Processing system and method for connecting a remote USB device automatically

Processing system and method for automatic connection with remote USB device

The present invention relates to a processing system and method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device. More specifically, it relates to establishing and disconnecting a connection between a users computer and a USB device using USB over IP technology. A processing system and method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device.

Technological advances have increased the types of computer peripherals. In order to provide common communication channels and better transmission speeds between devices, computer peripherals connected by USB technology are becoming more and more common, such as printers, fax machines or MFPs. All other USB devices can be connected to the computer via USB for the computer to use. Moreover, with the development of network technology and the demand for sharing USB devices, USB over IP technology came into being.

The content of USB over IP technology is mainly to connect multiple computers to a relay server through a network, and the relay server is connected to a USB device through a USB port. Only when any computer wants to use the USB device To connect, in other words, although the computer and the USB device are connected through a network and a transmission line, the USB device is only connected when the computer makes a connection request, and other computers that have not made a connection request cannot get the service. Although the USB over IP technology allows multiple computers to share a USB device over the network, the connection between the computer and the USB device is through a relay server and the USB device through a USB connection, if the computer requesting the connection is connected with The USB device establishes a connection relationship, but the USB device forgets to disconnect the connection after providing the service, which will make other computers unable to establish a connection with the USB device. Specifically, the other computers that want to use the USB device must wait for the connected computer to disconnect The connection request to be made can be sent to the USB device after connection, so that the waiter needs to continuously observe the connection status of the remote USB device, so the existing USB over IP technology is used to connect to the remote USB device There is a problem of inconvenience in use.

As shown in Figure 1, the conventional remote USB device connection system provides a user operation interface with a manual connection tool 30. The manual connection tool 30 provides two functions of connect and disconnect. However, This function is only for the user to manually connect or disconnect with the remote USB device; in addition, the operation interface will only list the available devices for the user to choose, and the user still needs to personally choose the one to be connected USB device. It is known from the above that the existing remote USB device connection system is limited to the user manually setting the USB device to be connected, and the user still needs to manually connect and disconnect the USB device, so it is indeed inconvenient for the user to operate.

Therefore, how to make a USB device not only provide services for connecting multiple computers, but also avoid the problem that any computer establishes a connection relationship with the USB device and continues to occupy the connection after the USB device provides services. It is a technical problem that is urgently to be solved at present.

In view of the shortcomings of the above-mentioned conventional technology, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a processing system and method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device, thereby preventing any computer from establishing a connection relationship with the USB device and connecting to the USB device. After providing the corresponding service, it continues to occupy the connection problem to improve the convenience of using the remote USB device.

In order to achieve the foregoing and other objectives, the present invention provides a processing system that automatically connects to a remote USB device, which is built into the user's computer to detect that the queue area of the user's computer is stored and not The sent request message to connect and disconnect the users computer and the USB device through the USB server, including: the corresponding unit, which obtains the device information of the USB device through the USB server, and communicates with the user The drive information in the computer is compared to find the matching USB device that can be used by the users computer; the detection unit is used to detect the status of the queue area storing the request message; the control unit is used to A connection request is generated based on the request message sent by the user's computer, and a disconnection request is generated based on the condition detected by the detection unit that the request message stored in the queue has been cleared; and the transmission unit, which is Send the connection request or disconnection request generated by the control unit to the USB server, so that the USB server establishes a connection between the user's computer and the USB device found by the detection unit according to the connection request , Or interrupt the connection between the users computer and the USB device according to the disconnect request.

In addition, the present invention also provides a processing method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device, which is used to provide a user's computer with a network system and a USB server connected to the USB device to establish a connection with and disconnect the USB device. Cable, including the following steps: (1) the users computer searches for a USB device that can be used by the users computer from the USB server through the network system; (2) it detects that the users computer sends a request message, then The user computer detects the connection status of the USB device through the USB server according to the request message. If the detection result of the connection status is idle, the USB server establishes a connection between the user computer and the USB device. Go to step (3); if the detection result of the connection status is busy, continue to detect the connection status of the USB device until the detection result of the connection status is idle, then go to Step (3); (3) The USB device performs the corresponding service according to the request message sent by the user's computer; and (4) After detecting that the USB device has completed the corresponding service according to all the request messages sent by the user's computer To make the USB server interrupt the connection between the user's computer and the USB device.

