JP3848063B2 - Image communication apparatus, image communication method, and storage medium - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image communication apparatus capable of transmitting and receiving an electronic mail via a network such as the Internet, and more particularly to an already-read confirmation of an image transmitted by an electronic mail.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, an Internet facsimile apparatus has been proposed as an image communication apparatus capable of transmitting and receiving electronic mail via a network such as the Internet. This Internet facsimile apparatus transmits an image to a receiver by attaching the read image data as a file to an electronic mail.
[0003]
Here, the transmitted electronic mail is transmitted to the destination receiver in a store-and-forward manner via one or more mail servers on the network. Therefore, the transmission result of the image data in the Internet facsimile apparatus is merely a transmission result to the mail server, and the image data is reliably delivered to the receiver from the contents of the communication management report or the transmission result report. It has not been possible to confirm whether or not the content of the image has been read by the recipient.
[0004]
In addition, the receiver side has no effective means for transmitting the read confirmation of the received image to the transmitter side.
[0005]
On the other hand, a technique for performing a read confirmation in electronic mail communication has been proposed.
[0006]
According to RFC2298, the UA (mail user agent) on the transmission side and the UA on the reception side operate as follows, thereby realizing the read confirmation (Message Disposition Notification, hereinafter simply referred to as MDN).
[0007]
(1) When performing the read confirmation, the sending UA adds “Disposition-Notification-To: <reply mail address>” to the mail header and sends the mail.
[0008]
(2) Upon receiving this mail, the receiving UA displays that the sender has requested read confirmation, asks the sender whether to send a read confirmation reply mail, and sends a reply mail. When sending a reply mail with a read confirmation header added, this header is ignored if no reply mail is sent.
[0009]
(3) When the UA on the sending side receives the reply mail for the read confirmation, it displays the mail that has been read.
[0010]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
An object of the present invention is to realize a read confirmation of a transmission image in an Internet facsimile apparatus. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide means for notifying a user of details of a read confirmation status of a transmission image in an Internet facsimile apparatus on the transmitter side.
[0011]
An object of the present invention is to provide an effective means for informing the transmitter side of the read confirmation of the received image in the Internet facsimile apparatus on the receiver side.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  In order to achieve the above object, the invention of the present application is an image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function, wherein e-mail transmission transmits an e-mail attached with an image file. Means, request means for requesting a response e-mail to the e-mail to be transmitted, e-mail transmission means, communication management means for managing transmission information for each e-mail sent, and transmission Control means for updating the transmission information managed by the communication management means based on the reception result of the response e-mail to the received e-mail, the control means further comprising the transmission information managed by the communication management means, Update based on information indicating that a response email to the sent email was not received within a predetermined period of time
[0013]
Preferably, the request unit requests a response e-mail indicating a read confirmation of the e-mail to be transmitted.
[0014]
Preferably, the information processing apparatus further includes selection means for selecting whether or not the request means is executed, and the communication management means manages the presence or absence of a request for a response email as transmission information for each sent email.
[0015]
  Preferably, the control means indicates transmission information managed by the communication management means, indicating that a response e-mail to the sent e-mail has been received.informationUpdate to
[0017]
Preferably, the information processing apparatus further includes output means for visually outputting transmission information managed by the communication management means.
[0018]
  In order to achieve the above object, the invention of the present applicationAn image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function, and an e-mail receiving means for receiving an e-mail attached with an image file;The output means for visually outputting the contents of the image file attached to the e-mail received by the e-mail receiving means, and the output means for the image file attached to the e-mail for which the control information is detected by the detecting means. Addition of adding information indicating that the control information has been detected to a part of the image during visual outputMeans.
[0020]
  MaPreferably, saidAdditionWhen the output means visually outputs the image file attached to the e-mail in which the control information is detected, if the response e-mail to the control information has already been transmitted, the means includes a part of the image. Information indicating that the response to the control information has been completed is added.
[0021]
Preferably, the control information is information for requesting a response e-mail indicating a read confirmation of the e-mail.
[0022]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0023]
First, the configuration of the Internet facsimile machine of this embodiment will be described.
[0024]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an Internet facsimile machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0025]
In FIG. 1, 1-1 is a CPU for controlling a facsimile.
[0026]
A facsimile operation unit 1-2 includes an LCD and a key panel for input, and enables input operations such as facsimile communication and recording. Sound source means such as a speaker for sounding an alarm is also arranged.
[0027]
Reference numeral 1-3 denotes a reading unit that reads an image of a facsimile document to be transmitted.
[0028]
1-4 is a recording unit for outputting received image data, e-mail text, various reports, and the like.
[0029]
1-5 is a ROM as a storage medium storing a facsimile control program and data according to an embodiment of the present invention, facsimile transmission / reception, e-mail transmission / reception, report generation, recording / reading, Stores a program for controlling the user I / F.
