Patents by Inventor Alan K. Robertson
Alan K. Robertson has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 11418683Abstract: An image processing system and method provide for receiving a digital document page to be printed. The page includes a background region for which no color is specified. A user is presented with an option to select a print medium from a set of print media of different colors and to select an option for a color of the selected print medium be used as a color of a background layer of the digital document page. When the option is selected, a background layer is inserted into the page. A print job incorporating the processed digital document page is output to an associated printer that is configured to convert the color of the background layer to colorant values that use the print media as a colorant for rendering at least a part of the background region.Type: GrantFiled: July 14, 2021Date of Patent: August 16, 2022Assignee: XEROX CORPORATIONInventors: Frederick J. Ramsey, Thomas L. Pierce, Elizabeth Crossen, Clara Cuciurean-Zapan, Deepthi Sidavanahalli Rao, Alan K. Robertson, David St. John, Jeremy Griffith
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Patent number: 10853500Abstract: A system, method and apparatus for detecting whether an application is virtualized comprises identifying a storage location relevant to an application; writing a value to the storage location, storing the value written to the storage location, reading the identified storage location with a non-virtualized process, and checking if the read from the non-virtualized process matches the value.Type: GrantFiled: August 6, 2018Date of Patent: December 1, 2020Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Alan K. Robertson, Glenn K. Smith
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Publication number: 20200042713Abstract: A system, method and apparatus for detecting whether an application is virtualized comprises identifying a storage location relevant to an application; writing a value to the storage location, storing the value written to the storage location, reading the identified storage location with a non-virtualized process, and checking if the read from the non-virtualized process matches the value.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 6, 2018Publication date: February 6, 2020Inventors: Alan K. Robertson, Glenn K. Smith
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Patent number: 8773674Abstract: A system for interfacing a universal print driver with a print device after the universal print driver is deployed. The system includes a universal print driver interfaced with a network and at least one associated print device. A repository stores a set of device compatibility packs (DCPs) for each of the at least one associated print device interfaced with the universal print driver. The universal print driver is adapted to search the repository for a DCP if the associated print device is unsupported by the print driver.Type: GrantFiled: August 26, 2011Date of Patent: July 8, 2014Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Cody X. Heffner, David L. Salgado, Jonathan A. Edmonds, Alan K. Robertson
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Patent number: 8665463Abstract: An apparatus and method share and manage passcodes across multiple printing device drivers. The method can include providing, on the electronic device, a first printing device driver for a first printing device and a second printing device driver for a second printing device. The first printing device driver and the second printing device driver can access a common secure printing device passcode storage location for secure printing device passcodes. The method can include storing at least one secure printing device passcode in the common secure printing device passcode storage location. The method can include displaying secure print information to the user in response to receiving a secure print input. The method can include sending a secure printing device passcode over the network interface to a printing device to securely print the document.Type: GrantFiled: February 28, 2011Date of Patent: March 4, 2014Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: David Salgado, Richard Schwartz, Matthew Fabrizi, Alan K. Robertson, Jeremy H. Griffith
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Patent number: 8582129Abstract: An apparatus and method present application printing notes for a printer driver. The method can be performed in an electronic device including a network interface. The method can include receiving a print driver request. The method can include obtaining an application identifier corresponding to the print driver request. The application identifier can identify a particular application for a print job. The method can include sending an application printing notes query to an application printing notes repository to access application printing notes corresponding to the application identifier. The method can include displaying information corresponding to the application printing notes.Type: GrantFiled: February 28, 2011Date of Patent: November 12, 2013Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: David Salgado, Alan K. Robertson
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Patent number: 8456666Abstract: Disclosed are methods of controlling printing of a document using a printer driver interface, and corresponding apparatus and computer-readable medium. The embodiments receive a print command to print a document having a document size, display the printer driver interface, the printer driver interface including the document size, display a selectable paper output size on the printer driver interface, the selectable paper output size allowing a user to select a user-selected one of a plurality of different paper output sizes, display user-selectable scaling options on the print driver interface, the scaling options for applying scaling to an image to be printed on the user-selected one of the plurality of different paper output sizes, receive from the user the user-selected one of the paper output sizes, and control printing of the document using the user-selected one of the paper output sizes.Type: GrantFiled: July 17, 2007Date of Patent: June 4, 2013Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: David Salgado, Jeremy Griffith, Gregory Fruin, Alan K. Robertson, Richard Schwartz
