Image Scanner Confidential Document Sending Verification

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing image reading systems lack the capability to prevent erroneous sending of highly confidential documents by not adequately verifying the sending history and job conditions before transmitting sensitive documents.

Innovation Solution

An image reading apparatus equipped with a scanner, memory for storing addresses and job conditions, and circuitry to identify users, determine document types, search sending histories, and display confirmation messages before sending documents, ensuring that highly confidential documents are not sent erroneously.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the system automatically sends documents without verification, then productivity is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to potential erroneous sending of confidential documents

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument sending speedVSAvoidaccuracy of document sending

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary verification by checking sending history and document type classification before the actual sending operation. The circuitry checks whether a confidential document has been sent to the same address before, and displays a confirmation screen to the user before final transmission, preventing erroneous sending while maintaining efficient workflow.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If the system adds verification steps for confidential documents, then reliability is improved, but device complexity worsens

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccuracy of document sendingVSAvoidsystem structure

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses feedback from sending history stored in memory to determine whether verification is needed. The circuitry references past sending records to check if the same confidential document type has been sent to the same address before, and only triggers confirmation screens when necessary, adding intelligence without excessive complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The verification mechanism is applied selectively based on document type and sending history rather than uniformly to all documents. The system identifies confidential documents and applies additional verification only to them, while routine documents are sent automatically without interruption, optimizing the balance between reliability and complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

3Reliability

If the system verifies sending history for each confidential document, then reliability is improved, but loss of time worsens

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccuracy of document sendingVSAvoidverification time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs partial verification by checking only the necessary elements (document type classification and sending history match) rather than comprehensive review. The circuitry quickly compares current document characteristics against stored history records, performing just enough verification to prevent erroneous sending without excessive time consumption.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS12294680B2Image reading apparatus, image reading method, and non-transitory recording medium

Publication Date: 2025.05.06 RICOH CO LTD

AI summary

An image reading apparatus includes a scanner to read a document, a memory to store an address and a job condition of the document read by the scanner, and circuitry to identify a user, send the document read by the scanner to the address under the job condition, determine whether a type of the document read by the scanner is a confidential document, search a number of times the confidential document has been sent to the address in the memory when the type of the document is determined as the confidential document, and display, on a screen, a message whether to send the document read by the scanner to the address under the job condition when the number of the times is less than a predetermined times.