[0030]
Reference numeral 1-6 denotes a RAM for storing various types of facsimile information, which stores communication management information, image data, and the like generated during transmission / reception.
[0031]
Reference numeral 1-7 denotes a modulation / demodulation circuit for transmitting / receiving a facsimile to / from a public line (PSTN or ISDN) 1-9 in MODEM.
[0032]
1-8 is a network control circuit (NCU) for PSTN 1-9.
[0033]
1-9 is an I / F unit for connecting to a local area network (LAN) 1-10.
[0034]
1-11 is a LAN or the Internet capable of exchanging electronic mail data. In the case of LAN, it is connected to the Internet through firewalls and service providers.
[0035]
A mail server 1-11 is connected via a LAN or the Internet.
[0036]
In the e-mail transmission using the Internet facsimile apparatus in the claims of the present application, the destination is designated by the FAX operation unit 1-2, the image of the transmission original is read by the reading apparatus 1-3, and the e-mail is read by the e-mail transmission control program. Attached image is sent. The details of the format of the e-mail and the compression method of the attached image are based on ITU-T T.37 (Recommendation for facsimile transmission via the Internet).
[0037]
Hereinafter, the operation on the transmitter side that transmits Internet facsimile data with read confirmation will be described as the first embodiment, and the operation on the receiver side that receives Internet facsimile data with read confirmation as the second embodiment. Will be explained.
[0038]
<First Embodiment>
As the first embodiment, the operation on the side of a transmitter (hereinafter referred to as the Internet facsimile apparatus of the first embodiment) that transmits Internet facsimile data with read confirmation will be described.
[0039]
First, a method for managing communication result information in the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment will be described.
[0040]
In the Internet facsimile apparatus of this embodiment, the results of facsimile transmission / reception and electronic mail transmission / reception are stored and managed as communication management information.
[0041]
FIG. 2 shows a data structure of facsimile communication management information in the first embodiment.
[0042]
Reference numeral 2-1 denotes a communication management information table for storing communication management information created every time transmission / reception of a facsimile or transmission / reception by e-mail is executed. Information shown in 2-2 to 2-12 is stored in each piece of communication management information in the communication management information table 2-1.
[0043]
2-2 is assigned a communication management number from 1 to 4999 at the time of transmission and from 5001 to 9999 at the time of reception.
[0044]
2-3 stores the user abbreviation at the time of facsimile transmission by the user ID, the name of the sender, and information described in the From: field column at the time of transmission of the e-mail.
[0045]
In 2-4, confirm the communication mode such as transmission / reception, facsimile transmission / reception mode such as G3 and ECM, and I-FAX (facsimile transmission by e-mail).
[0046]
2-5 stores the communication time. In the case of transmission and reception via the LAN, it is the connection time with the server.
[0047]
  2-6 stores the communication start time.. 2-7Stores the number of sent and received documents. If you received an email without an image, the number informationIsStored as missing.
[0048]
2-8 stores the other party's telephone number or the other party's mail address.
[0049]
2-9 stores the message ID described in “Message-ID:” of the mail header at the time of e-mail transmission and the message ID described in “Message-ID:” of the mail header at the time of reception.
[0050]
The ID described in the “Message-ID” is created by combining an IP address, a domain name, a transmission time, a communication management number, etc. on the transmission side in order to uniquely identify an electronic mail on the Internet.
[0051]
In 2-10, information indicating the communication result is stored. The result is stored for G3 communication via PSTN, and the communication result up to the default mail server is stored for Internet facsimile transmission.
[0052]
2-11 stores the MDN status of the transmitted email. Examples of the MDN status include the following.
[0053]
“No MDN” indicates that the read confirmation is not requested. “MDN requesting” indicates that a read confirmation is requested and is being confirmed. “MDN confirmed” indicates that an e-mail corresponding to the requested read confirmation has been received.
[0054]
2-12 shows the MDN communication result information, that is, the response result of the receiving side to the MDN when the read confirmation is requested.
[0055]
In the example shown in FIG. 2, communication in different communication modes such as transmission / reception and G3 facsimile communication / Internet facsimile communication is managed by one table, but is managed by a different table for each communication mode. It may be.
[0056]
Next, an e-mail transmission process in the Internet facsimile apparatus of this embodiment will be described.
[0057]
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an e-mail transmission process in the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment.
[0058]
First, in step S3-1, one area for storing communication management information is secured from the communication management table at the start of transmission. If the area is not free, the oldest communication management information is overwritten and secured. A communication management number 2-2 is assigned to the communication management information in the secured area.
[0059]
In step S3-2, communication management information for the outgoing mail is generated. Specifically, a message ID is generated as the only ID for identifying outgoing mail, the communication mode is I-FAX transmission indicating Internet facsimile transmission, communication start time, number of pages, destination mail address, error code ( Set Communication result: TBD.