In another embodiment of the processing method for automatic connection with a remote USB device of the present invention, in step (1), the user computer searches the USB server for use by the user computer through the network system The USB device is found based on the device information of the connected USB device stored in the USB server. The device information is compared with the drive information stored in the users computer. If the comparison matches, then Treated as a USB device that can be used by the user's computer.

Compared with the conventional technology, the processing system and method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device of the present invention not only solves the problem that users must connect and disconnect themselves through USB over IP technology in the conventional technology, but also It avoids the problems of unused busy line, waiting for connection, and the need to find and correspond to the usable USB device by oneself, and also makes it easier for users to perform the service request process.

The following describes the technical content of the present invention with specific specific examples. Those familiar with the art can easily understand the other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. The present invention can also be implemented or applied by other different specific embodiments.

As shown in FIG. 2, it is a system architecture diagram of the connection between the processing system of the present invention and the remote USB device automatically connected to the USB device by the user on the computer side. As shown in the figure, the users computer 1 and the remote USB device 2 are not physically connected through a USB port, but use USB over IP technology as the connection technology between the two. USB device 2 and USB server 3 are Physically connected through the USB port, the USB server 3 is used as a command or data transmission medium between the user computer 1 and the USB device 2, and the user computer 1 and the USB server 3 are connected through a network system 4, such as a local area Network (LAN) for connection, and the network system 4 can be a wireless network or a wired network, so the USB server 3 has a network protocol for communicating with the network system 4 to communicate with The USB port to which the USB device is connected and the firmware used to communicate with the processing system 14 of the present invention can be implemented by network equipment such as an IP USB Hub, an IP sharer with a USB port, or a router with a USB port. The USB server 3, in this way, allows multiple user computers 1 to share the remote USB device 2 through the USB server 3.

In the specific embodiment of the present invention, the user computer 1 needs to be installed with a USB device driver 11, a USB over IP driver 12, an operating system 13, and the processing system 14 of the present invention that automatically connects to a remote USB device. When the user's computer 1 is turned on, the processing system 14 automatically connected to the remote USB device can be resident under the operating system 13, so as to detect the request message controlled by the operating system 13 at any time, and according to the request Message and drive the USB device driver 11 and USB over IP driver 12 to act in a timely manner. Specifically, when the user computer 1 wants to use the remote USB device 2, the processing system 14 automatically connected to the remote USB device detects the request message generated by the operating system 13, and the The processing system 14 for the automatic connection of the remote USB device transmits connection information through the USB over IP driver 12, thereby establishing a connection between the user's computer 1 and the USB device 2. At this time, the remote USB device automatically The connected processing system 14 causes the operating system 13 to control the USB device driver 11 to generate the command or data corresponding to the request message through the detected request message, and then the USB device driver 11 generates the command or data corresponding to the request message. The IP driver 12 intercepts and analyzes it and then transmits it to the USB server 3 through the network system 4. Finally, the USB server 3 receives it and forwards it to the remote USB device 2 to complete the request message to be executed. As shown in the figure, the processing system 14, the operating system 13, the USB device driver 11, and the USB over IP driver 12 that are automatically connected to the remote USB device in the user's computer 1 transmit command messages for the user Commands to be executed on the USB device 2, such as printing, faxing, etc., and the message commands transmitted between the processing system 14 automatically connected to the remote USB device and the USB over IP driver 12 are performed with the USB device 2 Connect or disconnect instructions.

