Distributed office automation system with specific task assignment among workstations

Claim 1

An office automation system, comprising: intelligent units interconnected by a local network; each intelligent unit comprising a memory which stores program modules for performing specific tasks and control means; each of said control means including process means for executing said program modules, means for determining data concerning loading of the processor means, means for repeatedly transmitting the determined data concerning loading of the processor means and data identifying available ones of the program modules together with selection data to the other control means, means for receiving data concerning load of processor means and data identifying available program modules together with selection data from the other control means, means for maintaining in the memory data identifying all the program modules available in the system together with selection data based on the received data identifying available program modules and the received selection data and for maintaining in the memory data concerning loading of all the processor means in the system based on the received data concerning loading of processor means, means for designating one of said program modules in the system required to perform a specific task by reference to said data identifying all the program modules available in the system together with said selection data and to said data concerning loading of all the processor means, and means for establishing a connection to the intelligent unit in which resides said designated program module for executing said designated program module by the processor means of the connected intelligent unit, thereby having the specific task performed.