on a
weighted ranking calculation using the resource parameters 456
stored in the user profile 450 and/or contained in the access
request 450 itself (see FIG. 5a,b). For example, if the access
request 450 is for a printer 104 to process print data 221 for
black and white (B&W) printing, the client application 390
determines that B&W would be one process parameter 456 to
consider in determining a weighted ranking of all resource IDs 452
(of printers 104) stored in the user profile 450. The client
application 390 would also consider other resource parameter(s) 456
stored in the user profile 450, such as frequency of network
resource 104 usage, last network resource 104 used, etc, to come up
with the best matched (e.g. highest ranked) printer 104 for the
access request 220. For example, if two printers 104 in the user
profile 40 match B&W printers and are potentially of equal
ranking 454, the client application 390 could add increased
weighting to the ranking 454 in view of the resource parameter 456
of last B&W printer 104 used or increased weighting to the
ranking 454 in view of the parameter 456 of most frequent B&W
printer 104 used in order to come up with the highest ranked
printer 104.
[0061] The ranking 454 of the various resource IDs 452 of the user
profile 450 is implemented by the client application 390 in order
to match the "best" available network resource 104 to the access
request 220 of the network terminal 200, based on resource
parameters 456 supplied in the access request 220 (e.g. application
data 221 type, user location 119, network 112 segment, etc.) and/or
contained in the user profile 450 (e.g. last network resource 104
used, most frequent used, availability status, resource location
309, authorization needed as per public vs. private access, etc.).
The ranking 454 determination can be implemented by the client
application 390 in order to choose between several network resource
104 options as listed in the user profile 450. As such, the client
application 390 can have many criteria (resource parameters 456) to
consider, as no particular network resource 104 option may be
perfect for a given resource access request 220. Weighted ranking
454 can be a method implemented by the client application 390 to
help decide between network resource 104 options of the user
profile 450 when there may be no obvious winner unless resource
parameters 456 are prioritized (e.g. weighted) for a particular
access request 220, in order to determine the highest ranked
network resource 104. Each network resource 104 options of the user
profile 450 can be judged by the client application 390 using a
number of criteria (resource parameters 456); each criterion
(resource parameter 456) can be assigned a weight, or degree of
importance.
[0062] An overall score for each network resource 104 option of the
user profile 450 is calculated by the client application 390, and
then the best (e.g. highest ranked network resource 104) option(s)
are displayed/presented to the user via he user interface 204. In
the event of a refusal or rejection of a suggested network resource
104 by the user, then an alternative suggestion can be selected as
the suggested network resource 104 in descending order of their
overall score, as a replacement for the previously rejected network
resource 104 submitted for display in the user interface 104 of the
network terminal 200.
[0063] As such, the client application 390 has a table of weights
457 for each type of resource parameter 456, to be used in
calculating the highest ranking 454 network resource 104 for the
access request 220. For example, weighted ranking can be
implemented by the client application 390 based on differential
weighting 457 assigned to the criteria 456 (or categories), and the
relative weight 457 of each criterion 456, used to rank the network
resources 104 of the user profile 450. The weighted scoring method,
also known as `weighting and scoring`, is a form of multi-attribute
456 or multi-criterion 456 analysis. It can involve identification
of all the parameters 456 that are relevant to the project (e.g. a
black and white printer type 456 may not be used for a colour
access request); the allocation of weights 457 to each of the
parameters 456 to reflect their relative importance; and the
allocation of scores to each network resource 104 option/suggestion
to reflect how each network resource 104 performs in relation to
each attribute 456. The resulting calculation is a single weighted
score 454 for each network resource 104 suggestion, which can be
used to indicate and compare the overall performance of the network
resource 104 to satisfy the access request 220. It is recognised
that the table of weights 457 can exist, only meaning that the
table of weights 457 could be something generated every time based
on the current environment, i.e. user state used with the
comparison of the user profile 450 and other parameters 456 to
determine the suggested network resource 104.
[0064] An example of ranking 454 determination by the client
application 390 is as follows. The client application 390 can
assign assigns numeric values to individual resource IDs 452 based
on various resource parameters 456 considered. For example, wanted
is to suggest a network resource 104 (e.g. printer) based on the
resource parameters 456 of most frequent usage and network 112
segment to which the network terminal is connected, for example the
network terminal 200 is connected to network 1 (preferred primary)
and network 2 (preferred secondary) but not to network 3. We have
three network resources 104 which have been used the following days
in the most recent time period (e.g. month, day, week, etc.):
resource 1 used 10 times; resource 2 used 15 times; resource 3 used
20 times. Further, resource 1 is available on network 1, resource 2
is available on networks 1 and 2 and resource 3 is available only
on network 3 only. Weighting 457: 50% for frequency and 50% for
available on network 1 segment as a 2 value (representing primary
designation) and available on network 2 as a 1 value (representing
secondary designation) provides resource 1 score as
0.5(10)+0.5(2)=6.0, resource 2 score as 0.5(15)+0.5(1)=8.0, and
resource 3 score as 0.0 as it is discounted entirely over and above
the weighting calculation as not available on the network segment
of the network terminal 200. Therefore, resource 2 gets ranked 454
as the highest and therefore suggested (via resource response 220)
as the network resource 104 to satisfy the user's resource access
request 220, even though it is not on the designated primary
network. This examples shows how frequency of use can be used to
drive a suggested network resource dynamically based on user
behaviour. If the user accepts the resource 2 suggestion, then the
client application 390 would update the usage frequency, from 15
times to 16 times, as notified by the client application 390 upon
selection of resource option 460,461 from the user interface
204.
Communications Network 112
[0065] The network resource access system 100 uses the
communications network 112 to facilitate communication between the
network terminals 200 (hosting the resource client application
390), the network resources 104, the administration server 108, and
the authorization server 110 (hosting the resource service 458).
Preferably, the communications network 112 can be a wide area
network such as the Internet, however the network 112 may also
comprise one or more local area networks 112. Further, the network
112 need not be a land-based network, but instead may comprise a
wireless network and/or a hybrid of a land-based network and a
wireless network for enhanced communications flexibility. One
example is where the communications network 112 includes a local
area network 112 segment (e.g. wired, wireless, etc. on which the
network terminal is registered, communicates on) and a wide area
network 112 segment (e.g. the Internet on which the resource
service 458 is addressed) to which the local area network 112 is
connected to.
[0066] In this manner, the network terminal 200 can access the
network resources 104 on the local area network 112 segment based
on an access request 220 (and response containing the suggested
network resource 104 on the local area network 112) received by the
resource service 458 accessible on the wide area network 112
segment. Alternatively, the network terminal 200 can access network
resources 104 on the local area network 112 segment, however,
accesses network resources 104 on the wide area network 112
segment, based on an access request 220 (and response containing
the suggested network resource 104 on the wide area network 112)
received by the resource service 458 also accessible on the wide
area network 112 segment. Alternatively, the network terminal 200
can be coupled to the wide area network 112 segment, however,
subsequently access network resources 104 on the local area network
112 segment, based on an access request 220 (and response
containing the suggested network resource 104 on the local area
network 112) received by the resource service 458 also accessible
on the wide area network 112 segment. Alternatively, the network
terminal 200 can access the network resources 104 on the local area
network 112 segment based on an access request 220 (and response
containing the suggested network resource 104 on the local area
network 112) received by the resource service 458 accessible on the
local area network 112 segment. Alternatively, the network terminal
200 can access network resources 104 on the local area network 112
segment, however, access network resources 104 on the wide area
network 112 segment, based on an access request 220 (and response
containing the suggested network resource 104 on the wide area
network 112) received by the resource service 458 accessible on the
local area network 112 segment. Alternatively, the network terminal
200 can be coupled to the wide area network 112 segment, however,
subsequently access network resources 104 on the local area network
112 segment, based on an access request 220 (and response
containing the suggested network resource 104 on the local area
network 112) received by the resource service 458 accessible on the
local area network 112 segment. In these examples where the
resource service 458 is available on the local network 112 segment,
it is recognised that the resource registry 106 can be addressed on
the local area network 112 segment in communication with the
resource service 458 also on the local area network 112 segment
and/or the resource registry 106 can be addressed on the wide area
network 112 segment in communication with the resource service 458
on the local area network 112 segment, as desired.