On the other hand, the processing system 14 that is automatically connected to the remote USB device also detects the command message sent back from the USB device 2 to the user computer 1 at any time, and the command message is analyzed by the USB over IP driver 12 and then sent to The USB device driver 11 automatically interrupts the connection between the user's computer 1 and the USB device 2 after detecting that the USB device 2 completes the service of the request message. Therefore, the processing system of the present invention that automatically connects to the remote USB device utilizes USB over IP technology so that the user only needs to send a request message through the operating system 13 to make the local user's computer 1 and the remote USB device 2 automatically Establish connection or disconnection, so it is very easy to use and operate.

As shown in FIG. 3, it is a block diagram of the basic system architecture of the processing system of the present invention that automatically connects to the remote USB device. As shown in the figure, the processing system 21 for automatically connecting with the remote USB device of the present invention provides the user computer 20 to connect to the remote USB device 22 through the USB server 23, which automatically connects with the remote USB device. The line processing system 21 includes: a corresponding unit 211, a detection unit 212, a control unit 213, and a transmission unit 214. The processing system 21 for automatically connecting with the remote USB device mainly provides the connection control between the user's computer 20 and the remote USB device 22, thereby achieving the function of automatic connection when in use and automatic disconnection when not in use . It should be noted that since the operating system 26, the USB device driver 25 and the USB over IP driver 27 are generally well-known computer peripheral device control processing technologies, the following will not describe their functions and internal structure in further detail. To simplify the diagram and description, the system architecture here only describes the system components related to the present invention.

The corresponding unit 211 obtains the device information of the remote USB device 22 through the USB server 23, and compares it with the drive information of the USB device driver 25 of the user's computer 20 to find out which is available for the user's computer 20 the remote USB device 22 used; in detail, the corresponding unit 211 helps to find the USB device 22 that the user computer 20 can use, and connects the remote USB device 22 (ie, the physical device) with the user computer The device drive information stored in 20 is used for correspondence to find available devices for automatic connection function. Among them, the vendor ID and product of the remote USB device 22 are retrieved through the USB server 23. Device information such as vendor ID and serial number. Since the USB server 23 and the USB device 22 are connected through a USB interface, the aforementioned device information can be retrieved through the USB standard. Finally, It is compared with the device driver information in the user computer 20. The device driver information can be a registry file (Registry) stored in the operating system 26 of the user computer 20 to confirm whether the remote USB device 22 is Can connect and provide services.

The detection unit 212 is used to detect the request message sent by the user computer 20; after the corresponding unit 211 completes the setting of the USB device 22 that can be used by the user computer 20, the detection unit 212 starts The user computer 20 is continuously detected to know whether the user computer 20 sends a request message. In other words, it starts to monitor whether the queue 24 provided by the operating system 26 for receiving the request message stores the request message. It is known whether it is necessary to connect the remote USB device 22 and provide corresponding services according to the request message.

In addition, when the detection unit 212 detects that the queue area 24 has a request message, it also obtains the status of the USB device 22 through the USB server 23, because the USB server 23 controls whether the USB device 22 is compatible with any A user computer is connected. Therefore, the connection status of the USB device 22 can be understood through the USB server 23.

The control unit 213 is used to generate a connection request based on the request message sent by the user computer 20, and to generate an interrupt connection based on the condition detected by the detection unit 212 that the request message stored in the queue area 24 has been cleared. Line request.

The transmission unit 214 transmits the connection request and disconnection request generated by the control unit 213 to the USB server 23, thereby allowing the user computer 20 to automatically establish or disconnect the connection with the USB device 22 In a specific embodiment, when the USB device 22 is in a state where a connection is not established with the user computer 20, the control unit 213 transmits a connection request for connection through the transmission unit 214, after passing through USB over IP The driver 27 is received and forwarded to the USB server 23 to establish the connection relationship between the user computer 20 and the USB device 22 by the USB server 23.

