Providing contextual information for job preview

Abstract

In some examples, the disclosure describes image forming device, comprising: an image forming mechanism, a user interface device, a communication device, a processor, and a non-transitory memory resource storing machine-readable instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause the processor to: cause the communication device to receive job data that includes image data, provide contextual information about the job data, provide a preview image of the job data, cause the user interface device to output the preview image and the contextual information, and cause the image forming mechanism to perform an image forming job based on an input to the user interface device.

Description

86339864 1 / 27PROVIDING CONTEXTUAL INFORMATION FOR JOB PREVIEWBackground

[0001] An electronic device can include an imaging device to capture or generate images. In some examples, the electronic device can include a computing device or controller to perform computing functions. Image forming devices can receive images to be printed on to substrates, receive images on substrates to be scanned, and / or receive images to be faxed to a remote device.Brief Description of the Drawings

[0002] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a system for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview.

[0003] Figure 2 illustrates an example user interface for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview.

[0004] Figure 3 illustrates an example table of contextual information.

[0005] Figure 4 illustrates an example of an image forming device for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview.

[0006] Figure 5 illustrates an example of a memory resource for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview.

[0007] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a method for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview.Detailed Description

[0008] A user may utilize a computing device for various purposes, such as for business and / or recreational use. As used herein, the term “computing device” refers to an electronic system having a processor resource (e.g., processor, etc.) and a memory resource. Examples of computing devices can include, for instance, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a desktop computer, networking device (e.g., router, switch, etc.), conference phone, and / or a mobile device (e.g., a smart86339864 2 / 27 phone, tablet, personal digital assistant, smart glasses, a wrist-worn device, etc.), among other types of computing devices.

[0009] Electronic devices such as computing devices can be communicatively coupled to image forming devices utilizing a network or other type of communication pathway (e.g., universal serial bus (USB) connection, near field communication (NFC), etc.). In some examples, the image forming devices can receive job data from the electronic devices. The job data can refer to data that describes operations to be performed by the image forming device. For example, the job data can include image data, instructions for how to format the image data, and / or other information that the image forming device needs to perform a particular job. In some examples, the job to be performed is a print job, a scan job, a fax job, a copy job, and / or other type of job that can be performed by an image forming device or multifunctional image forming device. An image forming device may receive job data from an electronic device including an imaging device like a scanner. Or, an image forming device itself may include an imaging device like a scanner and performs a job according to instructions and / or other information received from an electronic device.

[0010] Image forming devices can utilize job previews to provide information related to the job to a user prior to executing the job. For example, the image forming device can include a display device to display information that describes the job to be performed and / or the images to be utilized. The display device can have a limited screen area that may not be able to display the job data in a size that allows users to review details of the job data. For example, the display device may display the image data of the job in a size that may not allow a user to read text or be able to identify particular features that may be distinct to the particular job. In other instances, a user may have visual limitations or other limitations that may make it more difficult to review the image data or other data associated with the job data utilizing the display device.

[0011] The present disclosure relates to providing contextual information about image data for a job preview. As used herein, contextual information refers to descriptions of image data for a job preview. This can include, but is not limited to, a description of pictures, text, or other objects within the image data. The contextual information may be in the form of text, an image, a link to information stored remotely, or a combination thereof. As used herein, a contextual summary can include contextual information for multiple pages of image data and / or multiple pictures, text,86339864 3 / 27 or other objects within a single page of the image data. In some examples, contextual information can be generated utilizing optical character recognition (OCR) and / or image recognition. The contextual information can be generated based on extracted data from the job data. For example, the job data can include image data that can include pictures and / or text. In this example, the contextual information can be a description of the pictures and / or text of the job data.

[0012] In some examples, the job data can be separated into a plurality of pages. In these examples, each of the plurality of pages can include corresponding contextual information that describes the displayed image data (e.g., pictures, text, etc.) of the particular page of the job. In these examples, a contextual summary can be generated for the plurality of contextual information for the plurality of pages. In this way, a user can be provided with contextual information for particular pages and / or a contextual summary of the job.

[0013] In some examples, the contextual information can be displayed on a user interface device of an image forming device. In this way, the contextual information can be displayed to a user to allow the user to confirm whether the job is to be performed by the image forming device. In some examples, the contextual information can include selectable inputs to allow a user to accept or cancel a job or portion of a job. In this way, the contextual information can provide a job preview with greater user accessibility compared to previous systems and devices.

[0014] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a system 100 for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview. The system 100 can include an image forming device 104. As described herein, the image forming device 104 can be a multi-function image forming device that is capable of performing a plurality of different types of jobs. For example, the image forming device 104 can perform print jobs, scan jobs, fax jobs, and / or different functions that can be performed using job data (e.g., print job data, scan job data, fax job data, image data, etc.). In some embodiments, the image forming device 104 can receive the job data from a computing device 102 through a communication path 108-1.

[0015] In some examples, the communication path 108-1 can be a wired or wireless communication path that can be utilized to send and / or receive data communication between the image forming device 104 and the computing device 102. In some examples, the communication path 108-1 can be a device interface, such as, but not limited to a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a network interface,86339864 4 / 27 or other type of communication interface. In these examples, a USB connection can be made between the computing device 102 and the image forming device 104. In other examples, the USB interface can be utilized to couple a USB memory drive to the image forming device 104. In these examples, the image forming device 104 can read job data from the USB memory drive.