Network Terminal 200
[0067] Each network terminal 200 typically comprises a land-based
network-enabled personal computer. However, the invention is not
limited for use with personal computers. For instance, one or more
of the network terminals 200 may comprise a wireless communications
device, such as a wireless-enabled personal data assistant, a
tablet, or e-mail-enabled mobile telephone if the network 112 is
configured to facilitate wireless data communication. In addition,
the invention is not limited to only facilitating transmission of
text data 221 as the application data 221 (see FIG. 6) as part of
or subsequent to the access request 220, but can be used to
transmit image data, audio data or multimedia data 221 in addition
or substitution of the text data 221, as desired. The network
terminal 200 is capable of supplying geographical location
information 119 of itself to the system 100 in the access
communication 220 to request access to one or more network
resources 104. It is recognised that the network resources 104
optionally can be specified by name (e.g. pseudo name, resource ID
452, etc.) in the access communication 220, along with the included
geographical location information 119 as one of the resource
parameters 456. It is recognised that the geographical location
information 119 can specify a specific location (e.g. a point
position on a map) or a collection of locations such as a region
(e.g. a street having multiple buildings and therefore potential
network resources, a neighborhood/city or other geographical area
such as a region having defined street boundaries and/or
distance/radius from a specified map location), etc. As such, the
resource service 458 determines the best ranked 454 network
resource 104 for the network terminal 200 based on the contents of
the user profile 450 stored in the resource registry 106.
[0068] In addition, the user may provide the administration server
108 (or authorization server 110) with the geographical coordinates
119 (see FIG. 5b) of the user to determine the user's best ranked
(e.g. nearest suitable for the selected application data 221)
network resources 104. The user may provide its geographical
coordinates through any suitable mechanism known to those skilled
in the art, including latitude/longitude co-ordinates, GPS, and
wireless triangulation. Other methods of obtaining geographical
coordinates may also includes Wi-Fi based services, such as those
offered by Skyhook Wireless.
[0069] Further, the location information 119 can be in the form of
geographical coordinate data, such as, for example, Global
Positioning System ("GPS") coordinate data specifying latitude,
longitude and elevation. In some embodiments, the location
information 119 may comprise the GPS satellite network and the
location information via a GPS transceiver for obtaining GPS
coordinate data. Other IP address-based location information or
services may also be used to provide additional location data that
may be used to confirm or verify location information from other
services or sources. The location information 119 may also be
obtained based on wireless site survey data obtained through a
wireless network interface card on the network terminal 200.
Wireless site survey data typically includes MAC addresses of other
nearby network interface cards, SSID-type information that
identifies nearby wireless base stations, and the signal power
associated with each. The wireless site survey data may then be
submitted to a location service that can then return GPS-type
coordinate data. An example of a location service based on this
type of wireless data is offered by Skyhook Wireless. If network
terminal 200 includes a cellular modem for use with a mobile
telephone network, location information 119 may be obtained by
using multiple cell towers to perform multilateration,
trilateration or triangulation. Location information 119 may also
be provide by a hybrid approach using any combination of GPS, IP
address-based service, wireless data and cell tower location
techniques. It is recognised that location information 119 is only
one of the resource parameters 456 that can be used to determine
rankings 454 by the resource service 458, in order to determine and
select the highest ranked 454 network resource 104 associated with
the user profile 450.
[0070] As shown in FIG. 2, the network terminal 200 comprises a
network interface 202, a user interface 204, and a data processing
system 206 in communication with the network interface 202 and the
user interface 204. Typically, the network interface 202 comprises
an Ethernet network circuit card, however the network interface 202
may also comprise an RF antenna for wireless communication over the
communications network 112. Preferably, the user interface 204
comprises a data entry device 208 (such as keyboard, microphone or
writing tablet), and a display device 210 (such as a CRT or LCD
display).
[0071] The data processing system 206 includes a central processing
unit (CPU) 208, and a non-volatile memory storage device (DISC) 210
(such as a magnetic disc memory or electronic memory) and a
read/write memory (RAM) 212 both in communication with the CPU 208.
The DISC 210 includes data which, when loaded into the RAM 212,
comprise processor instructions for the CPU 208 which define memory
objects for allowing the network terminal 200 to communicate with
the network resources 104 and the authorization server 110 over the
communications network 112. The network terminal 200, and the
processor instructions for the CPU 208 will be discussed in greater
detail below.
Network Resource 104
[0072] Typically, each network resource 104 can comprise a printing
device, and in particular, an IPP-compliant printer. However, the
invention is not limited for use with networked printers
(IPP-compliant or otherwise), but instead can be used to provide
access to any of a variety of data communication devices 104,
including facsimile machines, image servers and file servers.
Further, the invention is not limited for use with land-based data
communications devices, but instead can be used to provide access
to wireless communications devices. For instance, the network
resource access system 100 can be configured to facilitate data
communication with e-mail pagers or e-mail enabled wireless
telephones 200.
[0073] It is expected that some of the network resources 104 may be
located behind an enterprise firewall 115 (see FIG. 5a).
Accordingly, to facilitate communication between network terminals
200 and firewall-protected network resources 104, the network
resource access system 100 may also include a proxy server 114
located logically outside the enterprise firewall 115, and a
polling server 116 located logically within the firewall 115, as
shown in FIG. 1. Preferably, the proxy server 114 is located
on-site at the enterprise responsible for administering the network
resource 104, is provided with a network address corresponding to
the enterprise, and includes a queue or other memory storage device
224 (see FIG. 5a) for receiving application data 221. However, the
proxy server 114 may also be located off-site, and may be
integrated with the authorization server 110 if desired. This
latter option can be advantageous since it allows system
administrators to provide access to network resources 104, but
without having to incur the expense of the domain name registration
and server infrastructure.
[0074] In addition to the proxy server 114 and the polling server
116, the enterprise can include an enterprise/resource server 118
(e.g. a print server) to facilitate communication with the network
resources 104 located behind the firewall 115 and the polling
server 116. The polling server 116 is in communication with the
enterprise server 118, and is configured to initiate periodic
polling messages to the proxy server 114 through the firewall 115
to determine whether application data 221 from or otherwise
associated with a network terminal 200 is waiting in the memory 224
of the proxy server 114. The proxy server 114 is configured to
transmit any stored/queued application data 221 to the polling
server 116 in response to the poll signal from the polling server
116. Upon receipt of the stored application data 221 from the proxy
server 114, the polling server 116 can transmit the application
data 221 to the enterprise server 118 for distribution to the
appropriate network resource 104, for example. As will be apparent,
this poll mechanism allows application data 221 to be transmitted
to network resources 104 located behind a firewall 115, but without
exposing the enterprise to the significant possibility of security
breaches associated with firewall 115 access ports that are always
open. In other words, the firewall 115 access ports are opened
based on when the polling operations are to occur and then are
preferably closed again until the next polling operation occurs.
The polling communications are examples of the network
communications 220.
[0075] It is recognised that the polling mechanism can be used to
provide the location information 309b via the polling server 116 to
the proxy server 114 for subsequent communication 220 to the
network terminal 200. In this manner, the polling mechanism can be
used to limit access by the network terminal 200 to computer
devices (e.g. servers 116,118) and data located behind the firewall
115. For example, the poll signal can be used to determine if there
is any request 220 for location information 309b stored in the
queue of the proxy server 114 and poll signal can be used to
provide the requested location information 309b by the polling
server through the firewall 115 to the proxy server 114, for
subsequent transmission to the network terminal 200, via the
communications network 112, that is external to the firewall 115.
In this manner, access to the location information 309b (by the
network terminal 200 and/or the servers 108,110) can be controlled
by the building computer services (i.e. those computers and
resources located behind the firewall 115) that are associated with
the requested network resource 104 (i.e. accessible by the user of
the network terminal 200). It is also recognised that the network
terminal 200 has a driver configured for facilitating data
communication between the network resource 104 and the network
terminal 200, once the network terminal 200 has been provided
access to the network resource 104 by the system 100. As such, the
location information 309b can also be resident in the resource
registry records 300,450 and therefore be communicated to the
network terminal 200 by the resource service 458, for example in
response communication 220. Also, the location information 309b can
be used as a resource parameter 456 used by the resource service
458 in determining respective rankings 454 of the various network
resource IDs 452 in the user profile 450.
