JP2002185492A - Mail transfer method and the apparatus therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make possible to set and change the transfer mode of a mail from the side of its user. SOLUTION: When a mail is received, the address of the mail is confirmed (S1). When it has a correspondent pilot mail address (S2), based on the ID of a user retrieved from a user file, there is deduced a transfer pattern wherein an effective flag stands alone at that time point, i.e., a transfer pattern selected at present by the user (S4). Then, based on the ID of the user, there are deduced from a transfer destination file all the transfer destinations set on the mail address of the user of the pilot mail address (S5). Subsequently, with respect to each transfer destination, a transfer condition file is so retrieved as to acquire the correspondent transfer-condition data to each destination (S7) and decide whether the mail transfer to each destination is required or not (S8). When transfer to each destination is required, the correspondent editing-condition data to each destination are so acquired from an editing-condition file (S9) as to edit the mail according to the set content of the editing condition (S10, S11) and transmit the mail (S12).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a technique for exchanging mail on a telecommunications network, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for performing mail transfer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art E-mail is one of the most important applications on the Internet. Today, e-mail can be used not only on personal computers but also on most Internet terminals including mobile phones and electronic notebooks. .

Generally, in the exchange of electronic mail, when a sender (sender) of a mail connects a terminal to the Internet and sends a desired mail to a receiver (receiver), the sender and the receiver receive a message between the sender and the receiver. Necessary communication is performed between the various intervening servers, and as a result, the mail is stored in a mailbox unique to the recipient set in the server that manages the mail of the recipient. The recipient can receive the mail by accessing the Internet and downloading from the mailbox to his terminal. Here, the recipient's destination is set in advance as a unique mail address to which a mail account is assigned on the Internet. Of course, the sender also has a unique mail address assigned with a mail account on the Internet, and can send mail from this mail address (source).

[0004] Further, on the Internet, various files can be transmitted in addition to the body of the e-mail.
Various data such as images and programs can be sent to the recipient as an attached file. Also, using the function of a so-called mailing list, simultaneous broadcasting of e-mail can be performed.

[0005]

By the way, recently, for a user who has many e-mail addresses by himself,
Services for transferring e-mail on the Internet have become widespread. Generally, when a user registers a representative e-mail address with a specific ISP (Internet Service Provider: hereinafter, referred to as a “provider”), the provider will use the representative e-mail on the Internet. The e-mail received at the address is forwarded to an e-mail address of another provider designated by the user as a transfer destination in advance.

However, any of the conventional mail transfer services transfers any mail received at a representative mail address uniformly to all transfer destination mail addresses owned by the user (recipient). The user cannot flexibly select various mail transfer modes according to the TPO (time / place / opportunity), which is inconvenient. For example, even if a user does not want to receive e-mails other than work-related e-mails to an e-mail address used on a company's personal computer, there is an inconvenience that the e-mail is received by a conventional transfer service. In addition, large-capacity messages and attached files are transferred to a terminal with a limited amount of information that can be obtained (received) at a time, a terminal with a low line speed, etc., causing troubles or increasing communication charges. There is also the inconvenience of getting on. Further, in the conventional mail transfer service, the user (recipient) cannot arbitrarily select a part of the transfer destination once set, so that the user cannot use the transfer destination properly.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and allows a user to freely set and switch a mail transfer format (transfer destination, transfer contents, etc.) on a telecommunication network. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mail transfer method and apparatus which can be used.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a mail transfer method according to the present invention comprises the steps of: receiving a mail addressed to a preset representative mail address on a predetermined telecommunication network; Transferring the mail received at the representative mail address to one or a plurality of mail addresses preset as transfer destination candidates according to preset transfer conditions on the network.

In order to achieve the above object, a mail transfer device of the present invention comprises a representative mail address setting means for setting a desired representative mail address valid on a predetermined telecommunication network, Valid one
Transfer destination candidate setting means for setting one or more mail addresses as transfer destination candidates for mail from the representative mail address, and mail for receiving any mail addressed to the representative mail address on the network Receiving means, and for one or more mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates selected in advance, mail transfer means for transferring mail received at the representative mail address on the network according to a predetermined transfer condition. Having.

In the present invention, regarding the handling of mail received at the representative mail address of each user, desired transfer conditions can be set for each mail address designated as a transfer destination candidate by the user. Therefore, for example, the user can partially select the transfer destination at any time according to his / her convenience.

In the present invention, by setting transfer conditions based on attributes of the mail received at the representative mail address, for example, header information or information in the body, each received mail can be transferred to a plurality of mails according to its characteristics. You can also filter by destination email address.

[0012] Further, the user is unified and managed in advance by one representative mail address, one or more transfer destination (candidate) mail addresses, one or more transfer patterns (names), and each transfer pattern. By setting and registering the desired transfer conditions and editing conditions in the mail transfer apparatus of the present invention, the transfer pattern can be arbitrarily changed by the user according to his / her own convenience, and the transfer destination, transfer contents, etc. Can be freely set and switched from the user side.

