JP2007135012A - Method and system for message delivery, sender message server, recipient message server, program for sender message server, and program for recipient message server - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent illegal messages from being distributed and to flexibly manage messages having been sent. <P>SOLUTION: A sender message server manages a message sent from a sender terminal, distributes a subject included in the message to a recipient message server, which requests the sender message server to distribute the contents when receiving a request for the contents from a recipient terminal having acquired the subject. Then the sender message server requested to distribute the contents distributes the corresponding contents to the recipient terminal via the recipient message server. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a message delivery method, a message delivery system, a caller message server, and a callee message server for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal. In particular, a message delivery method and a message that can prevent unauthorized message distribution and can flexibly manage a message after transmission, in particular, for a sender message server program and a recipient message server program The present invention relates to a delivery system, a caller message server, a callee message server, a caller message server program, and a callee message server program.

  In recent years, a message exchange method using a communication network represented by e-mail has been widely used. As an example of such a message exchange method, a function for sending a message to a desired destination is provided on the sender side (for example, a personal computer), and the received message is opened on the receiving side (for example, a personal computer). Some exchange messages by providing a function.

  In addition, there is a device in which a message relay device is installed on the network side such as the Internet to which these personal computers are connected, and the message exchange is enhanced by combining with each of the functions described above.

  Specifically, when a line that can be directly connected cannot be provided between the sender terminal and the receiver terminal from the viewpoint of ensuring security, the message relay device on the transmission side receives the message transmitted from the sender terminal. The message is transferred to the message relay device on the receiving side, and the message relay device on the receiving side to which the message is transferred transfers the message to the recipient terminal device. By doing in this way, even if it is a case where terminals cannot be directly connected, messages can be exchanged between terminals.

  In addition, a message relay device on the receiving side is often provided with a function for temporarily storing messages. By providing a message storage function in the message relay device, message delivery will not fail even if the recipient terminal is incapable of receiving messages, such as when the recipient turns off the recipient terminal. .

  In addition, among conventional message exchange techniques, there is a technique in which a sender has a function of causing a sender to select a message relay device for storing messages (for example, Patent Document 1). By making it possible to select a message relay device for storing messages in this way, even if the message relay device closest to the recipient cannot store messages due to excess storage capacity, etc., it can receive messages without delay. Can be performed.

JP-A-6-69952

  However, the conventional message exchange method described above has various problems. For example, if a malicious user continuously sends a mail having a large file size, there is a risk that a failure occurs not only in a relay device having a message storage function but also in a recipient terminal that has received such mail. Further, when a mail containing a computer virus is transmitted, there is a risk that the relay device that relays the mail or the recipient terminal that finally receives the mail will be infected with the computer virus.

  In addition, the conventional message exchange method described above has a disadvantage not only on the receiver side but also on the transmission side. In other words, since the message sent from the sender terminal is relayed toward the receiver terminal, even if the sender mistakenly specifies the receiver terminal, the message once sent cannot be canceled. There was a problem. Note that these problems also occur in the technique of Patent Document 1 in which the entire message is subject to relay.

  For these reasons, it is a major issue how to realize a message delivery method that can prevent the distribution of unauthorized messages and can flexibly manage the messages after transmission.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems caused by the prior art, and can prevent unauthorized message circulation and can flexibly manage messages after transmission. It is an object of the present invention to provide a message delivery method, a message delivery system, a sender message server, a recipient message server, a sender message server program, and a recipient message server program.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the invention according to claim 1 delivers the message composed of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the sender terminal to the receiver terminal. A message delivery method, a subject transmission step for transmitting the subject to the recipient terminal, a content request step for requesting transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmission step, and the content request step And a content transmission step of transmitting the content requested by the recipient terminal to the recipient terminal.

  Further, the invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, the content transmitting step transmits the content to the recipient terminal after encrypting the content.

  The invention according to claim 3 further includes a transmission message storage step of storing the message transmitted from the caller terminal in a caller message server on a network in the above invention, wherein the subject transmission step includes: The outgoing message storage step acquires the subject from the sender message server storing the message and transmits it to the callee terminal, and the content transmission step includes a sender message in which the outgoing message storage step stores the message. The content is acquired from a server and transmitted to the callee terminal.

  Further, in the invention according to claim 4, in the above invention, the outgoing message storage step stores the outgoing message stored in the sender message server when a request for changing or deleting the message is received from the sender terminal. It is characterized by allowing change or deletion of messages.

  Further, in the invention according to claim 5, in the above invention, when the outgoing message storage step receives a request for changing or deleting the message from the sender terminal, the content transmission step is included in the message. The message stored in the sender message server is allowed to be changed or deleted on condition that the content to be transmitted has not been transmitted yet.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the above invention, wherein the content transmission step is a case where the content is transmitted to the callee terminal, and a request for forwarding the content from the callee terminal is accepted. The content is transmitted to the third party terminal designated by the forwarding request.

  The invention according to claim 7 further includes an incoming message storage step of storing the subject and the content transmitted to the recipient terminal in a recipient message server on a network in the above invention, The step is characterized by requesting transmission of the content from the caller message server on condition that the transmission request for the content is received from the callee terminal that has received the subject.

  The invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that, in the above invention, the subject transmitting step transmits the subject via a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management.

  The invention according to claim 9 is characterized in that, in the above invention, the subject transmission step transmits the subject without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the content requesting step requests transmission of the content via a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the content requesting step requests transmission of the content without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the content transmission step transmits the content via a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the content transmission step transmits the content without going through a communication management server that performs handshake communication management.

  In the invention according to claim 14, in the above invention, the subject transmission step authenticates a sender identifier for uniquely identifying a sender of the message, and the subject is obtained on the condition that the authentication is successful. Is transmitted.

  Further, the invention according to claim 15 is the above invention, wherein the subject sending step is based on a connection permission condition set for each recipient identifier for uniquely identifying the recipient of the message. The subject is transmitted on condition that the caller identifier for uniquely identifying the caller matches the connection permission condition.

  The invention according to claim 16 is characterized in that, in the above invention, the subject transmission step, the content requesting step, or the content transmission step records the subject or the content history handled by each step. To do.

  The invention according to claim 17 is the above invention, further comprising a charging step of charging the caller or callee based on the history of the subject transmission step, the content requesting step, or the content transmission step. It is characterized by that.

  According to an eighteenth aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the delivery of the subject or the content is not modified based on the history of the subject transmission step, the content requesting step, or the content transmission step. It further includes a content verification step for verifying that the content has been processed.

  In addition, the invention according to claim 19 further includes a notification step of notifying the callee terminal that the subject can be transmitted prior to the transmission of the subject in the subject transmission step. It is characterized by.

  The invention according to claim 20 is a message delivery system for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal. A subject transmission means for transmitting to the recipient terminal, a content request means for requesting transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmission means, and the content requested by the content request means to the recipient terminal Content transmitting means for transmitting is provided.

  The invention according to claim 21 is characterized in that, in the above invention, a caller message server that holds the message transmitted from the caller terminal comprises the subject transmission means and the content transmission means. To do.

  The invention according to claim 22 is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, a recipient message server holding the subject and the content transmitted to the recipient terminal comprises the content requesting means.

  The invention according to claim 23 is used in a message delivery system for delivering the message comprising the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal. A program for a caller message server installed in a caller message server that holds the message transmitted from a subject, the subject transmission procedure for transmitting the subject to the callee terminal, and the subject transmission procedure transmitted by the subject transmission procedure. When the transmission of the content corresponding to the subject is requested, the computer executes a content transmission procedure for transmitting the requested content to the recipient terminal.

  The invention according to claim 24 is used in a message delivery system for delivering the message comprising the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal. A program for a callee message server installed in a callee message server holding the subject and the content transmitted from a caller message server holding the message sent from the caller, comprising: When the recipient terminal requests transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the sender message server, the computer executes a content request procedure for requesting the sender message server to transmit the content. Special To.

  According to the invention of claim 1 or 20, the subject is transmitted to the recipient terminal, and when requested to transmit the content corresponding to the transmitted subject, the requested content is transmitted to the recipient terminal. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unauthorized message distribution by separating the message into a subject and content, sending only the subject, and waiting for the callee's request to send the content corresponding to the subject. At the same time, it is possible to reduce the load on the device that relays / stores the message. In addition, since it is possible for the sender to confirm that a content transmission request has been made, there is an effect that the sender can grasp the acquisition status of the content.

  According to the invention of claim 2, since the content transmitting step is configured to transmit the content to the receiver terminal after encrypting the content, it is effectively prevented that the content is leaked to a third party. There is an effect that can be done.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the method further includes an outgoing message storing step of storing a message sent from the sender terminal in a sender message server on the network, wherein the subject sending step includes a message sent from the outgoing message storage step. The subject is acquired from the stored caller message server and transmitted to the callee terminal, and the content transmission step is such that the callout message storage step acquires the content from the caller message server storing the message and transmits it to the callee terminal. Because it is configured, the sender message server on the network can manage the message sent from the sender, so that the message after transmission can be managed flexibly, and the subject and content are sent separately. Incorrect message distribution An effect that it is possible to prevent the.

  According to the invention of claim 4, the outgoing message storage step allows the change or deletion of the message stored in the sender message server when the request for changing or deleting the message is received from the sender terminal. Since it comprised, even if it is after a sender | sender transmits a message, there exists an effect that a message can be deleted based on a sender | caller's will.

  According to the invention of claim 5, the outgoing message storage step has not yet sent the content included in the message when the request for changing or deleting the message is received from the caller terminal. Since it is configured to allow modification or deletion of the message stored in the sender message server on the condition of the above, it is effective that the content once viewed by the recipient is changed / deleted regardless of the will of the recipient There is an effect that it can be prevented.

  According to the invention of claim 6, the content transmission step is a case where the content is transmitted to the callee terminal, and when the content transfer request is received from the callee terminal, Since it is configured to transmit to the specified third party terminal, it is effective that the content sent by the caller is altered and forwarded by the callee, or the content that the caller does not want to forward is forwarded The effect that it can prevent automatically is produced.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the method further includes an incoming message storage step of storing the subject and content transmitted to the called party terminal in a recipient message server on the network, wherein the content requesting step receives the incoming call when the subject is received. Subject and content sent to the callee message server on the network because the caller message server is requested to send content on the condition that a content send request has been received from the caller terminal. By holding the URL, it is possible to prevent the loss of the subject and content for the callee, and the caller can send the subject and content regardless of the status of the callee terminal. Play.

  According to the invention of claim 8, the subject transmission step is configured to transmit the subject via the communication management server that performs handshake type communication management, so that the subject can be transmitted reliably. There is an effect.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the subject transmission step is configured to transmit the subject without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management, so that the subject can be transmitted at high speed. There is an effect.

  According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, since the content requesting step is configured to request the transmission of the content via the communication management server that performs handshake type communication management, the content request can be reliably delivered. There is an effect that can be.

  According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, the content requesting step is configured to request the transmission of the content without going through the communication management server that performs handshake type communication management, so the content request is transmitted at high speed. There is an effect that can be.

  According to the invention of claim 12, since the content transmission step is configured to transmit the content via the communication management server that performs handshake type communication management, the content can be reliably delivered. There is an effect.

  According to the invention of claim 13, the content transmission step is configured to transmit the content without going through a communication management server that performs handshake-type communication management, so that the content can be transmitted at high speed. There is an effect.

  According to the invention of claim 14, the subject transmission step is configured to authenticate the sender identifier for uniquely identifying the sender of the message, and to transmit the subject on the condition that the authentication is successful. It is possible to effectively prevent a malicious user from sending an annoying message or a message containing a computer virus.

  According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, the subject transmission step uniquely identifies the message sender based on the connection permission condition set for each recipient identifier for uniquely identifying the message recipient. Since the subject is sent on the condition that the caller identifier matches the connection permission condition, the caller who accepts the message and the caller who refuses to receive the message based on the will of the recipient There is an effect that it can be selected.