[0060]
In step S3-3, it is determined whether or not a read confirmation (MDN) is performed, that is, whether or not a read confirmation request header is to be added. Proceed to 5.
[0061]
Here, it is assumed that the user determines whether or not to perform the read confirmation is set by the FAX operation unit 1-2 before the determination in step S3-3.
[0062]
In step S3-4, a mail header with a read confirmation request header ("Disposition-Notification-To: <source address>") is created.
[0063]
In step S3-5, the “MDN requesting” status is written in the MDM status 2-11 of the communication management information.
[0064]
In step S3-6, an outgoing mail header is created without an MDN request header.
[0065]
In step S3-7, “no MDN request” information is written in the MDN status 2-11 of the communication management information.
[0066]
In step S3-8, e-mail transmission processing with an image file attached for transmission is executed for the mail server.
[0067]
In step S3-9, when the mail transmission to the mail server is completed, the value of the MDN status of the communication management information is read. If “MDN is being requested”, the process proceeds to step S3-9, and “MDN is not being requested”. If so, go to Step S3-10.
[0068]
In step S3-10, the MDN reception wait is written in the transmission result, and the communication management information is updated.
[0069]
In step S3-11, normal end is written in the transmission result, and the communication management information is updated.
[0070]
Through the above processing, the communication management information for e-mail transmission is set in the communication management information table 2-1.
[0071]
Next, an e-mail reception process in the Internet facsimile apparatus of this embodiment will be described.
[0072]
The e-mail receiving process in this embodiment is performed by confirming the received mail to the mail server at regular intervals according to the setting on the apparatus side.
[0073]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing received email processing in the Internet facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment. The processing based on the flowchart of FIG. 4 is executed for each electronic mail received from the mail server.
[0074]
In step S4-1, an area for storing communication management information for received mail is secured, and a communication management number is acquired.
[0075]
In step S4-2, the message ID is obtained from the header portion of the received mail, and communication management information is generated in the same manner as in step S3-2.
[0076]
In step S4-3, the communication management information table 2-1 is searched to determine whether there is communication management information waiting for MDN reception. If there is, the process proceeds to step S4-4, and if not, the process proceeds to step S4-8. .
[0077]
In step S4-4, it is determined whether the received e-mail is an MDN responding to the read confirmation request. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S4-5. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S4-6. Transition.
[0078]
In step S4-5, the received MDN is analyzed, and the communication management information of the transmission e-mail corresponding to the received MDN is updated. Details of the processing in step S405 will be described later with reference to FIG.
[0079]
Step S4-6 is the case where the received mail is not MDN even though there is mail waiting for MDN reception. In this step, it is determined whether the waiting time of the communication management information waiting for MDN is exceeded. To do. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S4-7. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S4-8.
[0080]
In step S4-7, “MDN not received” is written as the communication result of the communication management information related to the outgoing mail for which the MDN request has been made.
[0081]
In step S4-8, since it is not an MDN mail, a predetermined process is executed. As this predetermined process, for example, there is a process of printing image data attached to a received electronic mail or transferring it to another apparatus.
[0082]
In step S4-9, the communication management information of the received mail is updated based on the result processed in step S4-8.
[0083]
Through the above processing, the update processing of the communication management information of the received electronic mail is executed.
[0084]
Next, details of the received MDN analysis process in step S4-5 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0085]
In step S5-1, one line of data is acquired from the received e-mail.
[0086]
In step S5-2, it is determined whether or not the first character string is “Original-Message-ID:” which is a header for indicating the message ID of the transmission e-mail corresponding to the MDN. If the determination is negative, step S5 is performed. The process returns to -1 to acquire the next data line. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S5-3.
[0087]
In step S5-3, it is searched from the message ID of the communication management information of the outgoing mail whether there is a message ID shown in (S5-2).
[0088]
In step S5-4, when the corresponding message ID is searched, the communication management information area is specified by a pointer or the like, and the process proceeds to step S5-5. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S5-10.
[0089]
In step S5-5, one line is further acquired from the received mail, and it is determined whether or not the leading character string of the line acquired in step S5-6 is "Disposition:". If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S5-7. If the determination is negative, the process returns to step S5-5 to acquire the next line.
[0090]
In step S5-7, based on the content of the Disposition: header, the content of the communication result 2-12 of the communication management information specified in step S5-4 is updated.
[0091]
Here, the parameters set in the header of Disposition: are defined in RFC2298.
[0092]
The action mode (action-mode) indicates whether the processing related to MDN is performed automatically or manually ("manual-action" / "automatic-action").
[0093]
The transmission mode (sending-mode) indicates whether the MDN transmission is performed manually or automatically ("MDN-sent-manually" / "MDN-sent-automatically").