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Publication number: 20120218579Abstract: An apparatus and method share and manage passcodes across multiple printing device drivers. The method can include providing, on the electronic device, a first printing device driver for a first printing device and a second printing device driver for a second printing device. The first printing device driver and the second printing device driver can access a common secure printing device passcode storage location for secure printing device passcodes. The method can include storing at least one secure printing device passcode in the common secure printing device passcode storage location. The method can include displaying secure print information to the user in response to receiving a secure print input. The method can include sending a secure printing device passcode over the network interface to a printing device to securely print the document.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 28, 2011Publication date: August 30, 2012Applicant: XEROX CORPORATIONInventors: David SALGADO, Richard Schwartz, Matthew Fabrizi, Alan K. Robertson, Jeremy H. Griffith
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Publication number: 20120218580Abstract: An apparatus and method present application printing notes for a printer driver. The method can be performed in an electronic device including a network interface. The method can include receiving a print driver request. The method can include obtaining an application identifier corresponding to the print driver request. The application identifier can identify a particular application for a print job. The method can include sending an application printing notes query to an application printing notes repository to access application printing notes corresponding to the application identifier. The method can include displaying information corresponding to the application printing notes.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 28, 2011Publication date: August 30, 2012Applicant: XEROX CORPORATIONInventors: David SALGADO, Alan K. Robertson
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Publication number: 20120069366Abstract: A system for interfacing a universal print driver with a print device after the universal print driver is deployed. The system includes a universal print driver interfaced with a network and at least one associated print device. A repository stores a set of device compatibility packs (DCPs) for each of the at least one associated print device interfaced with the universal print driver. The universal print driver is adapted to search the repository for a DCP if the associated print device is unsupported by the print driver.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 26, 2011Publication date: March 22, 2012Applicant: XEROX CORPORATIONInventors: Cody X. Heffner, David L. Salgado, Jonathan A. Edmonds, Alan K. Robertson
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Patent number: 8091096Abstract: What is disclosed is a novel system and method for ensuring that plug-in DLLs are not unloaded and reloaded repeatedly during the course of a single user-initiated operation. A base driver process loads a plug-in DLL. If a manager thread responsible for this plug-in does not exist then a reference count for the plug-in DLL is incremented. Incrementing the system reference count ensures that the plug-in DLL remains loaded between base driver calls for all of the user-initiated operation by preventing the operating system from unloading the plug-in DLL. A manager thread is then created. The manager thread monitors active COM objects and checks if the base driver is still in memory. If no COM objects are found to be in use after a predetermined amount of time or if the base driver is no longer loaded in memory, the system reference count is decremented. The manager thread then exits.Type: GrantFiled: April 10, 2008Date of Patent: January 3, 2012Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Matthew D. Fabrizi, Alan K. Robertson
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Publication number: 20090021772Abstract: Disclosed are methods of controlling printing of a document using a printer driver interface, and corresponding apparatus and computer-readable medium. The embodiments receive a print command to print a document having a document size, display the printer driver interface, the printer driver interface including the document size, display a selectable paper output size on the printer driver interface, the selectable paper output size allowing a user to select a user-selected one of a plurality of different paper output sizes, display user-selectable scaling options on the print driver interface, the scaling options for applying scaling to an image to be printed on the user-selected one of the plurality of different paper output sizes, receive from the user the user-selected one of the paper output sizes, and control printing of the document using the user-selected one of the paper output sizes.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 17, 2007Publication date: January 22, 2009Applicant: XEROX CORPORATIONInventors: David Salgado, Jeremy Griffith, Gregory Fruin, Alan K. Robertson, Richard Schwartz
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Publication number: 20080250430Abstract: Disclosed are methods of creating drivers for use in a network, the network including computers and devices, and corresponding apparatus and computer-readable medium.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 7, 2008Publication date: October 9, 2008Applicant: Xerox CorporationInventors: David Salgado, Jonathan Allan Edmonds, Matthew Fabrizi, Gregory Fruin, Alan K. Robertson, Raymond Sabbagh, Richard Schwartz, Glenn K. Smith
