Patent Publication Number: US-2004059842-A1

Title: Network device installation

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE  
       [0001] The disclosure relates generally to non-infrastructure network devices such as printers, and more particularly to installing a driver for a non-infrastructure network device on a host device.  
       [0002] Installing a network printer on a host device commonly involves identifying a network printer to be installed on the host device, and then installing a printer driver on the host device so that print jobs can be sent to the installed printer. Installing other non-infrastructure network devices can involve similar procedures. Sometimes, it can be difficult to unambiguously identify the printer or other non-infrastructure network device to be installed. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
     [0003]FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a networked system that includes a non-infrastructure network device such as a printer, multi-function device or scanner.  
     [0004]FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a printer that can be connected to a network.  
     [0005]FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B set forth a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of a procedure for installing a printer on a host device.  
     [0006]FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment of a dialog box that can be used to prompt a user in the course of installing a networked printer on a host device.  
     [0007]FIG. 5 is a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of another procedure for installing a printer on a host device.  
     [0008]FIG. 6 is a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of another procedure for installing a printer on a host device. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE  
     [0009]FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a networked system that includes a network  100  that is comprised of a plurality of subnets  110 , a host device  11  that is connected to one of the subnets  110 , and at least one non-infrastructure network device  30  such as a printer, multifunction device or scanner, each of which is connected to an associated subnet  110 . For reference, infrastructure devices would include routers and hubs. While the disclosed systems and procedures can be employed with non-infrastructure network devices such as printers, multi-function devices and scanners, the following discussion will be directed primarily to printers for convenience. The host device  11  can be a personal computer or a workstation that can be controlled by a user  27  to install a non-infrastructure network device on the host device  11 . By install, it is meant that the user desires to configure the host device  11  to be able to communicate with the installed non-infrastructure network device, for example to be able to send print jobs to an installed printer. This can be accomplished for example by installing an appropriate device driver on the host device  11 .  
     [0010]FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a printer  30  that can be connected to the network  100 . The printer includes a controller  31  for controlling the operation of the printer and a memory  33  that can comprise non-persistent memory such as random access memory (RAM) or cache, and/or non-persistent memory such as a hard drive or non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM). For example, the controller  31  stores data in the memory  33  and retrieves data from the memory  33 . The controller  31  is also configured to be connected to the network  100  for sending and receiving network messages (e.g., communications packets). The printer can further include a panel menu  35  for receiving inputs from a user, for example. The printer can also include a web server.  
     [0011] FIGS.  3 A- 3 B set forth a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of a procedure for installing a network printer on the host device  11  (FIG. 1), for the example wherein the network printer that the user wants to install is not on the same sub-network as the host device and does not know of the sub-network on which the host device is located. At  111  an installation program is started, for example from a location on a storage media (such as a CD, DVD, or hard drive on the host device  11  itself) or from remote location such as a location on the Internet or from a printer&#39;s embedded web server. By way of illustrative example, the installation program can be configured to be started from a web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape. Also by way of illustrative example, the installation program can be downloaded to the host device from a remote location such as an embedded web server of one of the printers  30 . If the installation program is downloaded from a printer&#39;s web page, that web page can be on the printer that the user wants to install or can be from another printer that the desired printer is pointing to.  
     [0012] At  113  the installation program sends a message that contains the network related information for the host device to a sub-network broadcast address for the sub-network on which the host device is located.  
     [0013] At  115  the printers that see the message sent at  113  reply. The printer that the user wants to install does not reply since it is on a sub-network that was not addressed at  113 .  
     [0014] At  117  the installation program receives the replies provided at  115 .  
     [0015] At  119  the installation program displays a list of printers that replied. This list does not include the printer the user wants to install since the sub-network on which such printer is located was not addressed at  113 .  
     [0016] At  121  the user attempts an automatic install since the printer the user wants to install is not on the displayed list of printers.  
     [0017] At  123  the installation program prompts the user, for example by a dialogue box like the one shown in FIG. 4, to go to the printer the user wants to install on the host device  11  and to provide predetermined printer installation related inputs to the selected printer. Such inputs can be made by selections on the panel menu  35  (FIG. 2) of the printer the user wants to install, for example.  
     [0018] At  125  the installation program begins monitoring its network connection for a period of time and listens for a printer originated installation related message containing certain printer identification information. This identification information can be for example the model name and distinguishing information for the printer. It may also be the printer&#39;s IP address and configuration data needed to install the printer. If the installation program can install more than one type of printer, the model information and other configuration information may be needed to determine which printer driver should be installed.  
     [0019] At  127  the user provides predetermined installation related inputs to the printer the user wants to install, for example by making selections from the panel menu  35  of the selected printer.  
     [0020] At  129  the selected printer sends to sub-network(s) identified by network related information stored on the selected printer an installation related message that contains whatever information has been stored for broadcasting. This installation related message more particularly contains printer identification information that the host device  11  is listening for. This printer identification information contains sufficient printer identifying information for the host device  11  to identify which printer sent it, and can include for example the IP address of the selected printer.  
     [0021] At  131 , the host device does not receive the installation related message and the user enters into the installation program the network information for the sub-network on which the selected printer is located. The host device did not receive the installation related message since the selected printer did not have the network related information for sub-network on which the host device is located and thus did not send the installation related message to the sub-network on which the host is located.  