[0013]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of an Internet connection environment to which a mail transfer service according to an embodiment of the present invention can be applied.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, a user A uses a personal computer 14 that can connect to the Internet via a local area network (LAN) line 10 via a company server 12 at his / her company and a CATV (home) at home. Cable Televi
sion) 16 using a terminal such as a personal computer 20 that can be connected to the Internet via a CATV server 18, and a public line 2 when going indoors (for example, a hotel).
Server 2 of a specific provider by dial-up method from 2
4 uses a personal computer portable terminal 26 which can be connected to the Internet, and a wireless packet network 28 when outdoors.
Uses a mobile phone 32 that can be connected to the Internet via a mobile phone company server 30.

In the above environment, the user A is the LA of the company.
Email address "a @ lan" available via N10,
A mail address "a @ catv" that can be used via the CATV 16 at home, a mail address "a @ provider" that can be used via the dial-up public line 22, and a mobile phone that can be used via the wireless packet network 28 Has the e-mail address "a @ keitai".

On the other hand, the business system of the trader B that provides the mail transfer service of this embodiment is always connected to the Internet. FIG. 2 shows a hardware configuration of the mail transfer system.

As shown in FIG. 2, this mail transfer system is constructed by connecting a plurality of server devices to a LAN, a firewall 34 for ensuring security in the system, and a DNS for managing domains.
(Domain Name System) server 36, WWW (World) for exchanging information with the user's web browser, etc.
Wide Web) server 38, a mail server 40 for sending and receiving e-mails, and a database server (hereinafter referred to as a "server") for storing various setting / registration information and progress information
Abbreviated as “DB server”. ) 42, F via public line
It has a modem server 35 and a modem 37 for transferring mail to AX or the like.

FIG. 3 shows a configuration of a main processing unit in the mail transfer system. The user file 44, the transfer destination file 46, the transfer pattern file 48, the transfer condition file 50, and the editing condition file 52 are provided in the DB server 42. The user registration / identification unit 54, transfer destination setting unit 56, transfer pattern setting unit 58, transfer condition setting unit 60, edit setting unit 62, and mail transfer processing unit 64 are mainly constituted by the WWW server 36 and / or the mail server 40. Is done.

FIG. 4 shows a data storage format in each of the files 44 to 52 in the mail transfer system.

In the user file 44, a user ID, a representative mail address, a name, an address, a password, and the like are set for each user who has subscribed to the mail transfer service.

In the transfer destination file 46, a user ID, a transfer destination ID, a transfer destination mail address, an access key, and a valid flag are set for each transfer destination set by the user.

In the transfer pattern file 48, a user ID, a transfer pattern ID, a transfer pattern name, a valid flag, and a transfer condition ID are set for each transfer pattern set by the user.

The transfer condition file 50 includes, for each transfer condition set by the user, a transfer condition ID, a transfer destination ID, a condition key value, a condition value, a continuation condition, a priority order, and an editing condition I.
D is set.

In the editing condition file 52, a transfer pattern ID, an editing condition I
D, transfer destination ID, edit item, and limit value are set.

The files 44 to 52 can be mutually searched by the relational database via IDs extending over a plurality of files. For example, when the representative mail address of a certain user is found in the user file 44, the transfer destination file 4 is determined based on the user ID.
6 and the transfer pattern file 48, respectively, to search for one or more transfer destination IDs, transfer destination mail addresses, transfer pattern IDs, and transfer pattern names. (Condition key value, condition value, etc.), and edit condition data (edit item, limit value) corresponding to the only valid transfer pattern ID can be calculated from the edit condition file 52.

Next, the mechanism of various setting processes in the mail transfer system will be described with reference to FIGS.

In FIG. 5, a user A connects an arbitrary Internet terminal, for example, a personal computer 20 at home to the Internet, and uses a Web browser of the personal computer 20 to access a URL (Unregistered) related to the user registration of the service provider B.
When the user accesses the iform Resource Locator, for example, a use application screen (“mail transfer service user registration” screen) 66 as shown in FIG. 6 is sent from the user registration / identification unit 54 of the service provider B to the web browser. And is displayed on the display of the personal computer 20.

User A enters necessary items (name, credit card number, desired e-mail address, password, etc.) in each column on the use application screen 66, and clicks a "Send" button at the bottom of the screen. You only have to push it down. Then, the user registration / identification unit 54 of the service provider B receives or decodes the data of each item input through the use application screen 66 and stores it in the user file 44 (54a). At this time, a user ID unique to the user A is assigned by automatic numbering, and this user ID is also registered in the user file 44. Then, after confirming the validity of the settlement means (credit card in this example) presented by the user A (54b), a representative mail address is issued (54c). When issuing this representative e-mail address, it is checked whether any of the already issued representative e-mail addresses overlaps according to the priority order desired by the user A, and the highest priority desired e-mail address that does not overlap is represented. Choose your email address. The representative email address determined in this way is given an email account,
You can receive mail from anywhere in the world on the Internet.