[0016] In some examples, the image forming device 104 includes an input device 110. The input device 110 can include hardware and / or instructions to perform particular functions. In some examples, the input device 110 can include a scan function to scan or analyze job data received from the communication path 108-1 . As used herein, the scan function can perform a scan of the job data to generate scan data. The scanning of the job data can include capturing or analyzing image data associated with the job data. In these examples, the scan data can be utilized to capture the images, text, or other features of the job data. The scan data and / or job data can be utilized to determine contextual information related to the job data.

[0017] In some examples, the input device 110 can include an image processing device. The image processing device can receive and decode the job data received from the communication path 108-1 . For example, the job data can be in a particular format (e.g., pdf, jpeg, etc.) that can be analyzed by the image processing device. The image processing device can include raster image processing, color management, resolution enhancement, image refinement, error diffusion, or other processes to enhance the properties of the image data of the job data. In some examples, the image processing device can process the image data to enable the image data to be displayed on a user interface 120 or other type of display device.

[0018] In some examples, the input device 110 can include an optical character recognition (OCR) set of instructions (e.g., OCR instructions) that can perform an OCR process on the job data and / or the scanned image data from the job data. The OCR instructions can be executed by a processor associated with a remote device 106 (e.g., cloud resource, remote computing device, etc.), the image forming device 104, and / or the computing device 102. The OCR instructions can be utilized to preprocess the job data. In some examples, the preprocessing can include performing a noise reduction, a de-skewing, a binarization, a segmentation, or other processes to improve an accuracy of the OCR process. In some examples, the86339864 5 / 27 preprocessing can be performed by the image processing device. The OCR instructions can utilize the preprocessed job data to perform character recognition. The character recognition can include utilizing pattern recognition, feature extraction, and / or contextual analysis to recognize characters within the image data of the job data. The character recognition data can be utilized to determine contextual information related to the job data.

[0019] The character recognition data can be provided to a contextual information controller 112. The contextual information controller 112 can include a source composer, a contextual information configurator, a contextual information requestor, and / or a contextual information generator. In some examples, the contextual information controller 112 can be a computing device that includes instructions to perform the functions described herein. For example, the information controller 112 can include instructions to perform the functions of the source composer, contextual information configurator, contextual information requestor, and / or the contextual information generator. In these examples, the contextual information controller 112 can utilize the contextual recognition data to generate contextual information and / or a contextual information summary for the job.

[0020] The source composer can be utilized to perform data interpretation, document layout and composition, and / or rasterization. In this way, the source composer can organize the character recognition data received from the input device 110. In this way, the source composer can be utilized to analyze the character recognition and organize the character recognition data such that the character recognition data is correctly associated with the image data of the job data. For example, the source composer can be utilized to correlate the character recognition data with the correct portions of the image data such as, but not limited to, the correct pages and / or images associated with the pages.

[0021] In some examples, the contextual information configurator can be utilized to configure the settings of the contextual information generator and / or the contextual information requestor. In some examples, the contextual information configurator can be utilized to configure how the contextual information is generated, how the contextual information is displayed, how selectable inputs are input into the contextual information, and / or other settings that can be utilized to customize the contextual information.86339864 6 / 27

[0022] In some examples, the contextual information requestor can request the contextual information for the job data from a remote device 106 through a communication path 108-2. In some examples, the remote device 106 can be a cloud resource that can perform a service. For example, the remote device 106 can be a cloud resource that is able to receive job data from the image forming device 104, generate contextual information, and provide the contextual information to the image forming device 104. In other examples, the remote device 106 can be a computing device that is connected by a network through the communication path 108-2. In other examples, the remote device 106 can be a local device that is connected to the image forming device 104 through a USB or other interface. In these examples, the contextual information generator can be located at the remote device 106.

[0023] In other examples, the contextual information generator can be executed by the contextual information controller 112 at the image forming device 104. The contextual information generator can be utilized to generate contextual information to be displayed as a part of a job preview. As described further herein, the contextual information can be a description of information associated with image data contained within the job data. For example, the contextual information can describe features of text and / or images within the image data of the job.

[0024] In some examples, the contextual information can describe an image within the image data of the job even when the image does not include any text data. In other examples, the contextual information can describe features of text data within the job. For example, a job that includes a resume can be scanned and contextual information can be extracted from the resume job to indicate that the job is about a resume or summarize a page or pages of the resume. In this way, the contextual information can be utilized as a summary for each page of a plurality of pages of the resume. The contextual information controller 112 can be communicatively coupled to a memory device 116. In some examples, the memory device 116 is a Non-Volatile Random Access Memory (NVRAM) that can be accessed by one or more devices associated with the contextual information controller 112.