[0094]
The treatment type (disposition-type) indicates how the sent electronic mail is treated in the receiving UA. Specifically, “displayed (“ displayed ”)”, “some processing such as printing or transfer was performed (“ dispatched ”)”, “determined processing was executed (“ processed ”)”, “ There are “deleted”, “denied”, and “failed”.
[0095]
In this way, in RFC 2298, a parameter corresponding to the processing of the e-mail on the receiving side is set in the Disposition header, so it is determined whether or not the e-mail already transmitted has been confirmed based on a predetermined rule. The result is reflected in the MDN communication result 2-12.
[0096]
In step S5-8, it is determined whether it is the last line. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S5-9. If the determination is negative, the process returns to step S5-5 to determine whether the next line is the final line. Do.
[0097]
In step S5-9, if there is no “Disposition:” field in the MDN, it indicates that the received MDN mail is not normal, and information indicating a reception error is displayed in the MDN communication result 2-12 of the MDN received mail. set. This process is executed when an e-mail notifying an error is returned from the mail server because the address of the transmission e-mail is incorrect.
[0098]
In step S5-10, since there is no corresponding message ID, information indicating a reception error is set in the MDN communication result 2-12 of the MDN received mail.
[0099]
Here, the processing at step S4-9 in FIG. 4, the processing at step S5-9 in FIG. 5, and the processing at step S5-10 are not able to receive the MDN reply mail due to different factors, and an error occurs in the communication management information. In this process, an error code for identifying each error cause is set and visually output by a report or the like. As a result, the sender of the e-mail can verify the error in detail.
[0100]
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a communication management report in the Internet facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment. This communication management report is output based on the contents stored in the communication management information 2-1. . In the example shown in the figure, when a facsimile transmission is performed by e-mail (that is, when an Internet facsimile transmission is performed), “transmission I-FAX” is described in the communication mode column. "FAX" is described.
[0101]
The first item No.0002 indicates that the read confirmation has not been received yet by displaying “MDN not” in the communication mode, and the result is unknown by displaying “-” in the communication result column. It is shown that.
[0102]
The next item No. 0003 indicates that the reading has already been confirmed by displaying “MDN completed” in the communication mode, and OK is described in the communication result column.
[0103]
The last item No. 0004 indicates that the MDN is not requested by not displaying the MDN in the communication mode column, and only OK is described in the communication result column.
[0104]
When the communication management report is output in this way, the presence / absence of a read confirmation request and the read confirmation status at the time of output are displayed for each communication, so the user can check the status of the read confirmation for each communication. Will be able to grasp.
[0105]
In the example of FIG. 6, OK / NG set in the communication result column of Internet facsimile transmission is printed as one communication result by combining the transmission result up to the mail server and the MDN communication result. That is, it is OK only when both the transmission result up to the mail server and the MDN communication result are normally completed.
[0106]
Therefore, as a modification, the transmission result up to the mail server and the MDN communication result may be printed in separate fields.
[0107]
7 and 8 are output examples of a transmission result report when Internet facsimile transmission with a read confirmation request is performed. FIG. 7 shows an example in the case where the communication result is OK and the read has been confirmed, and FIG. 8 shows an example in which the communication result is NG and the read has been confirmed.
[0108]
In the example of FIG. 7, in the MDN analysis process of FIG. 5, the transmission result is OK from the contents of the “Disposition:” header, the communication management information is updated (step S5-7), and output as a transmission result report.
[0109]
As for the output timing of the transmission result, it is assumed that the transmission result report is not output until the read confirmation mail is received. After the elapse of the time determined by waiting to receive the read confirmation mail (step S4-6), it is determined that the read confirmation is not received, and a transmission result report is output as a transmission error.
[0110]
In the example of FIG. 8, in the MDN analysis processing of FIG. 5, the communication management information is updated from the contents of the “Disposition:” header as NG as the transmission result (step S5-7), and output as a transmission result report.
[0111]
As described above, according to the first embodiment, when Internet facsimile transmission with a read confirmation is performed, the response status to the read confirmation can be reflected or printed in detail in the communication management information. It became.
[0112]
This makes it possible for the sender of the Internet facsimile to accurately grasp the communication status of the Internet facsimile transmission and the content of the communication result, and can provide an easy-to-understand and friendly Internet facsimile machine for the user.
[0113]
In the first embodiment, the example in which the sender is notified of the communication management information reflecting the MDN response status from the receiver in the form of report output has been shown. You may make it the form displayed on 2.
[0114]
Furthermore, the configuration of the Internet facsimile machine shown in FIG. 1 has a Web server function for publishing various data to Web clients on the LAN 1-11, and the communication management information is converted into XML or HTML format. The web server function may be made public to users on the LAN 1-11.
