JP2001077967A - Information processing unit, facsimile system, facsimile transmission method and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processing unit, where transmission of electronic mails and transmission of facsimile images can be conducted using the same electronic mail application program. SOLUTION: When transmitting electronic mail data generated by a general- purpose electronic mail application program in a facsimile system, when a facsimile service is selected as a destination, a facsimile transmission dialog (a screen for designating a telephone number) is opened. When a telephone number is designated in the screen, the electronic mail data received from an electronic mail application program 21 are expanded into a facsimile image and transferred to a facsimile machine 17, and the facsimile image is transmitted to a destination designated by the telephone number.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an electronic mail, a facsimile system, a facsimile transmission method, and a storage medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, facsimile communication has become very popular and has become a standard for image communication. However, in recent years, with the spread of information processing terminals such as personal computers, e-mail communication has been replaced by facsimile communication. It is increasing at an alternate rate.

[0003] Now that the ownership of each information processing terminal in the office has become commonplace, work has begun to center around information processing terminals. In such a situation, the importance of e-mail that can be completed by the information processing terminal will further increase, but facsimile machines have excellent penetration, convenience, and confidentiality, and are still important. is occupying.

[0004] At present, a facsimile apparatus which can be directly connected to an information processing terminal has appeared, and digital data can be directly transmitted and received as digital data without the trouble of printing and sending data on a personal computer once. It became so. As a result, in an office environment centered on information processing terminals, the facsimile apparatus is one of communication means that can be completed only by the information processing terminal, similarly to electronic mail.

[0005]

However, when a facsimile apparatus is connected to a conventional information processing terminal, there are the following problems, and improvements have been demanded. That is, the facsimile apparatus is connected to the information processing terminal through a parallel port, while the e-mail is connected to a communication line via a LAN card in the case of a LAN or a serial port in the case of using a modem. Therefore, the communication protocol differs between the facsimile machine and the electronic mail, and different management software is required.

[0006] Unless this management software is operated on the information processing terminal, an electronic mail and a facsimile document cannot be edited and transmitted.

[0007] By the way, electronic mail software has become very popular, and various applications have been released from various companies, and it has become less difficult for users to always operate it.

On the other hand, the types of facsimile machines that can be connected to information processing terminals are still limited, and a dedicated application is required to be managed. Unless an application dedicated to facsimile is operated, a facsimile document cannot be transmitted.

[0009] Since different applications are used for e-mail and facsimile communication, e-mail and facsimile images have to be separately stored and managed.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, a facsimile system, a facsimile transmission method, and a storage medium capable of transmitting an e-mail and transmitting a facsimile image using the same e-mail application. .

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, an information processing apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention is an information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an electronic mail. Setting means for setting a destination of an e-mail transmitted by an application to a facsimile apparatus; converting means for converting the e-mail set for the destination to the facsimile apparatus to facsimile image data; and the converted facsimile image data. And transmitting means for transmitting to the facsimile apparatus.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the information processing apparatus further includes a first interface connected to a mail server and a second interface connected to the facsimile apparatus. The transmitting means causes the facsimile apparatus connected via the second interface to transmit the converted facsimile image data.

In the information processing apparatus according to a third aspect, in the information processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the setting means is configured to be set by an operating system that manages electronic mail transmitted by the application. Receiving means for receiving the e-mail from the e-mail management unit, and instructing means for instructing the destination to send an e-mail with a facsimile apparatus set to the destination to the receiving means, wherein the converting means And converting the e-mail received by the receiving means into facsimile image data.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the third aspect, when a facsimile apparatus is set as the transmission destination, the setting unit transmits the information via the set facsimile apparatus. Input means for inputting a telephone number of a destination to be transmitted is provided, and the facsimile apparatus transmits facsimile image data to a destination having the input telephone number.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the third aspect, the receiving means, the instruction means, the converting means, and the transmitting means are each a task of a program executed by the computer. It is realized by processing.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the third aspect, a destination name, an e-mail address, a telephone number of a destination transmitted via the facsimile apparatus, and a facsimile apparatus and an electronic apparatus. It has a database including mail priorities, and the database can be referred to by the application, the operating system, and the conversion unit.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a facsimile system, comprising: an information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an electronic mail to a mail server connected via a first interface; A facsimile system including a facsimile device connected via an interface of (2), setting means for setting a destination of an e-mail transmitted by the application to the facsimile device;
The facsimile apparatus further includes a conversion unit that converts the electronic mail whose destination is set in the facsimile apparatus into facsimile image data, and a transmission unit that transmits the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus.