[0025] In some examples, the image forming device 104 can include an output module 118. The output module 118 can include hardware and / or instructions to perform a plurality of output functions. For example, the output module 118 can86339864 7 / 27 include instructions for printing a job, sending a job, and / or faxing a job. Although particular functions are illustrated in the output module 118, additional or fewer functions can be utilized without departing from the disclosure. In some examples, the image forming device 104 can include a user interface 120. The user interface 120 can be a display device that can display a user interface to allow a user to interact with the image forming device 104. The user interface 120 can include a preview display, a tactile touch, and / or a text to voice device. In these examples, the preview display can be utilized to generate a preview image based on the job data. The tactile touch can be utilized to provide a tactile touch user interface when a user interacts with a touchscreen of the user interface 120. The text to voice can be utilized to convert text within the preview image to an audio representation of the text.

[0026] In some examples, the image forming device 104 can include an abstraction device 114. The abstraction device 114 can be utilized to simplify a complex job into a set of contextual information. For example, the job can be generally complex with a plurality of pictures, objects, and / or textual information. In this example, the abstraction device 114 can analyze the information to simplify the information into the contextual information and / or contextual information summary of the job. In some examples, the contextual information generated by the contextual information controller 112 can include a relatively large quantity of contextual information about image data for a print job. For example, the image data can include a plurality of different pictures, text, and / or objects that can each be utilized by the contextual information controller 112 to generate contextual information. In this example, the abstraction device 114 can be utilized to select particular contextual information to be utilized or displayed, remove contextual information that is not going to be displayed, and / or generate a contextual information summary based on the contextual information generated by the contextual information controller 112.

[0027] The abstraction device 114 can include a text abstract module and / or an image visioning module. In some examples, the text abstract module can analyze the textual images within the scanned job data to generate contextual information or a contextual information summary. In some examples, the text abstract module can be utilized to summarize the textual images within the scanned job data to generate a single sentence summary of the textual images. In this way, the contextual86339864 8 / 27 information can describe the textual images present within the job data without a user having to review the actual textual images.

[0028] The abstraction device 114 can include an image visioning module to generate contextual information and / or a contextual information summary of pictures, objects, or other types of images within the scanned image data from the job data. In some examples, the image visioning module can describe how a picture appears within the scanned image data of the job. For example, a picture of a person on a horse in a field of wheat can be provided to the image forming device 104 as job data. The input device 110 can scan the job data to generate a scan of the picture. In this example, the image visioning module can be utilized to generate contextual information that describes the features of the picture.

[0029] The system 100 can illustrate the devices and / or instructions that can be utilized to perform the functions described herein. In some examples, the hardware and / or instructions can be distributed to one or more of the computing device 102, image forming device 104, and / or remote device 106. The system 100 can be utilized to generate and / or provide the contextual information about image data for a job preview associated with the image forming device 104. As described herein, the system 100 can be utilized to provide the contextual information to a user utilizing the image forming device 104 when a generic preview image of the job is difficult to review on a display device of the image forming device 104.

[0030] Figure 2 illustrates an example user interface 230 for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview. In some examples, the user interface 230 can be an example of an interactive user interface that can be displayed on a display device of an image forming device (e.g., printing device, multifunction printing device, scanning device, faxing device, etc.). In some examples, the user interface 230 includes an information area 232 that can describe particular attributes of a job (e.g., print job, scan job, fax job, etc.). The attributes can be selectively altered by a user utilizing the user interface 230. For example, the attributes can include a page size, color specifications, paper tray destination, save location, among other attributes of jobs performed by image forming devices.

[0031] The information area 232 can include information tabs that describe or state the file name, folder path, or other options related to a particular job. In some examples, the information area 232 includes selectable inputs such as load options and save options. In this way, a user can utilize the information area 232 to86339864 9 / 27 determine information related to a job to be executed by an image forming device. As described herein, the information area 232 can take up a portion of the user interface 230, but may be difficult to read or may not illustrate particular details of the job. For example, the file name or other information within the information area 232 may not clearly indicate a job that is intended to be executed.

[0032] In some examples, the user interface 230 can include an image preview area 234. The image preview area 234 can include a preview image of a job. For example, the image preview area 234 can illustrate how a job may look when executed by the image forming device. In this example, the image preview area 234 can be displayed on a user interface in a way to illustrate how an image is to be printed on a sheet of paper when printed by the image forming device. As described herein, the image preview area 234 may be displayed within a portion of the user interface 230 when displayed on a display device of the image forming device. In some examples, the image preview area 234 may be difficult to read details or identify particular features of the images displayed within the image preview area 234. This can make it difficult to determine whether the job utilized to generate the image within the image preview area is the job intended to be executed by the image forming device.

[0033] In some examples, the user interface 230 can include a contextual information portion 236. In some embodiments, the contextual information portion 236 can include contextual information that is generated based on the images within the image preview area 234. As described herein, the contextual information can be generated utilizing an OCR device or OCR instructions to identify the characters within the image displayed in the image preview area 234. The characters can be text, pictures, objects, or other characters. The characters can be utilized by an abstraction device to generate contextual information that can be displayed within the contextual information portion 236.

[0034] In some examples, the contextual information portion 236 can be positioned over a portion of the image displayed within the image preview area 234. In this way, the contextual information displayed within the contextual information portion can act as a summary of the displayed image within the image preview area 234. In some examples, the contextual information displayed within the contextual information portion 236 can be limited to a single sentence or a limited word count to86339864 10 / 27 allow a font size of the contextual information to be greater than a threshold font size.