[0115]
<Second Embodiment>
The operation on the receiver side for receiving Internet facsimile data with read confirmation will be described as a second embodiment.
[0116]
Here, the Internet facsimile apparatus on the receiver side (hereinafter referred to as the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment) has the same communication management information 2-1 as the Internet facsimile apparatus of the first embodiment shown in FIG. Each reception shall be managed by
[0117]
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation when an e-mail is received with a read confirmation request header in the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment.
[0118]
First, an area for the communication management information 2-1 is secured, and information related to the received email (information 2-2 to 2-12 in FIG. 2) is set in the secured area. At that time, information indicating no MDN request is set in the MDN status 2-11.
[0119]
In step S9-1, it is determined whether there is a read confirmation request. This determination is made based on whether there is a mail header with an MDN request header ("Disposition-Notification-To: <source address>") based on RFC2298. If there is an MDN request header, step S9-2 If there is no MDN request header, the process proceeds to step S9-3.
[0120]
In step S9-2, information indicating that an MDN is requested is set in the MDN status 2-10 in the communication management information 2-1 of the received mail.
[0121]
In step S9-3, it is determined whether or not an alarm is sounded based on user registration information indicating “processing when an e-mail with a read confirmation request” is registered in RAM 1-6 in advance. . If the alarm is sounded, the process proceeds to step S9-4. If the alarm is not sounded, the process proceeds to step S9-5.
[0122]
In step S9-4, an alarm with a read confirmation request is sounded by a speaker arranged in the operation unit 1-2.
[0123]
In step S9-5, whether or not to output a reception result report is registered based on the user registration information indicating “processing when an e-mail with a read confirmation request” is registered in RAM 1-6 in advance. to decide. If the reception result report is to be output, the process proceeds to step S9-6. If the reception result report is not to be output, the process proceeds to step S9-7.
[0124]
In step S9-6, a reception result report with information indicating that there is an MDN request is output. An output example of this reception result report will be described later.
[0125]
In step S9-7, it is determined whether or not an MDN is automatically returned based on the user registration information indicating “processing when an e-mail with a read confirmation request is received”. If the MDN is automatically returned, the process proceeds to step S9-8. If the MDN is not automatically returned, the process proceeds to step S9-13.
[0126]
In step S9-8, an MDN reply mail is created and transmitted to the MDN notification destination address set in “Disposition-Notification-Header”.
[0127]
After the transmission of step S9-9, information indicating that the MDN reply mail has been transmitted to the MDN status 2-11, that is, the e-mail of the read confirmation has been transmitted is set.
[0128]
In step S9-13, the presence of MDN request is displayed on the LED of the operation unit 1-2 or on the LCD display, the LED is turned on as there is a memory received image, the received mail is accumulated in the memory, and the processing of the received mail is finished. .
[0129]
In step S9-10, a mark indicating that there is an MDN request is added to the header of the image attached to the received e-mail and output. In general, a technique for synthesizing and outputting a predetermined mark on a received facsimile image is well known, and this embodiment is also realized by a similar technique. An example of outputting this image will be described later.
[0130]
In step S9-11, an image attached to the received e-mail is added with a header not marked to indicate that there is an MDN request and output.
[0131]
The above flowchart is the operation when an e-mail is received with a request header for a read confirmation.
[0132]
It should be noted here that the content of the received e-mail and the image attached to the received e-mail are output visually, that is, step S9-4, step S9-6, step S9-10, or step S9- In FIG. 13, the user is notified that the MDN request is added.
[0133]
As a result, the user can determine that the MDN request has been added without confirming the content of the received e-mail, and can quickly return a read confirmation to the sender.
[0134]
The flowchart shown in FIG. 9 can be variously modified. As a modification, the first modification and the second modification are shown in the flowchart of FIG. 12 (a modification of the flowchart of FIG. 9). ) Will be described.
[0135]
(First modification)
In the above example, if the determination in step S9-7 in FIG. 9 is negative, a message indicating that there is an MDN request is displayed in step S9-9, and then the received image is output in step S9-10.
[0136]
In the first modification, after displaying S12-9 when the determination in step S12-7 in FIG. 12 is negative, the process is temporarily terminated without outputting the received image. Thereafter, in response to a predetermined operation by the user, the received image is output and an MDN reply mail is transmitted.
[0137]
(Second modification)
In the above example, when the determination in step S9-7 in FIG. 9 is affirmative, an MDN reply mail is first transmitted in step S9-8, and a received image is output in step S9-10.