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Patent number: 7280241Abstract: A print driver user interface method for printing copies of a document, which includes receiving a number corresponding to the number of copies to be printed from an application, receiving at least one command relating to an operation to be performed on each of the number of copies to be printed, and displaying a first feature to a user informing the user that the application may have a problem printing multiple copies. The method also includes offering the user a choice relating to printing copies of the document and transferring control of printing the copies from the application to the print driver.Type: GrantFiled: September 4, 2001Date of Patent: October 9, 2007Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Erika C. Dabney, Gary M. Davis, Sarah E. Campbell, Alan K. Robertson
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Publication number: 20030179401Abstract: In a low-cost printer context, the standard print driver is typically capable only of continuous flow of document data from the driver to the printers. With the present invention, an algorithm responds to specific events in the driver and diverts data output from the driver to a location in the computer's memory, where the data for the entire document is temporarily accumulated. Post-processing operations are performed on the accumulated data, which is then sent on to the printer. The algorithm allows advanced functions, such as page order reversal and signature making, to be performed with a rudimentary print driver.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 25, 2002Publication date: September 25, 2003Applicant: Xerox CorporationInventor: Alan K. Robertson
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Patent number: 6608978Abstract: A paper-conserving method for printing a document, which includes determining the number of pages in a document to be printed and automatically selecting a paper conserving print layout for the document when at least two pages are detected. When the document has two or more pages, the layout includes duplexing. When the document has 3 or more pages, the layout will be N-up, where N has a value of at least 2.Type: GrantFiled: December 19, 2001Date of Patent: August 19, 2003Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Alan K. Robertson, Jean S. Beha
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Publication number: 20030113130Abstract: A paper-conserving method for printing a document, which includes determining the number of pages in a document to be printed and automatically selecting a paper conserving print layout for the document when at least two pages are detected. When the document has two or more pages, the layout includes duplexing. When the document has 3 or more pages, the layout will be N-up, where N has a value of at least 2.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 19, 2001Publication date: June 19, 2003Applicant: Xerox Corporation.Inventors: Alan K. Robertson, Jean S. Beha
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Publication number: 20030043398Abstract: A print driver user interface method for printing copies of a document, which includes receiving a number corresponding to the number of copies to be printed from an application, receiving at least one command relating to an operation to be performed on each of the number of copies to be printed, and displaying a first feature to a user informing the user that the application may have a problem printing multiple copies. The method also includes offering the user a choice relating to printing copies of the document and transferring control of printing the copies from the application to the print driver.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 4, 2001Publication date: March 6, 2003Applicant: Xerox CorporationInventors: Erika C. Dabney, Gary M. Davis, Sarah E. Campbell, Alan K. Robertson
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Publication number: 20020067308Abstract: A system and method combines a positioning system, for example, the Navistar global positioning system (GPS), with a personal electronic device. The personal electronic device can be a PDA, or a mobile cellular phone, for example. The positioning system provides real-time location specific information that is converted into coordinates, such as latitude and longitude. The system and method of the present invention then references the location to a particular task stored in resident memory and activates a reminder which notifies the user of a particular task. This involves having the user input reminders which signal when the user is within a specified geographic area, or within a specified range which is in the resolution of the GPS.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 6, 2000Publication date: June 6, 2002Applicant: XEROX CORPORATIONInventor: Alan K. Robertson
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Patent number: 6134019Abstract: In a document processing system, whether a standalone copier, or network system including printers, scanners and facsimiles, a user is presented with a display in which numerous features, such as print or copy features, are offered. Each feature may include a plurality of selectable options, such as staple/no staple or simplex/duplex. If he selection of one option form a first feature precludes selection of another option of a second feature, such as for example precluding the placing of duplex images on a transparency, the precluded options in the second feature are indicated as unavailable, and a help button is displayed. When the help button is indicated by a cursor, the user sees only the specific information why the option in the second feature was precluded.Type: GrantFiled: September 3, 1998Date of Patent: October 17, 2000Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Stanley E. Wantuck, Jr., Alan K. Robertson, Gary M. Davis