The result of the processing of the user registration / identification section 54 relating to the use application as described above is sent to the web browser of the user A as a user registration confirmation screen 68 as shown in FIG. 7, for example. Are displayed on the display of the personal computer 20. On the user registration confirmation screen 68, the representative mail address “●” issued by this use application is displayed.
●● ＠ ●●●●. ●●． ●● ”is displayed,
Guidance on the registration procedure of the forwarding e-mail address is displayed. Clicking or depressing the button "Register forwarding e-mail address" displayed at the bottom of the screen causes a forwarding e-mail address registration screen 72 (FIGS. 9 and 10) described later to be sent to the web browser. It comes to come.

In FIG. 8, in order for the user A who has been issued the representative mail address to specifically use the service of the mail transfer system, the user accesses the homepage of the service provider B and goes through the personal authentication procedure. Various setting menus “add new transfer destination”, “transfer condition setting”, “transfer pattern selection”, and “edit content setting” can be selected on the setting menu selection screen 70 (details are omitted). Note that the user A is required to enter a representative mail address and a password in the authentication procedure. On the service provider B side, the user registration / identification unit 54 collates the representative mail address registered in the user file 44 with the password (54d).

When the menu "Add new transfer destination" is selected on the setting menu selection screen 70, for example, FIG.
Is transmitted to the web browser and displayed on the display of the personal computer 20. The user A enters (inputs) a desired number of mail addresses that are to be transfer destination candidates in the transfer destination mail address entry field of the transfer destination mail address registration screen 72. In the initial screen, five entry fields are displayed, but by clicking the "Additional registration" button at the bottom of the screen, settings can be input even with six or more forwarding destination e-mail addresses.

Under the Internet connection environment of FIG. 1,
The user A has, for example, a @ lan, a @ cat as shown in FIG.
You can enter v, a @ provider, a @ keitai.

On the service provider B side, the transfer destination setting unit 5
6 is the destination mail address (a @ lan, a @ cat) input and transmitted from the destination mail address registration screen 72.
v, a @ provider, a @ keitai) in the transfer destination file 46, and assigns a unique transfer destination ID and access key to each transfer destination e-mail address by automatic numbering, respectively. The access key and the user ID of the user A are also registered in the transfer destination file 46 together (56a).

Thereafter, the transfer destination processing unit 56 sets the registered transfer destination mail addresses (a @ lan, a @ catv, a @ provide
For each r, a @ keitai), a transfer destination mail address confirmation key notification (“mail transfer service access key” notification) 74 as shown in FIG. 12, for example, is sent to the mail address by e-mail on the Internet (56a). .

If each registered mail address (a @ lan, a @ catv, a @ provider, a @ keitai) of a transfer destination candidate is a valid mail address on the Internet, the transfer destination processing unit 56 sends an e-mail. Is sent to the mail address (more specifically, the servers 12, 18, 2 that manage the mail address).
User A can receive the notification 74 at each terminal because it should arrive at the corresponding mailbox in 4 or 30).

For example, a personal computer 14 of the company is connected to the server 12 via the LAN line 10, and the mail address "a @ la
Upon receiving the transfer destination e-mail address confirmation key notification 74 (FIG. 12) in the mailbox of "n", the access key "fbdw8765Z3n6" assigned to this e-mail address "a @ lan" is described (notification). Have been. Confirm the same forwarding destination e-mail address for the home e-mail address "a @ catv", the outgoing (indoor) e-mail address "a @ provider" and the outgoing (outdoor) e-mail address "a @ keitai". An individual access key is notified by the key notification 74.

The user A accesses the URL specified in the transfer destination e-mail address confirmation key notice 74 via the Internet, and performs a personal authentication procedure (representative e-mail address,
After password verification, the web browser can receive a mail address confirmation key input screen (“access key input” screen) 76 as shown in FIG. 13, for example. On this email address confirmation key input screen 76,
The access key described in each transfer destination e-mail address confirmation key notice 74 sent to the e-mail address of each transfer destination candidate may be written in each access key column. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, "fbdw8765" is displayed in the access key column corresponding to the forwarding mail address "a @ lan" for the company.
Z3n6 ”may be entered (input).

In this way, all the forwarding destination mail addresses "a @ lan", "a @ catv", "a @ provider", "a @ keita
Enter (enter) the access key for "i" and then click the "Send" button at the bottom of the screen. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, on the service provider B side, the transfer destination processing unit 56 transmits the access key input and transmitted from the mail address confirmation key input screen 76 to the transfer destination mail address for each transfer destination mail address. The access key stored in the file 46 is compared with the access key. If the access key matches, the transfer destination e-mail address is validated. If not, the transfer destination e-mail address is invalidated. To inform the user A (56b).

The user A returns to the setting menu selection screen 70 after setting at least one mail address of a transfer destination candidate by the above-mentioned “add new transfer destination” procedure (or logs in again and sets a new mail address). ) You may select the menu of “Transfer condition setting” (FIG. 8). When this “transfer condition setting” is selected, the service provider B sends a transfer condition setting screen 80 as shown in FIG. 16 to the web browser, for example.