On the other hand, if the control unit 213 of the local users computer 20 generates the connection request at the same time, the remote USB device 22 is already occupied by the other users computer (not shown here), then the local The queue area 24 of the user computer 20 still stores the request message corresponding to the connection request until the user computer at the other end interrupts the connection relationship with the USB device 22 and releases the right to use the USB device 22, The USB server 23 can establish a connection between the user computer 20 and the USB device 22 according to the connection request sent by the control unit 213 of the local user computer 20.

In addition, when the request message sent by the local user computer 20 that has established a connection relationship with the USB device 22 has been executed by the USB device 22, and the content stored in the queue area 24 of the local user computer 20 has been When it is cleared, that is, the detection unit 212 of the local user computer 20 detects that the queue 24 does not have a request message, the control unit 213 transmits the request for disconnection through the transmission unit 214, and its purpose is When the local user computer 20 does not need to use the USB device 22, the connection relationship between it and the USB device 22 will be automatically interrupted, thereby avoiding the use of the USB interface as a two-end device for data under the application of USB over IP technology Transmission exclusive connection problem.

In a specific embodiment, the USB device is a printer or a multifunction printer, and the request message is a print request, thereby achieving automatic connection to execute the print process.

Furthermore, in another specific embodiment, the USB device can also be a fax machine, and the request message is a fax request, thereby achieving automatic connection to execute the fax procedure. In other words, the connection method of a fax machine with a USB port under the application of USB over IP technology is the same as that described above, and the detection method is used to determine whether there is any demand to determine the automatic connection between the user's computer and the fax machine with a USB port. Or automatically disconnect, so the aforementioned technical content can also be applied to the fax program.

In addition, in order to confirm the usage status and records of the USB device 22 used by the user computer 20 that is installed with the processing system 21 automatically connected to the remote USB device of the present invention, a monitoring system (here (Not shown), the monitoring system includes a user identification module, a usage time management module, and a usage record storage module. The user identification module includes at least one user identification account and an account corresponding to the user identification account. Password, the user identification account is used by the user computer 20 to request the USB server 23 to establish the connection authority identification for the connection between the user computer 20 and the USB device 22. In other words, the user at the user computer 20 wants to use the USB For the device 22, the user identification account and the password corresponding to the user identification account must be entered, otherwise the USB device 22 cannot be used, and the users computer 20 and the USB server 23 can be connected with the account password Verification, thereby enhancing the safety of the system. The user identification account and password are provided by the users computer 20 to the USB server 23 when the USB over IP driver 22 of the users computer 20 and the USB server 23 are in a TCP/IP connection. If the comparison is wrong, an error code will be sent back to the users computer 20, and the TCP/IP connection will be terminated immediately.

The usage time management module is used to store the corresponding usage time regulation information for the user identification account, and the usage time regulation information can be set by the equipment manager, and the usage time regulation information can be the time limit for connection use or the connection allowed. For example, set the allowed connection time for user A. The allowed connection time is from 8 am to 6 pm every day. Therefore, when user A wants to establish a connection with the USB device 22 When online, the use time management module of the USB server 23 checks whether the time when the user A requests to establish a connection meets the time allowed for the connection. If not, the USB server also returns an error code to The user computer 20 immediately ends the TCP/IP connection.

The usage record storage module is used to record the user identification account that made the connection request or established the connection relationship or the user identification account of the disconnected relationship, and the record is used as a check for the user to use the USB device 22 It can be used to effectively grasp the user's use of the USB device.

As shown in Figure 4, it is a flow chart of the processing method for automatic connection between the present invention and the remote USB device. As shown in the figure, in step S401, a USB device that can be used by the user's computer is searched, that is, a USB device that can be used on the user's computer is first found and the target is automatically connected by default, for subsequent follow-up Automatically connect when the request message is generated. The aforementioned search basis is to compare the USB device information stored in the USB server with the drive information stored in the users computer. One of the available USB devices is automatically connected by default. Then proceed to step S402.

In this step S402, it is detected whether the user computer sends a request message, and the request message is stored in the queue area. If the user computer sends a request message, step S403 is entered; otherwise, if the user computer does not send a request Message, continue to step S402.

