Facsimile and static presentation processing – Facsimile – Specific signal processing circuitry
Reexamination Certificate
1993-10-27
2001-11-27
Lee, Thomas D. (Department: 2624)
Facsimile and static presentation processing
Facsimile
Specific signal processing circuitry
C358S403000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06323961
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to facsimile machines for printing documents with ordered edges, and more particularly to a facsimile machine that selectively prints all documents with common edges aligned, or successive documents with alternating top edges first, then bottom edges first, etc. (Depending on the context, the word “document” refers to a single page or to all of the pages in a single document constituting the same fax transmission.)
Facsimile technology is highly developed, and facsimile machines enjoy widespread use. My previous invention U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/972,611 filed Nov. 6, 1992 and application Ser. No. 08/111,544 filed on Aug. 25, 1993 by Peter Crosby now U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,607 are directed to solving what is a relatively mild annoyance. The problem has to do with the fact that when transmitting documents by facsimile, there is no uniformity among users in whether the top of a document is sent first as opposed to the bottom. While most people send the top first, many do not. At the receiving site, especially if a machine has been receiving transmissions all night, a person looking through a stack of received documents in the morning (for example, in an office where the first one in scans all of the received documents to see if there are any urgent matters) has to look at documents some of which are right side up and some of which are upside down, but with no organized pattern to the alignment of the pages. Accordingly, a fax machine having the ability to provide a user with documents all in one orientation (to facilitate a review), or in alternating orientations to distinguish between successive single-page or multi-page documents would be of benefit.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of my invention to provide a facsimile machine in which documents are oriented in accordance with a user's selection. For example, in my previous application I described a machine to print all documents the same way, i.e., with their corresponding edges aligned. This means that any documents which come in the “wrong” way are reoriented so that the corresponding edges of all documents are aligned—tops with tops, and bottoms with bottoms. This facilitates a quick scanning review. However, it may be desirable to have alternating documents, i.e., with corresponding edges alternating. This means having the first document (no matter how many pages) print top edge first, the second (no matter how many pages) print bottom edge first, the third (no matter how many pages) print top edge first, etc. In this way a person reviewing a stack of documents can quickly determine where one document ends and the next begins. Different people have different preferences.
The problem toward which the subject invention is directed is admittedly not a serious one, at least not serious enough to warrant a significant increase in the cost of a facsimile machine. It is therefore another object of my invention to accomplish the aforesaid reorientation at very low cost.
In accordance with the principles of my invention, document reorientation is controlled primarily through software, using known techniques (but for a totally different purpose), thus accomplishing the objective at an insignificant increased cost. Most facsimile machines are already equipped with sufficient memory to store data representative of a complete document. In my invention, the data representative of a received document is stored in memory. (The term “received document” is sometimes used herein to refer to data signals representative of the document.) Conventional image and character recognition software is then used for determining whether the document (i.e., data representing the document) came in top first or bottom first.
This is easily accomplished, for example, by using character recognition software to scan the document, as it is mapped in the memory, in two different ways—top down and left to right, and bottom up and right to left. One of the two scanning sequences will result in recognizable characters. (On the off chance that they both do, the one with more recognizable characters is the “winner.”) The stored data is then read out of the memory and used to control the printer. If a document came in top edge first, then its data is read out in the same order if it is to be printed top edge first. If the document came in bottom edge first, then the data is read out in reverse order if the top edge is to be printed first. The reverse procedure causes a document to be printed bottom edge first.
The user operates a switch to select which way documents are to be printed. To print all documents with corresponding edges aligned, the switch causes sequencing as described in my co-pending application. To print successive documents with alternating orientations, the machine still determines the received orientation of every page but now causes them to be printed in alternating orientations.
Further objects, features and advantages of my invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description.
The invention comprises the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the constructions hereinafter set forth, and the scope of the invention will be identified in the claims.
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Brinich Stephen
Gottlieb Rackman & Reisman P.C.
Lee Thomas D.
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