Abstract: A method and apparatus executes a printing job on a plurality of printer facilities by dividing the printing job into partial jobs and selectively assigning each partial job to a respective printer facility. The assigning of the partial jobs to the printer facilities attains an improved throughput for the printing job. The method structures a job termination pattern by assigning a partial job to a particular printer facility that will complete earlier than a partial job assigned to another printer facility by a time difference based on a predetermined non-zero time interval. Such a time interval may be defined by an operator in advance. All printer facilities involved in a printing job may be assigned respective partial jobs so that their sequence of completion time instants, in compliance with the user-selected time interval, will constitute a monotonously non-decreasing series.

Abstract: A method and system are described for executing document scanning jobs intended for a remote work station through using a wireless connection between the work station and a scanner facility. When a user, carrying a mobile device, approaches a multifunctional reproduction device, automatically a scanning template will be uploaded from the mobile device to the multifunctional device. In case the user now makes himself known to the multifunctional device and prepares for a scan job, at the user interface of the multifunctional device, the scan template will be displayed for further specification of the scan job by the user. After completion of the scan job the scanned data is downloaded to the mobile device. When the connection is closed the scanning template and data belonging to the scan job are removed from the multifunctional device.

Abstract: A method of post-processing sheets processed by a sheet processing apparatus provided with a sheet punching device for punching a set of two or more spaced holes in sheets, which includes the steps of punching the set of holes in all sheets of a first batch, in a first, standard, position, wherein the sheets of the first batch have substantially equal size and orientation, allowing an operator of the sheet processing apparatus to specify (1) at least one second batch of sheets having substantially the same size and orientation as the sheets of the first batch, and (2) a shift of the position in which said set of holes is to be punched in the sheets of the second batch, to a second position, whereafter the set of two or more spaced holes is punched in the second position in the sheets of the second batch, and creating a staggered stack of sheets by stacking subsequent first and second batches of sheets with holes aligned, such as by placing them in a ring binder.

Abstract: A method and system for printing documents are provided. New print jobs are automatically analysed with respect to the device-specific properties of the individual pages and each page is designated, on the basis of the analysis, either for processing on a printer of the first type or the second type. Then, the jobs are made locally available for printing on each of the printers. A user may locally start a job on any of the printers and that printer then automatically selects and prints only the pages of the job that are designated for processing on its own type of printer. Then, the user may locally start that same job on any of the printers of the other type and that printer then also automatically selects and prints only the pages of the job designated for processing on its own type of printer.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for managing stocks of consumption units associated with users in a system of document processing devices connected in a network wherein a plurality of stocks of consumption units are kept on each document processing device, each stock on a document processing device being associated with a user. The method comprises transferring, through the network, consumption units of a first stock kept on a first document processing device to a second stock kept on a second document processing device as a reaction to an emitted signal. The apparatus includes a distribution function suited for managing through the network the stocks of consumption units on a plurality of document processing devices, the stocks of consumption units being associated with the same user.