Resource Service 458
[0076] The use of the resource registry records 300,450 by the
authorization server 110 provides an advantage to the user of the
network terminal 200 of being able to suggest the most relevant
network resource 104 that matches the access request 220 and also
user behaviour defined by the resource parameters 456 stored in the
user profile 450, rather than have the network terminal 200 itself
scan/discover the network 112 for available network resources 104.
Further, the use of the user profile 450 provides for the resource
service 458 to suggest matching network resources 104 (o the access
request 220) based on resource parameters 456 and rankings 454
contained in the user profile 450. For example, when the user
decides to submit application data 221 to an available/suitable
network resource 104, the client application 390 would suggest
different "best matching" network resources 104 for different
resource parameter 456 fact scenarios, based on the situation (e.g.
particular network segment connection such as work verses home
verses roaming scenario, type of application data 221 such as
colour verses black and white print data, last used network
resource 104, etc.)
[0077] The authorization server 110 uses the resource service 458
(see FIG. 8) to determine the most appropriate rankings 454 of all
the potential resource IDs 452 that match the resource request 220,
based on a weighted ranking calculation using the resource
parameters 456 stored in the user profile 450 and/or contained in
the access request 450 itself (see FIG. 5a,b). For example, if the
access request 450 is for a printer 104 to process print data 221
for black and white (B&W) printing, the resource service 458
determines that B&W would be one process parameter 456 to
consider in determining a weighted ranking of all resource IDs 452
(of printers 104) stored in the user profile 450. The resource
service 456 would also consider other resource parameter(s) 456
stored in the user profile 450, such as frequency of network
resource 104 usage, last network resource 104 used, etc, to come up
with the best matched (e.g. highest ranked) printer 104 for the
access request 220. For example, if two printers 104 in the user
profile 40 match B&W printers and are potentially of equal
ranking 454, the resource service 458 could add increased weighting
to the ranking 454 in view of the resource parameter 456 of last
B&W printer 104 used or increased weighting to the ranking 454
in view of the parameter 456 of most frequent B&W printer 104
used in order to come up with the highest ranked printer 104.
[0078] The ranking 454 of the various resource IDs 452 of the user
profile 450 is implemented by the resource service 458 in order to
match the "best" available network resource 104 to the access
request 220 of the network terminal 200, based on resource
parameters 456 supplied in the access request 220 (e.g application
data 221 type, user location 119, network 112 segment, etc.) and/or
contained in the user profile 450 (e.g. last network resource 104
used, most frequent used, availability status, resource location
309, authorization needed as per public vs. private access, etc.).
the ranking 454 determination can be implemented by the resource
service 458 in order to choose between several network resource 104
options as listed in the user profile 450. As such, the resource
service can have many criteria (resource parameters 456) to
consider, as no particular network resource 104 option may be
perfect for a given resource access request 220. Weighted ranking
454 can be a method implemented by the resource service 458 to help
decide between network resource 104 options of the user profile 450
when there may be no obvious winner unless resource parameters 456
are prioritized (e.g. weighted) for a particular access request
220, in order to determine the highest ranked network resource 104.
Each network resource 104 options of the user profile 450 can be
judged by the resource service 458 using a number of criteria
(resource parameters 456); each criterion (resource parameter 456)
can be assigned a weight, or degree of importance.
[0079] An overall score for each network resource 104 option of the
user profile 450 is calculated by the resource service 458, and
then the best (e.g. highest ranked network resource 104) option(s)
are displayed/presented to the user via the user interface 204. In
the event of a refusal or rejection of a suggested network resource
104 by the user, as communicated to the resource service 458 via
the client application 390, then an alternative suggestion can be
selected as the suggested network resource 104 in descending order
of their overall score, as a replacement for the previously
rejected network resource 104 submitted for display in the user
interface 04 of the network terminal 200.
[0080] As such, the resource service has a table of weights 457 for
each type of resource parameter 456, to be used in calculating the
highest ranking 454 network resource 104 for the access request
220. For example, weighted ranking can be implemented by the
resource service 458 based on differential weighting 457 assigned
to the criteria 456 (or categories), and the relative weight 457 of
each criterion 456, used to rank the network resources 104 of the
user profile 450. The weighted scoring method, also known as
`weighting and scoring`, is a form of multi-attribute 456 or
multi-criterion 456 analysis. It can involve identification of all
the parameters 456 that are relevant to the project (e.g. a black
and white printer type 456 may not be used for a colour access
request); the allocation of weights 457 to each of the parameters
456 to reflect their relative importance; and the allocation of
scores to each network resource 104 option/suggestion to reflect
how each network resource 104 performs in relation to each
attribute 456. The resulting calculation is a single weighted score
454 for each network resource 104 suggestion, which can be used to
indicate and compare the overall performance of the network
resource 104 to satisfy the access request 220. It is recognised
that the table of weights 457 can exist, only meaning that the
table of weights 457 could be something generated every time based
on the current environment, i.e. user state used with the
comparison of the user profile 450 and other parameters 456 to
determine the suggested network resource 104.
[0081] An example of ranking 454 determination by the resource
service 458 is as follows. The resource service 458 can assign
assigns numeric values to individual resource IDs 452 based on
various resource parameters 456 considered. For example, wanted is
to suggest a network resource 104 (e.g. printer) based on the
resource parameters 456 of most frequent usage and network 112
segment to which the network terminal is connected, for example the
network terminal 200 is connected to network 1 (preferred primary)
and network 2 (preferred secondary) but not to network 3. We have
three network resources 104 which have been used the following days
in the most recent time period (e.g. month, day, week, etc.):
resource 1 used 10 times; resource 2 used 15 times; resource 3 used
20 times. Further, resource 1 is available on network 1, resource 2
is available on networks 1 and 2 and resource 3 is available only
on network 3 only. Weighting 457: 50% for frequency and 50% for
available on network 1 segment as a 2 value (representing primary
designation) and available on network 2 as a 1 value (representing
secondary designation) provides resource 1 score as
0.5(10)+0.5(2)=6.0, resource 2 score as 0.5(15)+0.5(1)=8.0, and
resource 3 score as 0.0 as it is discounted entirely over and above
the weighting calculation as not available on the network segment
of the network terminal 200. Therefore, resource 2 gets ranked 454
as the highest and therefore suggested (via resource response 220)
as the network resource 104 to satisfy the user's resource access
request 220, even though it is not on the designated primary
network. This examples shows how frequency of use can be used to
drive a suggested network resource dynamically based on user
behaviour. If the user accepts the resource 2 suggestion, then the
resource service 458 would update the usage frequency, from 15
times to 16 times, as notified by the client application 390 upon
selection of resource option 460,461 from the user interface
204.
Resource Driver 400 Configuration
[0082] The following is an example of optional driver configuration
of the network terminal 200 used to configure the application data
221 for subsequent consumption/processing by the target network
resource 104. It is also recognised that the network terminals 200
and the corresponding network resources 104 could be preconfigured
with a generic driver to provide for preconfigured transmission and
consumption/processing of the application data 221.
[0083] The example dynamically configurable driver application will
now be discussed in association with FIG. 2. As discussed above,
the DISC 210 of the network terminal 200 includes data which, when
loaded into the RAM 212 of the network terminal 200, comprise
processor instructions for the CPU 208. As shown, the downloaded
driver application data defines in the RAM 212 a memory object
comprising a driver application 400. The driver application 400
includes a generic resource driver 402 and a wrap-around resource
driver layer 404. The generic resource driver 402 allows the
network terminal 200 to communicate with a variety of different
network resources 104, however the generic resource driver 402
typically will not provide the network terminal 200 with access to
all the features and capabilities of any particular network
resource 104. If the network terminal 200 requires additional
features not implemented with the generic resource driver 402, the
appropriate resource driver may be downloaded from the driver
database 116, as mentioned above.
[0084] The wrap-around driver layer 404 includes an application
communication layer 406, a driver administrator layer 408, and a
data transmitter layer 410. The application communication layer 406
is in communication with the resource driver 402 (generic or
network resource specific) and the application software installed
on the network terminal 200, and is configured to transmit user
application data between the application software and the resource
driver 402. The driver administrator layer 408 communicates with
the resource registry 106 over the communications network 112 to
ensure that the driver application 400 is properly configured for
communication with the selected network resource 104. The data
transmitter layer 410 is in communication with the resource driver
402 and is configured to transmit the data output from the resource
driver 402 over the communications network 112 to the selected
network resource 104, via the network interface 202, as accepted by
the user from the suggested options 460,462 provided by the
resource service 458.