[0138]
In the second modification, if step S12-7 in FIG. 12 is affirmative, whether or not the received image is normally output in step S12-10 after the received image is output first in step S12-8. to decide. If this determination is affirmative, an MDN reply mail is transmitted in step S12-13 (the fact that an MDN reply mail has been transmitted is set in MDN status 2-11). On the other hand, in the case of negative determination, the process proceeds to step S12-12, and the transmission of the MDN reply mail corresponding to the received image to be output in S12-10 is switched from automatic to manual. Thereafter, in accordance with a predetermined operation by the user, the received image is output and an MDN reply mail corresponding to the received image is transmitted.
[0139]
According to the first modified example, the output operation of the received image and the transmission of the MDN reply mail corresponding to the output image are automatically executed in conjunction with a predetermined manual operation by the user. Reliability is improved.
[0140]
Further, according to the second modification, even when the MDN reply mail is automatically transmitted, the MDN reply mail is prevented from being automatically transmitted even though the received image is not normally output. can do.
[0141]
Next, an output example of a reception result report and a received image in the second embodiment will be described.
[0142]
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a reception result report output for each received electronic mail in the Internet facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the example of the figure, an output example of a reception result report for a received electronic mail to which an MDN request is attached is shown. An MDN request was added in the communication result column, along with the “reception number” (1001) corresponding to the communication management number 2-2 and the “address of the other party” (1002) indicating the sender's e-mail address. “Read confirmation requested” (1003) is printed.
[0143]
The display of 1003 allows the receiver to recognize that the MDN request has been attached to the electronic mail to which the received image is attached.
[0144]
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an output example of an image attached to a received electronic mail in the Internet facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the example of the figure, an output example of an image attached to the received e-mail with the MDN request is shown. In the header portion, information 1102 indicating that the MDN request has been attached is printed together with the e-mail address 1101 of the transmission source.
[0145]
The display of 1102 enables the receiver to recognize that the MDN request is attached to the e-mail to which the received image is attached.
[0146]
On the other hand, when outputting an image attached to a received e-mail without an MDN request, the area 1102 is blank.
[0147]
In the example shown in FIG. 11, information indicating the presence of read confirmation is printed on the header portion. However, this may be printed on the footer portion, and if the presence or absence of the read confirmation can be determined. It may be displayed in other manners.
[0148]
Next, an operation of recognizing a read confirmation request from a reception result report or a received image output by the user and responding to the read confirmation will be described.
[0149]
A user who has passed by the Internet facsimile machine of the second embodiment recognizes that an email with an MDN request has been received from the state of the LCD or LED displayed in step S9-9.
[0150]
In addition, the user who has received the reception result report output in step S9-6 or the reception image output in step S9-10 obtains an MDN request from the information indicating that there is an MDN request. Recognize that there was.
[0151]
Then, the user who recognizes that there has been an MDN request transmits a MDN reply mail by the process shown in step S9-8 by performing a predetermined operation with the button of the operation unit 1-2.
[0152]
At that time, "Sender requests read confirmation. Do you want to send a reply email, YES / NO" is displayed, and if you select YES to confirm read, reply email for read confirmation May be transmitted.
[0153]
As described above, according to the second embodiment, when an e-mail requesting a read confirmation (MDN) is received, this is indicated by an LED / LCD display, an alarm, a report, and an output reception / reception. Thus, it is possible to prompt the user to perform a read confirmation operation.
[0154]
In addition, the configuration of the Internet facsimile apparatus shown in FIG. 1 has a Web server function for publishing various data to Web clients on the LAN 1-11, and communication management information and received images are converted into XML or HTML format. It may be converted to be disclosed to users on the LAN 1-11 by the Web server function.
[0155]
<Third Embodiment>
As a third embodiment, an embodiment is further provided in which means for notifying a user of information on whether or not a read confirmation e-mail for a received e-mail has been transmitted to the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment is provided. explain.
[0156]
As described in the second embodiment, the MDN status of the received email of the communication management information 2-1 transmits information indicating the presence / absence of a read confirmation request and a response email for the read confirmation request. Information indicating that it has been completed is set for each received e-mail.
[0157]
Therefore, by reading the MDN status 2-11 corresponding to the received e-mail, it is possible to determine whether there is a read confirmation request for the received e-mail and whether a response e-mail is sent for the read confirmation request. It becomes.
[0158]
FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a method for managing image files attached to received e-mails. The image management information 1601 stores storage location information of the image file 1603, information on the transmission source (e-mail address, etc.), reception time information, message ID of the attached e-mail, and information on the format of the image file. ing. When outputting an image file, necessary information is read from the image management information, and image output control is performed.
[0159]
Further, it is possible to specify the communication management information 1602 of the received e-mail to which the image file is attached from the message ID of the e-mail stored in the image management information 1601. Therefore, by reading the MDN status 2-12 of the communication management information specified from the image file, the presence / absence of a read confirmation request for the email to which the image file was attached and the response email for the read confirmation request It is possible to determine the presence or absence of transmission.
[0160]
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the output operation of the attached image file of the Internet facsimile apparatus of the third embodiment.