     [0022] At  133  the installation program sends a message containing the network related information of the host device to the sub-network broadcast address for the sub-network on which the host device is located and the sub-network broadcast address for the sub-network on which the selected printer is located.  
     [0023] At  135  the printers that see the message sent at  133 , including the selected printer, reply.  
     [0024] At  137  the installation program receives the replies provided at  135 .  
     [0025] At  139  the installation program sends to each of the printers that replied at  135  a message containing network related information, such as a sub-network broadcast address, for the sub-network on which the host device is located.  
     [0026] At  141  each of the addressed printers that receive the message sent at  139  stores the network related information contained in the message sent at  139 .  
     [0027] At  143  the installation program displays a list of the printers that replied. This list includes the selected printer.  
     [0028] At  145  the user selects the printer to install.  
     [0029] At  147  the installation program installs the selected printer.  
     [0030] In this manner, the selected printer (or other non-infrastructure network device) can thus in the future send installation related messages to the sub-network on which the host device  11  is located. Also, an installation program can query a printer or other non-infrastructure network device for network related information stored on the printer or other non-infra-structure network device to help the installation program to find networked printers or other non-infrastructure network devices for presentation to the user, for example.  
     [0031]FIG. 5 is a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of a procedure for installing a printer on the host device  11  (FIG. 1), for the example wherein the printer that the user wants to install is not on the same sub-network as the host device but knows of the sub-network on which the host device is located, for example by having previously stored network related information for the sub-network of the host device.  
     [0032] At  211  the installation program is started.  
     [0033] At  213  the installation program sends a message that contains the network related information of the host device to a sub-network broadcast address for the host device.  
     [0034] At  215  the addressed printers that see the broadcasted network related information reply. The printer that the user wants to install does not reply since it is on a sub-network that was not addressed at  213 .  
     [0035] At  217  the installation program receives the replies provided at  215 .  
     [0036] At  219  the installation program displays a list of printers that replied. This list does not include the printer the user wants to install since the sub-network on which such printer is located was not addressed at  213 .  
     [0037] At  221  the user attempts an automatic install since the printer the user wants to install is not on the displayed list of printers.  
     [0038] At  223  the installation program prompts the user, for example by a dialogue box like the one shown in FIG. 4, to go to the printer the user wants to install on the host device  11  and to provide predetermined printer installation related inputs to the selected printer. Such inputs can be made by selections on the panel menu  35  (FIG. 2) of the printer the user wants to install, for example.  
     [0039] At  225  the installation program begins monitoring its network connection for a period of time and listens for a printer originated installation related message containing certain printer identification information. This identification information can be for example the model name and distinguishing information for the printer. It may also be the printer&#39;s IP address and configuration data needed to install the printer. If the installation program can install more than one type of printer, the model information and other configuration information may be needed to determine which printer driver should be installed.  
     [0040] At  227  the user provides predetermined installation related inputs to the printer the user wants to install, for example by making selections from the panel menu  35  of the selected printer.  
     [0041] At  229  the selected printer sends to sub-network(s) identified by network related information stored on the selected printer an installation related message that contains whatever information has been stored for broadcasting. This installation related message more particularly contains printer identification information that the host device  11  is listening for. This printer identification information contains sufficient printer identifying information for the host device  11  to identify which printer sent it, and can include for example the IP address of the selected printer.  
     [0042] At  231 , since the selected printer sent the installation related message to the sub-network on which the host device is located, the installation program receives the installation related message.  
     [0043] At  233  the installation program installs the selected printer. For example, the installation program installs a driver for the selected printer, and communicates with the selected printer over the network  100  using a suitable network protocol such as TCP/IP.  
     [0044] Thus, a network printer or other non-infrastructure network device such as a scanner can store, for example in a persistent memory, identifying information about sub-networks other than the sub-network on which the printer or other non-infrastructure network device is located.  
     [0045]FIG. 6 is a schematic flow diagram of an embodiment of a procedure for installing a network printer on the host device, for the example wherein one or more printers on the network have stored network related information.  
     [0046] At  311  an installation program is started.  
     [0047] At  313  the installation program sends a message that contains network related information for the host device to a sub-network broadcast address for the host device.  
     [0048] At  315  the addressed printers that see the message sent at  313  reply.  
     [0049] At  317  the installation program receives the replies provided at  315 .  
     [0050] At  319  the installation program recognizes that one or more of the printers that replied may have stored network related information.  
     [0051] At  321  the installation program sends a message to one replying printer at a time requesting stored network related information for sub-networks other than the sub-network on which the replying printer is located.  
     [0052] At  323  each addressed printer replies with stored network related information.  
     [0053] At  325  the installation program receives the replies sent at  323 .  
     [0054] At  327  the installation program sends a message that contains network related information for the host device to the sub-network on which the host device is located as well as other sub-networks identified by the replies received at  325 .  
     [0055] At  329  the printers on the addressed sub-networks that receive the message sent at  327  reply.  
     [0056] At  331  the installation program receives the replies.  
     [0057] At  333  the installation program displays a list printers.  
     [0058] The user can then proceed as in the procedures of FIGS.  3 A- 3 B or FIG. 5, as appropriate.  
     [0059] The invention has been described with reference to disclosed embodiments, and it will be appreciated that variations and modifications can be affected within the spirit and scope of the invention.