[0085] Although the driver application 400 and its constituent
component layers are preferably implemented as memory objects or a
memory module in the RAM 212, it will be apparent that the driver
application 400 may instead be implemented in electronic hardware,
if desired. Returning to FIG. 1, the registration database 124 of
the resource registry 106 includes user records each uniquely
associated with a user of a respective network terminal 200 upon
registration with the network resource access system 100. Each user
record identifies the name the registered user's name, post office
address and e-mail address. In addition, each user record specifies
a unique password which the registered user specifies in order to
update the user's user record, and to obtain access to network
resources 104 configured for "authorized access". The user record
may also include additional information specifying default options
for the network resource access system 100. For instance, the user
may specify that the network resource access system 100 should
provide the user with an acknowledgement e-mail message when a
message is successfully transmitted to a selected network resource
104. The user may also specify an archive period for which the
network resource access system 100 should archive the message
transmitted to the selected network resource 104. This latter
option is advantageous since it allows the user to easily transmit
the same message to multiple network resources 104 at different
times, and to periodically review transmission dates and times for
each archive message.
Server 108,110 Operation
[0086] The administration server 108 is in communication with the
resource database 120 and the registration database 124. The
administration server 108 provides administrators of the network
resources 104 with access to the records of the resource database
120 to allow the administrators/and or users of the network
terminals 200 to update the user profile 450 contents (e.g. to
input additional resource IDs 452, suggested rankings, suggested
resource parameters 456, suggested weighting factors 457, etc.) The
administration server 108 provides administrators of the network
resources 104 with access to the records of the resource database
120 to allow the administrators/and or users of the network
terminals 200 to update the network address field 302, the resource
type field 304, the user access level field 306, the resource
information field 308, the pseudo-name field 310, the
username/password field 312 and/or the driver identifier field 314
of the resource record 300 for the associated network resource 104.
As will become apparent, this mechanism allows network
administrators to change, for example, the network address and/or
the restrictions/permissions of the network resources 104 under
their control, or even the network resource 104 itself, without
having to notify each network terminal 200 of the change. The
administration server 108 also provides controlled access to the
registration database 124 so that only the user of the network
terminal 200 which established the user record can update the user
record.
[0087] Where the username/password field 312 has been completed,
the administration server 108 is configured to block access to the
resource record 300 until the administrator provides the
administration server 108 with the correct username/password key.
This feature allows the resource administrator to make adjustments,
for example, to pricing and page limit, in response to demand for
the network resources 104, and to make adjustments to the
restrictions/permissions set out in the user access level field 306
and the resource information field 308 and thereby thwart
unauthorized access to the network resources 104. Further, updates
to the geographical information 309 are also performed via the
administration server 108, in order to keep up-to-date the data
309a,b associated with each network resource 104, as can be
utilized as one of the resource parameters 456 by the resource
service 458. For example, the resource service 458 can use the
resource registry records 300 to populate resource parameters 456
for resource IDs 452 listed in the user profile 450 by the user, as
desired. Alternatively, the resource service 458 can
interrogate/access the resource registry 106 records 300 for
suitable resource parameters 456 for each of the listed resource
DIs of in the user profile 450 when the rankings 454 are calculated
bythe resource service 458 (e.g. statically or dynamically).
[0088] The authorization server 110 can be in communication with
the resource database 120 and the driver database 122 for providing
the network terminals 200 with the resource drivers 402 appropriate
for the selected network resources 104. Preferably, the
authorization server 110 is also configured to configure the driver
application 400 for communication with the selected/suggested
network resource 104, by transmitting the network address of the
selected network resource 110 to the data transmitter layer 410
over a communications channel secure from the user of the network
terminal 200 so that the network address of the network resource
104 is concealed from the user of the network terminal 200. In the
case where the communications network 112 comprises the Internet,
preferably the secure communications channel is established using
the Secure Sockets Layer ("SSL") protocol.
[0089] It is also recognised that the authorization server 110 can
be used to provide the network terminal 200 with a list of
available network resources 104 that are accessible by the user of
the network terminal 200 and also are appropriate for
consumption/processing of the particular application data 221 as
desired by the network terminal 200 user (e.g. specific network
resources 104 may provide certain desired processing features while
others may not). As discussed above, these suggested network
resources 104 are based on matches in view of determined/calculated
highest rankings 454 by the resource service 458. Examples of
specific processing or consumption features of the network
resources 104 that can be used as resource parameters 456 by the
resource service 458 can include features such as but not limited
to: colour, print quality, print resolution, viewing resolution,
processing cost, location of the resource 104, etc. It is
recognised that the list of network resources 104 can be based on
matching of the geographical location information 119 of the
network terminal 200 with the geographical information 309 of the
network resource 104. Example matching can include an exact match
of the information 119,309, an inexact match of the information
119,309 (e.g. location 119 of each network resource 104 is within a
predetermined and/or specified distance, radius of location 309),
or a combination thereof, as is deemed relevant in view of the
weights 457 applied to the ranking 454 calculation performed by the
resource service 458.
[0090] In addition to the network terminal 200, the network
resource 104, the resource registry 106, the administration server
108, the authorization server 110, and the communications network
112, the network resource access system 100 can also include
optionally a transaction server 126 and an archive server 128a. The
transaction server 126 is in communication with the authorization
server 110 for keeping track of each data transfer between a
network terminal 200 and a network resource 104. For each
transmission, preferably the transaction server 126 maintains a
transmission record identifying the network terminal 200 which
originated the transmission, the network resource 104 which
received the transmission, and the date, time and byte size of the
transmission.
[0091] The archive server 128a is configured to retain copies of
the data transmitted, for a specified period. As discussed above,
the user of a network terminal 200 specifies the requisite archive
period (if any) for the data transmission, upon registration with
the network resource access system 100. Preferably, the
administration server 108 provides controlled access to the
transaction server 126 and the archive server 128a so that only the
user of the network terminal 200 which originated transmission of
the data is allowed access to the transmission record associated
with the transmission.
Example Interaction between the Network Terminal 200 and the System
100
[0092] The process by which a user of a network terminal 200 can
communicate with a network resource 104 (as selected by the options
460,462 provided by the resource service 458) is now described by
example with reference to FIG. 4a,b. The following discussion
presupposes that the user of the network terminal 200 has
downloaded or otherwise has a suitable driver application 400 (e.g.
from the administration server 108 over the communications network
112). At step 500, the user of a network terminal 200 decides
whether to log in to the network resource access system 100. As
discussed above, if the user registers with the network resource
access system 100 and subsequently logs in to the network resource
access system 100 (by providing the authorization server 106 with
the user's assigned password), the user will have access to any
network resources 104 which have "authorized access" as the user
access level and which have identified the registered user as a
user authorized to access the network resource 104. If the user
does not register or fails to log in to the network resource access
system 100, the user will only have access to network resources 104
which have established "public access" as the user access level. It
is recognised that the authorized/public access can be used as a
resource parameter 456 by the resource service 458.
[0093] At step 502, the user selects (via options 460,462) a
network resource 104 by querying 220 the service 458 for a network
resource 104 to submit the application data 221 to. Alternately,
the user may postpone selection of a network resource 104 until
initiation of the transmission command. The network user query may
be based upon any desired criteria 456, including print turn-around
time and page size (where the target network resource 104 is a
printer), price, and geography (e.g. desired degree of match
between location information 119,309), network segment, etc. For
example, the user may provide the service 458 with the geographical
coordinates 119 of the user to determine the user's nearest (i.e.
desired degree of match between location information 119,309)
network resources 104 as one of the resource parameters 456. The
user can provide its geographical coordinates 119 through any
suitable mechanism known to those skilled in the art, including
latitude/longitude co-ordinates, GPS, and wireless
triangulation.
[0094] If the user requested an available network resource 104, the
user is provided with a suggestion of pseudo-name(s) (e.g. resource
IDs 452) associated with each network resource 104 satisfying the
designated search criteria 456. As discussed above, if the user
logged in to the network resource access system 100, the
pseudo-name suggestion can include both "public access" network
resources 104 and "authorized access" network resources 104 with
which the user has been authorized to communicate. Also, if the
user is member of an enterprise having network resources 104
registered with the network resource access system 100, the
pseudo-name suggestion can also identify network resource(s) 104
which have been registered by the enterprise for "private access".