[0161]
First, in step S1501, the communication management information corresponding to the received electronic mail to which the image file to be output is attached is specified, and the MDN status 2-11 of the specified communication management information is read.
[0162]
In step S1502 and step S1504, the value of MDN status 2-11 read in step S1501 is evaluated.
[0163]
If the determination in step S1502 is affirmative, that is, if there is no MDN request for the received electronic mail, the process proceeds to step S1503, and an image file is output without adding a mark relating to the read confirmation.
[0164]
If the determination in step S1504 is affirmative, that is, if there is an MDN request for the received electronic mail and an MDN response electronic mail has already been transmitted in response to the request, the process proceeds to step S1505. In step S1502, as shown in FIG. 13, a mark 1301 indicating that the MDN response e-mail has already been transmitted is added, and an image file is output.
[0165]
If the determination in step S1504 is negative, that is, if there is an MDN request for the received e-mail and an MDN response e-mail has not yet been sent in response to the request, an image file is output with a mark to that effect To do.
[0166]
The above is the output operation of the attached image file of the Internet facsimile apparatus of the third embodiment.
[0167]
In this way, the presence / absence of an MDN request and the presence / absence of a response to the MDN request are added to the output image of the image file, so that the user who sees the output image can grasp whether or not to take a read confirmation action It becomes easy.
[0168]
In addition, as described in the above embodiment, the MDN status of the received email of the communication management information 2-1 includes the information indicating the presence / absence of the read confirmation request and the response email for the read confirmation request. Information indicating that it exists is set for each received e-mail.
[0169]
Therefore, when a communication management report is output, information regarding a read confirmation request may be added to the received electronic mail.
[0170]
  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a communication management report according to the third embodiment. According to the example of FIG. 5002For the received e-mail, “MDN not yet” is displayed in the communication mode column to indicate that a read confirmation request has been added but has not yet been answered. No. 5003As for the received e-mail, “MDN completed” is displayed in the column of the communication mode to indicate that a read confirmation request has been added and has already been responded. No. As for the received e-mail 5005, “No MDN” is displayed in the column of the communication mode to indicate that the read confirmation request is not added.
[0171]
In this manner, by outputting the presence / absence of a read confirmation request and the presence / absence of a response to a read confirmation request for a plurality of received e-mails as a list, it is possible to check for missing read confirmations.
[0172]
<Other embodiments>
Needless to say, the functions of the Internet facsimile apparatus of the first embodiment and the functions of the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment may be realized by one apparatus.
[0173]
In the above embodiment, a single device called an Internet facsimile apparatus has been described. However, the present invention is also applied to an image communication system including a plurality of devices such as a computer device, a scanner device, and a printer device.
[0174]
A program for realizing the function described in this embodiment is stored in the ROM 1-5. A storage medium storing a program code of software that realizes this function is supplied to the system or apparatus. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by the CPU of the system or apparatus reading and executing the program code stored in the storage medium.
[0175]
In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention. As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD ROM, a CDR, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like can be used.
[0176]
Further, by executing the program code read by the CPU, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an operating OS (operating system) or the like that is actually operated based on an instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the above-described processing is included.
[0177]
Furthermore, after the program code read from the storage medium is written to the memory provided in the function expansion board inserted in the device or the function expansion unit connected to the device, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.
[0178]
【The invention's effect】
  As explained above,ClearlyAccording toSince it is possible to reflect the reception status of the response email to the transmission email in the communication management information of the transmission emailIt is possible to provide an easy-to-understand and friendly Internet facsimile machine for the user.Then, it becomes possible to manage information indicating that a response e-mail to the transmitted e-mail was not received within a predetermined period, that is, information indicating that there was no response from the transmission destination for some reason, The user can more easily grasp the transmission status of the e-mail.
[0180]
  In addition, this departureClearlyAccording toWhen the content of the image file attached to the received electronic mail is confirmed, the user can grasp whether or not a response electronic mail is requested.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an Internet facsimile machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a data configuration of facsimile communication management information in the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing electronic mail transmission processing in the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing received email processing in the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment;
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing analysis processing of received MDN in the Internet facsimile apparatus of the first embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a communication management report of the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an output example of a transmission result report of the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an output example of a transmission result report of the Internet facsimile machine according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation when an e-mail is received with a read confirmation request header in the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a reception result report of the Internet facsimile machine according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a received image of the Internet facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an operation when an e-mail is received with a read confirmation request header in the Internet facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment;
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a received image of the Internet facsimile machine according to the third embodiment.
FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an output example of a communication management report of the Internet facsimile machine according to the third embodiment.
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an output operation of an attached image file of the Internet facsimile machine according to the third embodiment.
FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a method for managing image files attached to received e-mails.
