Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for seeding print defects and inspecting print jobs. One embodiment is a system that includes a print server. The print server includes an interface that receives a test print job, a memory that stores the test print job, and a print controller that determines a number of copies of the test print job to print, subdivides each sheetside image of the test print job into a number of distinct zones corresponding to the number of copies, assigns each of the zones to a different copy of the test print job, and for each copy of the test print job, and seeds a print defect into each sheetside image of the copy within a zone assigned to the copy.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for evaluation of a print verification system. One embodiment is a print system that includes a printer, a virtual printer, a print verification system, and a print server. The print server is configured to initiate an evaluation of the print verification system by providing a defective version of a print job to one of the printer and the virtual printer and providing a non-defective version of the print job to the other one of the printer and the virtual printer. The print server verifies functionality of the print verification system based on whether the print verification system detects the defects via comparison of the printed output of the print job by the printer against the bitmap image output of the print job by the virtual printer.

Abstract: A system is disclosed. The system includes a print controller including one or more processors to receive print data, rasterize the print data into bitmap data, analyze objects in each page of bitmap data to determine sizes of objects and generate mapping data for each page of bitmap data that maps locations of page bitmap data having same size objects, a print engine to print the bitmap data to a medium and a print verification system to capture one or more images of the medium as print verification data and to detect one or more defects in the print verification data.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for print verification that reports defective printheads. One embodiment is a Print Verification System (PVS) that includes an interface to receive print data, and an imaging device to obtain image data of printed output of the print data. The PVS also includes a processor to detect a print error on a page by comparing the print data and the image data. The processor determines a lateral distance of a location of the print error with respect to an edge of the page, identifies a print engine that printed the page, determines a lateral offset of the print engine with respect to the edge of the page, identifies a printhead among a plurality of printheads of the print engine that caused the print error based on the lateral distance of the print error and the lateral offset of the print engine.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for print verification that reports defective printheads. One embodiment is a Print Verification System (PVS) that includes an interface to receive print data, and an imaging device to obtain image data of printed output of the print data. The PVS also includes a processor to detect a print error on a page by comparing the print data and the image data. The processor determines a lateral distance of a location of the print error with respect to an edge of the page, identifies a print engine that printed the page, determines a lateral offset of the print engine with respect to the edge of the page, identifies a printhead among a plurality of printheads of the print engine that caused the print error based on the lateral distance of the print error and the lateral offset of the print engine.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for print verification. One embodiment is a Print Verification System (PVS) that includes an imaging device which image pages of physical print media that were marked by a printer for a print job. The PVS also includes an interface that receives rasterized logical pages representing the pages of physical print media, and a controller that correlates images of the physical pages with the rasterized logical pages. The controller identifies discrepancies between images of physical pages and correlated rasterized logical pages. The controller also identifies a first mark on an image of a physical page that flags the page for special processing, identifies, in response to identifying the first mark, a second mark on the image that indicates a type of special processing for the page, and performs the indicated type of special processing upon the page at the PVS based on the second mark.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for print verification. One embodiment is a Print Verification System (PVS) that includes an imaging device which image pages of physical print media that were marked by a printer for a print job. The PVS also includes an interface that receives rasterized logical pages representing the pages of physical print media, and a controller that correlates images of the physical pages with the rasterized logical pages. The controller identifies discrepancies between images of physical pages and correlated rasterized logical pages. The controller also identifies a first mark on an image of a physical page that flags the page for special processing, identifies, in response to identifying the first mark, a second mark on the image that indicates a type of special processing for the page, and performs the indicated type of special processing upon the page at the PVS based on the second mark.