Otherwise, the pseudo-name suggestion can only identify network
resource(s) 104 registered for public access. Upon receipt of the
resource list, the user selects a network resource 104 from the
option 460,462.
[0095] At step 504, the administration server 108 can query the
network user's network terminal 200 for the resource driver
identifier of the resource driver 402 configured on the network
terminal 200, and then compares the retrieved resource driver
identifier against the resource driver identifier specified in the
network driver identifier field 314 of the resource record 300
associated with the selected network resource 104 to determine
whether the driver application 400 has been configured with the
appropriate resource driver 402 for communication with the network
resource 104. If the network terminal 200 has not been configured
with the appropriate resource driver 402, the administration server
108 prompts the user's network terminal 200 to download the
necessary resource driver 402. As will be apparent, the downloaded
resource driver 402 becomes part of the driver application 400.
[0096] When the user of the network terminal 200 is ready to
communicate with the selected network resource 104, the user of the
network terminal 200 transmits a transmission request via its
application software to the driver application 400, at step 506. If
the user did not select (e.g. confirm suggestion via options
460,462) a network resource 104 at step 502, the application
communication layer 406 of the driver application 400 can contact
the service 458 over the communications network 112 and prompts the
user to select a network resource 104, as described above. Once a
network resource 104 is selected, and the appropriate resource
driver 402 is installed, the application communication layer 406
notifies the driver administrator layer 408 of the transmission
request.
[0097] At step 508, the driver administrator layer 408 can provide
the authorization server 110 with the transmission request and
identifies the selected network resource 104, by transmitting to
the authorization server 110 the pseudo-name assigned to the
selected network resource 104. If the user of the network terminal
200 has registered and logged in to the network resource access
system 100, the driver administrator layer 408 also provides the
authorization server 110 with the registered user's name.
[0098] The authorization server 110 then queries the resource
database 120 with the received pseudo-name for the resource record
300 associated with the pseudo-name, at step 510. The authorization
server 110 then extracts the user access level from the user access
level field 306 of the retrieved resource record 300, and
determines whether the network terminal 200 is authorized to
communicate with the selected network resource 104, at step 512. As
will be apparent from the foregoing discussion, if the user access
level field 306 specifies "public access" for the network resource
104, the network terminal 200 will be automatically authorized to
communicate with the network resource 104.
[0099] However, if the user access level field 306 specifies
"private access" for the network resource 104, the authorization
server 110 determines the network address of the network terminal
200 from the transmission request transmitted by the network
terminal 200, and then queries the user access level sub-field with
the terminal's network address to determine whether the network
terminal 200 is authorized to communicate with the network resource
104. In the case where the communications network 112 comprises the
Internet, the authorization server 110 can determine the network
terminal's network address from the IP packets received from the
network terminal 200. On the other hand, if the user access level
field 306 specifies "authorized access" for the network resource
104, the authorization server 110 can query the user access level
sub-field with the user's name to determine whether the network
terminal 200 is authorized to communicate with the network resource
104.
[0100] If the query at step 512 reveals that the network terminal
200 is not authorized to communicate with the network resource 104,
at step 514 the authorization server 110 provides the network
terminal 200 with a notification that the network terminal 200 is
not authorized for communication with the selected resource 104.
However, if the query at step 512 reveals that the network terminal
200 is authorized to communicate with the network resource 104, the
authorization server 110 queries the network address field 302 of
the resource record 300 associated with the network resource 104
for the network address of the network resource 104. The
authorization server 110 then establishes a secure communications
channel with the driver administrator layer 408, and then transmits
the network address to the driver administrator layer 408 over the
secure communications channel, at step 516.
[0101] Also, if the user access level field 306 specifies
"authorized access" for the network resource 104, and the network
terminal 200 is authorized to communicate with the network resource
104, the authorization server 110 queries the user access level
sub-field for the authorization password assigned to the network
resource 104, and then transmits the authorization password to the
driver administrator layer 408 over the secure communications
channel, together with the network address. In the case where the
communications network 112 comprises the Internet, preferably the
authorization server 110 establishes the secure communications
channel using a Secure Sockets Layer ("SSL") protocol. Since the
network address and the authorization password are transmitted over
a secure communications channel, this information is concealed from
the user of the network terminal 200. It is recognised that the
checking of authorized access for a particular network resource 104
can be performed by the resource service 458 in advance of the
determination of the rankings 454 prior to selection of the
suggested network resource 104 submitted to the client application
390 for presentation in options 460,462 via the network terminal
200 user interface 204.
[0102] Preferably, the authorization server 110 can also extract
the resource driver identifier from the resource identifier field
314 of the resource record 300, and determines whether the network
terminal 200 is still properly configured for communication with
the network resource 14. If the network terminal 200 no longer has
the correct resource driver 402, the authorization server 110
queries the driver database 122 for the correct resource driver
402, and prompts the user of the network terminal 200 to download
the correct resource driver 402. This driver configuration
verification step may be performed concurrently or consecutively
with the network address providing step described in the preceding
paragraph.
[0103] In addition, the server 110 queries the registration
database 124 to determine whether the user of the network terminal
200 registered with the network resource access system 100. If the
user registered with the network resource access system 100 and
specified that the archive server 128a should maintain archival
copies of data transmissions, the server 110 transmits the network
address of the archive server 128a to the driver administrator
layer 408. As a result, when the user of the network terminal 200
issues a data transmission command, the driver application 400 will
transmit the user application data to the selected network resource
104 and to the archive server 128a.
[0104] At step 518, the application communication layer 406 passes
the application data received from the application software to the
resource driver 402 for translation into a format suitable for
processing by the selected network resource 104. Meanwhile, the
driver administrator layer 408 interrogates the network resource
104, using the received network address, to determine whether the
network resource 104 still resides at the specified network
address, is operational and is on-line.
[0105] If the interrogated network resource 104 resides at the
specified network address, is operational and is on-line. online,
the resource driver 202 passes the translated application data to
the data transmitter layer 410 of the driver application 400.
Preferably, the data transmitter layer 410 compresses and encrypts
the translated application data upon receipt. The data transmitter
layer 410 also receives the network address of the network resource
104 from the driver administrator layer 408, adds the network
address data to the compressed, encrypted data, and then transmits
the resulting data over the communications network 112 to the
network resource 104 at the specified network address, at step
520.
[0106] Preferably, the data transmitter layer 410 also transmits
details of the transmission to the transaction server 126, such as
the selected network resource 104 and the byte size of the
transmission. Upon receipt of the transmission details, preferably
the administration server 108 queries the resource database 120 and
the user registration database 124 for the e-mail address of the
resource administrator and the e-mail address of the user of the
network terminal 200, if provided, and then transmits an email
message indicating completion of the transmission.
[0107] If the user access level field 306 specifies "authorized
access" for the network resource 104, the data transmitter layer
410 also receives the authorization password for the network
resource 104 from the driver administrator layer 408, and transmits
the authorization password (as part of the compressed, encrypted
data) to the network resource 104.
[0108] If the user access level field 306 specifies "public access"
for the network resource 104, preferably the network resource 104
is accessible through a local server which serves to queue, decrypt
and decompress the application data, and extract the network
address data, and then transmit the decompressed application data
to the appropriate network resource 104. Alternately, the network
resource 104 itself may be configured for direct communication over
the communications network 112, such as an IPP-capable printer, so
that the network resource 104 is able to process the application
data directly.
[0109] If the user access level field 306 specifies "authorized
access" for the network resource 104, preferably the network
resource 104 is accessible through a local server which serves to
queue, decrypt and decompress the application data, and extract the
network address data and authorization password, and then transmit
the application data to the appropriate network resource 104 if the
received authorization password is valid.
[0110] If the user access level field 306 specifies "private
access" for the network resource 104, typically the network
resource 104 will be located behind a firewall. Accordingly, the
proxy server 114 associated with the network resource 104 will
receive the application data, and transfer the application data to
the proxy server queue. The polling server 116 associated with the
network resource 104 will poll the proxy server 114 to determine
the status of the queue. Upon receipt of a polling signal from the
polling server 116, the proxy server 114 transmits any queued
application data from the proxy server queue, through the firewall,
to the polling server 116. The polling server 116 then extracts the
network address from the received application data, and transmits
the application data to the appropriate server 118 or network
resource 104 for processing. Also, the polling signals can be used
to provide the geographical information 309b to the network
terminal 200 via the communications network 112, e.g. directly by
the proxy server 114 and/or indirectly from the server 116,118
through the server 108,110 (and also through the proxy server 114
in the case where the polling mechanism is used to securely
transmit the geographical information 309b through the firewall
115).