[0035] In some examples, the contextual information can be a summary of the entire image displayed within the image preview area 234. For example, the image displayed within the image preview area 234 can be a theatre ticket that includes information such as, but not limited to: a play name, a ticket number, a date of the event, a time of the event, a cost of the ticket, a seat number, and / or other information related to the event. In these examples, the abstraction device can be utilized to determine that the title, a cost, and date of the event is included in the contextual information. In these examples, the selected or generated contextual information can be identified as distinguishing features.

[0036] In some examples, a distinguishing feature of an image can distinguish the image from other images that have similarities. In some examples, the abstraction device can determine a type of document image within the image preview area 234. In these examples, the type of document image can be utilized to identify features that would distinguish the displayed document from other documents of the same or similar type. In some examples, the abstraction device can be utilized to generate the contextual information based in part on the distinguishing features of the displayed image within the image preview area 234. In a specific example, the type of document image can be a resume. In this example, a user may intend to print a resume of a particular applicant. In these examples, the distinguishing features of a resume can be the candidate’s name, an educational institution of the candidate, and / or other information that would allow a user to identify the particular applicant from other resumes associated with other applicants. In some examples, the abstraction device can identify the distinguishing features and utilize the contextual information associated with the identified distinguishing features to be displayed in the contextual information portion 236.

[0037] In some examples, the contextual information portion 236 can include an identifier 238 that can be utilized to point or identify a particular portion of the image preview area 234. In some examples, the identifier 238 can point to a portion of the image displayed within the image preview area 234. In some examples, the identifier 238 can point to a particular feature, such as a particular distinguishing feature of the image displayed within the image preview area 234. For example, the86339864 11 / 27 identifier 238 can be utilized to point at a title of the event and / or a type of image displayed within the image preview area 234.

[0038] In some examples, the contextual information portion 236 can include selectable inputs 239. The selectable inputs 239 can include displayable inputs that can be selected by a user. In some examples, the selectable inputs 239 can be utilized to accept or reject the job to be performed by the image forming device. For example, the selectable inputs 239 can include a first selectable input to “continue” or “accept” the job and a second selectable input to “cancel” or “reject” the job. In this way, the contextual information portion 236 can be utilized to summarize the image displayed within the image preview area 234 and collect user inputs to confirm or reject the job to be performed by the image forming device. In some examples, the image forming device may proceed to perform the job if any selectable input is not selected within a time limit. The image forming device may pause performing the job if any selectable input is selected or any input is entered into the user interface 230 while the image forming device is performing the job.

[0039] In some examples, the selectable inputs 239 can be utilized to allow a user to accept or reject a particular portion of the image displayed on image preview area 234. For example, the identifier 238 can point to a particular portion or feature of the image. In this example, the selectable inputs 239 can be utilized by the user to accept or reject the particular portion or feature identified by the identifier 238. In this way, a plurality of contextual information portions 236 can be displayed over different portions of the image and allow a user to accept or reject the job at the different portions of the image. In some examples, the job can be accepted upon acceptance of each of the plurality of contextual information portions 236. In this way, a plurality of different portions of the image displayed within the image preview area 234 can be described and approved or rejected by a user.

[0040] Although the selectable inputs 239 are illustrated within the contextual information portion 236, other examples are also possible. For example, the selectable inputs 239 can be positioned at a plurality of different locations within the image preview area 234 and / or the information area 232. In these examples, the selectable inputs 239 can be positioned outside the contextual information portion 239 to make the selectable inputs 239 more accessible. For example, the selectable inputs 239 can be positioned with other selectable inputs of the user interface 230.86339864 12 / 27

[0041] In some examples, the contextual information displayed within the contextual information portion 236 can include a contextual information summary that can describe a plurality of pages, multiple pages, and / or an entire document. In some examples, the abstraction device can generate contextual information for each of a plurality of pages of a job and utilize the generated contextual information to generate the contextual information summary that is representative of the job. In these examples, contextual information summary can be utilized to summarize the job within the contextual information portion 236.

[0042] Figure 3 illustrates an example table 340 of contextual information. The table 340 can be utilized by an abstraction device to generate contextual information 344 for a job that includes a plurality of pages. In some examples, the table 340 can include a page range 342 and corresponding contextual information 344.

[0043] The table 340 can illustrate how the abstraction device can analyze each page or portion of the total number of pages to generate corresponding contextual information 344. For example, the table 340 can have a page range of “1” with corresponding contextual information 344 that recites “Aspirations : Contribution to increasing sales profit by maximizing interest in distribution channels”. The corresponding contextual information 344 can be generated based on an OCR instructions analysis of page 1 .

[0044] In some examples, the abstraction device can utilize the contextual information 344 for the page range 342 of pages “1 , 2, 3” to generate a contextual information summary (“OVERALL”) for the job.