  According to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention, the subject transmission process, the content requesting process, or the content transmission process is configured to record the subject or content history handled by each process, so that the delivery status of the subject and the content is easy. There is an effect that can be confirmed.

  Further, according to the invention of claim 17, since it is configured to further include a charging step for charging the caller or the callee based on the history of the subject transmission step, the content requesting step, or the content transmission step, There is an effect that it is possible to charge the caller or the callee based on the number of times of communication.

  According to the invention of claim 18, a content verification step for verifying that the subject or content is delivered without being modified based on the history of the subject transmission step, the content request step or the content transmission step. In this way, it is possible to easily check whether or not the subject or content to be delivered has been altered during delivery.

  According to the nineteenth aspect of the invention, since it is further configured to include a notification step of notifying the recipient terminal that the subject can be transmitted prior to the transmission of the subject in the subject transmission step, commercially available WWW browser software Even when a terminal equipped with is used, it is possible to notify that a new message has been registered.

  According to the twenty-first aspect of the present invention, since the caller message server that holds the message transmitted from the caller terminal is configured to include the subject transmission means and the content transmission means, the message transmitted by the caller is transmitted. By managing the message server, the message management after transmission can be flexibly performed.

  According to the invention of claim 22, since the recipient message server holding the subject and content transmitted to the recipient terminal is provided with the content requesting means, the subject and content delivered to the recipient Is managed by the recipient message server, so that the sender can send a message regardless of the state of the recipient terminal, and the recipient can reliably receive the subject and the content.

  According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, when a subject transmission procedure for transmitting a subject to a recipient terminal and transmission of content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmission procedure are requested, the requested content is Since the content transmission procedure to be transmitted to the callee terminal is configured to be executed by the computer, there is an effect that the caller message server can be easily configured using a commercially available computer.

  According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, when the callee terminal requests transmission of content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the caller message server, the caller message server is requested to transmit the content. Since the content request procedure is configured to be executed by the computer, there is an effect that the callee message server can be easily configured using a commercially available computer.

  Exemplary embodiments of a message delivery method, a message delivery system, a caller message server, a callee message server, a caller message server program, and a callee message server program according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example 8 will be described in detail.

  Prior to the description of each embodiment, the outline and features of the message delivery method according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline and features of a message delivery method according to the present invention.

  FIG. 1 shows a caller message server provided on a network such as the Internet and having a function of storing a message uploaded by a caller terminal, and a message that is also provided on the network and is a download target by the callee terminal. 3 shows a callee message server having a function of storing the message, a caller terminal and a callee terminal that can be connected to a network. Although FIG. 1 shows a case where the caller terminal and the callee terminal are personal computers, a wireless communication device such as a mobile phone may be used as the caller terminal or the callee terminal.

  The “message” handled in FIG. 1 refers to data such as texts and photos published on a so-called blog, electronic mail (including attached data such as photos and programs), and the like. In addition, “subject” represents “title” in the case of e-mail, and “content” represents “text” (including attached data). The web page search data defined in RSS (RDF (Resource Description Framework) Site Summary) widely used in the blog described above corresponds to “subject”.

  As shown in FIG. 1, when a caller uploads a message addressed to a callee terminal to the caller message server by operating the caller terminal (see (1) in FIG. 1), the caller message server is called the caller terminal. The message received from is stored in a storage device such as a non-volatile RAM (Random Access Memory) or HDD (Hard Disk Drive) (see (2) in FIG. 1).

  Here, the caller message server manages the message separately into the subject and the content, and sends only the subject included in the message to the callee message server (see (3) in FIG. 1). The callee message server holds the subject received from the caller message server, and the callee terminal acquires the subject held by the caller message server (see (4) in FIG. 1).

  When the callee terminal makes a content acquisition request to the callee message server (see (5) in FIG. 1), the callee message server makes a content request to the caller message server ((6 in FIG. 1). )reference). The caller message server that requested the content transmits the corresponding content to the callee message server (see (7) in FIG. 1), and the callee terminal acquires the content from the callee message server (in FIG. 1). (See (8)).

  As described above, in the message delivery method according to the present invention, for a message composed of a subject and content, first, only the subject is delivered, and when a recipient who has viewed this subject requests content corresponding to the subject. And decided to deliver the content.

  Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent a message that is not desired by the recipient (for example, a mail including a huge attached file or a mail attached with virus software) from being delivered to the recipient terminal. In addition, since content is delivered to the callee message server only when a request is received from the callee terminal, the amount of messages stored in the callee message server can be reduced, and a message containing a huge attachment It is also possible to prevent messages with virus software attached from being accumulated.

  In the message delivery method according to the present invention, since the message sent by the caller terminal is configured to be stored in the caller message server, the caller sends the message using the caller terminal. However, it is possible to change or delete the message before it reaches the recipient. Furthermore, the caller can confirm that the sent message is reliably delivered to the callee by referring to the browsing status of the subject and the browsing status of the content.

  Hereinafter, variations of the message delivery system to which the message delivery method according to the present invention is applied will be described as Example 1 to Example 8.

  First, the message delivery system according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of the message delivery system according to the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the message delivery system according to the first embodiment includes a caller terminal 1120, a caller message server 1130 that manages messages sent from the caller, and a callee that manages messages addressed to the callee. A message server 1230 and a receiver terminal 1220 are included. The message delivery system according to the first embodiment is mainly characterized in that only the subject is distributed, and the content corresponding to the subject is distributed when the callee who has viewed the subject requests the content. is there.

  Specifically, a message transmitted from the caller terminal 1120 at the request of the caller 1110 is stored in the caller message server 1130, and the caller message server 1130 sends only the subject of the message via the Internet 1900 to the caller message. Send to server 1230. Then, the callee 1210 uses the callee terminal 1220 to request the content corresponding to the subject stored in the callee message server 1230 via the callee message server 1230, and the caller message server 1130 receives the callee message server 1230. Get the content delivered to.

  First, each device on the caller side (caller terminal 1120 and caller message server 1130) will be described. The caller terminal 1120 requests the storage of the message by sending a message input by the operation of the caller 1110 to the caller message server 1130, and acquires the browsing status of the message from the caller message server 1130. The device that performs the process of presenting to the caller.

  The caller terminal 1120 can be configured by installing dedicated application software on a personal computer (PC). In the first embodiment, a case where a PC is used as the caller terminal 1120 will be described. However, a mobile phone or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) may be used as the caller terminal 1120.

  The caller message server 1130 manages the message received from the caller terminal 1120, distributes the subject and content included in the message to the callee message server 1230, and sets the browsing status of the subject and content to the caller terminal 1120. It is a device that performs the processing provided to. The sender message server 1130 includes a terminal communication unit 1131, an outgoing message storage unit 1132, a message processing unit 1133, and a line communication unit 1134.

  Further, the caller message server 1130 installs a program corresponding to each function unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS), and stores a table used by the call message storage unit 1132 in a storage device. Can be configured. The sender message server 1130 is connected to the Internet 1900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  The terminal communication unit 1131 is an interface for performing communication with the caller terminal 1120, and is configured by implementing a protocol such as HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

  The outgoing message storage unit 1132 is a processing unit that stores a table that stores a message that the caller 1110 intends to send to the callee 1210 in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. The outgoing message storage unit 1132 stores, for example, a record including items of message number, date, time, destination, subject, content, browsing history, and storage availability. Here, an example of data stored in the outgoing message storage unit 1132 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in the outgoing message storage unit 1132 illustrated in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, for example, for the message with the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, the message stored date “2005/08/31” and the message stored time “09:50” are transmitted by the outgoing message storage unit 1132. , The destination of the message “kato@isp-a.ne.jp”, the subject “Implementation of evacuation drill” representing the subject of the message, and the content “The evacuation drill will be conducted tomorrow. The browsing history “viewed” indicating whether or not this content has been browsed by the callee and the saveability “allowed” indicating whether or not the callee message server 1230 is allowed to save this content are stored in association with each other. Is done.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 2, the message processing unit 1133 will be described. The message processing unit 1133 is a processing unit that gives an operation instruction to each processing unit in the sender message server 1130, and is connected to other processing units.

  The line communication unit 1134 is an interface for communicating with the callee message server 1230 via the Internet 1900, and an optimal communication procedure on IP (Inter Protocol) for each communication content such as subject transmission and content transmission. It is configured by implementing.

  Next, each apparatus on the receiver side (the receiver terminal 1220 and the receiver message server 1230) will be described. The recipient terminal 1220 acquires and displays the subject from the recipient message server 1230 and makes a content request corresponding to the subject to the recipient message server 1230 by the operation of the recipient 1210. 1210 is an apparatus provided.

  The callee terminal 1220 can be configured by installing dedicated application software on a personal computer (PC), like the caller terminal 1120. Note that the mobile phone or PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) can be used as the callee terminal 1220 as well as the caller terminal 1120.

  The recipient message server 1230 is a device that acquires and stores the subject and content, and performs processing for providing the subject and content to the recipient terminal 1220. The receiver message server 1230 includes a terminal communication unit 1231, an incoming message storage unit 1232, a message processing unit 1233, and a line communication unit 1234.

  Similarly to the caller message server 1130, the callee message server 1230 installs a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS) and is used by the incoming message storage unit 1232. It can be configured by storing the table in a storage device. The callee message server 1230 is connected to the Internet 1900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  The terminal communication unit 1131 is an interface for performing communication with the callee terminal 1220, and is configured by implementing a protocol such as HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

  The incoming message storage unit 1232 is a processing unit that stores a table in which a message that the called party 1210 is to receive from the caller 1110 is stored in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. The incoming message storage unit 1232 stores, for example, a record including each item of message number, date, time, transmission source, subject, content, acquisition history, and storage availability. Here, an example of data stored in the incoming message storage unit 1232 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in the incoming message storage unit 1232 illustrated in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 4, for example, for the message with the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, the incoming message storage unit 1232 stores the date “2005/08/31” when the message is stored and the time “09:50” when the subject is stored. , The message sender “suzuki@inter.net”, the subject “message evacuation drill” that represents the subject of the message, the content “the evacuation drill tomorrow. The acquisition history “acquired” indicating whether or not the content to be transmitted has been acquired from the sender message server 1130 and the storage enable / disable “permitted” indicating whether or not storage of this content is permitted are stored in association with each other.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 2, the message processing unit 1233 will be described. The message processing unit 1233 is a processing unit that gives an operation instruction to each processing unit in the callee message server 1230 and is connected to other processing units.

  The line communication unit 1234 is an interface for communicating with the caller message server 1130 via the Internet 1900, and an optimal communication procedure on IP (Inter Protocol) for each communication content such as subject acquisition and content acquisition. It is configured by implementing.

  Next, a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, first, the caller 1110 inputs a message to be transmitted to the callee 1210 to the caller terminal 1120 (step S1010). Here, an example of the input screen used in step S1010 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in the message input procedure (step S1010) shown in FIG.

  The caller 1110 uses the input screen shown in FIG. 6 to input a “destination” that represents the callee identifier assigned to the callee 1210, a “subject” that represents the subject of the message, and a content in the callee message server 1230. “Save permission” or “Save refusal” indicating whether or not to save the message can be selected, and “Content” indicating the message body is input. When the caller 1110 presses an “upload” button shown in FIG. 6, the caller terminal 1120 uploads a message to the caller message server 1130 as shown in FIG. 5 (step S1020). Then, the caller message server 1130 that has received the message upload executes a message storage process (step S1030).

  Details of this message storage process (step S1030) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing details of the message storage processing procedure (step S1030) shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, when the terminal communication unit 1131 of the caller message server 1130 receives a message upload (step S1020), the terminal communication unit 1131 transfers the uploaded message to the message processing unit 1132 (step S1020). S1031).

  Then, the message processing unit 1132 to which the message has been transferred temporarily holds this message (step S1032), and generates a message number and upload time (including date) based on the content of the held message (step S1032). S1033). The message number is generated using the generation method proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-354599. According to this generation method, a unique number can be obtained while reflecting the message content.