[0111] It is also recognised that the network terminal 200 and/or
the server 108,110 can communicate with the servers 116,118 using
network communications 220 in a more traditional fashion, such that
communication is initiated between the network terminal 200 or the
server 108,110 from outside of the firewall 115 using firewall
access ports that remain open for any synchronous or asynchronous
communications 220 being initiated and received from computing
devices (e.g. devices 200, 108,110) located on a communications
network 112 located external to the firewall 115 (i.e. located on a
communications network 112 having a lower level of trust that the
level of trust of the network(s) located behind/internal to the
firewall 115). In this manner, the signals would originate from
outside of the firewall 115 and be directed through open access
ports towards the server 116,118 (not shown).
[0112] As will be apparent from the foregoing discussion,
regardless of the user class defined for a network resource 104, if
a resource administrator relocates a network resource 104 to
another network address, and/or changes the device type and/or
restrictions/permissions associated with the network resource 104,
the resource administrator need only update the resource record
300,400 associated with the network resource 104 to continue
communication with the network resource 104. Subsequently, when a
user attempts communication with the network resource 104 using the
original pseudo-name, the authorization server 110 will provide the
administrator layer 408 with the updated network address of the
network resource 104, or prompt the user to download the
appropriate resource driver 402, assuming that the network terminal
200 is still authorized to communicate with the network resource
104.
[0113] Further, if the user access level field 306 specifies
"authorized access" for the network resource 104 and the resource
administrator desires to change the pseudo-name and authorization
password associated with the network resource 104, the resource
administrator need only update the pseudo-name and authorization
password provided on the resource record 300. Subsequently, when a
user of a network terminal 200 initiates communication with the
network resource 104 using the original pseudo-name, the
authorization server 110 scans the resource records 300,400 for
occurrences of the original pseudo-name. After locating the
appropriate resource record 300, 400 the authorization server 110
provides the driver administrator layer 408 with the updated
pseudo-name and authorization password of the network resource 104,
provided that the network terminal 200 is still authorized to
communicate with the network resource 104. A network terminal 200
which is not authorized to communicate with the network resource
104 will not receive the updated pseudo-name and authorization
password from the authorization server 110 and, consequently, will
not be able to communicate with the network resource 104, even if
the user of the network terminal 200 knew the network address for
the network resource 104.
Further Example Configurations of the Network Resource Control
System 100
[0114] Referring to FIG. 5a, shown is the network resource control
system 100 including a plurality of network terminals 200 in
communication with a plurality of network resources 104 via one or
more proxy servers 114 (only one is shown for convenience) through
a communications network 112 and/or authorization server 110. It is
recognised that the communications network 112 can be an intranet,
an extranet (e.g. the Internet), a combination of intranet(s) and
extranet(s), or any other combination of networks configured for
providing electronic communications 220 between the network
terminal 200 and the proxy server 114 and between the proxy server
114 and the polling server 116. For example, the network terminal
200 can reside on an intranet 112 connected to an extranet 112 for
communication with the proxy server 114. The proxy server 114 can
communicate with the polling server 116 also via the extranet 112
and/or via an intranet 112. For example, the proxy server 114 and
polling server 116 can be configured on the same computer or can be
configured on different computers, as hardware, software, or a
combination thereof. The firewall 115 can be hardware, software, or
combination thereof positioned between the proxy server 114 and the
polling server 116. Although the following discussion is an example
of communication through the firewall 115, it is also recognised
that the network terminals 200 can use the system 100 to
communicate with network resources 104 not through a firewall 115
and therefore may (or may not) be accessed in conjunction with the
proxy server 114. For example, the network resource 104 may not be
protected by a firewall 115 even though the network terminal 00 and
the network resource 104 are on different net work 112 segments
(e.g. one on protected and one on unprotected). Alternatively, the
network resource 104 and the network terminal 200 could both be on
a network 112 segment (e.g. the same protected or unprotected)
behind a common firewall 115. Alternatively, the network resource
104 and the network terminal 200 could both be on a network 112
segment (e.g. the same protected or unprotected) in front of a
common firewall 115. As such, the network terminal 200 can be
configured, for example by the client application 390, to
communicate 220 over the network 112 with the resource service 458
(e.g. hosted on the authorization server 110), with the suggested
network resource 104 via a proxy server 114 (e.g. sending the
application data 221 to an address of the proxy server 114 on the
network 112), with the suggested network resource 104 (e.g. sending
the application data 221 to an address of the network resource 104
on the network 112), and/or to a resource server 118 (e.g. sending
the application data 221 to an address of the resource server 118
on the network 112).
Firewall 115
[0115] In network 112 communication pathways involving a firewall,
the firewall 115 can be defined as a dedicated appliance, and/or
software running on a computer, which inspects network traffic 220
passing through it, and denies or permits passage of the network
communications 220 based on a set of rules/criteria. For example,
the firewall 115 can be associated with the computer configured for
the polling server 116 or can be associated with the computer
configured for both the polling server 116 and the proxy server
114. In terms of the network system 100, the firewall 115 is placed
between a protected network 112 and an unprotected (or protected to
a lesser degree than the protected network) network 112 and acts
like a gate to protect assets to provide that nothing/limited
private goes out and nothing/limited malicious comes in. Access and
passage of communications 220 through the firewall 115 can be
performed via a number of access ports in the firewall 115 as is
known in the art. Accordingly, the firewall 115 is configured to
block unauthorized access to the polling server 116 and downstream
components of resource server 118 and/or network resource(s) 104
associated with the polling server 116, while permitting authorized
communications 220 as initiated from the polling server 116 to the
proxy server 114 from inside of the firewall 115 (i.e. polling
initiated by the polling server 116 in the direction of from the
protected network 112 to the unprotected network 112). It is
recognised that the firewall 115 is a network entity (i.e. a
configured device or set of devices) which permits or denies access
to the polling server 116 by computer applications/servers located
outside of the firewall 115, based upon a set of rules and other
network protection criteria. It is recognised that all messages and
communications 220 entering or leaving the polling server 116 pass
through the firewall 115, which examines each message and
communications 220 and blocks those that do not meet the specified
security criteria of the firewall 115 configuration.
[0116] In view of the above, the firewall's 115 basic task is to
regulate some of the flow of traffic 220 between computer networks
112 having different trust levels (e.g. the proxy server 114 is on
a network 112 of a lower trust level than the network 112 that the
polling server 116 is on). Typical examples are the Internet 112
which is a zone with no trust and an internal network 112 which is
a zone of higher trust. A zone with an intermediate trust level,
situated between the Internet 112 and a trusted internal network
112, can be referred to as a "perimeter network" 112 or
Demilitarized zone (DMZ). Accordingly, an unprotected network 112
may have some protection (i.e. a specified level of trust) or no
protection (i.e. no level of trust) that is lower protection (i.e.
a lower specified level of trust) than the specified level of trust
of the protected network 112.
[0117] There are several types of firewall 115 techniques, such as
but not limited to: packet filtering that inspects each packet 220
passing through the network 112 and accepts or rejects it based on
user-defined rules associated with the firewall 115 configuration;
application gateway that applies security mechanisms to specific
applications, such as FTP and Telnet servers; circuit-level gateway
that applies security mechanisms when a TCP or UDP connection for
the communications 220 is established, such that once the
connection has been made, the packets 220 can flow between the
servers 114,116 without further checking; and Proxy server based
that intercepts all messages 220 entering and leaving the network
112, such that the proxy server 114 effectively hides the true
network addresses of the polling server 116 and/or the print server
118 and network resources 104.
Proxy Server 114
[0118] The electronic communications 220 forwarded to the proxy
server 114 (e.g. from the network terminal 200) can include network
resource data 221 for consumption (i.e. processing) by the network
resource 104 in relation to the stored network resource data 221
available in a storage 224 (e.g. queue, buffer, etc.) or that
network resource data 221 already sent to the network resource 104
(or intervening network resource server 118) from the polling
server 116. It is also recognised that the polling server 116 can
contain a storage 225 for storing network resource data 221
obtained from the proxy server 114.