[0045] Figure 4 illustrates an example of an image forming device 404 for providing contextual information of image data for a job preview. In some examples, the image forming device 404 can include a device 450 (e.g., computing device, controller, etc.) that can include a processor resource 452 (e.g., processor, central processing unit (CPU), etc.) communicatively coupled to a memory resource 454. As described further herein, the memory resource 454 can include instructions 462, 464, 466, 468, 470, that can be executed by the processor resource 452 to perform particular functions. In some examples, the device 450 can be associated with an image forming mechanism 456, a user interface device 458 (e.g., display, touch screen, etc.) and / or communication device 460. In some examples, the device 450 can be part of a multifunction image forming device.86339864 13 / 27

[0046] The image forming device 404 can include an image forming mechanism 456 that is communicatively coupled to the device 450 by a first communication path 408-1. In some examples, the image forming mechanism 456 can be a device that can deposit a print substance (e.g., ink, toner, etc.) that can be deposited on a substrate (e.g., paper, plastic, etc.) to form an image on the substrate. In some examples, the image forming mechanism 456 can be a print engine that is a portion of an image forming device 404? utilized to print images on a substrate. In this way, the image forming mechanism 456 can be a device that generates an image based on image data associated with the job data.

[0047] The image forming device 404 can include a user interface device 458 that is communicatively coupled to the device 450 by a second communication path 408-2. In some examples, the user interface device 458 can be a display device, such as a monitor, that can be utilized to display images such as, but not limited to a user interface. In these examples, the user interface can be a displayed set of images and / or selectable inputs to allow a user to interact with the image forming device 404. That is, the user interface device 458 can be a touchscreen that displays images of a user interface that can be selected by a user utilizing the touchscreen.

[0048] The image forming device 404 can include a communication device 460 that is communicatively coupled to the device 450 by a third communication path 408-3. The communication device 460 can be a wireless communication device or wired communication device to allow the device 450 and / or the image forming device 404 to communicate with remote devices. For example, the communication device 460 can allow the image forming device 404 to communicate with a remote cloud resource device to perform an OCR process on a scanned image of a job to be executed by the image forming device 404.

[0049] The device 450 can include components such as a processor resource 452. As used herein, the processor resource 452 can include, but is not limited to: a central processing unit (CPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a metal-programmable cell array (MPCA), a semiconductor-based microprocessor, or other combination of circuitry and / or logic to orchestrate execution of instructions 462, 464, 466, 468. In other examples, the device 450 can include instructions 462, 464, 466, 468, stored on a machine- readable medium (e.g., memory resource 454, non-transitory computer-readable medium, etc.) and executable by a processor resource 452. In a specific example,86339864 14 / 27 the device 450 utilizes a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions 462, 464, 466, 468, that, when executed, cause the processor resource 452 to perform corresponding functions.

[0050] In some examples, the device 450 can include instructions 462 to cause the communication device to receive job data that includes image data. The job data can include data to be executed by the image forming device 404. For example, the job data can include printing instructions, scanning instructions, faxing instructions or other instructions for performing a job. In some examples, the job data can include specifications for performing the job, such as, but not limited to: a sheet size, an image size, a color specification, a quantity of copies, a post printing process specification, and / or a plurality of other specifications that define how the image forming device 404 is to perform the job.

[0051] The image data can refer to scanned images of the pictures, objects, text, or other images that are to be printed, scanned, faxed and / or utilized by the image forming device 404 to perform the job. In this way, the job data can be data relating to how a job is to be performed and the images to be utilized in performing the job. In some examples, the job data can include the image data with additional data to execute the job utilizing the image data.

[0052] In some examples, the device 450 can include instructions 464 to provide contextual information about the job data. As described herein, the contextual information can include a contextual description of the job data. In some examples, the device 450 can provide the contextual information by generating the contextual information from the job data or obtaining the contextual information from a source (e.g., remote device, etc.). The contextual information can be a description of image data associated with the job data. For example, the image data can include pictures, text, or other objects to be utilized by the image forming device. In this example, the contextual information can be a description of at least a portion of the pictures, text, or other objects. In some examples, a contextual summary can be provided to describe the image data associated with the job data as a whole.

[0053] In some examples, the device 450 can include OCR instructions to perform optical character recognition on a scanned image of the image data associated with the job. The OCR data extracted from the scanned image of the image data can be utilized by an abstraction device. In these examples, the device86339864 15 / 27450 can include an abstraction device to utilize the OCR data to provide the contextual information about the job data.

[0054] In other examples, the device 450 can receive the contextual information about the job from a remote device (e.g., cloud resource, etc.) utilizing the communication device 460. In these examples, the device 450 can provide the contextual information about the job data by displaying the contextual information on the user interface device 458 through the second communication path 408-2. As described herein, the contextual information about the job data can be displayed on the user interface device 458 such that the contextual information is displayed over a portion of a displayed preview image of the job.

[0055] In some examples, the device 450 can include instructions 466 to provide a preview image of the job data. In some examples, the preview image of the job data can include a visual representation of the images to be utilized in the job. The visual representation of the preview image can be displayed on the user interface device 458 to allow a user to review the job. In some examples, the preview image can be a visual representation of how images of the job data appear when the job is completed by the image forming device 404.