  Subsequently, the message processing unit 1132 stores the message number, date, and time generated in step S1033 and the destination, subject, content, and storability information included in the message uploaded from the caller terminal 1120. The storage unit 1133 is instructed (step S1034). Upon receiving the instruction, the message storage unit 1133 stores the data included in the storage instruction in the table shown in FIG. 3 (step S1035).

  Further, the message processing unit 1132 instructs the line communication unit 1134 to send a subject to the recipient message server 1230 (step S1036). This call instruction includes the above message number, date, time, caller, and callee as incidental information. Then, the message processing unit 1132 that has executed step S1034 and step S1036 deletes the message temporarily held in step S1032 (step S1037), and ends the message storage process (step S1030).

  Returning to the description of FIG. 5, the description of the processing procedure after step S1040 will be continued. The caller message server 1130 sends a subject to the corresponding callee message server 1230 based on the call destination set in step S1036 (step S1040). In the transmission of the subject (step S1040), the message number, date, time, transmission source and transmission destination are also transmitted as supplementary information.

  Then, the recipient message server 1230 that has accepted the subject transmission in step S1040 executes a process for storing the received subject (step S1050). Details of the subject storage process (step S1050) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing details of the subject storage processing procedure (step S1050) shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the line communication unit 1234 that received the subject transmission in step S1040 transfers the received subject to the message processing unit 1232 (step S1051). At the time of transfer, incidental information (message number, date, time, transmission source and transmission destination) is transferred together with the subject.

  Subsequently, the message processing unit 1232 instructs the message storage unit 1233 to store the subject and incidental information (step S1052). Receiving this storage instruction, the message storage unit 1233 stores the subject and supplementary information in the table shown in FIG. 4 (step S1053), and ends the subject storage process (step S1050).

  Returning to the description of FIG. 5, the processing procedure after step S1060 will be described. The called party 1210 makes a request for obtaining a subject that has arrived at the called party message server 1230 at an arbitrary timing (step S1060). Specifically, when the recipient 1210 who wants to make a subject acquisition request activates the content acquisition screen shown in FIG. 9, the recipient terminal 1220 executes a subject request to the recipient message server 1230 (steps). S1070).

  Here, an example of a content acquisition screen used in step S1060 (subject request) and step S1100 (content request) described later will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a content acquisition screen in the subject request procedure and the content request procedure shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the content acquisition screen executes a content request (step S1100) by selecting and pressing a “subject list” that is a subject display area and an arbitrary line from the subject list. It includes an “acquire” button and “content” which is a display area of the acquired content.

  In addition, it is assumed that the row (in which the subject is “Implementation of Evacuation Training”) displayed in reverse in the figure is the subject selected by the callee 1210. When the content acquisition screen is activated as described above, step S1070 is executed, and the subject is displayed in the “subject list” as a result of the subject reply (step S1080) procedure executed by the callee message server 1230. It will be.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 5, the description of the processing procedure after step S1080 will be continued. The recipient message server 1230 requested for the subject in step S1070 returns the subject and incidental information (date, time and sender) to the recipient terminal 1220 (step S1080).

  Subsequently, the recipient 1210 selects a subject whose content is to be acquired from the subjects displayed in the “subject list” on the content acquisition screen (see FIG. 9), and presses the “content acquisition” button to request a content acquisition. (Step S1090), the callee terminal 1220 executes a content request to the callee message server 1230 (step S1100).

  Receiving the content request, the callee message server 1230 requests the caller message server 1130 for the corresponding content (step S1110). In the content request in step S1110, the message number corresponding to the subject selected by the recipient 1210 from the “subject list” in FIG. 9 is obtained from the incoming message storage unit 1232 of the recipient message server 1230, and the obtained message The number is transmitted to the sender message server 1130 as content designation information together with the sender and the sender.

  Subsequently, the caller message server 1130 that has requested the content executes content extraction processing corresponding to the content request (step S1120). Details of the content extraction process (step S1120) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing details of the content extraction processing procedure (step S1120) shown in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 10, the line communication unit 1134 that has received the content request in step S1110 transfers the content request including the message number, the transmission source, and the transmission destination to the message processing unit 1132 (step S1121). The message processing unit 1132 to which the content request has been transferred instructs the message storage unit 1133 to search for the corresponding content (step S1122).

  Then, the message storage unit 1133 extracts the corresponding content by searching the table shown in FIG. 3 using the message number as a key (step S1123), determines that the extracted content is browsed, and browses the content Is changed to “viewed”, that is, a content browsing history recording procedure (step S1124) is executed.

  Subsequently, the message storage unit 1133 returns the extracted content to the message processing unit 1132 together with the message number, the transmission source, the transmission destination, and whether or not it can be stored (step S1125). The line communication unit 1134 is instructed to return to the callee message server 1230 (step S1126), and the content extraction process (step S1120) is terminated.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 5, the description of the processing procedure after step S1130 will be continued. The caller message server 1130 adds a message number to the content extracted in the content extraction process (step S1120), the caller, the callee, and whether it can be saved, and returns it to the callee message server 1230 (step S1130). In step S1130, for example, the content may be returned using a transmission path formed by a secure communication procedure such as SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol).

  The callee message server 1230 that has received the content from the caller message server 1130 executes content storage processing (step S1140). Details of this content storage processing will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing details of the content storage procedure (step S1140) shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the line communication unit 1234 that has received the content return in step S1130 transfers the received information to the message processing unit (step S1141).

  The message processing unit 1232 temporarily holds the transferred content (step S1142), and “save / cancel” is included as a parameter in step S1141 whether or not the content can be stored in the message storage unit 1233. (Step S1143). If the “saveability” parameter is “possible”, it is determined that the data can be stored, and the process proceeds to step S1144. If it is “no”, it is determined that the data cannot be stored, and the process proceeds to step S1146.

  If it is determined in step S1143 (storage availability determination process) that storage is possible, the message storage unit 1233 is instructed to store content (step S1144). When the message storage unit 1233 receives the content storage instruction, the message storage unit 1233 executes storage processing of the content instructed to be stored (step S1145). Note that when the message storage unit 1233 executes step S1145, the message processing unit 1232 proceeds to step S1146.

  If it is determined in step S1143 (storage availability determination process) that storage is not possible, steps S1144 and S1145 are not executed, and step S1146 is executed.

  That is, if it is determined in step S1143 (storability determination process) that storage is possible and steps S1144 and S1145 are executed, and if it is determined in step S1143 (storability determination process) that storage is not possible, the line communication unit 1234 is instructed to instruct the recipient terminal 1220 to display the content (step S1146). In step S1146, incidental information (message number, transmission source, transmission destination, acquisition history, and storage availability) is transmitted together with the content.

  The message processing unit 1232 that has executed Step S1146 deletes the message temporarily held in Step S1142 (Step S1147), and ends the content storage process.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 5, the content display processing (step S1150) will be described. The callee message server 1230 displays the content newly stored in step S1140 together with the accompanying information (message number, caller, callee, acquisition history, and saveability) (step S1150). Here, the content acquisition screen on which content is displayed in step S1150 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating how content is displayed on the content acquisition screen illustrated in FIG. 9.

  As shown in FIG. 12, in the “content” that is the content display area, the first line of the “subject list”, that is, the content corresponding to the subject “exercise evacuation drill” is displayed.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, the caller message server manages a message transmitted from the caller terminal, and the caller message server distributes the subject included in the message to the callee message server. When the content request is received from the callee terminal that has acquired the caller, the callee message server requests the caller message server to distribute the content, and the caller message server that is requested to distribute the content is applicable. The content is distributed to the recipient terminal via the recipient message server. Therefore, the callee can selectively acquire the desired content after viewing the subject, so that it is possible to effectively avoid the risk of receiving an unauthorized message or virus software. Further, since the caller message server delivers content to the callee message server only when a content request is received from the callee, the amount of messages stored in the callee message server can be reduced.

  By the way, the sender message server and the receiver message server shown in the first embodiment are connected via a communication line such as the Internet. For important connection signals such as a transmission signal and a request signal, a so-called handshake is used. Reliable signal communication can be realized by performing transmission and reception while performing delivery confirmation using a communication method of the system. Further, by adopting the handshake method, it is possible to accurately grasp the content acquisition state by the callee message server in the caller message server. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a case where the handshake method is applied to the communication method of the message delivery system shown in the first embodiment will be described.

  In the following, differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and description of common points will be simplified.

  First, the message delivery system according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the second embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 13, the message delivery system according to the second embodiment includes a caller terminal 2120, a caller message server 2130 that manages messages sent from the caller, and a callee that manages messages addressed to the callee. It is composed of a message server 2230, a callee terminal 2220, and a session management server 2310 that manages the state of a session formed in handshake communication and relays a handshake signal. The message delivery system according to the second embodiment performs communication processing such as subject and content transmission / reception between the caller message server 2130 and the callee message server via the session management server 2310. Has the main characteristics.

  Specifically, a message transmitted from the caller terminal 2120 at the request of the caller 2110 is stored in the caller message server 2130, and the caller message server 2130 sends the subject of the message to the session management server 2310 via the Internet 2900. Send to. The session management server 2310 transmits this subject to the recipient message server 2230 via the Internet 2900, and the recipient 2210 corresponds to the subject stored in the recipient message server 2230 using the recipient terminal 2220. Content is requested via the callee message server 2230 and the session management server 2310, and the content delivered from the caller message server 2130 to the callee message server 1230 via the session management server 2310 is acquired.

  First, each device on the caller side (caller terminal 2120 and caller message server 2130) will be described. The caller terminal 2120 requests the storage of the message by sending a message input by the operation of the caller 2110 to the caller message server 2130, and acquires the browsing status of the message from the caller message server 2130. The device that performs the process of presenting to the caller.

  The caller terminal 2120 can be configured by installing dedicated application software on a personal computer (PC). In the second embodiment, a case where a PC is used as the caller terminal 2120 will be described. However, a point that a mobile phone or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) can be used as the caller terminal 2120 is similar to the first embodiment. It is the same.

  The caller message server 2130 manages the message received from the caller terminal 2120, distributes the subject and content included in the message to the callee message server 2230 via the session management server 2310, and sends the subject and content. It is a device that performs processing for providing a browsing status to the caller terminal 2120. The sender message server 2130 includes a terminal communication unit 2131, a transmission message storage unit 2132, a message processing unit 2133, a communication control unit 2134, and a browsing history storage unit 2135.

  The caller message server 2130 installs a program corresponding to each of the above-described functional units on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS), and uses a table used by the outgoing message storage unit 2132 and a browsing history storage unit 1235. Can be configured by storing the table to be stored in a storage device. The sender message server 2130 is connected to the Internet 2900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  The terminal communication unit 2131 is an interface for performing communication with the caller terminal 2120, and is configured by implementing a protocol such as HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

  The outgoing message storage unit 2132 is a processing unit that stores a table that stores a message that the caller 2110 intends to send to the callee 2210 in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. This outgoing message storage unit 2132 stores, for example, a record including each item of message number, date, time, destination, subject, content, and storability. Here, an example of data stored in the outgoing message storage unit 2132 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of data stored in the outgoing message storage unit 2132 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, for example, for the message with the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, the outgoing message storage unit 2132 stores the date “2005/08/31” when the message is stored and the time “09:50” when the message is stored. , The destination of the message “kato@isp-a.ne.jp”, the subject “Implementation of evacuation drill” representing the subject of the message, and the content “The evacuation drill will be conducted tomorrow. In addition, storage permission / prohibition “permitted” indicating whether or not to permit the recipient message server 2230 to store the content is stored in association with each other.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 13, the message processing unit 2133 will be described. The message processing unit 2133 is a processing unit that gives an operation instruction to each processing unit in the sender message server 2130 and is connected to other processing units.

  The communication control unit 2134 is a processing unit that performs signal control for communication with the session management server 2234 and the callee message server 2230 via the Internet 2900. Specifically, the communication control unit 2134 transmits and receives handshake control signals in communication related to subject transmission and content request, and performs one-way transmission and reception in communication other than control signals such as content transmission.