[0119] The storage 224,225 can be configured as keeping the stored
electronic communications 220 in order and the principal (or only)
operations on the stored electronic communications 220 are the
addition of the stored electronic communications 220 and removal of
the stored electronic communications 220 from the storage 224,225
(e.g. FIFO, FIAO, etc.). For example, the storage 224,225 can be a
linear data structure for containing and subsequent accessing of
the stored electronic communications 220 and/or can be a non-linear
data structure for containing and subsequent accessing of the
stored electronic communications 220.
[0120] Further, the storage 224,225 receives various entities such
as data 221 that are stored and held to be processed later. In
these contexts, the storage 224,225 can perform the function of a
buffer, which is a region of memory used to temporarily hold data
221 while it is being moved from one place to another (i.e. between
the network terminal 200 to the network resource 104). Typically,
the data 221 is stored in the memory when moving the data 221
between processes within/between one or more computers. It is
recognised that the storage 221 can be implemented in hardware,
software, or a combination thereof. The storage 224,225 is used in
the network system 100 when there is a difference between the
rate/time at which data 221 is received (e.g. from the network
terminal 200) and the rate/time at which the data 221 can be
processed (e.g. ultimately by the network resource 104).
[0121] In terms of a server, it is recognised that the proxy server
114 (as well as the polling server 116, resource server 118,
administration server 108 and/or authorization server 110) can be
configured as hardware, software, or typically a combination of
both hardware and software to provide a network 112 entity that
operates as a socket listener. It is recognised that any
computerised process that shares a resource (e.g. data 221) to one
or more client processes can be classified as a server in the
network system 100. The term server can also be generalized to
describe a host that is deployed to execute one or more such
programs, such that the host can be one or more configured
computers that link other computers or electronic devices together
via the network 112. The servers 114,116,118, 108, 110 can provide
specialized services across the network 112, for example to private
users inside a large organization or to public users via the
Internet 112. In the network system 100, the servers can have
dedicated functionality such as proxy servers, print/resource
servers, and polling servers. Enterprise servers are servers that
are used in a business context and can be run on/by any capable
computer hardware. In the hardware sense, the word server typically
designates computer models intended for running software
applications under the heavy demand of a network 112 environment.
In this client-server configuration one or more machines, either a
computer or a computer appliance, share information with each other
with one acting as a host for the other. While nearly any personal
computer is capable of acting as a network server, a dedicated
server will contain features making it more suitable for production
environments. These features may include a faster CPU, increased
high-performance RAM, and typically more than one large hard drive.
More obvious distinctions include marked redundancy in power
supplies, network connections, and even the servers themselves.
Polling Server 116
[0122] Referring again to FIG. 5a, the polling server 116 provides
the communication through the firewall 115 for facilitating
communication of any data 221 in the storage 224 of the polling
server 114 towards the network resources 104 and/or resource server
118. It is recognised that the polling server 116 polls the proxy
server 114 for any data 221 applicable to the polling server 116
(e.g. those data 221 communications associated with the server 118
and/or network resources 104 associated with the respective polling
server 116).
[0123] Referring to FIG. 7, in effect, the transfer of resource
data 221 from the network terminal 200 to the network resource 104
is done in stages over the communication network 112. One stage 280
is to transmit the network resource data 104 from the network
terminal 200 to the proxy server 114, for subsequent delivery to
the appropriate network resource 104 selected/confirmed by the
network terminal 200 as the ultimate destination for
processing/consumption (e.g. printing, viewing, etc. of the
resource data 221). Another stage 282 is receipt of the network
resource data 221 by the proxy server 114 and storage of the
received resource data 221 in the storage 224. Another stage 284 is
for the polling server 116 to submit a poll message 127 initiated
from inside of the firewall 115 through an opened port in the
firewall 115 to the proxy server 114 requesting the
availability/presence in the storage 224 of any resource data 221
directed to any of the network resources 104 associated with the
polling server 116. Another stage 286 is for the proxy server 114
to identify in the storage 224 any appropriate resource data 221
suitable in response to the poll message 127 and to send the
suitable resource data 221 to the polling server 116 in a response
message 129 to the poll message 127. Otherwise, in the absence of
suitable resource data 221 present in the storage 224 upon receipt
of the poll message 127, the proxy server 114 could send a null
response 129 indicating that no suitable resource data 221 is
present for the polling server 116. At stage 288, the polling
server 116 sends directly any resource data 221 (received from the
proxy server 114) to the appropriate network resource 104 specified
as a target of the network resource data 221 for
consumption/processing. Alternatively, at stage 288, the polling
server 116 sends indirectly via the resource server 118 any
resource data 221 (received from the proxy server 114) to the
appropriate network resource 104 specified as a target of the
network resource data 221 for consumption/processing.
[0124] In the above transmission stage 286 of the network resource
data 221 to the polling server 116, the subsequent stage
transmission 288 to the network resource 104 occurs as a result of
the poll message 127 submitted to the proxy server 114. This
procedure of stages 280,282,284,286,288 for getting the network
resource data 221 from the network terminal 200 to the network
resource 104 can be referred to as stage polling. An example of the
recipient of the network resource data 221 being different from the
user of the network terminal 200 is where a user of the network
terminal 200 is located remotely from the recipient user and the
network resource 104, such that the recipient user is local to the
network resource 104 and has physical access to the network
resource 104. One example of this is where an assistant sends via
their computer 200 an email 221 to their boss staying at a hotel
for subsequent pickup once printed off at the hotel printer
104.
Example Operation of the System 100
[0125] Referring to FIG. 10 and FIGS. 5a,b, providing access of a
user to the network resources 104 over the communications network
112 can include the step 602 of receiving by the resource service
458 (e.g. from the client application 390) the access query 220
from the network terminal 200 identifying the user and associated
with submission of application data 221 for processing by a network
resource of the network resources 104. At step 604, the resource
service 458 accesses the resource registry 106 including stored
resource records 300 associated with each of the network resources
104 and a stored user profile 450 containing a list of network
resources 104 such that the network resources 104 have a ranking
454 relative to each other based at least in part on user behaviour
with respect to usage of each of the network resources 104, the
user profile 450 associated with the user such that the list of
network resources 104 contains the network resources 104 previously
accessed by the user. At step 606, the resource service 458 can
access the user profile 450 to identify a suggested network
resource 104 from the list in view of the relative ranking 454
(e.g. the highest ranked network resource 104 of the list), and at
step 608 send identification 452 of the suggested network resource
104 to the network terminal 200 in response to the access query
220.
[0126] Additional optional steps can include at step 610
dynamically determining the ranking 454 of each of the network
resources 104 based on a plurality of resource parameters 456
associated with at least one of the application data 221, the user,
or an operational characteristic (e.g printer type, paper type,
cost of usage, location of resource, etc.) of one or more of the
network resources 104. It is recognised that the ranking 454 can be
a weighted combination of the plurality of resource parameters 456
based on a weight 457 assigned to each of the resource parameters
456. The weight 457 can be stored in the user profile 450 (e.g. on
the authorization server 110, the network terminal 200, the
resource registry 106, etc.) or otherwise in the operating
instructions of the resource service 458. The resource parameter
456 of the plurality of resource parameters 456 used by the
resource service 458 in dynamic ranking determination can be a
frequency of historical usage of each of the network resources 104
by the user. The frequency of usage for each of the network
resources 104 can be stored in the user profile 450.
[0127] Another optional step 612 is updating the frequency of usage
of the suggested network resource 104 when the suggested network
resource 104 is selected by the user (e.g. via options 460,462). It
is recognised that the access query 220 can be received from the
client application 390 of the network service 458 over the
communications network 112. As discussed above, the further
resource parameters 456 of the plurality of resource parameters 456
considered by the resource service 458 in determining ranking 454
can be geographical coordinates 109 based on a physical location of
the network terminal. A further resource parameter 456 considered
can be network 112 segment coordinates based on a network location
of the network terminal 200. As discussed, the network resources
104 in the user profile 450 can include one or more printers. As
well, the network resources 104 can include any of a facsimile
machine, an image server, a file server or a scanner.