[Explanation of symbols]
1-1 CPU
1-2 Operation unit
1-3 Reading unit
1-4 Recording unit
1-5 ROM
1-6 RAM
1-7 MODEM
1-8 NCU
1-9 LAN
1-11 LAN (Internet)
1-12 Mail server

Claims (18)

An image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function,
An email sending means for sending an email with an attached image file;
Requesting means for requesting a response e-mail to the e-mail to be transmitted when the e-mail is transmitted by the e-mail transmitting means;
Communication management means for managing transmission information for each transmitted e-mail;
A control unit that updates transmission information managed by the communication management unit based on a reception result of a response email to the transmitted email;
The control means further updates transmission information managed by the communication management means based on information indicating that a response e-mail to the sent e-mail has not been received within a predetermined period. Image communication device.   The image communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the request unit requests a response e-mail indicating a read confirmation of the e-mail to be transmitted. Further comprising selection means for selecting whether or not the request means is executed,
3. The image communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication management unit manages the presence / absence of a request for a response e-mail as transmission information for each transmitted e-mail.   The said control means updates the transmission information which the said communication management means manages based on the information which shows that the response email with respect to the transmitted email was received. The image communication apparatus according to claim 1.   The image communication apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an output unit that visually outputs transmission information managed by the communication management unit. An image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function,
An e-mail receiving means for receiving an e-mail with an attached image file;
An output means for visually outputting the contents of the image file attached to the email received by the email receiving means;
Detecting means for detecting control information for requesting a response email from the email received by the email receiving means;
When the output unit visually outputs the image file attached to the e-mail in which the control information is detected by the detection unit, information indicating that the control information is detected is added to a part of the image. Additional means;
An image communication apparatus comprising:   When the output unit visually outputs the image file attached to the e-mail in which the control information is detected, and the response e-mail for the control information has already been transmitted, 7. The image communication apparatus according to claim 6, wherein information indicating that a response to the control information has been completed is added to the unit.   8. The image communication apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control information is information for requesting a response e-mail indicating a read confirmation of the e-mail. An image communication method in an image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function,
An email sending process for sending an email with an attached image file;
When sending an email by the email sending step, a requesting step for requesting a response email for the email to be sent;
A communication management process for managing transmission information for each transmitted email;
A control step of updating the transmission information managed in the communication management step based on the reception result of the response email to the sent email,
The control step further updates the transmission information managed in the communication management step based on information indicating that a response email to the sent email has not been received within a predetermined period. Image communication method.   The image communication method according to claim 9, wherein the requesting step requests a response e-mail indicating a read confirmation of the e-mail to be transmitted. Further comprising a selection step for selecting whether or not the request step is performed,
11. The image communication method according to claim 9, wherein the communication management step manages, as transmission information, whether or not a response e-mail is requested for each transmitted e-mail.   12. The control process according to claim 9, wherein the control process updates transmission information managed by the communication management process based on information indicating that a response e-mail to the transmitted e-mail has been received. The image communication method according to claim 1.   The image communication method according to claim 9, further comprising an output step of visually outputting transmission information managed by the communication management step. An image communication method in an image communication apparatus connected to a network capable of e-mail communication and having an e-mail communication function,
An email receiving process for receiving an email with an attached image file;
A detection step of detecting control information for requesting a response email from the email received by the email reception step;
And an output step of visual output to the attached image file to the electronic mail,
In the output step, when the image file in which the control information is detected in the detection step is visually output, information indicating that the control information is detected is added to a part of the image. Image communication method.   The output step is characterized in that when a response e-mail for the control information has been transmitted, information indicating that a response to the control information has been completed is added to the image and visually output. 14. The image communication method according to 14.   16. The image communication method according to claim 14, wherein the control information is information for requesting a response e-mail indicating read confirmation of the e-mail. A storage medium storing a program connected to a network capable of electronic mail communication and executed by an image communication apparatus having an electronic mail communication function,
An email sending process for sending an email with an attached image file;
When sending an email by the email sending step, a requesting step for requesting a response email for the email to be sent;
A communication management process for managing transmission information for each transmitted email;
A control step of updating the transmission information managed in the communication management step based on the reception result of the response email to the sent email,
The control step further updates the transmission information managed in the communication management step based on information indicating that a response email to the sent email has not been received within a predetermined period. A storage medium characterized by storing a program as described above. A storage medium storing a program connected to a network capable of electronic mail communication and executed by an image communication apparatus having an electronic mail communication function,
An email receiving process for receiving an email with an attached image file;
A detection step of detecting control information for requesting a response email from the email received by the email reception step;
And an output step of visual output to the attached image file to the electronic mail,
In the output step, when the image file in which the control information is detected in the detection step is visually output, information indicating that the control information is detected is added to a part of the image. A storage medium that stores a program.

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