[0056] In one example, the preview image can be a visual representation of a print job performed by the image forming device 404. In this example, image forming device 404 can provide the preview image to the user interface device 458 to be displayed. In this example, the preview image can represent how the image data will appear when the image is printed on a substrate. In response to a user accepting the preview image, the image forming device 404 can provide the job data to the image forming mechanism 456 to generate the images on a substrate.

[0057] In some examples, the device 450 can include instructions 468 to cause the user interface device 458 to output the preview image and the contextual information. In these examples, the user interface device 458 outputs the preview image and the contextual information on the same display screen. In some examples, the device 450 can output the preview image and the contextual information to the user interface device 458. As described herein, the preview image and the contextual information can be provided simultaneously on the user interface device 458. In some examples, the contextual information can be displayed over a portion of the preview image.86339864 16 / 27

[0058] In some examples, the contextual information can be displayed within a contextual information portion displayed on the preview image. In these examples, the contextual information portion can include an identifier that can be directed to a particular portion or object of the preview image. In this way, the identifier can indicate a particular portion of the preview image that is being described by the contextual information within the contextual information portion.

[0059] In some examples, the user interface device 458 outputs at least one of a visual or an audio representation of the contextual information. The visual representation can be the contextual information displayed within the contextual information portion of the user interface device 458. The audio representation can be executed by a text-to-voice device to generate an audio representation of the contextual information. The audio representation can be provided through a speaker system associated with the image forming device 404. In these examples, the audio representation can be executed when the visual representation is displayed on the user interface device 458.

[0060] In some examples, the user interface device 458 provides a selectable input on whether to perform the image forming job or not. As described herein, the selectable input can be displayed within the contextual information portion of the user interface device 458. The selectable input can be selected by a user utilizing the user interface device 458. For example, the selectable input can include a first selectable input to accept the print job or portion of the print job and a second selectable input to reject the print job or portion of the print job.

[0061] In some examples, the device 450 can include instructions 470 to cause the image forming mechanism to perform an image forming job based on an input to the user interface device 458. As described herein, the user interface device 458 can include selectable inputs to allow a user to make selections related to the image forming job (e.g., print job, scan job, fax job, etc.). In this way, a user can make selections utilizing the selectable inputs from the user interface device 458 to initiate the image forming job.

[0062] Figure 5 illustrates an example of a memory resource 545 for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview. In some examples, the memory resource 545 can be a part of a computing device or controller that can be communicatively coupled to a computing system and / or an image forming device. For example, the memory resource 545 can be part of a device 450 as referenced in86339864 17 / 27Figure 4. In some examples, the memory resource 545 can be communicatively coupled to a processor resource 552 (e.g., processor, CPU, etc.) that can execute instructions 572, 574, 576, 578, 579 stored on the memory resource 545. For example, the memory resource 545 can be communicatively coupled to the processor resource 552 through a communication path 508. In some examples, a communication path 508 can include a wired or wireless connection that can allow communication between devices and / or components within a single device.

[0063] The memory resource 545 may be an electronic, magnetic, optical, or other physical storage device that stores executable instructions. Thus, a non- transitory machine readable medium (MRM) (e.g., a memory resource 545) may be, for example, a non-transitory MRM comprising Random-Access Memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), an Electrically-Erasable Programmable ROM (EEPROM), a storage drive, an optical disc, and the like. The non-transitory machine readable medium (e.g., a memory resource 545) may be disposed within a controller and / or computing device. In this example, the executable instructions 572, 574, 576, 578, 579 can be “installed” on the device. Additionally, and / or alternatively, the non- transitory machine readable medium (e.g., a memory resource 545) can be a portable, external or remote storage medium, for example, that allows a computing system to download the instructions 572, 574, 576, 578, 579 from the portable / external / remote storage medium. In this situation, the executable instructions may be part of an “installation package”. As described herein, the non- transitory machine readable medium (e.g., a memory resource 545) can be encoded with executable instructions for providing a contextual information about image data for a job preview.

[0064] The instructions 572, when executed by a processor such as the processor resource 552, can include instructions to receive image data. In some examples, the image data can be received from a computing device. For example, a computing device can be communicatively coupled to an image forming device to send job data to the image forming device to perform a particular job utilizing the job data. In these examples, the job data can include the image data to be utilized to execute the job. For example, the job data can include image data to be scanned by the image forming device. In this example, the image data can be received at the image forming device along with the job data that includes instructions for scanning the image data.86339864 18 / 27

[0065] In other examples, the image data can be received at a remote device. In these examples, the image data can be provided by the computing device and / or the image forming device. In these examples, the remote device can be a cloud resource that can include an OCR device, OCR instructions, and / or an abstraction device to analyze the received image data.

[0066] The instructions 574, when executed by a processor such as the processor resource 552, can include instructions to generate a contextual summary of the image data. As described herein, the contextual summary of the image data can include contextual information related to the image data of the job. Contextual information can include information related to the context of the image data. For example, the image data can include pictures, objects, and / or text that can be scanned as an image. The image data can be utilized by an OCR device executing OCR instructions to generate the contextual information. In some examples, the contextual information can be utilized by an abstraction device to generate a contextual summary of the image data. In this way, the contextual summary can be a description of the pictures, objects, and / or text within the image data associated with a particular job.