In the transfer condition setting screen 80 (FIG. 16), when a previously set transfer pattern name is selected in the column of the uppermost entry "name of transfer condition to be used", the setting is made under the transfer pattern name. A set of transfer condition data (unified management) is retrieved from the corresponding transfer condition file 50 and displayed in each column on the screen. When setting transfer conditions under a transfer pattern name to be newly set, this column may be set to "None", and the new transfer pattern name may be written (input) in the "setting name" column below.

As an example, the user A sets separate transfer conditions for each of two transfer modes or patterns “for normal use” and “for when going out” with contents as shown in FIG. 17 and FIG. Shall be.

In this mail transfer system, the representative mail address of the user A is “●●●●●●●●. ●●. ●●”
Regarding the handling of e-mails received on, each e-mail address (a @ la
Desired transfer conditions can be set for each of n, a @ catv, a @ provider, and a @ keitai, and a plurality of transfer conditions can be set by arbitrarily changing the transfer pattern.

In the transfer pattern (name: Normal) in the example of FIG. 17, the transfer header mail address “a @ lan” for the company is “Sub @” of the mail header information.
ject "to forward all other emails except those that contain the specific string" XXXXXXX ". Forward all emails to home forwarding email address" a @ catv " The transfer condition is that no e-mail is transferred to both the destination e-mail addresses "a @ provider" and "a @ keitai" for going out (indoor / outdoor).

In the transfer pattern (name: Outdoor) of “for going out” in the example of FIG. 18, the transfer destination mail address “a @ lan” for the company and the transfer destination mail address “a @ catv” for the home are used. Are handled in the same way as “for normal use”. However, for the forwarding destination e-mail address "a @ provider" for outside (indoor),
The header information "Reply-To" is a specific mail address "* @
●●● ”mail,“ Subject ”contains a specific character string“ XXXXXXX ”, or“ From ”
The transfer condition is that no e-mail with a specific sender “YYYY” should be forwarded, and that all other e-mails should be forwarded. Also, for the forwarding destination e-mail address "a @ keitai" for the outside (outdoor), the mail whose "From" of the mail header information is the specific sender "ZZZZZ" and the "S
The transfer condition is that only mails containing a specific character string “PPPPPP” in “ubject” are transferred, and no other mails are transferred.

It is also possible to set transfer conditions based on information contained in the body of the mail. For example, a transfer condition for instructing whether or not to forward the mail according to whether or not a specific character or character string is included in the body of the mail is also possible.

The user A sets the transfer condition setting screen 80 (FIG. 1)
6) From above, transfer conditions having the above contents can be set and input for each transfer pattern. For example, the normal transfer pattern “Normal” in FIG.
The screen input as shown in FIG.

More specifically, the transfer pattern name “No.” is displayed in the “setting name” column located at the top of the transfer condition setting screen 80.
rmal ”. In the condition setting column for the company forwarding address“ a @ lan ”, select“ Yes ”in the“ Forward all mails ”column of the principle condition and write“ However ” In the condition, enter “Subject” in one of the “Condition key value” columns in the leftmost column, and enter “XXXXXXX”, “Include”, or “Do not transfer” in the “Condition value” column in that row. Select and leave one of the "condition value" columns in the other rows blank (FIG. 19).

Mail address "a @ catv" for home forwarding
In the condition setting column according to the above, select "Yes" in the "forward all mails" column of the principle condition, and leave one "condition value" column of each line in the "however" writing condition blank ( (FIG. 19).

In the condition setting columns for the destination mail addresses "a @ provider" and "a @ keitai" of the destinations (indoors) and (outdoors), the "forward all mails" column of the principle condition is not set. And leave one “Condition Value” column of each line in the “How” writing condition blank (FIG. 20).

FIGS. 21 and 22 show a transfer condition setting screen 80 in which the transfer condition setting contents of the transfer pattern “Outdoor” for going out of FIG. 18 are input. In this case, enter "Outdoor" in the "Setting Name" field at the top of the screen. Forwarding email addresses "a @ lan", "a
@catv "is a condition setting column for the normal transfer pattern" N
ormal ", so the entry data is left as it is (FIGS. 19 and 21).

In the condition setting field relating to the destination mail address "a @ provider" for the destination (indoor), "yes" is selected in the "forward all mail" field of the principle condition. In the “however” writing condition, in the first line, “Reply-to” is written in the “condition key value” column, and “* @...”, “Include”, and “or” are written in the “condition value” column. Fill or select. Here, the end condition value “or” is also a “continuation condition”. In the second line, “Subject” is entered in the “condition key value” column, and “XXXXXXX”, “include”, and “or” are entered or selected in the “condition value” column. In the third line, “From” is entered in the “Condition key value” column and the “Condition value”
Enter or select “YYYY”, “include”, and “do not transfer” in the fields (FIG. 22).

In the condition setting column relating to the destination mail address "a @ keitai" for the outside (outdoor), select "No" in the "Forward all mails" column of the principle condition.
In the "How" writing condition, "Condition key value" in the first line
Enter “From” in the column and “ZZZZ” in the “Condition Value” column.
Enter or select "Z", "Include", or "or", enter "Subject" in the "Condition Key Value" column on the second line, and enter "PPPPPP", "Include", "" in the "Condition Value" column. Enter or select "Do not transfer" (FIG. 22).