In step S403, the user's computer detects the connection status of the remote USB device through the USB server; at this time, there are two situations, one is the idle state, the other is the busy state, if the remote USB device is idle If the remote USB device is busy, then proceed to step S404.

In step S404, because the remote USB device is in a busy state, the user's computer that submitted the request message waits for the other user's computer to disconnect from the remote USB device, and returns to step S403.

In step S405, because the remote USB device is in an idle state, the user computer that sends the request message can automatically connect to the remote USB device through the network system and USB server using the USB over IP technology, and then proceed to Go to step S406.

In step S406, the remote USB device executes the corresponding service according to the user computer that submitted the request message, and then proceeds to step S407.

In step S407, it is detected whether there are other request messages on the local end of the user's computer; that is, it is checked whether the local queue area has been cleared. If the local queue area is not cleared, there are other request messages. Return to step S406, so that the remote USB device executes the corresponding service according to the request message; otherwise, if the local queue area is cleared, that is, there is no other request message, go to step S408.

In step S408, the connection between the user's computer and the remote USB device that sent the request message is disconnected, so that the other end of the user's computer can be connected to avoid an exclusive connection.

It should be noted that, in the aforementioned step S401, before comparing the USB device information stored in the USB server with the drive information stored in the user's computer, the USB server must first check the user's computer In short, both the USB server and the users computer have a user identification account. Therefore, when the user identification account of the user computer matches the user identification account of the USB server, the USB The server permits the user's computer to find and compare the USB devices available for its use and perform the comparison.

Furthermore, before performing the aforementioned step S403, that is, before the user computer detects the connection status of the remote USB device, the USB server must first check whether the time when the user computer sends the request message is consistent with the usable USB device Time, so that the USB server can effectively manage the time when each user computer uses the USB device.

In addition, when the aforementioned steps S405 and S408 are executed, that is, when a connection is established or disconnected between the user's computer and the remote USB device, the USB server will record the use of the USB device by the user's computer. This can effectively grasp the user's use of the USB device.

In summary, the present invention proposes a processing system and method for automatically connecting with a remote USB device. Compared with the prior art, the processing system detects the request message sent by the users computer, and based on the remote The connection status of the USB device enables the user's computer to automatically connect to the remote USB device using USB over IP technology to meet the required services. The advantage is that it does not require the user to establish a connection with the remote USB device. Manual disconnection processing is required to avoid exclusive situations. It also has the effect of not requiring the user to correspond to the remote USB device on the users computer; in addition, the processing system is used in conjunction with a USB server with a security mechanism. In addition to effectively controlling the connection of the user's computer to the remote USB device, the connection record can also be saved, so that the processing system and method for automatically connecting with the remote USB device of the present invention provide more complete services.

The above-mentioned embodiments only exemplarily illustrate the principles and effects of the present invention, and are not used to limit the present invention. Anyone who is familiar with this technique can modify and change the above-mentioned embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the rights of the present invention should be listed in the scope of patent application described later.

<p>1,20. . . User computer</p><p>11,25. . . USB device driver</p><p>12,27. . . USB over IP driver</p><p>13,26. . . System</p><p>14,21. . . Processing system for automatic connection with remote USB device</p><p>2,22. . . USB device</p><p>211. . . Corresponding unit</p><p>212. . . Detection unit</p><p>213. . . control unit</p><p>214. . . Transport unit</p><p>twenty four. . . Queue area</p><p>3,23. . . USB server</p><p>30. . . tool</p><p>4. . . Network system</p><p>S401~S408. . . step</p>

Figure 1 provides a user interface with a manual connection tool for the conventional remote USB device connection system;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of the system architecture used to illustrate the connection between the processing system of the present invention and the remote USB device automatically connected to the remote USB device by the user on the computer side;

Figure 3 is a block diagram of the basic system architecture of the processing system for automatic connection between the present invention and the remote USB device; and

Figure 4 is a flow chart of the processing method for automatic connection with a remote USB device according to the present invention.