[0067] In some examples, the processor can display a contextual summary of the contextual information overlaid on images corresponding to the plurality of pages. The contextual information can be located within a contextual information portion that is overlaid on images. In this way, the contextual information and / or the contextual information portion may block or cover a portion of the images displayed on the user interface of the image forming device. In some examples, the contextual information or contextual summary can be in a font size that is based on a size of the contextual information portion in order to be readable for a user utilizing the user interface. In some examples, the contextual information can be limited to a particular quantity of words based on the size of the contextual information portion and / or a size of the image preview portion of the user interface. For example, the contextual information and / or contextual summary can be limited to a single sentence, which can be displayed in a size that is readable to a user utilizing the user interface.

[0068] The contextual summary can include selectable inputs to indicate approval or disapproval of a corresponding page of the plurality of pages. For example, the contextual information portion can include selectable inputs to allow a user to make particular selections that relate to the job. For example, the selectable86339864 19 / 27 inputs can be generated based on the contextual information and / or contextual summary within the contextual information portion. In this example, the first type of contextual information can include a first set of selectable inputs, and a second type of contextual information can include a second set of selectable inputs. In a specific example, the first type of contextual information can be related to a single page of the job and include selectable inputs to move to a different page. In this specific example, the second type of contextual information can be the contextual summary for multiple pages of the job and include selectable inputs to either accept or reject the job.

[0069] In some examples, the processor resource can provide the contextual summary to a text-to-voice device associated with the image forming device. In these examples, the contextual summary includes an option to accept or reject the job. In these examples, the contextual summary can be delivered to a user through an audio representation of the contextual summary and the options to accept or reject the job can be provided by a user either through the user interface or through an auditory response from the user.

[0070] The instructions 576, when executed by a processor such as the processor resource 552, can include instructions to generate a preview image from the image data. As described herein, the preview image can be a visual representation of how the images of the job are presented upon completion of the job. For example, the preview image can be a visual representation of a completed scan job by the printing job.

[0071] The instructions 578, when executed by a processor such as the processor resource 552, can include instructions to cause the contextual summary and the preview image to be displayed on a user interface device. In some examples, the user interface device can be a touchscreen device that displays a user interface. In some examples, the user interface device can be coupled to the image forming device. In these examples, the user interface device can be utilized to select settings or execute functions to be performed by the image forming device. In other examples, the user interface device can be part of or coupled to a computing device. For example, the user interface device can be a device to display a user interface of a computing device that allows a user to select settings and / or send job data to an image forming device. As described herein, the job data can be executed by the image forming device.86339864 20 / 27

[0072] As described herein, the contextual summary can be displayed simultaneously with the preview image. In some examples, the preview image is displayed under a portion of the contextual summary and / or under a portion of a contextual information portion. In this way, the contextual summary can be highlighted to allow a user to more easily review the contextual summary over reviewing the preview image. In some examples, the contextual summary includes selectable inputs to remove the contextual summary or minimize the contextual summary to allow a user to view the preview image more easily.

[0073] The instructions 579, when executed by a processor such as the processor resource 552, can include instructions to cause an image forming device to perform an image forming job based on an input to the user interface device of the image forming device. As described herein, the user can accept the image forming job through a selection of a selectable input of the user interface device. In other examples, the user can accept, change, update, or reject the image forming job associated with the image forming device.

[0074] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a method 680 for providing contextual information about image data for a job preview. The method 680 can be performed by processing logic that can include hardware (e.g., processing device, circuitry, dedicated logic, programmable logic, microcode, hardware of a device, integrated circuit, etc.), instructions run or executed by a processing device, or a combination thereof. In some examples, the method 680 is performed by the image forming device 404 as referenced in Figure 4. Although shown in a particular sequence or order, unless otherwise specified, the order of the processes can be modified.

[0075] At step 682, the method 680 can include obtaining job data that includes image data. As described herein, job data can be a set of data that includes instructions for performing an image forming job. The job data can include specifications for how to execute the image forming job. For example, the job data can include specifications for color preferences, size specifications, post printing operations, sending preferences, address preferences, file format preferences, among other specifications that can be utilized by image forming devices.

[0076] The image data can refer to the images to be utilized when executing the image forming job. The image data can include, but is not limited to pictures, objects, background colors, text, among other features that can be captured as an86339864 21 / 27 image. In this way, the image data can be part of the job data such that the image forming device can execute the image forming job to represent the images from the image data.

[0077] At step 684, the method 680 can include generating contextual information from the image data. In some examples, the contextual information is generated based on image data that includes no textual information. As described herein, the contextual information can be extracted utilizing OCR instructions. In some examples, the OCR instructions can be part of the image forming device and / or can be part of a remote device. Extracting the contextual information can include extracting a summary or information to summarize a particular page of a job, a portion of a job, and / or a complete job. In some examples, the contextual information can be a shortened description of the context of the image data. In this way, the image data can be reviewed utilizing the extracted contextual information to determine whether the image data is the correct image data to be utilized for a particular image forming job.