Abstract: Systems and methods for suppressing print verification of a printed page. One embodiment is an apparatus that includes a print verification system that performs a verification process that analyzes printed pages of a printer for print errors. The print verification system receives a rasterized page from the printer and analyzes a predetermined location of the rasterized page for a bypass symbol. The print verification system also bypasses the verification process for a printed page that corresponds with the rasterized page responsive to detecting the bypass symbol in the predetermined location.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for inserting hidden information into flush patterns. One embodiment is a system comprising a marking engine that includes multiple printheads, an interface that receives print data for a print job, multiple Raster Image Processors (RIPs), and a print controller. The print controller divides the print data into logical pages, inserts printable information into the logical pages that distinguishes each logical page from other logical pages, and transmits the logical pages to the RIPs for rasterization. The print controller determines that a RIP has completed rasterizing a logical page, transmits the rasterized logical page to a Print Verification System (PVS), directs the printheads of the marking engine to print the rasterized logical page onto a physical page, and directs the printheads of the marking engine to apply a flush pattern onto the physical page at the location of the inserted printable information.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and media are disclosed for testing the accuracy of a print verification system (PVS) in test mode, wherein a PVS is often used to validate the accuracy of printed output. One embodiment includes receiving, by an application, an output from a print verification system associated with the application, wherein the output comprises one or more defects. The embodiment also includes receiving, by the application, a list, such as a copy, of seeded defects for the output, wherein the list is uploaded to and saved by the application. In addition, the embodiment includes matching, by the application, the one or more seeded defects in the list that correspond to the one or more defects in the output. Finally, the embodiment includes displaying, by the application, results of the testing after the matching.

Abstract: A print job is preferably displayed using a visual job ticketing application. An operator is enabled to create multiple job tickets describing print parameters to be applied to the print job. Using the visual job ticketing application, the operator may select a previously created job ticket to be used to display and/or print the print job. Alterations made to the print job are automatically propagated across all associated print job tickets. When creating new print job tickets, the operator may choose to start with a blank job ticket, a default job ticket, the last active job ticket or any previously created job ticket.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method, system, and program for accessing a control system, such as a printing systems manager (PSM) in a server from a client computer. The control system includes a logon program to allow a client side of the control system executing in the client computer use a terminal emulation program to access a client process executing in the server to perform control system operations. The client requests security context for the client including authorization, such as a Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) type authorization, to allow the client to access control system functions in the server. The server returns the requested security context to the client. A client program executing in the client transmits a control system command and the security context to access the server control system.

Abstract: A print job is displayed as a sequence of pages. An operator is enabled to create artificial pages representing such elements as cover pages and preprinted sheets which are normally apart from the print job data file. The artificial pages are inserted into a display of the real pages defined by the print job data file or original document and are therefore displayed visually just as the other document pages are displayed. They can be manipulated just like other pages; that is, they can be moved, deleted, replaced and so on.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method, system, and program for accessing an object in a network providing communication among multiple network devices and a namespace server including a namespace comprising one network address, e.g., IP address, for each network device in the system. The network device retrieves the namespace from the namespace server over the network and maintains the retrieved namespace as a local namespace at the network device. The network device may then determine the network address of a target network device to use to send a request to the network address of the target network device.

Abstract: A standard document viewing application, such as Adobe Acrobat Exchange, Microsoft Word or others, is used with plug in enhancements to display a document to be printed and visual feedback cues associated with user selected print job parameters. The job originator then has all the advantages of the viewing application when ticketing the job, such as thumbnail drag-and-drop and other manipulations, zoom, multiple-page display, multiple documents open simultaneously, document content editing and adjustment, bookmarks and other document navigation aids. In addition, the job originator can use a familiar interface to view documents without having to learn a new application.

Abstract: A print job is preferably displayed using a visual job ticketing application. An operator is enabled to create multiple job tickets describing print parameters to be applied to the print job. Using the visual job ticketing application, the operator may select a previously created job ticket to be used to display and/or print the print job. Alterations made to the print job are automatically propagated across all associated print job tickets. When creating new print job tickets, the operator may choose to start with a blank job ticket, a default job ticket, the last active job ticket or any previously created job ticket.

Abstract: A print job is displayed as a sequence of pages. An operator is enabled to create artificial pages representing such elements as cover pages and preprinted sheets which are normally apart from the print job data file. The artificial pages are inserted into a display of the real pages defined by the print job data file or original document and are therefore displayed visually just as the other document pages are displayed. They can be manipulated just like other pages; that is, they can be moved, deleted, replaced and so on.