  The browsing history storage unit 2135 is a processing unit that stores a table indicating the browsing status of the message stored by the caller 2110 in the outgoing message storage unit 2132 by the callee 2210 in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. is there. This browsing history storage unit 2135 stores, for example, a record including items of message number, date, time, destination, subject, and content. Here, an example of data stored in the browsing history storage unit 2135 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in the browsing history storage unit 2135 illustrated in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the browsing history storage unit 2135 stores, for example, “viewing history 1” for storing the history of the first browsing for the message with the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, and storing the history of the second browsing. Each browsing history is added as the number of browsing increases, such as “browsing history 2”. In addition, each browsing history includes, for example, a date “2005/08/31” when browsing is started and a time “10:01” when browsing is started, a date “2005/08/31” when browsing is ended, and browsing is ended. "10:05", the destination (viewer) representing the viewed recipient "kato@isp-a.ne.jp", the browsing status and the browsing status "Viewed" indicating success or failure are associated with each other. Stored.

  Next, each apparatus on the receiver side (the receiver terminal 2220 and the receiver message server 2230) will be described. The recipient terminal 2220 obtains and displays the subject from the recipient message server 2230 and makes a content request corresponding to the subject to the recipient message server 2230 by the operation of the recipient 2210. 2210 is a device provided.

  The callee terminal 2220 can be configured by installing dedicated application software on a personal computer (PC), like the caller terminal 2120. Note that the mobile phone or PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) can be used as the callee terminal 2220 in the same manner as the caller terminal 2120.

  The recipient message server 2230 is a device that obtains and stores the subject and content, and performs processing for providing the subject and content to the recipient terminal 2220. The recipient message server 2230 includes a terminal communication unit 2231, an incoming message storage unit 2232, a message processing unit 2233, and a communication control unit 2234.

  Similarly to the caller message server 2130, the callee message server 2230 installs a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS) and is used by the incoming message storage unit 2232. It can be configured by storing the table in a storage device. The callee message server 2230 is connected to the Internet 2900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  The terminal communication unit 2131 is an interface for performing communication with the callee terminal 2220, and is configured by implementing a protocol such as HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

  The incoming message storage unit 2232 is a processing unit that stores a table that stores a message that the called party 2210 intends to receive from the caller 2110 in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. The incoming message storage unit 2232 stores, for example, a record including items of message number, date, time, sender, subject, and content. Note that an example of data stored in the incoming message storage unit 2232 is the same as that of the first embodiment (see FIG. 4), and thus description thereof is omitted.

  The message processing unit 2233 is a processing unit that gives an operation instruction to each processing unit in the recipient message server 2230 and is connected to other processing units.

  The communication control unit 2234 is a processing unit that performs signal control for communication with the session management server 2234 and the caller message server 2130 via the Internet 2900. Specifically, the communication control unit 2134 transmits and receives handshake control signals in communication related to subject transmission and content request, and performs one-way transmission and reception in communication other than control signals such as content reception.

  The session management server 2310 is a device that manages the state of a session formed in handshake communication and relays a handshake signal. By using this session management server 2310, reliable signal transmission can be realized. The session management server 2310 can be configured by installing a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS). The session management server 2310 is connected to the Internet 2900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  Next, a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 13 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, when the caller 2110 inputs a message to be sent to the callee 2210 to the caller terminal 2120 (step S2010), the caller terminal 2120 that has accepted this input sends a message to the caller message server 2130. Is uploaded (step S2020). Then, the sender message server 2130 that has received the message upload executes a message storage process (step S2030). Note that the details of the message storage process in step S2030 are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, the sender message server 2130 transmits a subject transmission activation signal to the session management server 2310 (step S2040). The session management server 2310 that has received this activation signal relays the activation signal to the callee message server 2230 (step S2050). The recipient message server 2230 relayed the activation signal indicates that it has accepted the activation signal relayed in step S2050 in order to notify that the activation signal has been received without any problem and is ready to receive the subject itself. A response signal is sent back so as to follow the reverse route to the activation signal (step S2060).

  The session management server 2310 that has received the response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S2030 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S2040, and sends this response signal to the caller message server 2030. Relay to the destination (step S2070). The message server 2130 that has received the response signal determines that the preparation for receiving the subject in the callee message server 2230 is completed, and this time, the message is directly sent to the callee message server 2230 (via the session management server 2310). (Step S2080).

  The callee message server 2230 that has received the subject from the caller message server 2130 executes processing for storing the received subject (step S2090). Note that the details of the subject storing process in step S2090 are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, when the callee 2210 makes a request for acquiring a subject that has arrived at the callee message server 2230 at an arbitrary timing (step S2100), the callee terminal 2220 executes a subject request to the callee message server 2230. (Step S2110). The recipient message server 2230 that has requested the subject returns the subject to the recipient terminal 2220 (step S2120). A detailed description of subject acquisition has been given in the first embodiment (see the description of FIG. 9), and will be omitted.

  After the subject is acquired, when the recipient 2210 makes an acquisition request for content corresponding to a specific subject by operating the recipient terminal 2220 (step S2130), the recipient terminal 2220 corresponds to the recipient message server 2230. The content is requested (step S2140). Receiving the content request, the callee message server 2230 sends a content request activation signal to the session management server 2310 (step S2150). The session management server 2310 that has received the content request activation signal relays this activation signal to the caller message server 2130 (step S2160).

  The caller message server 2130 relayed with the content request activation signal executes content extraction processing (step S2170). Details of the content extraction process (step S2170) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 is a sequence diagram showing details of the content extraction process (step S2170) shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the communication control unit 2134 that has received the activation signal related to the content request in step S2160 transfers this activation signal to the message processing unit 2132, and the message processing unit 2132 to which the activation signal has been transferred The message number used for storing the browsing status is temporarily held (step S2172).

  Then, the message processing unit 2132 instructs the message storage unit 2133 to search for content (step S2173). Upon receiving the content search instruction, the message storage unit 2133 searches the table shown in FIG. 14 using the message number temporarily stored in step S2172, and extracts the content with the matching message number (step S2174). Then, the message storage unit 2133 replies with the extracted content to the message processing unit 2133 (step S2175), and the message processing unit 2133 that has received the response temporarily holds the content (step S2176). Further, the message processing unit 2132 instructs the communication control unit 2134 to return an acknowledgment (response signal) of the content acquisition request (step S2177), and ends the content extraction processing (step S2170).

  Returning to the description of FIG. 16, the processing procedure after step S2180 will be described. The sender message server 2130 that has completed the content extraction process (step S2170) receives the activation signal received in step S2160 in order to notify that the content request activation signal has been received without any problem and is ready to transmit the content. A response signal indicating acceptance is sent back so as to follow a route opposite to the activation signal (step S2180). The session management server 2310 that has received this response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S2180 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S2150, and then relays this response signal to the callee message server 2230. (Step S2190).

  The recipient message server 2230 relayed with the response signal transmits a confirmation signal to the session management server 2310 to notify that the preparation for receiving the content is completed (step S2200), and receives the confirmation signal. The session management server 2310 relays this confirmation signal to the caller message server 2130 (step S2210). The caller message server 2130 to which the confirmation signal has been relayed determines that the content transmission preparation has been completed, and this time transmits directly to the callee message server 2230 (without passing through the session management server 2310) ( Step S2220).

  The sender message server 2130 that has completed the content transmission processing in step S2220 transmits a content transmission end notification to the session management server 2310 (step S2230). The session management server 2310 that has received the transmission end notification relays this transmission end notification to the callee message server 2310 (step S2240), and the callee message server 2230 relayed with the transmission end notification executes content storage processing. (Step S2250). Note that the details of the content storage process in step S2250 are the same as those in FIG.

  The recipient message server 2230 that has completed the content storage process (step S2250) transmits a response signal to the transmission end notification received in step S2240 to the session management server 2310 (step S2260), and also performs a step for the recipient terminal 2220. The content newly stored in S2250 is displayed (step S2280).

  On the other hand, the session management server 2310 that has received the response signal in step S2260 relays this response signal to the caller message server 2130 (step S2270), and the caller message server 2130 to which the response signal has been relayed is shown in FIG. The information obtained from the signal exchange is stored as a browsing history of the content (step S2290). Details of the browsing history storage process (step S2290) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 18 is a sequence diagram showing details of the browsing history storage processing procedure (step S2290) shown in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 18, the communication control unit 2134 that has received the content transmission end response in Step S2280 collects the history of signals transmitted and received by the caller message server 2130 so far (Step S2291). When the content browsing information collection process (step S 2291) is completed, the message number, date, time, destination, and browsing status are transmitted as browsing information to the message processing unit 2132 (step S 2292). These pieces of information correspond to the items in the table shown in FIG.

  The message processing unit 2132 that has received the browsing information transmits an instruction to store the browsing history to the browsing history storage unit 2135 (step S2293), and the browsing history storage unit 2135 that has received the instruction reads “viewing history 1”, “ The browsing information is stored in the browsing order such as “browsing history 2” (step S2294). Subsequently, the message processing unit 2132 deletes the message number temporarily held in step S2172 (step S2295), and deletes the temporarily held content in step S2176 (step S2296). Step S2290) is terminated.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, important connection signals such as a transmission signal and a request signal are transmitted via a session management server that manages handshake communication, and a caller message server and a callee. The communication control unit of the message server is configured to send and receive handshake control signals for communications related to subject transmission and content requests, and to send and receive one-way methods for communications other than control signals such as content transmission and reception. Signal communication can be realized.

  By the way, in the message delivery system shown in the second embodiment, since the authentication process for the caller is not performed, the caller can send the subject to any callee. For this reason, there is a possibility that a situation in which an annoying subject is transmitted to a randomly selected recipient who pretends to be the other party may be permitted. Therefore, in the third embodiment, a case where a method for authenticating a caller and a method for restricting a caller to be permitted is further applied to the communication method shown in the second embodiment.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified.

  First, a message delivery system according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating the network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the third embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the message delivery system according to the third embodiment includes a caller terminal 3120, a caller message server 3130 that manages messages sent from the caller, and a callee that manages messages addressed to the callee. Authentication that performs management of the state of a session formed in handshake communication and relay of a handshake signal with the message server 3230 and the callee terminal 3220, and authentication of the caller 3110 or callee 3210 and determination of whether connection is possible A session management server 3310 with an authorization function. The message delivery system according to the third embodiment is mainly characterized in that the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function performs authentication of the caller 3110 or the callee 3210 and determination of whether or not connection is possible.

  Specifically, the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function performs authentication processing of the caller 3110 or the callee 3210 based on the subscriber information, and the subscriber who is permitted to send or receive the call based on the connectability information. It is determined whether or not. Then, subject / content transmission / reception is permitted on the condition that the authentication process is successful and that it is determined that the connection is possible.

  Note that each device on the caller side (caller terminal 3120 and caller message server 3130) and each device on the callee side (caller terminal 3220 and callee message server 3230) are the same as those in the second embodiment. Since it is the same (refer FIG. 13), description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function manages the state of the session formed in the handshake communication and relays the handshake signal and uses a password in the same way as the session management server 2310 shown in the second embodiment. This is a device that performs identity verification of the caller 3110 and further performs a process of restricting subject call from the caller 3110 that is not intended by the callee 3210. The session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function includes a communication control unit 3311, a subscriber information storage unit 3312, and a connectability information storage unit 3313.

  The session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function can be configured by installing a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS). The session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function is connected to the Internet 3900 via the router R shown in FIG.

  The communication control unit 3311 is a processing unit that performs signal control when communicating with the caller message server 3130 and the callee message server 3230 via the Internet 3900. The communication control unit 3311 relays a handshake control signal in communication related to subject transmission and content request. Further, the communication control unit 3311 is connected to a subscriber information storage unit 3312 and a connectability information storage unit 3313, which will be described later, and stores the authentication of the caller when the subject call signal is received from the caller message server 3130. In addition to requesting the unit 3312, processing for requesting the connection availability information storage unit 3313 to determine whether or not connection is possible is also performed.