A facsimile transmission method according to claim 8, wherein the facsimile transmission method for transmitting facsimile image data by an information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an e-mail. Setting the transmission destination of the facsimile machine, converting the electronic mail set in the facsimile apparatus to facsimile image data, and transmitting the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus. It is characterized by having.

A storage medium according to a ninth aspect is a storage medium that is executed by a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an electronic mail, and stores a program for transmitting facsimile image data. A step of setting the destination of the e-mail transmitted by the application in the facsimile apparatus, a step of converting the e-mail set in the facsimile apparatus into facsimile image data, and the step of converting the converted facsimile image data into the facsimile image data. Transmitting to the facsimile machine.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of an information processing apparatus, a facsimile system, a facsimile transmission method and a storage medium according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a facsimile system according to the embodiment. This facsimile system has a configuration in which a facsimile device 17 is connected to an information processing terminal 19. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a CPU as a system control unit, which controls the entire facsimile system.

Reference numeral 2 denotes an SRAM, which is mainly used as a cache memory. Reference numeral 3 denotes a DRAM, which is used as a main storage memory for storing various data. 4
Is a network adapter. In this facsimile system, transmission and reception of electronic mail with the mail server 16 via the network adapter 4 are performed.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a display for displaying information to notify the operator, and is connected to the CPU 1 via the graphic controller 5. Reference numeral 5 denotes a graphic controller, which is used for controlling image information and the like.

Reference numeral 8 denotes a hard disk as one of storage devices for storing application programs and the like.
It is connected to the CPU 1 via the SCSI interface 15 and the SCSI controller 7. 7 is SCS
I (Small Computer System I)
interface controller, which controls the SCSI interface 15.

Reference numeral 9 denotes an input / output controller for controlling various input / output devices. A floppy disk controller 10, a mouse 11, a keyboard 12, a serial interface 14, and a parallel interface 13 are connected to the CPU 11 via the input / output controller 9. 10
Denotes a floppy disk controller for writing and reading to and from a floppy disk as an external storage device.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a mouse on which an operator performs various input operations. Reference numeral 12 denotes a keyboard on which an operator performs various input operations. Reference numeral 14 denotes a serial interface which is serial data and is connected to an external peripheral device. 1
Reference numeral 3 denotes a parallel interface which is parallel data and is connected to an external peripheral device, and is connected to the facsimile apparatus 17 in this facsimile system.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a SCSI interface for connecting to an external peripheral device in SCSI format data. A mail server 16 is connected to the network and manages electronic mail. A facsimile device 17 is connected to a telephone line, has an interface for connection with a personal computer, and transmits and receives images.

The facsimile system having the above configuration realizes various functions by the CPU 1 executing a program stored in the hard disk 8. That is,
Various tasks such as an e-mail transmission instruction task, an e-mail reception task, an e-mail conversion task, and a facsimile image transmission task, which will be described later, are realized by the algorithm of a program stored in the hard disk 8.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing various tasks realized by the algorithm of the program. Before operating the e-mail reception task 25, e-mail conversion task 26, and facsimile image transmission task 27, an e-mail transmission instruction task is executed in advance. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an e-mail transmission instruction task processing procedure.
In the e-mail transmission instruction task, when an e-mail is sent from the e-mail application 21, the e-mail management unit 22 set by the operating system 20 is used.
Does not forward the e-mail addressed to the facsimile device 17 to the external information processing terminal 23 as a mail server,
The data is transferred to the e-mail receiving task 25 (see arrow a in FIG. 2, step S31).

That is, after the electronic mail is edited by a general (general-purpose) electronic mail application 21, a destination is specified, and at this time, a facsimile is specified as the destination. With this instruction, a facsimile transmission dialog opens, and when a telephone number of a transmission destination is specified, an e-mail transmission instruction task causes the operating system 20 to execute.
The e-mail management unit 22 transfers the e-mail to the e-mail reception task 25.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure for processing an e-mail reception task. In the e-mail receiving task 25, an e-mail is received from the operating system 20 (step S41).