General Server 108,110,114,116,118 Configuration Examples
[0128] In view of the above descriptions of storage (e.g. storage
210,224,225) for the servers 108,110,114,116,118, the storage can
be configured as keeping the stored data (e.g. data 221 and related
registry 106 data-records 300,400) in order and the principal (or
only) operations on the stored data are the addition of and removal
of the stored data from the storage (e.g. FIFO, FIAO, etc.). For
example, the storage can be a linear data structure for containing
and subsequent accessing of the stored data and/or can be a
non-linear data structure for containing and subsequent accessing
of the stored data.
[0129] Further, the storage receives various entities such as data
that are stored and held to be processed later. In these contexts,
the storage can perform the function of a buffer, which is a region
of memory used to temporarily hold data while it is being moved
from one place to another (i.e. between the servers 114,116 towards
the network device 104). Typically, the data is stored in the
memory when moving the data between processes within/between one or
more computers. It is recognised that the storage can be
implemented in hardware, software, or a combination thereof. The
storage is used in the network system 100 when there is a
difference between the rate/time at which data is received and the
rate/time at which the data can be processed (e.g. ultimately by
the network resource server 114,116 and/or device 104).
[0130] Further, it will be understood by a person skilled in the
art that the memory/storage described herein is the place where
data can be held in an electromagnetic or optical form for access
by the computer processors/modules. There can be two general
usages: first, memory is frequently used to mean the devices and
data connected to the computer through input/output operations such
as hard disk and tape systems and other forms of storage not
including computer memory and other in-computer storage. Second, in
a more formal usage, memory/storage has been divided into: (1)
primary storage, which holds data in memory (sometimes called
random access memory or RAM) and other "built-in" devices such as
the processor's L1 cache, and (2) secondary storage, which holds
data on hard disks, tapes, and other devices requiring input/output
operations. Primary storage can be faster to access than secondary
storage because of the proximity of the storage to the processor or
because of the nature of the storage devices. On the other hand,
secondary storage can hold much more data than primary storage. In
addition to RAM, primary storage includes read-only memory (ROM)
and L1 and L2 cache memory. In addition to hard disks, secondary
storage includes a range of device types and technologies,
including diskettes, Zip drives, redundant array of independent
disks (RAID) systems, and holographic storage. Devices that hold
storage are collectively known as storage media.
[0131] A database is one embodiment of memory as a collection of
information that is organized so that it can easily be accessed,
managed, and updated. In one view, databases can be classified
according to types of content: bibliographic, full-text, numeric,
and images. In computing, databases are sometimes classified
according to their organizational approach. The most prevalent
approach is the relational database, a tabular database in which
data is defined so that it can be reorganized and accessed in a
number of different ways. A distributed database is one that can be
dispersed or replicated among different points in a network. An
object-oriented programming database is one that is congruent with
the data defined in object classes and subclasses. As such, the
user profile 450 can also be distributed or on different locations
taking into account distributed storage. Computer databases
typically contain aggregations of data records or files, such as
sales transactions, product catalogs and inventories, and customer
profiles. Typically, a database manager provides users the
capabilities of controlling read/write access, specifying report
generation, and analyzing usage. Databases and database managers
are prevalent in large mainframe systems, but are also present in
smaller distributed workstation and mid-range systems such as the
AS/400 and on personal computers. SQL (Structured Query Language)
is a standard language for making interactive queries from and
updating a database such as IBM's DB2, Microsoft's Access, and
database products from Oracle, Sybase, and Computer Associates.
[0132] Memory/storage can also be defined as an electronic holding
place for instructions and data that the computer's microprocessor
can reach quickly. When the computer is in normal operation, its
memory usually contains the main parts of the operating system and
some or all of the application programs and related data that are
being used. Memory is often used as a shorter synonym for random
access memory (RAM). This kind of memory is located on one or more
microchips that are physically close to the microprocessor in the
computer.
[0133] In terms of a server, it is recognised that the server
108,110,114,116,118 can be configured as hardware, software, or
typically a combination of both hardware and software to provide a
network entity that operates as a socket listener. It is recognised
that any computerised process that shares a resource (e.g. data) to
one or more client processes can be classified as a server in the
network system 100. The term server can also be generalized to
describe a host that is deployed to execute one or more such
programs, such that the host can be one or more configured
computers that link other computers or electronic devices together
via the network 112. The servers 108,110,114,116,118 can provide
specialized services across the network 112, for example to private
users inside a large organization or to public users via the
Internet 112. In the network system 100, the servers can have
dedicated functionality and/or can share functionality as
described. Enterprise servers are servers that are used in a
business context and can be run on/by any capable computer
hardware. In the hardware sense, the word server typically
designates computer models intended for running software
applications under the heavy demand of a network 112 environment.
In this client-server configuration one or more machines, either a
computer or a computer appliance, share information with each other
with one acting as a host for the other. While nearly any personal
computer is capable of acting as a network server, a dedicated
server will contain features making it more suitable for production
environments. These features may include a faster CPU, increased
high-performance RAM, and typically more than one large hard drive.
More obvious distinctions include marked redundancy in power
supplies, network connections, and even the servers themselves.
Example of Server 108,110,114,116, 118 System
[0134] Referring to FIG. 9, a computing device 101 of the server
108,110,114,116, 118 can include a network connection interface
202, such as a network interface card or a modem, coupled via
connection 418 to a device infrastructure 206. The connection
interface 202 is connectable during operation of the devices to the
network 112 (e.g. an intranet and/or an extranet such as the
Internet), which enables the devices to communicate with each other
(e.g. that of servers 114,116 with respect to one another and the
devices 104) as appropriate. The network 112 can support the
communication of the data 221 and communications 220, and the
related content.
[0135] Referring again to FIG. 9, the device 101 can also have a
user interface 204, coupled to the device infrastructure 206 by
connection 422, to interact with a user (e.g. server
administrator--not shown). The user interface 204 can include one
or more user input devices such as but not limited to a QWERTY
keyboard, a keypad, a stylus, a mouse, a microphone and the user
output device such as an LCD screen display and/or a speaker. If
the screen is touch sensitive, then the display can also be used as
the user input device as controlled by the device infrastructure
206.
[0136] Referring again to FIG. 9, operation of the device 101 is
facilitated by the device infrastructure 206. The device
infrastructure 206 includes one or more computer processors 208 and
can include an associated memory (e.g. a random access memory
224,225). The computer processor 208 facilitates performance of the
device 101 configured for the intended task (e.g. of the respective
module(s) of the server 114,116) through operation of the network
interface 202, the user interface 204 and other application
programs/hardware of the device 101 by executing task related
instructions. These task related instructions can be provided by an
operating system, and/or software applications located in the
memory, and/or by operability that is configured into the
electronic/digital circuitry of the processor(s) 208 designed to
perform the specific task(s). Further, it is recognized that the
device infrastructure 206 can include a computer readable storage
medium 412 coupled to the processor 208 for providing instructions
to the processor 208 and/or to load/update the instructions. The
computer readable medium 412 can include hardware and/or software
such as, by way of example only, magnetic disks, magnetic tape,
optically readable medium such as CD/DVD ROMS, and memory cards. In
each case, the computer readable medium 412 may take the form of a
small disk, floppy diskette, cassette, hard disk drive, solid-state
memory card, or RAM provided in the memory module 412. It should be
noted that the above listed example computer readable mediums 412
can be used either alone or in combination.
[0137] Further, it is recognized that the computing device 101 can
include the executable applications comprising code or machine
readable instructions for implementing predetermined
functions/operations including those of an operating system and the
server 114,116 modules, for example. The processor 208 as used
herein is a configured device and/or set of machine-readable
instructions for performing operations as described by example
above. As used herein, the processor 208 may comprise any one or
combination of, hardware, firmware, and/or software. The processor
208 acts upon information by manipulating, analyzing, modifying,
converting or transmitting information for use by an executable
procedure or an information device, and/or by routing the
information with respect to an output device. The processor 408 may
use or comprise the capabilities of a controller or microprocessor,
for example. Accordingly, any of the functionality of the server
114,116 (e.g. modules) may be implemented in hardware, software or
a combination of both. Accordingly, the use of a processor 408 as a
device and/or as a set of machine-readable instructions is
hereafter referred to generically as a processor/module for sake of
simplicity. Further, it is recognised that the server 114,116 can
include one or more of the computing devices 101 (comprising
hardware and/or software) for implementing the modules, as
desired.
[0138] It will be understood in view of the above that the
computing devices 101 of the servers 114,116 may be, although
depicted as a single computer system, may be implemented as a
network of computer processors, as desired.
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