  The subscriber information storage unit 3312 is a processing unit that stores a table for storing the account and password of the subscriber who is the caller 3110 (or the called party 3210) in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. This table is a table managed by associating a password with a subscriber address as an account. Here, an example of subscriber information stored in the subscriber information storage unit 3312 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of subscriber information stored by the subscriber information storage unit 3312 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 20, the subscriber information is configured, for example, by storing a password “******” in association with a subscriber address “kato@inter.net”. Although all passwords are indicated by asterisks (*), asterisks are used on the display for the purpose of password protection, and passwords arbitrarily set by each subscriber are actually stored.

  The connection permission / inhibition information storage unit 3313 is a processing unit that stores a table that stores conditions for allowing outgoing calls by storing the table in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. This table is set in advance by the callee 3210. Here, an example of the connectability information stored by the connectability information storage unit 3313 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating an example of the connectability information stored by the connectability information storage unit illustrated in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 21, the connection permission information includes the permission determination necessity “present” indicating whether or not the connection permission determination is necessary for the subscriber address “kato@inter.net” that is the address of the called party 3210 itself, the address list. Whether or not to permit transmission from the address specified in “1” is determined as “permitted”, “sato@isp-b.net” as address 1 of the address list, “sasaki@inter.net” as address 2 and address 3 is information in which “yamamoto@isp-y.jp” is stored. That is, when “permitted” is set as the availability determination type, only the activation request signal transmitted from address 1 to address 2 is permitted. If “reject” is set as the availability determination type, only the activation request signal transmitted from the address in the address list is rejected.

  Next, a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 19 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 22 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure 1 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 19, and FIG. 23 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure 2 in the message delivery system shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 22, first, caller 3110 inputs a message to be sent to callee terminal 3210 to caller terminal 3120 (step S3010). Here, an example of an input screen in the message input procedure (step S3010) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in the message input procedure (step S3010) shown in FIG.

  The caller 3110 uses the input screen shown in FIG. 24 to display a “destination” that represents the callee identifier assigned to the callee 3210, a “password” stored in the subscriber information storage unit 3312, and a message title. Enter “Subject”, which indicates whether the content can be stored in the recipient message server 1230, “Save Permission” or “Save Refusal”, and “Content” which indicates the body of the message. . The “password” is displayed as an asterisk (*) on the input screen for protection.

  When the caller 3110 presses an “upload” button shown in FIG. 24, the caller terminal 3120 uploads a message to the caller message server 3130 as shown in FIG. 22 (step S3020). Then, the sender message server 3130 that has received the message upload executes a message storage process (step S3030).

  Subsequently, the sender message server 3130 transmits a subject transmission activation signal to the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function (step S3040). The session management server 3310 with the authentication / authorization function that has received the activation signal executes a caller authentication process (step S3050). Details of this authentication process (step S3050) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing details of the authentication processing procedure (steps S3050 and S3180) shown in FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 25, when the session management server 3310 with the authentication / authorization function receives the activation signal in step S3040, it acquires the subscriber address and password (see FIG. 24) included in the subject transmission activation request (signal). (Step S3051). Subsequently, a password is acquired from the subscriber information storage unit 3312 using the acquired subscriber address as a key (step S3052), and authentication processing after step S3053 is started.

  First, it is determined in step S3052 whether or not the subscriber address has been acquired (step S3053). If it is determined that the subscriber address has been successfully acquired (step S3053, Yes), the passwords match. It is determined whether or not (step S3054). On the other hand, if it is determined that the acquisition of the subscriber address has failed (No in step S3053), it is determined that the user is an unregistered user (authentication failure) (step S3056), and the subsequent processing is stopped and terminated.

  If it is determined in step S3054 that the passwords match (step S3054, Yes), the registered user (authentication success) is determined (step S3055), and the subsequent processing is continued. If it is determined that the passwords do not match (step S3054, No), it is determined that the user is not a registrant (authentication failure) (step S3056), and the subsequent processing is stopped and terminated.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 22, the description of step S3060 and subsequent steps will be continued. If it is determined that the authentication is successful in the authentication process (step S3050), whether or not connection is possible is determined based on the intention of the called party 3210 (step S3060). Here, the details of the connection possibility determination process (step S3060) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing details of the connection possibility determination processing procedure (step S3060) shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 26, the session management server 3310 with the authentication / authorization function, based on the activation signal in step S3040, the subscriber address (sender) and the destination address (destination) included in the subject transmission activation request (signal). (See FIG. 24) is acquired (step S3061). Subsequently, connection enable / disable information is acquired from the connection enable / disable information storage unit 3313 using the acquired subscriber address (sender) as a key (step S3062), and connection enable / disable determination processing after step S3063 is started.

  First, the setting content of the necessity determination necessity (see FIG. 21) acquired in step S3062 is confirmed (step S3063). If the availability determination necessity is “Yes” (step S3063, Yes), it is determined whether the availability determination type is acceptable (step S3064), assuming that the callee 3210 needs the connection availability determination. On the other hand, when the necessity determination is “None” (step S3063, No), the connection possibility determination process (step S3060) is completed because the connection possibility determination is unnecessary, and the subsequent processing is continued.

  Subsequently, when the permission determination type is “permitted” in step S3064 (step S3064, Yes), only transmission from addresses registered in the “address list” of the connection permission information in the connection permission information storage unit 3313 is performed. On the other hand, the process proceeds to an acceptable determination process (step S 3065). On the other hand, if the availability determination type is “reject” (step S 3064), the determination process (step S 3064) rejects the transmission from the address registered in the “address list” ( The process proceeds to step S3066).

  If it is determined in step S3065 that the caller address does not exist in the address list (step S3065, No), and if it is determined in step S3066 that the caller address exists in the address list (step S3066, No). Is determined not to be connectable (step S3068), and the subsequent processing is stopped and the process ends.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3065 that the caller address exists in the address list (step S3065, Yes), and if it is determined in step S3066 that the caller address does not exist in the address list (step S3066, Yes). Therefore, it is determined that the connection is permitted (step S3067), the connection permission determination process (step S3060) is completed, and the subsequent processing is continued.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 22, the description of step S3070 and subsequent steps will be continued. When it is determined that the authentication is successful and the connection is permitted in the connection permission determination process (step S3060), the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function relays an activation signal to the callee message server 3230 (step S3070). The recipient message server 3230 that has received the activation signal of the subject transmission has accepted the activation signal received in step S3070 in order to notify that the activation signal has been received without any problem and is ready to receive the subject itself. The response signal is returned so as to follow the reverse route to the activation signal (step S3080).

  The session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 that has received the response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S3080 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S3040, and then sends the response signal to the sender message server 3130. (Step S3090). The caller message server 3130 that has received this response signal determines that the preparation for receiving the subject is completed in the callee message server 3230, and this time, the caller message server 3130 directly receives the subject (authentication / authorization function). (Without going through the attached session management server 3310) (step S3100).

  The recipient message server 3230 that has received the subject executes a process for storing the received subject (step S3110). The details of the subject storing process (step S3110) are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, when the recipient 3210 makes a request for obtaining a subject that has arrived at the recipient message server 3230 at an arbitrary timing (step S3120), the recipient terminal 3220 executes a subject request to the recipient message server 3230. (Step S3130). The recipient message server 3230 that has requested the subject returns the subject to the recipient terminal 3220 (step S3140). A detailed description of subject acquisition has been given in the first embodiment (see the description of FIG. 9), and will be omitted.

  FIG. 23 will be described following FIG. As shown in FIG. 23, after the subject is acquired, when the recipient 3210 operates the recipient terminal 3220 to make a content acquisition request corresponding to the specific subject (step S3150), the recipient terminal 3220 receives the recipient message. The server 3230 is requested for the corresponding content (step S3160). Receiving the content request, the callee message server 3230 sends a content request activation signal to the session management server 3310 (step S3170). The session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function that has received the content request activation signal performs an authentication process on the content acquisition request from the called party 3210 (step S3180). The details of the authentication process are the same as in step S3050 (see FIG. 22), and thus the description thereof is omitted. Also, it is assumed that the password of the called party 3210 is registered in advance before the content acquisition request.

  If the authentication process (step S3180) is successful, the session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 relays this activation signal toward the caller message 3130 (step S3190). The sender message server 3130 relayed with the content request activation signal executes content extraction processing (step S3200). The details of the content extraction process (step S3200) are the same as those shown in FIG.

  The caller message server 3130 that has completed the content extraction process (step S3200) receives the activation signal received in step S3190 in order to notify that the content request activation signal has been received without problems and is ready to transmit content. A response signal indicating acceptance is sent back so as to follow the reverse route to the activation signal (step S3210). The session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 that has received this response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S3210 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S3170, and then sends this response signal to the callee message. Relay to server 3230 (step S3220).

  The recipient message server 3230 relayed with the response signal transmits a confirmation signal this time to the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function in order to notify that the preparation for receiving the content is completed (step S3230). The session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 that has received the confirmation signal relays this confirmation signal to the sender message server 3130 (step S3240). Then, the caller message server 3130 relayed with the confirmation signal determines that the content preparation for transmission has been completed, and this time directly to the callee message server 3230 (through the session management server 3310 with an authentication / authorization function). (Not) and transmitted (step S3250).

  The sender message server 3130 that has completed the content transmission processing in step S3250 transmits a content transmission end notification to the session management server 3310 with the authentication / authorization function (step S3260). The session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 that has received the transmission end notification relays this transmission end notification to the callee message server 3230 (step S3270), and the callee message server 3230 relayed with the transmission end notification Is stored (step S3280). Note that the details of the content storage processing in step S3280 are the same as those in FIG.

  The recipient message server 3230 that has completed the content storage process (step S3250) transmits a response signal to the transmission end notification received in step S3270 to the session management server 3310 with authentication / authorization function (step S3290), and the recipient terminal. The content newly stored in step S3280 is displayed on 3220 (step S3310).

  On the other hand, the session management server with authentication / authorization function 3310 that has received the response signal in step S3290 relays this response signal to the caller message server 3130 (step S3300), and the caller message server 3130 relayed with the response signal The information obtained from the signal exchange shown in FIG. 22 and FIG. 23 is stored as the browsing history of the content (step S3320). Note that details of the browsing history storage process in step S332 are the same as those in FIG.

  As described above, in the third embodiment, since the session management server with the authentication / authorization function performs authentication of the caller or the callee and the determination of the connection possibility, the caller is impersonated as a random person. It is possible to effectively prevent a situation such as sending an annoying subject to a callee selected.

  As is clear from the above embodiments, the content created by the caller is always stored in the caller's message server (caller message server). That is, it can be understood that browsing of content can be controlled at an arbitrary timing by utilizing that the content is always under the control of the sender. By using the fact that content is managed by the caller, for example, even if a message is sent with a wrong address or a message with an incorrect content is sent, viewing restrictions on these messages and messages are sent. Can be changed / deleted and the problem of erroneous transmission in the conventional electronic mail can be solved. Therefore, in the fourth embodiment, a case will be described in which browsing of content is restricted after a subject is transmitted.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified. The network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the fourth embodiment are the same as those in FIG.

  A message exchange procedure in the message delivery system according to the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system according to the fourth embodiment. As shown in the figure, the caller 4110 operates the caller terminal 4120 to activate a deletion request for a message that has already been transmitted to the callee 4210 (step S4010). Here, an example of the input screen in the message deletion request activation procedure in step S4010 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 28 is a diagram showing an example of a content acquisition screen in the message deletion request activation procedure shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 28, the caller 4110 selects a message to be deleted from messages already uploaded to the caller message server 4120. FIG. 28 shows the case where the subject “Implementation of evacuation drill” is selected. As described above, when the caller 4110 selects a subject to be deleted and presses the “delete message” button, the caller terminal 4120 deletes the message to the caller message server 4130 as shown in FIG. A request is made (step S4020).

  The sender message server 4130 that has received the message deletion request selects a subject (subject corresponding to the message) that has already been sent to the recipient message server 4230 in order to restrict browsing of the content corresponding to the message. A subject deletion request is activated via the session management server 4310 to be deleted (step S4030).