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the procedure for processing the e-mail conversion task. First, a facsimile image buffer for the first page is prepared in the SRAM 2 or the DRAM 3 (step S51), and the buffer is cleared (step S52). And e-mail reception task 2
A portion such as a character, a graphic, or an image is read from the e-mail received in step 1 for one unit (step S53). It is converted into bitmap data according to the facsimile resolution (step S54). The bitmap data is written in a predetermined area in consideration of the layout of the facsimile image buffer (step S55).

It is determined whether or not the read part is the last part of the electronic mail (step S56). If the read part is the last part of the electronic mail, the electronic mail conversion task 26 ends. On the other hand, if it is not the last part of the e-mail in step S56, it is determined whether or not the bitmap data written in step S55 has reached the lower end of the facsimile image buffer (step S57). If the lower end of the facsimile image buffer has been reached, step S
Returning to the process at 51, a facsimile image buffer for the next page is prepared. On the other hand, if it has not yet reached the lower end, the process returns to step S53 to continue reading the e-mail.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the procedure of a facsimile image transmission task process. In the facsimile image transmission task 27, image data is transferred from the information processing terminal 19 to the facsimile device 17. First, from the external interface, that is, the parallel interface 13
A command (including the telephone number specified in the facsimile transmission dialog) for transmitting the image data is transmitted to the facsimile apparatus 17 via the CPU (step S61). By waiting for a response from the facsimile machine 17, it is determined whether or not the facsimile machine 17 is ready to receive a command and transmit the next command (step S6).
2).

A page number to be transmitted from the external interface, that is, via the parallel interface 13 is designated (step S63). As in the process of step S62, the process waits for a response from the facsimile machine 17 (step S64). If there is a response from the facsimile machine, it is checked whether the facsimile machine is ready to receive image data (step S65).

As in the case of the processing in step S62, there is a response from the facsimile machine (step S66). If there is a response, the image data is transmitted from the information processing terminal to the facsimile machine (step S67). It is determined whether this image data has been transmitted to the lower end of the page (step S68).

If the transmission of the image data has not been completed to the lower end of the page, the process returns to the step S65 to confirm the preparation for receiving the next image data. On the other hand, step S68
If it is determined that the image data has been transmitted to the lower end of the page, it is determined whether there is image data of the next page (step S69). If there is image data of the next page, the process returns to step S63, and requests designation of the page number of the next page. On the other hand, if there is no image data of the next page in step S69, the facsimile image transmission task process ends. The facsimile device 17 receiving this image data calls the designated destination telephone number and performs facsimile transmission.

As described above, in the facsimile system according to the present embodiment, when an e-mail (data) created by a general-purpose e-mail application is transmitted, if a facsimile service is selected as a destination, a facsimile transmission dialog (phone The screen for specifying the number) opens,
When a telephone number is specified, the e-mail data received from the e-mail application is developed into a facsimile image (facsimile image data) and transferred to the facsimile device, and the facsimile image is transmitted to the destination of the specified telephone number. .

[0038] With this, a general-purpose e-mail application is provided by receiving an e-mail specified to be transmitted by facsimile from the e-mail application, forming a facsimile image, and transmitting the facsimile image to a destination specified by the connected facsimile apparatus. It can be sent to an unaddressed destination in the same way as a normal e-mail. In other words, an e-mail document created once can be transmitted to both the mail server and the facsimile machine, and the transmitted document can be centrally managed.

Further, since the transmission of the e-mail and the transmission of the facsimile image data are performed by the same e-mail application, there is no need to learn the operation peculiar to the facsimile application, and the transmitted e-mail and the facsimile document are integrated. And can be centrally managed.

Further, a common document can be transmitted simultaneously by e-mail and facsimile.

The information processing terminal in the above-described embodiment has a database including a destination name, an e-mail address, a telephone number of a destination transmitted via the facsimile apparatus, and a priority order of the facsimile apparatus and the e-mail. The database may allow applications, operating systems and email conversion tasks to reference the database.