As described above, the user A has the normal transfer pattern “Normal” and the outgoing transfer pattern “Outdoor”.
For each of the patterns, desired data may be input on the screen, and a “Send” button at the bottom of the screen may be clicked or depressed. Then, the screen input data currently displayed on the screen is transmitted from the web browser to the mail transfer system of the service provider B via the Internet.

As shown in FIG. 15, the service provider B recognizes that the setting process is related to the user A (54e), and then sets the transfer pattern setting unit 58 and / or the transfer condition setting unit 60. The transfer condition setting process as described above is executed (58a, 60a), and the screen input data transmitted from the user A side is transferred after confirming that there is no inconsistency in the set contents (58b, 60b). The pattern file 48 and the transfer condition file 50 are stored separately, and the transfer pattern name, the transfer pattern ID, and the transfer condition ID respectively corresponding to the transfer conditions input this time are stored.
Is generated by automatic numbering and stored together.

In the transfer condition file 50, each transfer condition is given a priority according to the order of the entry lines on the transfer condition setting screen 80 (FIG. 4). For example, regarding the transfer destination mail address “a @ provider” for the outside (indoor) in the transfer pattern “outdoor” for the outside in the above example, the transfer condition related to “Reply-to” in the first line has the highest priority. The order is given, the next priority is given to the transfer condition related to “Subject” in the second row, and the lowest priority is given to the transfer condition related to “From” in the third row.

As shown in FIG. 15, the transfer pattern setting section 58 and / or the transfer condition setting section 60 determine whether or not a transfer pattern name having the same name as the currently input transfer pattern is already registered in the transfer pattern file 48. (58c, 60c), if there is a registered transfer pattern name with the same name, it is considered that part or all of the transfer conditions have been changed this time under that transfer pattern name, and both files 48, 50 Is updated or stored by overwriting (58d, 60d).

The user A sets at least one transfer pattern and a set of transfer conditions corresponding to each transfer pattern as described above, and then returns to the setting menu selection screen 70 (or newly logs in). Then, the menu of “select transfer pattern” may be selected (FIG. 8). When this “selection of transfer pattern” is selected, a transfer pattern selection screen 82 as shown in FIG. 24, for example, is sent from the service provider B to the web browser.

On the transfer pattern selection screen 82, the user A can instruct the service provider B side on the transfer pattern desired at the present time. For example, in the above example, when the normal transfer pattern “Normal” is selected, as shown in FIG. 24, “Normal” is entered in the “transfer pattern” column on the screen (in the case of new) or selected from the options ( Then, click or press the "Send" button. Then, the screen input data “Normal” is transmitted from the web browser of the user A to the mail transfer system of the service provider B via the Internet.

As shown in FIG. 23, the service provider B recognizes that the setting process is related to the user A (54f), and the transfer pattern setting unit 58 executes the transfer pattern selection process as described above. (58f), the corresponding valid flag in the transfer pattern file 50 (FIG. 4) corresponding to the transfer pattern "Normal" selected by the user A is set to "valid", and all other transfer patterns are set. Is set to "invalid" (58g).

The user A also sets at least one transfer pattern and a set of transfer conditions corresponding to each transfer pattern, and then sets the setting menu selection screen 70.
Return to (or log in anew) "Edit settings"
(Fig. 8). When this "edit content setting" is selected, the service provider B sends an edit content setting screen 82 as shown in FIG. 26 to the web browser, for example.

At this stage, since at least one transfer pattern has already been set, one of the options in the “transfer pattern” column at the top of the screen 82, that is, one of the preset transfer patterns, is selected. For each selected transfer pattern, each transfer destination e-mail address (a @ lan, a @ catv, a @ pro
vider, a @ keitai) You can set the editing conditions for each. In this example, the user needs four editing items: whether to edit at the time of mail transfer, whether to delete the attached file, whether to limit the mail size, and whether to adjust the line feed width. No, it is possible to specify the desired limit value for the edit items of “size” and “line feed width” (input)
You can do it.

As an example, as shown in FIG. 27, the user A sends the mail address (a @ lan, a @ catv, a @) set as the transfer destination for the normal transfer pattern "Normal".
For @provider and a @ keitai), it is assumed that the editing conditions are such that editing is not performed when forwarding mail. In addition, as shown in FIG. 28, the outgoing transfer pattern “Outdoor” is used for the company mail address “a @
For "lan" and home email address "a @ catv", forward the email as it is without editing anything, and for the outside (indoor) forward destination email address "a @ provider", attach the attached file After deleting the email, forward the email, delete the attached file for the forwarding email address "a @ keitai" for going out (outdoors), and send the text of the email as 100 bytes
It is assumed that the user desires an editing condition that the line feed width is changed to 20 characters.

