Patent Application
20080086355
The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments which are presented as illustrated examples of the invention defined in the claims. It is expressly understood that the invention as defined by the claims may be broader than the illustrated embodiments described below.
The cost recovery method of the illustrated embodiment captures office expenses, such as print, copy, scan and fax activity. However, it must be understood that any cost-creating event can be captured and processed by the present invention and the invention is not limited to office expenses. For example, costs and job statistics related to any kind of office tasks such as printing, copying, faxing, telephoning, teleconferencing, videoconferencing, scanning or archiving or other communication, transmission, reception, usage, storage or retrieval of information can also be captured and processed. The features disclosed in the illustrated embodiment extend the asynchronous routing concept first introduced in the previous patent application referenced above.
These new features, which are identified by the keywords, “forwarding” and “delegation”, afford users new routing options designed for large or complex office environments. Specifically, the new features are intended for scenarios in which one person performs work on behalf of another. These new features are unique among cost recovery software providers.
For clarity the illustrated embodiment is directed only to printing events, but it must be borne in mind that the disclosure is directed to any kind of information or communication event now known or later devised. The prior art method operates by detecting print jobs or the target event at the print server or target domain respectively. As shown in the block diagram of
The new features described in this disclosure cover expense types in addition to printing. The new forwarding and delegation features are intended for the case where one user 10a is working on behalf of another user 10b. An example is the case where a legal assistant (User 10a) is printing a disclosure for an attorney (User 10b). As outlined in the prior method of
There are several possible workflows arising from this type of use. First, the originating user 10a does not possess the information necessary to accurately allocate the expense activity. The originating user 10a, therefore, forwards the unbilled expense item to the responsible user 10b. Alternatively, the originating user 10a does posses the information necessary to accurately allocate the expense activity. The originating user 10a, therefore, records the expense item on behalf of (“delegates to”) the responsible user 10b.
The forwarding workflow is similar to the forwarding feature found in e-mail systems. Via the software billing interface 100, user 10a is prompted to allocate an expense item after performing an action such as printing. Rather than selecting a billing code and using the normal record option, the user 10a will select a forward flyout menu 102 from the software billing interface 100, the display screen for which is depicted in
Unlike forwarding, the delegation workflow in
Under the delegation workflow of
In order to prevent users from abusing or misusing the forwarding and delegation features, the method of the illustrated embodiment incorporates a security component that allows or disallows users from forwarding or delegating to other users as depicted in the screen of the permissions interface 110 of
In addition to printing, the methodology of the illustrated embodiments and its hardware captures office equipment such as walkup copiers and fax machines. The forwarding and delegation features described in this disclosure apply to these nonprinting expense types as well. The workflow for walkup devices 114 is diagrammatically depicted in
Consider now the walkup scenario of
In summary, the workflow features disclosed above in which two or more users are cooperatively engaged in cost recovery are unique among cost recovery systems and methods. The ability to allocate expenses to different users is particularly useful in complex team-based environments where users perform actions for other users. Moreover, the expense routing capability used in conjunction with walkup devices is also unique. In this manner, computerized cost allocations and processing of job statistics are made by cooperative relationships and actions between multiple users.
Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiment has been set forth only for the purposes of example and that it should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following invention and its various embodiments.
Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiment has been set forth only for the purposes of example and that it should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claim are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different elements, which are disclosed in above even when not initially claimed in such combinations. A teaching that two elements are combined in a claimed combination is further to be understood as also allowing for a claimed combination in which the two elements are not combined with each other, but may be used alone or combined in other combinations. The excision of any disclosed element of the invention is explicitly contemplated as within the scope of the invention.
The words used in this specification to describe the invention and its various embodiments are to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly defined meanings, but to include by special definition in this specification structure, material or acts beyond the scope of the commonly defined meanings. Thus if an element can be understood in the context of this specification as including more than one meaning, then its use in a claim must be understood as being generic to all possible meanings supported by the specification and by the word itself.
The definitions of the words or elements of the following claims are, therefore, defined in this specification to include not only the combination of elements which are literally set forth, but all equivalent structure, material or acts for performing substantially the same function in substantially the same way to obtain substantially the same result. In this sense it is therefore contemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements may be made for any one of the elements in the claims below or that a single element may be substituted for two or more elements in a claim. Although elements may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, it is to be expressly understood that one or more elements from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination and that the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination.
Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements.
The claims are thus to be understood to include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what is conceptionally equivalent, what can be obviously substituted and also what essentially incorporates the essential idea of the invention.