In the above-described embodiment, the program for realizing each task is stored on the hard disk.
Instead of storing the program in the hard disk in advance, the program may be copied from the floppy disk, CD-ROM, or the like to the hard disk by an installation operation. Further, each task may be realized by hardware.

Further, when the present invention is achieved by supplying a program to a system or an apparatus, the storage medium storing the program represented by software for achieving the present invention is read out to the system or the apparatus. The system or the device can enjoy the effects of the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a hard disk 8 as a storage medium.
3 is a diagram showing a memory map of FIG. The hard disk 8 has an e-mail transmission instruction task processing program module shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3, an e-mail reception task processing program module shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4, an e-mail conversion task processing program module shown in the flowchart of FIG. The facsimile image transmission task processing program module shown in the flowchart of FIG. The storage medium for supplying the program module is not limited to a hard disk, but includes, for example, a floppy disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk,
A CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, or the like can be used.

[0045]

According to the present invention, transmission of an e-mail and transmission of a facsimile image can be performed by the same e-mail application. This eliminates the need to memorize operations specific to facsimile applications,
E-mail and facsimile documents that have been sent can be integrated and centrally managed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a facsimile system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing various tasks realized by a program algorithm.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an e-mail transmission instruction task processing procedure.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an e-mail reception task processing procedure.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an e-mail conversion task processing procedure.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a facsimile image transmission task processing procedure.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a memory map of a hard disk 8 as a storage medium.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 CPU 4 Network adapter 8 Hard disk 13 Parallel interface 16 Mail server 17 Facsimile device 19 Information processing terminal 20 Operating system 21 E-mail application 22 E-mail management unit 25 E-mail reception task 26 E-mail exchange task 27 Facsimile image transmission task

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an e-mail, a setting unit for setting a transmission destination of an e-mail transmitted by the application to a facsimile apparatus, and the facsimile apparatus transmitting the e-mail. An information processing apparatus, comprising: conversion means for converting the e-mail set in the facsimile apparatus into facsimile image data; and transmission means for transmitting the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus. A first interface connected to a mail server and a second interface connected to the facsimile machine, wherein the transmitting means is connected to the facsimile machine connected via the second interface. 2. The transmission of the converted facsimile image data.
An information processing apparatus according to claim 1. 3. The receiving means for receiving the electronic mail from an electronic mail management unit set by an operating system, which manages the electronic mail transmitted by the application, and a facsimile machine to the transmission destination. And instructing means for instructing the receiving means to transmit the set e-mail, wherein the converting means converts the e-mail received by the receiving means into facsimile image data. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1. 4. The facsimile apparatus further comprising: input means for inputting a telephone number of a destination transmitted via the set facsimile apparatus when the facsimile apparatus is set as the destination. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein facsimile image data is transmitted to a destination having the input telephone number. 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said receiving means, said instruction means, said converting means and said transmitting means are realized by task processing of a program executed by said computer. 6. A database comprising a destination name, an e-mail address, a telephone number of a destination transmitted via the facsimile apparatus, and a priority order of the facsimile apparatus and the e-mail, wherein the database includes the application and the e-mail. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the information processing apparatus can be referred to from an operating system and the conversion unit. 7. An information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an e-mail to a mail server connected via a first interface, and connected to the information processing apparatus via a second interface. A facsimile system provided with a facsimile device, a setting unit for setting a destination of the e-mail transmitted by the application to the facsimile device, and converting the e-mail whose destination is set to the facsimile device to facsimile image data. A facsimile system, comprising: a converting unit that converts the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus. 8. A facsimile transmission method for transmitting facsimile image data by an information processing apparatus having a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an e-mail, wherein a destination of the e-mail transmitted by the application is set to the facsimile apparatus. Facsimile transmission, comprising the steps of: converting an e-mail whose destination is set to a facsimile device into facsimile image data; and transmitting the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile device. Method. 9. A storage medium which is executed by a computer capable of executing an application for transmitting an electronic mail and stores a program for transmitting facsimile image data, the program comprising: A step of setting a destination to the facsimile apparatus; a step of converting the e-mail whose destination is set to the facsimile apparatus into facsimile image data; and a step of transmitting the converted facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus. A storage medium characterized by including.