  The session management server 4310 that has received the activation of the deletion request relays the activation signal to the callee message server 4230 (step S4040). The recipient message server 4230 that has received the activation signal of the subject deletion request receives the activation signal received in step S4040 in order to notify that it has received the activation signal without any problem and is ready to receive the subject deletion instruction. A response signal indicating that the request has been accepted is returned so as to follow the route opposite to the activation signal (step S4050).

  The session management server 4310 that has received this response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S4050 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S4030, and then relays the response signal to the caller message server 4130. (Step S4160). Caller message server 4130 to which the response signal is relayed determines that reception preparation of subject deletion instruction is completed in callee message server 4230, and issues a message deletion instruction together with the message number to callee message server 4230. The recipient message server 4230, which has transmitted (step S4070) and received the instruction, executes a process for deleting the received subject (step S4080).

  Subsequently, when the callee 4210 performs an operation for acquiring a subject at a predetermined timing on the callee terminal 4220 (step S4090), the callee terminal 4220 requests the callee message server 4230 for a subject (step S4090). S4100). Then, the callee message server 4230 transmits a subject deletion notification to the callee terminal 4220 (step S4110).

  Next, an example of a content acquisition screen after subject deletion will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 29 is a diagram illustrating an example of a content acquisition screen after subject deletion. As shown in FIG. 29, all information including the content is deleted from the subject message “exercise evacuation drill” selected in FIG.

  As described above, in the fourth embodiment, since the browsing of the content is restricted after the subject is transmitted, even after a message with a wrong destination or a message with an incorrect content is transmitted, It is possible to restrict viewing of messages and to change / delete messages, and to solve the problem of erroneous transmission in the conventional electronic mail.

  By the way, in the message delivery system shown in the fourth embodiment, the sent subject can be deleted at any time. However, if the recipient has already viewed the subject or content, the content that should have existed is received. It will be deleted regardless of the intention of the person. In this way, unilateral browsing regulation from the sender is extremely disadvantageous for the recipient, and when the recipient obtains a copy of the content, the existence value of the browsing regulation is suspected. Therefore, in the fifth embodiment, a case where content browsing is restricted only before browsing by a callee will be described.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified. The network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the fifth embodiment are the same as those in FIG.

  A message exchange procedure in the message delivery system according to the fifth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 30 is a diagram illustrating a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system according to the fifth embodiment. As shown in the figure, the caller 5110 operates the caller terminal 5120 to activate a deletion request for a message that has already been transmitted to the callee 5210 (step S5010). Subsequently, caller terminal 5120 makes a message deletion request to caller message server 5130 (step S5020).

  The sender message server 5130 that has received the message deletion request determines whether or not the message deletion request is valid, that is, whether or not the content of the message has been browsed by the callee 5210 ( Deletability determination process) is performed (step S5030). Details of the deletion permission / inhibition determination process in step S5030 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing details of the deletion permission / inhibition determination processing procedure (step S5030) shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 31, the caller message server 5130 that has received the message deletion request in step S5020 displays the browsing history stored in the browsing history storage unit 2135 with the message number related to the message to be deleted included in the message deletion request. A search is performed (step S5031), and it is determined whether the message does not exist in the browsing history (step S5032). If the message does not exist in the browsing history (step S5032, Yes), it is determined that the content is not being browsed (step S5033), and subject deletion is started (step S5034). (Step S5030) is completed and the subsequent processing is continued.

  On the other hand, when the message exists in the browsing history (No in step S5032), it is determined that the content is being browsed or has been browsed (step S5035), and deletion of the subject is stopped (step S5036). Cancel all subsequent processing.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 30, the description of step S5040 and subsequent steps will be continued. If it is determined in the deletion permission determination process (step S5030) that the content is before browsing, that is, if it is determined that the content can be deleted, the call has already been sent to the callee message server 5230. A subject deletion request is activated via the session management server 5310 to delete the subject (subject corresponding to the message) (step S5040).

  The session management server 5310 that has received the activation of the deletion request relays the activation signal to the callee message server 5230 (step S5050). Then, the recipient message server 5230 that has received the activation signal of the subject deletion request receives the activation signal received in step S5050 in order to notify that it has received the activation signal without any problem and is ready to receive the subject deletion instruction. A response signal indicating that the request has been accepted is returned so as to follow the route opposite to the activation signal (step S5060).

  Receiving this response signal, session management server 5310 confirms that the response signal received in step S5060 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S5040, and then relays the response signal to caller message server 5130. (Step S5070). The caller message server 5130 to which the response signal has been relayed determines that the preparation for receiving the subject deletion instruction has been completed in the callee message server 5230, and this time the subject message server 5230 issues a subject deletion instruction together with the message number. The recipient message server 5230, which has transmitted (step S5080) and received the instruction, executes a process for deleting the received subject (step S5090).

  Subsequently, when the callee 5210 performs an operation for acquiring the subject at a predetermined timing on the callee terminal 5220 (step S5100), the callee terminal 5220 requests the callee message server 5230 for a subject (step S5100). S5110). Then, the callee message server 5230 sends a subject deletion notification to the callee terminal 5220 (step S5110).

  As described above, in the fifth embodiment, since browsing of content is restricted only before browsing by the callee, the callee suffers a disadvantage due to unilateral browsing control from the caller. It can be effectively prevented.

  By the way, when using the present invention in which the content is always under the control of the sender, the mail forwarding process in the conventional e-mail (the process in which the mail recipient transfers the mail to a third party without any modification) This can be done based on whether or not the caller is allowed. Thus, in the sixth embodiment, a case where message forwarding processing is performed based on the method shown in the second embodiment will be described.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified.

  First, the network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the sixth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 32 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of the message delivery system according to the sixth embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 32, the message delivery system according to the sixth embodiment includes a caller terminal 6120, a caller message server 6130 that manages messages sent from the caller, and a callee that manages messages addressed to the callee. A message server 6230, a callee terminal 6220, and a session management server 6310 that manages the state of a session formed in handshake communication and relays a handshake signal. The message delivery system according to the sixth embodiment is mainly characterized in that a message forwarding process is performed in the sender message server 6130.

  Specifically, the table stored in the outgoing message storage unit 6131 is the table shown in FIG. 33, and the forwarding process is realized using this table. Here, an example of the outgoing message stored by the outgoing message storage unit 6131 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 33 is a diagram showing an example of the outgoing message stored by outgoing message storage unit 6131 shown in FIG. In the table shown in the figure, an item “forwarding / disallowing” is newly added.

  This “forward / reject permission” is an item indicating whether or not the message may be forwarded to a third party by the recipient 6232, and is set by the sender 6132 when the message is uploaded. In FIG. 33, “No” is set for “forwarding propriety” of the message whose message number is “gz93m4wg0fas4”, but “Yes” is set for other messages.

  Note that the configuration of the processing unit other than the outgoing message storage unit 6131 of the sender message server 6130 and the other devices are the same as those in FIG.

  Next, a message forwarding procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 32 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 34 is a sequence diagram showing a message forwarding procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, first, the callee 6210 requests message transfer to the callee terminal 6220 (step S6010). Here, an example of the input screen used in step S6010 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 35 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in the message forwarding request procedure (step S6010) shown in FIG.

  By using the input screen shown in FIG. 35, the called party 6210 selects a subject to be transferred from subjects displayed in the “subject list” and whose “transferability” is “possible”, and Enter the address of the forwarding destination in “Forwarding destination”, which shows the address of the other party you want to forward. Then, when the called party 6210 presses the “message forwarding” button shown in FIG. 35, the called party terminal 6220 transmits a message forwarding request activation signal to the called party message server 6230 as shown in FIG. Step S6030). Then, the session management server 6310 that has received the forwarding request activation signal relays the activation signal to the caller message server 6130 (step S6040).

  The caller message server 6130 relayed with the message forwarding request activation signal extracts “forwarding propriety” of the message from the outgoing message storage unit 6132 and confirms that it is “permitted” (step S6050). If it is confirmed that the “forwarding permission / inhibition” is “permitted”, the activation signal received in step S6040 is accepted in order to notify that the processing in step S6050 is completed and ready for forwarding. A response signal to the effect is returned so as to follow the reverse route to the activation signal (step S6060). The session management server 6310 that has received this response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S6060 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S6030, and then sends this response signal to the callee message server 6230. (Step S6070).

  In addition, sender message server 6130 activates subject transmission to the forwarding destination designated in step S6010 (step S6080). Then, the session management server 6310 that has received this activation signal relays the activation signal to the forwarding destination (step S6090). The processing subsequent to step S6090 is the same as that after step S2050 in FIG.

  As described above, in the sixth embodiment, since it is configured to determine permission / non-permission of message forwarding based on message upload including determination of whether or not a caller is permitted, the third message is transmitted before the caller intends. Can be effectively prevented from being forwarded to a person.

  By the way, in above-mentioned Example 2-Example 6, when a sender | caller message server transmitted a subject or content, it transmitted directly to the receiver's message server. The reason is that the subject and the content itself are data signals and not control signals, and therefore are not directly involved in session state management even through the session management server. However, if data signals such as subjects and contents are delivered via the session management server, information related to the subjects and contents can be collected, thereby realizing functions such as communication history acquisition, pay-per-use billing, and content verification described later. It becomes possible to do. Therefore, in the seventh embodiment, a case where a subject or content is delivered via a session management server and information related to the subject or content is collected by the session management server will be described.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified.

  First, the message delivery system according to the seventh embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 36 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of the message delivery system according to the seventh embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 36, the message delivery system according to the seventh embodiment includes a caller terminal 7120, a caller message server 7130 that manages messages sent from the caller, and a callee that manages messages addressed to the callee. Session management server for managing the status of a session formed in handshake communication, relaying data signals such as handshake signals and subjects and contents, and collecting information about each relayed signal 7310, a history management / billing processing server 7320 that performs history management and billing processing, and a message storage / verification server 7330 that stores and verifies messages. The message delivery system according to the seventh embodiment delivers not only a control signal such as a handshake signal but also a data signal such as a subject and content via the session management server 7310, and the history management / billing processing server 7320 and the message The main feature is that the storage / verification server 7330 uses information on each signal.

  The caller terminal 7120, caller message server 7130, callee terminal 7220, and callee message server 7230 are the same as those in FIG.

  When performing handshake communication, the session management server 7310 manages the state of a session formed by relaying the handshake signal and handshake communication for the purpose of realizing reliable signal transmission, and via the session management server 7310 This is a device that performs processing to report information collected about content and subjects to the history management / billing processing server 7320 and message storage / verification server 7330.

  The session management server 7310 can be configured by installing a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS). The session management server 7310 is connected to the Internet 7900 via the router R shown in FIG. 36, and is directly connected to the history management / billing processing server 7320 and the message storage / verification server 7330.

  The history management / billing processing server 7320 is a device that stores a communication history related to a subject and content based on information collected by the session management server 7310 and performs billing calculation based on the stored information. The history management / billing processing server 7320 includes a communication history storage unit 7321 and a billing calculation unit 7322.

  Further, the history management / billing processing server 7320 can be configured by installing a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS). The history management / billing processing server 7320 is directly connected to the session management server 7310 as shown in FIG.

  The communication history storage unit 7321 stores a table storing the history and data length related to the distribution of subjects and contents exchanged in the message exchange system shown in FIG. 36 in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. Part. This communication history storage unit 7321 stores, for example, a record including items of message number, date, time, transmission source, transmission destination, communication type, and number of packets. Here, an example of a communication history stored in the communication history storage unit 7321 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 37 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication history stored in the communication history storage unit 7321 illustrated in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 37, the communication history storage unit 7321, for example, for the message with the message number “6kyzdr480yf1e”, the date “2005/08/31” when the communication occurred, the time “09:50” when the communication occurred, Source “suzuki@isp-a.org”, message destination “kato@isp-a.ne.jp”, communication type “subject transmission”, and the number of packets “5” representing the amount of data of the communication, respectively. Stored in association.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 36, the accounting calculation unit 7322 will be described. The billing calculation unit 7322 is a processing unit that calculates the amount charged to the caller 7110 or the callee 7210 based on the communication history stored by the communication history storage unit 7321.