For example, the transfer pattern “Outdoo
When setting and inputting desired editing conditions as shown in FIG. 28 for "r", as shown in FIG. 26, select "Outdoor" in the "Transfer pattern" field, and then select each forwarding destination mail for which editing is not desired. For the addresses "a @ lan" and "a @ catv", click "YES" in the "Do not edit when forwarding" field, and select the forwarding email address "a @ provider"
For "a @ keitai", leave the "Do not edit when forwarding" column set to NO (empty) and enter Y in each corresponding "edit item" column.
Put a check mark of ES, and for "a @ keitai", set the desired setting value "100" (byt
e) Enter and enter “20” (characters). When the "Send" button at the bottom of the screen is clicked, the editing condition input data as displayed on the screen 82 is transmitted from the web browser of the user A to the mail transfer system of the service provider B via the Internet. You.

As shown in FIG. 25, on the side of the service provider B, after recognizing that the setting process is related to the user A (54g), the editing setting unit 62 executes the editing content setting process as described above. The process is executed (62a), and the editing condition data transmitted from the user A side is stored in the editing condition file 52 (FIG. 4) in association with the transfer pattern and the transfer destination (62b).

FIG. 29 shows the procedure of the mail transfer process in the mail transfer system of the service provider B. This mail transfer processing is executed by the mail transfer processing unit 64 (FIG. 4) with reference to the various files 44 to 52.

First, when an arbitrary mail is received by the mail transfer system on the Internet, the destination of the mail is confirmed (step S1), and a representative mail address corresponding to the destination is registered in the system in the system. It is checked by referring to the user file 44 whether or not there is (step S2). If there is no corresponding representative mail address, a "error" reply is sent back (step S
3).

If there is a corresponding representative mail address, a transfer pattern in which the only valid flag is set at that time is determined from the transfer pattern file 48 based on the user ID searched in the user file 44 (step S).
Four). The transfer pattern determined here is the transfer pattern currently selected by the user in the “select transfer pattern” menu as described above.

Next, based on the user ID, the transfer destination file 4
6 to determine all transfer destinations set for the user or the representative mail address (step S
Five). Then, for each transfer destination, the transfer condition file 50 is searched to obtain the corresponding transfer condition data (step S7), thereby determining whether or not mail transfer is necessary (step S8). Then, when performing mail transfer to the transfer destination, the corresponding edit condition data is obtained from the edit condition file 52 based on the transfer pattern ID and the transfer destination ID (step S9), and the relevant edit condition data is obtained in accordance with the set contents of the edit condition. Edit the mail conditionally (steps S10, S1
1) Then, transmission is performed on the Internet with the transfer destination as a destination (step S12).

In the mail transfer (transmission) from this mail transfer system to each transfer destination, the source mail address on the Internet is the original source, that is, the source that sent the current mail to this representative mail address. The mail address of the service provider B may be added to the mail header information.

As an example, when an electronic mail 86 as shown in FIG. 30 reaches the mail transfer system of the service provider B on the Internet, the following processing result is obtained by the above-described mail transfer processing.

The destination of this mail 86 is “●●● ＠ ●●●
●． ●●． ●● ", it is found that the mail is addressed to the representative mail address of the user A in steps S1 and S2. Therefore, in steps S4 and S5, the transfer pattern ("Normal" or "Outdoor") currently selected by the user A is confirmed, and all the transfer destination mail addresses (a @la
n, a @ catv, a @ provider, a @ keitai).

If the user A selects the normal transfer pattern "Normal" at the time of receiving the mail 86, for example, the user A is set under the normal transfer pattern "Normal" in steps S8 and S9. According to the transfer conditions (FIGS. 17, 19, and 20), the outgoing e-mail addresses "a @ provider" and "a @ keitai"
6 was denied, and the home email address "a @ cat
The transfer of the mail 86 is affirmed for “v” and the mail address “a @ lan” for the company. In particular, the header information of the mail 86 is decrypted for the company mail address “a @ lan”, and it is confirmed that the “Subject” does not include the character string “XXXXXXX”. Steps S9 to S11
In accordance with the editing conditions (FIG. 27) set under the normal transfer pattern "Normal", "a @ lan", "a
No editing is done for any of the "@catv".

As a result, in step S12, the entire mail 86 is directly transferred to the company mail address "a @ lan" and the home mail address "a @ catv". Therefore, when the mail 86 has an attached file, the entire attached file is also transferred as it is.

Thus, the mail 86 transferred or transmitted to the mail addresses “a @ lan” and “a @ catv” on the Internet by the mail transfer system of the service provider B is received by the respective servers 12 and 18, It is stored in the corresponding mailbox in each server. User A
Can receive the mail 86 through the personal computer 14 at work or the personal computer 20 at home.

When the user A has selected the out-of-office transfer pattern "Outdoor" at the time of receiving the mail 86, the following is performed.

In steps S8 and S9, the transfer conditions (FIG. 18, FIG. 18,
According to FIGS. 21 and 22, all the forwarding destination e-mail addresses "a @ lan", "a @ catv", "a @ provider", "a @ kei"
The transfer of this mail 86 is affirmed for “tai”. More specifically, the mail address “a @ lan” for the company is represented by the character string “X” in the “Subject” of the header information of the mail 86.
XXXXXX ”is not included. For the forwarding destination mail address“ a @ provider ”for going out (indoor),“ Reply-To ”is included in the header information of the mail 86.
Is not the email address “* @ ●●●”,
It is confirmed that the character string “XXXXXXX” is not included in “Subject” and that “From” is not the sender “YYYY”. Forwarding e-mail address "a @ keit" for outside (outdoor)
ai ”,“ Subjec ”in the header information of the mail 86
It is recognized that the character string “PPPPPP” is included in “t”.