[0078] At step 686, the method 680 can include obtaining a preview image of the image data of the job data. Obtaining a preview image can include utilizing the job data to generate a visual representation of what an outcome of the image forming job will produce when the image forming job is performed. In this way, a user can preview the image forming job prior to executing the image forming job. This can utilize fewer resources than reviewing a job after executing the image forming job. As described herein, the preview image can be difficult to review utilizing a user interface of an image forming device. For example, the preview image may look similar to other preview images when a majority of a page is textual image. In other examples, the preview image may look similar to other photos when there is no text in the preview image.

[0079] At step 688, the method 680 can include incorporating the contextual information on a portion of the preview image. As described herein, incorporating the contextual information on a portion of the preview image can make it easier to review the preview image and confirm that the image data is the intended image data for the image forming job. In some examples, the contextual information can be incorporated into the preview image at particular locations based on the contextual information. For example, the contextual information can relate to an image within the preview image. In this example, an indicator can point at the image and the86339864 22 / 27 contextual information can be positioned within a corresponding contextual information portion associated with the indicator.

[0080] In some examples, the method 680 can include generating selectable inputs for the contextual information and incorporating the selectable inputs on a portion of the preview image. As described herein, the selectable inputs can be generated and / or incorporated into the contextual information to allow a user at the user interface to navigate a plurality of pages and corresponding contextual information about the plurality of pages. For example, the selectable inputs can allow a user to navigate from a first contextual information portion to a second contextual information portion. In some examples, the first contextual information portion and the second contextual information portion can be on the same page or on different pages of an image forming job.

[0081] In some examples, the method 680 can include generating a job summary for a plurality of pages associated with the job data based on the contextual information associated with each of a plurality of pages associated with the job data. As described herein, the contextual information can be generated for each of a plurality of pages of an image forming job. In these examples, the contextual information about the plurality of pages can be utilized to generate a job summary for the plurality of pages.

[0082] In the foregoing detailed description of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration how examples of the disclosure may be practiced. These examples are described in sufficient detail to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to practice the examples of this disclosure, and it is to be understood that other examples may be utilized and that process, electrical, and / or structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Further, as used herein, “a” refers to one such thing or more than one such thing.

[0083] The figures herein follow a numbering convention in which the first digit corresponds to the drawing figure number and the remaining digits identify an element or component in the drawing. For example, reference numeral 102 may refer to element 102 in Figure 1 and an analogous element may be identified by reference numeral 302 in Figure 3. Elements shown in the various figures herein can be added, exchanged, and / or eliminated to provide additional examples of the disclosure. In addition, the proportion and the relative scale of the elements86339864 23 / 27 provided in the figures are intended to illustrate the examples of the disclosure and should not be taken in a limiting sense.

[0084] It can be understood that when an element is referred to as being "on," "connected to", “coupled to”, or "coupled with" another element, it can be directly on, connected, or coupled with the other element or intervening elements may be present. In contrast, when an object is “directly coupled to” or “directly coupled with” another element it is understood that are no intervening elements (adhesives, screws, other elements) etc.

[0085] The above specification, examples, and data provide a description of the system and method of the disclosure. Since many examples can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the system and method of the disclosure, this specification merely sets forth some of the many possible example configurations and implementations.

Claims

86339864 24 / 27What is claimed is:

1. An image forming device, comprising: an image forming mechanism; a user interface device; a communication device; a processor; and a non-transitory memory resource storing machine-readable instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause the processor to: cause the communication device to receive job data that includes image data; provide contextual information about the job data; provide a preview image of the job data; cause the user interface device to output the preview image and the contextual information; and cause the image forming mechanism to perform an image forming job based on an input to the user interface device.

2. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the contextual information is a contextual summary of the job data.

3. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the processor is to provide the contextual information by generating the contextual information from the job data or obtaining the contextual information from a source.

4. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the user interface device outputs at least one of a visual or an audio representation of the contextual information.

5. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the contextual information includes an identifier that identifies a particular portion of the preview image.

6. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the user interface device outputs the preview image and the contextual information on a same display screen.86339864 25 / 277. The image forming device of claim 1 , wherein the user interface device provides a selectable input on whether to perform the image forming job or not8. A non-transitory memory resource storing machine-readable instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a processor to: receive image data; generate a contextual summary of the image data; generate a preview image from the image data; cause the contextual summary and the preview image to be displayed on a user interface device; and cause an image forming device to perform an image forming job based on an input to the user interface device.

9. The memory resource of claim 8, wherein the processor is to display the contextual summary overlaid on images corresponding to a plurality of pages of the image forming job.

10. The memory resource of claim 9, wherein the processor is to display selectable inputs to indicate approval or disapproval of a corresponding page of the plurality of pages, wherein the selectable inputs include an option to accept or reject the image forming job.11 . The memory resource of claim 9, wherein the processor is to provide the contextual summary to a text-to-voice device associated with the image forming device.

12. A method, comprising: obtaining job data that includes image data; generating contextual information about the image data; obtaining a preview image of the image data of the job data; and incorporating the contextual information on a portion of the preview image.86339864 26 / 2713. The method of claim 12, further comprising generating selectable inputs to indicate approval or disapproval of the job and incorporating the selectable inputs on a portion of the preview image.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the contextual information includes an identifier that points to a particular portion of the preview image.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the contextual information is generated without utilizing textual information from the image data.

Images