Methods for policy-based printing operations in a public domain

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10929548-B2
Application number	US-201916452041-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 25, 2019
Priority date	Jun 25, 2019
Publication date	Feb 23, 2021
Grant date	Feb 23, 2021

Abstract

A policy-based printing system is implemented to allow access to a private domain to print using a public domain. The private domain includes private servers that store documents. The public domain includes servers and a printing device. A public policy server uses a domain list and a protocol connection with a private authentication server to validate a user and identify which private domain to access. The public policy server retrieves a policy from a private policy server that configures the parameters for printing using the public domain. The print job data is provided to a public file server until the public policy server confirms that the print job can be sent to the printing device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for policy-based printing from a private domain, the method comprising:
determining the private domain of a plurality of private domains to access from a public policy server, wherein the plurality of private domains each include a firewall;
sending an authentication token and a domain to a private policy server in the private domain from the public policy server in a public domain separated from the private domain by its respective firewall, wherein the authentication token corresponds to a user corresponding to the private domain;
retrieving a policy from the private policy server based on the domain, wherein the authentication token confirms that the user corresponds to the policy;
determining whether the user is allowed to print a document at the printing device according to the policy;
sending a job token to retrieve a print job based on the determination using the policy, wherein the print job is stored on a private job server in the private domain;
providing the print job to a public file server in the public domain from the private job server;
generating a confirmation token at the public policy server; and
sending the print job to a printing device according to the confirmation token provided to the public file server.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising sending a job list having the print job to the public policy server in response to the job token.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising selecting the print job from the job list.

4. The method of claim 3 , further comprising sending an instruction to the private job server to prepare the print job upon selection.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising generating the authentication token at a private authentication server connected to the public policy server.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising validating the user before generating the authentication token.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining whether the user has access to the print job according to a parameter defined by the policy.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising generating the job token based on the determination at the public policy server.

Assignees

• Kyocera Document Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Alacar Arthur
• Chen Mark
• Liang Jin
• Martin Michael

Classifications

• G06F3/1288

  in client-server-printer device configuration · CPC title

• G06F3/1238

  Secure printing, e.g. user identification, user rights for device usage, unallowed content, blanking portions or fields of a page, releasing held jobs · CPC title

• G06F3/1222

  Increasing security of the print job · CPC title

• G06F3/1269

  by broadcasting server · CPC title

• G06F21/608 Primary

  Secure printing · CPC title