In steps S9 to S11, edits for "a @ lan" and "a @ catv" are made in accordance with the editing conditions (FIG. 28) set under the transfer pattern "outdoor" for going out. Is not performed at all, for "a @ provider", if there is an attached file, the attached file is deleted, and for "a @ keitai", the attached file is deleted if it is attached When the mail text exceeds 100 bytes, only the first 100 bytes is extracted, and when the line feed width exceeds 20 characters, it is limited to 20 characters.

As a result, in step S12, the entire mail 86 is directly transferred to the business mail address “a @ lan” and the home mail address “a @ catv”.
It is forwarded without an attached file to the e-mail address "a @ provider" for outside (indoor). Then, only the beginning of the original mail 86 is transferred to the outgoing (outdoor) mail address "a @ keitai" with no attached file, with 100 bytes or less and a line feed width of 20 characters or less.

Thus, the mail addresses “a @ lan”, “a @ catv”, “a @ provider”, and “a @ keita” are sent on the Internet by the mail transfer system of the service provider B.
The mail 86 transferred or transmitted to "i" is received by the respective servers 12, 18, 24, 30 and stored in the corresponding mailbox in each server. The user A can receive the main body or the main part of the mail 86 through the personal computer mobile terminal 26 or the mobile phone 32 while away from home. Then, the attached file of the mail 86 can be taken out by the personal computer 14 at work or the personal computer 20 at home.

As described above, in the mail transfer system of this embodiment, each user has previously set one representative mail address, one or more transfer destination (candidate) mail addresses, and one or more transfer destination (candidate) mail addresses. Transfer pattern (name)
And the desired transfer conditions and editing conditions that are centrally managed in each transfer pattern can be set and registered in the system. Each user can enjoy various mail transfer modes according to TPO (time / place / opportunity) by switching the transfer pattern as needed. Therefore, for example, it is possible to transfer non-work related emails to a personal computer at home without transferring them to a company PC, while transferring non-work related emails to a corporate PC at any time. It is also possible for the user to freely switch and control the mail transfer format for the convenience of the user.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the mail transfer system according to this embodiment, the modem server 35 and the modem 37 transmit and receive mails by facsimile via a dial-up method via a public line, and communicate with a computer on the user side. Direct communication is also possible. Therefore, a transfer destination FAX number or a transfer destination telephone number is set instead of the transfer destination mail address, and the mail received at the representative mail address is transferred to the FAX number or telephone number by facsimile transmission or data communication via a public line. It is also possible. Or, instead of the representative email address, the representative fax
It is also possible to set a number or a representative telephone number, and forward the mail received via the public line to the representative FAX number or telephone number to a predetermined mail address on the Internet.

In the above example, the user A instructs the mail transfer system of the service provider B via the Internet from the web browser in order to select or switch one of a plurality of registered transfer patterns. (FIG. 24). However, using the public line
Similar selection or switching is possible by a combination of TMF (push horn tone) and voice response.

[0084]

As described above, according to the present invention, the mail transfer mode on the telecommunications network can be freely set and switched from the user side, and greatly contributes to the development of the network society. Can contribute.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an Internet connection environment to which a mail transfer service according to an embodiment of the present invention can be applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a mail transfer system according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a main processing unit in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a data storage format of various files in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a mechanism of a user registration function in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a use application screen in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a user registration confirmation screen in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing personal authentication and various setting menu selection functions in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a mechanism of a transfer destination mail address registration function in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is an example of a transfer destination e-mail address registration screen in the mail transfer system according to the embodiment (with no data entered);
FIG.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a transfer destination mail address registration screen (partially in a data entry state) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transfer mail address confirmation key notification (mail) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a mail address confirmation key input screen (data not entered) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a mail address confirmation key input screen (partially in a data entry state) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a mechanism of a transfer condition setting function in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transfer condition setting screen (data not filled) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating contents of a normal transfer condition set by a user in the embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing contents of a transfer condition for going out set by a user in the embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a first half of a transfer condition setting screen (a state in which data of a normal transfer condition is written) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating the latter half of the transfer condition setting screen (a state in which the data of the transfer condition for normal use is entered) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing the first half of the transfer condition setting screen in the mail transfer system according to the embodiment (a state in which data of transfer conditions for going out is entered).

FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a latter half of the transfer condition setting screen (a state in which data of a transfer condition for going out is written) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a mechanism of a transfer pattern selection function in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example (data entry state) of a transfer pattern selection screen in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing a mechanism of an editing content setting function in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a diagram showing an example of an editing content setting screen (data entry state) in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating contents (an example) of editing conditions for normal use set by a user in the embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating the contents (one example) of editing conditions for going out set by the user in the embodiment.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a mail transfer process in the mail transfer system of the embodiment.