  The message storage / verification server 7330 stores the subject and message itself based on the information collected by the session management server 7310, and compares the stored subject and message with the subject and message received by the callee message server 7230. By doing this, it is a device that verifies whether or not the recipient message server 7230 has been normally reached without modification of the subject or message. The message storage / verification server 7330 includes a message storage unit 7331 and a verification processing unit 7332.

  In addition, the message storage / verification server 7330 can be configured by installing a program corresponding to each functional unit described above on a commercially available PC or workstation (WS). The message storage / verification server 7330 is directly connected to the session management server 7310 as shown in FIG.

  The message storage unit 7331 is a processing unit that stores a table storing subjects exchanged in the message exchange system shown in FIG. 36 and the message itself in a storage device such as a nonvolatile RAM or HDD. The message storage unit 7331 stores, for example, a record including items of date, time and subject as information regarding message number, transmission source, transmission destination and subject transmission, and date, time and subject as information regarding content disclosure. Here, an example of message information stored by the message storage unit 7331 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 38 is a diagram showing an example of message information stored by the message storage unit 7331 shown in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 38, the message storage unit 7331, for example, for the message having the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, the communication source “suzuki@inter.net” and the communication destination “kato@isp-a.ne.jp”. ”, The date“ 2005/08/31 ”when the subject was transmitted as information related to subject transmission, the time“ 09:50 ”and the subject“ Implementation of evacuation drill ”, and the date when content was disclosed as information related to content disclosure “2005/08/31”, time “10:23”, and content “Tomorrow, evacuation drill will be performed. Evacuation route ...” are stored in association with each other.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 36, the verification processing unit 7332 will be described. The verification processing unit 7332 is a processing unit that verifies the authenticity of the content based on the information stored in the message storage unit 7331 in response to the content verification request regarding the subject and content from the recipient 7210.

  Next, a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 36 will be described with reference to FIGS. 39 and 40. FIG. FIG. 39 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure 1 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 36. FIG. 40 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure 2 in the message delivery system shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 39, when the caller 7110 inputs a message to be transmitted to the callee 7210 to the caller terminal 7120 (step S7010), the caller terminal 7120 that has accepted this input sends a message to the caller message server 7130. Is uploaded (step S7020). Then, the caller message server 7130 that has received the message upload executes message storage processing (step S7030). Note that details of the message storage process in step S7030 are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, the sender message server 7130 transmits a subject transmission activation signal to the session management server 7310 (step S7040). The session management server 7310 that has received this activation signal relays the activation signal to the callee message server 7230 (step S7050). The receiver message server 7230 relayed the activation signal indicates that it has accepted the activation signal relayed in step S7050 in order to notify that it has received the activation signal without any problem and is ready to receive the subject itself. A response signal is sent back so as to follow a route opposite to the activation signal (step S7060).

  The session management server 7310 that has received the response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S7060 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S7040, and sends this response signal to the caller message server 7030. Relay to the destination (step S7070). The session management server 7310 executes step S7070 and starts collecting communication information related to the subject to be transmitted (step S7080).

  Subsequently, the message server 7130 that has received the response signal in step S7070 determines that preparations for receiving the subject are completed in the callee message server 7230 and the session management server 7310, and transmits the subject to the session management server 7310. (Step S7090). The session management server 7310 that has received the subject from the caller message server 7130 collects communication information related to the subject and relays the subject to the callee message server 7230 (step S7100).

  The recipient message server 7230 that has received the subject from the session management server 7310 executes processing for storing the received subject (step S7110). Note that the details of the subject storage process in step S7110 are the same as those in FIG.

  Then, the session management server 7310 ends the collection of communication information related to the subject (step S7120), and instructs the message storage / verification server 7330 to store the subject (step S7130). Upon receiving the instruction, the message storage / verification server 7330 stores the message number, source, destination, and subject transmission (date, time, subject) in association with each other as shown in FIG. 38 (step S7140).

  The session management server 7310 counts the subject data amount (step S7150), and reports only the portion related to the communication history to the history management / billing processing server 7320 in the collected communication information related to the subject (step S7160). . Receiving this report, the history management / billing processing server 7320 stores the message number, date, time, source, destination, communication type, and number of packets in association with each other as shown in FIG. 37 (step S7170). .

  Subsequently, when the recipient 7210 makes a request for obtaining a subject that has arrived at the recipient message server 7230 at an arbitrary timing (step S7180), the recipient terminal 7220 executes a subject request to the recipient message server 7230. (Step S7190). The recipient message server 7230 that has requested the subject returns the subject to the recipient terminal 7220 (step S7200). A detailed description of subject acquisition has been given in the first embodiment (see the description of FIG. 9), and will be omitted.

  40 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 40, after the subject is acquired, when the recipient 7210 operates the recipient terminal 7220 to make a content acquisition request corresponding to the specific subject (step S7210), the recipient terminal 7220 receives the recipient message. The server 7230 is requested for the corresponding content (step S7220). Receiving the content request, the callee message server 7230 sends a content request activation signal to the session management server 7310 (step S7230). The session management server 7310 that has received the content request activation signal relays the activation signal to the caller message server 7130 (step S7240).

  The caller message server 7130 relayed with the content request activation signal executes content extraction processing (step S7250). The details of the content extraction process are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, the sender message server 7130 that has completed the content extraction processing (step S7250) received the content request activation signal without any problem and received it in step S7240 to notify that it is ready to transmit the content. A response signal indicating acceptance of the activation signal is returned so as to follow the route opposite to the activation signal (step S7260). The session management server 7310 that has received this response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S7260 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S7230, and relays this response signal to the callee message server 7230. (Step S7270).

  The recipient message server 7230 relayed with the response signal transmits a confirmation signal to the session management server 7310 to notify that the preparation for receiving the content is completed (step S7280), and receives the confirmation signal. The session management server 7310 thus relayed this confirmation signal to the caller message server 7130 (step S7290). In addition, the session management server 7310 executes step S7290 and starts collecting communication information regarding content to be transmitted (step S7300).

  Caller message server 7130 to which the confirmation signal is relayed in step S7290 determines that preparation for content transmission is completed in session management server 7310 and callee message server 7230, and transmits the content to session management server 7310. In step S7310, the session management server 7310 that has received the content collects communication information about the content and relays the content to the recipient message server 7230 (step S7320).

  When the content transmission processing in step S7320 is completed, caller message server 7130 transmits a content transmission end notification to session management server 7310 (step S7330). The session management server 7310 that has received the transmission end notification relays this transmission end notification to the callee message server 7310 (step S7340), and the callee message server 7230 relayed with the transmission end notification executes content storage processing. (Step S7350). Note that the details of the content storage processing in step S7350 are the same as those in FIG.

  The callee message server 7230 that has completed the content storage process (step S7350) transmits a response signal to the transmission end notification received in step S7340 to the session management server 7310 (step S7360), and performs a step for the callee terminal 7220. The content newly stored in S2350 is displayed (step S7380).

  On the other hand, the session management server 7310 that has received the response signal in step S7360 relays this response signal to the caller message server 7130 (step S7370), and the caller message server 7130 to which the response signal is relayed is shown in FIG. The information obtained from the signal exchange is stored as a browsing history of the content (step S7390). The details of the browsing history storage process (step S7390) are the same as those in FIG.

  In addition, the session management server 7310 ends the collection of communication information regarding the content (step S7400), and instructs the message storage / verification server 7330 to store the content (step S7410). Upon receipt of the instruction, the message storage / verification server 7330 stores the message number and content transmission (date, time, content) in association with each other as shown in FIG. 38 (step S7420).

  Subsequently, the session management server 7310 aggregates the subject data amount (step S7430), and reports only the portion related to the communication history of the collected communication information related to the subject to the history management / billing processing server 7320 (step S7440). ). Receiving this report, the history management / billing processing server 7320 stores the message number, date, time, source, destination, communication type, and number of packets in association with each other as shown in FIG. 37 (step S7750). .

  Next, the contents verification procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 36 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 41 is a sequence diagram showing a content verification procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the recipient 7210 makes a request for a message whose contents are to be verified by operating the recipient terminal 7220 (step S7510). Here, an example of the input screen in the content verification request procedure in step S7510 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 42 is a diagram showing an example of the input screen in the content verification request procedure shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 42, the callee 7210 selects a message to be verified not to be included in the subject list. FIG. 42 shows a case where a message related to the subject “Implementation of evacuation drill” is selected. In this way, when the recipient 7210 selects the message whose contents are to be verified and presses the “content verification request” button, the recipient terminal 7220 sends the message to the recipient message server 7230 as shown in FIG. Is requested for content verification (step S7520).

  Upon receiving the request, the called party message server 7230 transmits a content verification request activation signal to the session management server 7310 (step S7530). In the content verification request in step S7530, the message number corresponding to the message selected in FIG. 42 is extracted from the incoming message storage unit 7232 of the incoming message server 7230 and transmitted together with the subject's source and destination.

  The session management server 7310 that has received the activation signal relays the activation signal to the message storage / verification server 7330 (step S7540), and the message storage / verification server 7330 that has received the activation signal receives the activation signal without any problem. In order to notify that the content verification request is ready to be received, a response signal indicating that the activation signal received in step S7540 has been accepted is returned so as to follow the route opposite to the activation signal (step S7550). . The session management server 7310 that has received the response signal relays the response signal to the callee message server 7230 after confirming that the response signal received in step S7550 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S7530 (step S7530). S7560).

  Subsequently, the callee message server 7230 that has received the response signal determines that preparation for receiving the content verification request has been completed in the session management server 7310 and the message storage / verification server 7330 and proceeds to the message storage / verification server 7330. The received message selected in S7510 is transmitted (step S7570), and the session management server 7310 that has received the message relays the message to the message storage / verification server 7330 (step S7580). Then, the message storage / verification server 7330 executes content verification of the received message (step S7590). Here, the details of the content verification process (step S7590) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 43 is a flowchart showing details of the content verification processing procedure (step S7590) shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 43, the message (A) sent from the session management server 7310 is collected (step S7581), and a message number is generated from the collected message (step S7582). Note that the message number generation method uses the method used in the message number generation processing (step S1033) of the first embodiment.

  Then, the corresponding message (B) is extracted from the message storage unit 7331 using the generated message number as a key (step S7583). At this time, if the contents match, the same message number is generated from the same message. Therefore, if the message number exists, the existence probability of the message having the same content is extremely high.

  Therefore, it is determined whether or not the message number exists (step S7584). If the message number exists (step S7584, Yes), the message details such as the message date, time, subject, and content are extracted. (Step S7585). On the other hand, when the message number does not exist (step S7584, No), since it can be determined that the message stored in the callee message server 7230 has been modified / changed for some reason, the copy stored in the message storage unit 7331 It is determined that they do not match (does not match) (step S7588), and the process of step S7590 ends.

  Following step S7585, it is determined whether or not the message details extracted in step S7585 completely match the copy of the message storage unit 7331 (step S7586). If they completely match (step S7586, Yes), it is determined that the copy is the same as the copy (step S7587), and the process of step S7590 is terminated. On the other hand, if they do not completely match (No in step S7586), it is determined that they do not match the copy stored in the message storage unit 7331 (no match) (step S7588), and the processing in step S7590 is terminated.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 41, the description of step S7600 and subsequent steps will be continued. When the content verification process (step S7590) is completed, the message storage / verification server returns the verification result to the callee message server 7230 that is the request source of the verification request (step S7600). The session management server 7310 that has received the verification result relays the verification result to the callee message server 7230 (step S7610), and the callee message server 7230 that has received the verification result displays the verification result on the callee terminal 7220. (Step S7620).

