Facsimile and static presentation processing – Static presentation processing – Detail of image placement or content
Reexamination Certificate
1999-01-22
2003-06-03
Wallerson, Mark (Department: 2622)
Facsimile and static presentation processing
Static presentation processing
Detail of image placement or content
C358S001140, C358S001150
Reexamination Certificate
active
06574009
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dealing with order information provided from a user to a service provider in the case where printing is ordered in a digital photograph service. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method, an apparatus, and a program for verifying whether or not the order information is in a file acceptable by a system of the service provider, by comparing the structure and the content of the order information with a pre-stored definition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a digital photograph service which stores and uses a photograph image as digital data has come into service. In a digital photograph service, photographs recorded on a film of a user are recorded as digital data in a recording medium such as a CD-R, or stored in a hard disc of a service provider's system in order to be used for photographic print generation or the like.
A user can place a printing order regarding the stored image data from the service provider by providing order information describing the content of the order via a network or a recording medium. In this case, the system of the service provider obtains this information, analyzes its content, and carries out the printing processing requested by the user.
The order information is generated by a dedicated program installed in a personal computer or the like of the user. Alternatively, the order information may be generated by using an electronic camera, a home game machine, or the like loaded with such a program. This program displays on a screen a list of image data available for printing, or a list of service options (such as print sizes and templates for editing). When the user selects, based on the display, desired image data and a service option by using a mouse, a keyboard, or a button, the program inputs such information and generates a file including order information describing IDs for the selected image data and the service option in a predetermined format.
In such a form of order placement, when the structure of order information is invalid or when the order information has a grammatical error, the system of the service provider cannot carry out the processing requested by the user. Even when there is no grammatical error in the format, it is actually impossible for the system to carry out the requested processing if the content of the order is inappropriate, such as the case of specification of a print size which is too large to be processed by the existing system.
Therefore, a program such as the above needs to prevent generation of invalid order information by verifying the structure and the content of the order information generated by the user. Alternatively, separately from such an order information generating program, an order information verification program needs to be provided so that whether or not the order information generated by the order information generating program is in the form of an appropriate file can be checked.
A program (verifier) for verifying the structure and the content of a file generally retains information defining an appropriate structure and the content of a file. By comparing a file with this definition, the file is judged to be valid or invalid. Therefore, whether the order information is valid or invalid can be judged by comparing the order information with pre-stored information such as the structure and grammar (a description format) of a file including the order information, the available print sizes, and the like.
However, the content of a digital photograph service changes with progress of technology or the needs of users. Therefore, the structure of order information can be changed in accordance with a change in the service.
Furthermore, the content of the service to be provided usually varies depending on each service provider, such as a DPE or a laboratory. Moreover, the content of the service to be provided may change depending on the time of year. For example, the available print sizes change depending on a printer owned by a service provider, and there are some services which are provided in only a limited period, such as generation of new year greeting postcards or the like.
Therefore, the above form of service wherein the order information generating or verifying program retains information regarding definitions of the structure of the order information and the content of an order cannot carry out proper verification unless each service provider uses a different program in each service period of a year.
However, generating and replacing programs is a burden for both a service provider and a user. Based on consideration of the above problems, the present invention aims to provide an easier order information verifying method and apparatus as well as a program which verifies order information.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to solve the above problems, the present invention manages definition information defining conditions to be satisfied by order information as an individual replaceable file.
In other words, the order information verifying method of the present invention verifies order information describing the content of an order for a predetermined service as digital data, and comprises the steps of:
pre-storing, as digital data in a predetermined recording medium, one or a plurality of condition definition files describing conditions to be satisfied by order information;
obtaining order information to be verified;
reading at least one of the condition definition files from the recording medium;
verifying whether or not the obtained order information satisfies each condition described in the condition definition file having been read; and
outputting a result of verification to a display medium and/or a recording medium.
The “order information” may be a text file describing only the content of an order, or an independent file of another form. The order information may also be attached to an image file (embedded as a portion of header information of the image file), for example.
The “conditions to be satisfied by the order information” means structural conditions to be satisfied by an order file containing the order information therein (or an image file having order information embedded therein), for example. The structural conditions means whether or not a file has an appropriate file-name extension and file header, for example. When a file has a hierarchy structure comprising a plurality of storages and streams, such as an OLE structure, whether or not the file has a necessary storage or stream is also regarded as a structural condition.
Furthermore, the “conditions to be satisfied by the order information” includes conditions to be satisfied by each data item composing the order information, and conditions regarding a relation between the data items, for example.
The “conditions to be satisfied by each data item composing the order information” means a data type of each item, for example.
The “conditions regarding a relation between the data items” mean a condition such that a value describing the number of prints needs to be described in a data item specifying the quantity when a value indicating a printing service is described in a data item specifying the kind of service (that is, when printing is ordered, the quantity of prints needs to be specified), for example.
When a plurality of condition definition files are recorded in a recording medium, a condition definition file having a condition contradictory to that in another file may be recorded so that the condition definition files can be used properly depending on a purpose. Alternatively, condition definition files classified by the kind of conditions, such as a condition definition file defining a file structure and a condition definition file defining data items, may be provided so that verification is carried out by referring to those condition definition files.
Furthermore, when the content of the predetermined service is decided by the time of year, a condition definition file for each service period may be record
Birch & Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP
Fuji Photo Film Co. , Ltd.
Wallerson Mark
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