FIG. 30 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of an electronic mail according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 LAN line 12, 18, 24, 30 server 14, 20 Personal computer 16 CATV 22 Public line 26 Personal computer terminal 28 Wireless packet network 32 Mobile phone 35 Modem server 36 DNS server 37 Modem 38 WWW server 40 Mail server 42 Database (DB) server 44 User file 46 Transfer destination file 48 Transfer pattern file 50 Transfer condition file 52 Editing condition file 54 User registration / identity authentication unit 56 Transfer destination setting unit 58 Transfer pattern setting unit 60 Transfer condition setting unit 62 Edit setting unit 64 Mail transfer Processing unit

Claims (19)

[Claims] Receiving a mail addressed to a representative mail address set in advance on a predetermined telecommunications network; and transmitting the mail received at the representative mail address to a transfer destination according to a preset transfer condition. Transferring the mail to one or more mail addresses preset as candidates on the network. 2. A step of receiving a mail addressed to a representative mail address set in advance on a predetermined telecommunication network; and transmitting the mail received at the representative mail address according to a transfer condition based on the attribute of the mail. Transferring the message to one or more mail addresses preset as transfer destination candidates on the network. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transfer condition is such that a specific character or character string is included in a predetermined item in the header information for one or more mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates selected in advance. 3. The mail transfer method according to claim 2, wherein whether or not to transfer the mail is instructed depending on whether or not the mail is transferred. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transfer condition is such that a specific character or a character string is included in the body of the mail with respect to one or a plurality of mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates selected in advance. The mail transfer method according to claim 2, wherein an instruction is made as to whether or not to transfer the mail according to the following. 5. For one or more mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates selected in advance, the mail received at the representative mail address is edited and transferred according to preset editing conditions. The mail transfer method according to claim 1. 6. The mail transfer method according to claim 5, wherein the editing condition indicates that when a file is attached to the mail received at the representative mail address, the attached file is deleted. 7. The mail transfer method according to claim 5, wherein the editing conditions indicate that the mail received at the representative mail address is limited to a desired size. 8. The mail transfer method according to claim 5, wherein the editing conditions indicate that a line feed width of a mail body of the mail received at the representative mail address is adjusted to a desired value. 9. A set of the transfer condition and / or the edit condition to be simultaneously applied to each mail received at the representative mail address is set in correspondence with desired transfer pattern identification information. The mail transfer method according to any one of 1 to 8. 10. A plurality of sets of the transfer conditions and / or the edit conditions are set in a one-to-one relationship with a plurality of the transfer pattern identification information, and a desired transfer pattern identification information is selected. 10. The selection of the transfer condition and / or the edit condition of the set corresponding to the selected transfer pattern identification information by the selective selection.
Email transfer method described in. 11. Representative mail address setting means for setting a desired representative mail address valid on a predetermined telecommunications network, and one or more mails valid on said network.
Forwarding destination candidate setting means for setting an address as a forwarding destination candidate for mail from the representative mail address; mail receiving means for receiving any mail addressed to the representative mail address on the network; A mail transfer unit that transfers mail received at the representative mail address to the selected one or more mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates on the network according to a predetermined transfer condition. 12. A representative mail address setting means for setting a desired representative mail address valid on a predetermined telecommunication network, and one or more mail addresses valid on the network.
Forwarding destination candidate setting means for setting an address as a forwarding destination candidate for mail from the representative mail address; mail receiving means for receiving any mail addressed to the representative mail address on the network; Mail transfer means for transferring mail received at the representative mail address to the selected one or more mail addresses of the transfer destination candidates on the network in accordance with transfer conditions based on mail attributes thereof; apparatus. 13. The mail transfer device according to claim 12, wherein the mail transfer means has header information decoding means for decoding header information of a mail received at the representative mail address as the mail attribute. 14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said header information decrypting means has means for determining whether or not a predetermined first character or character string is included in a predetermined item in said header information. Mail transfer device. 15. The mail transfer device according to claim 12, wherein the mail transfer means has mail body decoding means for decoding a mail body of a mail received at the representative mail address as the mail attribute. 16. The mail transfer device according to claim 15, wherein said mail body decoding means has means for determining whether or not a specific second character or character string is included in said mail body. 17. A mail editing means for editing one or a plurality of transfer destination candidate mail addresses selected in advance according to a preset editing condition before transferring a mail received to the representative mail address. The mail transfer device according to any one of claims 11 to 16, further comprising: 18. A method for setting a set of the transfer conditions and / or the edit conditions to be simultaneously applied to individual mails received at the representative mail address in accordance with desired transfer pattern identification information. 18. The mail transfer device according to claim 11, further comprising a transfer pattern setting unit. 19. The transfer pattern setting means for setting a plurality of sets of the transfer conditions and / or the edit conditions in a one-to-one relationship with a plurality of the transfer pattern identification information. Means for alternately selecting the desired transfer pattern identification information, and means for selecting a set of the transfer conditions and / or the edit conditions corresponding to the selected transfer pattern identification information. The mail transfer device according to claim 18.