  As described above, in the seventh embodiment, data signals such as subjects and contents are delivered via the session management server, and the session management server is configured to collect information related to the subjects and contents. It is possible to realize pay-per-use and content verification processing.

  By the way, in each of the above-described embodiments, it is assumed that a dedicated application is installed in a personal computer (PC) in the sender terminal and the receiver terminal. However, the use of a dedicated application tends to be avoided because it leads to forcing the user to learn a new operation procedure. On the other hand, by changing the functional relationship and signal exchange procedure between the caller message server and the callee message server, for example, a commercially available application such as a World Wide Web (WWW) browser can be used as an application installed in each terminal. It becomes possible. Thus, in the eighth embodiment, a case where a caller terminal and a callee terminal are configured using a commercially available application will be described.

  In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of common points will be simplified.

  First, the message delivery system according to the eighth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 44 is a block diagram illustrating the network configuration and each device configuration of the message delivery system according to the eighth embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 44, the message delivery system according to the eighth embodiment includes a caller terminal 8120 equipped with a WWW browser APL811, a caller message server 8130 for managing a message sent from the caller, Callee message server 8230 for managing messages, callee terminal 8220 equipped with WWW browser APL8221 and summary reader APL8222, and session management for session state management and relay of handshake signals formed in handshake communication A server 8310 and a notification server 8240 for notifying that a new message has been delivered are configured.

  First, the configuration of caller terminal 8120 will be described. The caller terminal 8120 requests the storage of the message by sending a message input by the operation of the caller 8110 to the caller message server 8130, and acquires the browsing status of the message from the caller message server 8130. The device that performs the process of presenting to the caller. The caller terminal 8120 is configured by mounting a WWW browser APL 8121 on a commercially available personal computer (PC).

  The WWW browser APL 8121 is an application for browsing the WWW. Here, the WWW browser APL 8121 is used for acquiring information from the sender message server 8130 and transmitting instructions. As the WWW browser APL8121, a widely available WWW browser can be used.

  The caller message server 8130 is the same as the caller message server shown in each of the embodiments described above, but only the function of the terminal communication unit 8131 is different. Specifically, the terminal communication unit 8131 is configured by implementing the HTTP protocol in order to communicate with the WWW browser APL 8121 on the caller terminal 8120.

  The recipient terminal 8220 acquires and displays the subject from the recipient message server 8230, and makes a content request corresponding to the subject to the recipient message server 8230 by the operation of the recipient 8210. 8210 is an apparatus provided. The receiver terminal 8220 is configured by mounting a WWW browser APL 8221 and a summary reader APL 8222 on a commercially available personal computer (PC).

  The WWW browser APL 8221 is an application for browsing the WWW. Here, the WWW browser APL 8221 is used for acquiring information from the callee message server 8230 and transmitting instructions. And as this WWW browser APL8221, the WWW browser marketed widely can be utilized.

  The summary reader APL 8222 is an application that can easily collect update information of various websites. Here, the summary reader APL 8222 is transmitted from the caller message server 8130 via the notification server 8240 and the callee message server 8230 described later. It is used to acquire and store update information of messages to be distributed. As the summary reader APL 822, a summary reader application that is widely available on the market can be used.

  The callee message server 8230 is the same as the callee message server shown in each of the embodiments described above, but differs in that the callee message storage unit 8232 is provided and the function of the terminal communication unit 8231 is different. Specifically, this terminal communication unit 8231 is configured by implementing the HTTP protocol in order to communicate with the WWW browser APL 8221 and summary reader APL 8222 on the callee terminal 8220.

  The incoming subject storage unit 8232 stores the information shown in FIG. FIG. 45 is a diagram showing an example of an incoming subject stored by the incoming subject storage unit 8232 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 45, the incoming subject storage unit 8232, for example, for the message with the message number “6kyzdr4180yf1e”, the date “2005/08/31” storing the subject, the time “09:50” storing the subject, The subject transmission source “suzuki@inter.net” and the subject “Implementation of evacuation drill” representing the subject of the message are stored in association with each other.

  Next, a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 44 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 46 is a sequence diagram showing a message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, when caller 8110 inputs a message to be sent to callee 8210 to caller terminal 8120 (step S8010), caller terminal 8120 uploads a message to caller message server 8130. Perform (step S8020). Then, the sender message server 8130 that has received the message upload executes a message storage process (step S8030). The details of the message storage process (step S8030) are the same as those in FIG.

  Subsequently, the sender message server 8130 notifies the notification server 8240 that the new message has been uploaded and the subject acquisition request can be accepted (step S8040). This notification is used to promote acquisition of subsequent subjects. Therefore, it is not necessary to notify each time a message is uploaded. For example, a plurality of messages may be collectively notified, for example, once for every two uploads.

  The notification server 8240 that has received this notification instructs the recipient message server 8230 to acquire the subject (step S8050). The recipient message server 8230 that has received the instruction transmits an activation signal for the subject acquisition request itself (step S8060). The session management server 8310 that has received this activation signal relays this activation signal toward the caller message (step S8070). The caller message server 8130 to which the activation signal of the subject request has been transferred executes the subject extraction process that triggered the step S8040 (step S8080), and receives a response signal indicating that the activation signal received in step S8070 has been accepted. It returns to follow the reverse route to the activation signal (step S8090).

  The session management server 8310 that has received this response signal relays the response signal to the callee message server 8230 after confirming that the response signal received in step S8090 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S8060 ( Step S8100). Caller message server 8130 transmits the subject directly to callee message server 8230 (step S8110).

  Subsequently, when the callee 8210 performs an operation for acquiring a subject to the summary reader APL 8222 of the callee terminal 8220 at an arbitrary timing (step S8120), the summary reader APL 8222 that has received the operation receives the callee message server 8230. A subject is requested to (step S8130). Then, the callee message server 8230 returns the corresponding subject to the summary reader APL 8222 (step S8140).

  After the subject is acquired, when the callee 8210 performs an operation of acquiring specific content to the WWW browser APL 8221 of the callee terminal 8220 (step S8150), the WWW browser APL 8221 requests the content message request to the caller message server 8130. The activation signal is transmitted (step S8160). In step S8160, unlike the above-described embodiments, the receiver terminal 8220 directly acquires the content. The reason is that the WWW browser APL 8221 is suitable for directly referring to information stored in a remote server. However, for example, when content is stored in the recipient message server as in the first embodiment, the WWW browser APL 8221 may be configured to acquire the content from the recipient message server.

  Subsequently, the session management server 8310 that has received the activation signal in step S8160 relays the activation signal to the caller message server 8130 (step S8170). Then, the sender message server 8130 relayed with the content request activation signal executes the content extraction process (step S8180), and is ready to receive the content request activation signal and transmit the content. In response, the response signal indicating that the activation signal received in step S8170 has been accepted is returned so as to follow the route opposite to the activation signal (step S8190).

  The session management server 8310 that has received the response signal confirms that the response signal received in step S8190 corresponds to the activation signal received in step S8160, and then relays the response signal to the WWW browser APL 8221 (step S8200). . Then, sender message server 8130 transmits the content directly to WWW browser APL 8221 (step S8210).

  As described above, in the eighth embodiment, the notification server notifies that the message has been uploaded, and the caller message server and the callee message server are configured to have an interface corresponding to a commercially available application. Therefore, a caller terminal and a callee terminal can be configured using a commercially available application.

  By the way, the various processing procedures shown in the above-described embodiments can be realized by executing a program prepared in advance on a computer. These programs can be distributed via a network such as the Internet. Further, these programs can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, and can be executed by being read from the recording medium by the computer.

  That is, for example, a CD-ROM storing the program shown in each embodiment may be distributed, and each computer may read and execute the program stored in the CD-ROM.

  As described above, the message delivery method, message delivery system, caller message server, callee message server, caller message server program, and callee message server program according to the present invention enable safe and reliable message delivery. It is suitable for providing a secure communication network, and is particularly useful when it is desired to provide it as a service of an Internet provider or an application service provider.

It is a figure which shows the outline | summary and the characteristic of the message delivery method based on this invention. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of a message delivery system according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the data stored by the transmission message storage part shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the message stored by the incoming message storage part shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the input screen in the message input procedure shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing details of a message storage processing procedure shown in FIG. 5. It is a sequence diagram which shows the detail of the subject storage process procedure shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the content acquisition screen in the subject request | requirement procedure and content request | requirement procedure which were shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing details of a content extraction processing procedure shown in FIG. 5. It is a sequence diagram which shows the detail of the content storage procedure shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows a mode that a content is displayed on the content acquisition screen shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the network structure of the message delivery system which concerns on Example 2, and each apparatus structure. It is a figure which shows an example of the message stored by the transmission message storage part shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the browsing history stored by the browsing history storage part shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. FIG. 17 is a sequence diagram showing details of a content extraction processing procedure shown in FIG. 16. It is a sequence diagram which shows the detail of the browsing history storage process procedure shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the network structure of the message delivery system which concerns on Example 3, and each apparatus structure. It is a figure which shows an example of the subscriber information stored by the subscriber information storage part shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the connection availability information stored by the connection availability information storage part shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure 1 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure 2 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the input screen in the message input procedure shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of the authentication process procedure shown to FIG. 22 and FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of the connection availability determination processing procedure shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the message exchange procedure in the message delivery system which concerns on Example 4. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the content acquisition screen in the message deletion request | requirement starting procedure shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the content acquisition screen after subject deletion. It is a figure which shows the message exchange procedure in the message delivery system which concerns on Example 5. FIG. FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing details of a deletion permission / inhibition determination processing procedure shown in FIG. 30. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the network structure of the message delivery system which concerns on Example 6, and each apparatus structure. It is a figure which shows an example of the outgoing message stored by the outgoing message storage part shown in FIG. FIG. 33 is a sequence diagram showing a message forwarding procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 32. It is a figure which shows an example of the forwarding request screen in the message forwarding request procedure shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of a message delivery system according to a seventh embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the communication history stored by the communication history storage part shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the message information stored by the message storage part shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure 1 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure 2 in the message delivery system shown in FIG. FIG. 37 is a sequence diagram showing a content verification procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG. 36. It is a figure which shows an example of the input screen in the content verification request | requirement procedure shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of the content verification process procedure shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration and device configurations of a message delivery system according to an eighth embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the incoming subject stored by the incoming subject storage part shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows the message exchange procedure in the message delivery system shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1110 Caller 1120 Caller terminal 1210 Callee 1220 Caller terminal 1130 Caller message server 1131 Terminal communication unit 1132 Call message storage unit 1133 Message processing unit 1134 Line communication unit 1230 Caller message server 1231 Terminal communication unit 1232 Call message storage unit 1233 Message processing unit 1234 Line communication unit 1900 Internet 2110 Caller 2120 Caller terminal 2210 Caller 2220 Caller terminal 2130 Caller message server 2131 Terminal communication unit 2132 Call message storage unit 2133 Message control unit 2134 Communication control unit 2135 Browsing history storage Unit 2230 Callee message server 2231 Terminal communication unit 2232 Incoming message storage unit 2233 Message processing unit 2 234 Communication control unit 2310 Session management server 2900 Internet 3110 Caller 3120 Caller terminal 3210 Caller 3220 Caller terminal 3130 Caller message server 3131 Terminal communication unit 3132 Message storage unit 3133 Message processing unit 3134 Communication control unit 3135 Browsing history storage unit 3230 Callee message server 3231 Terminal communication unit 3232 Message storage unit 3233 Message processing unit 3234 Communication control unit 3310 Authentication / authorization function-equipped session management server 3311 Communication control unit 3312 Subscriber information storage unit 3313 Connection availability information storage unit 3900 Internet 6110 Transmission 6120 Caller terminal 6210 Callee 6220 Caller terminal 6130 Caller message server 6131 Terminal communication unit 6132 Transmission message storage unit 6133 Message processing unit 6134 Communication control unit 6135 Browsing history storage unit 6230 Callee message server 6231 Terminal communication unit 6232 Call reception message storage unit 6233 Message processing unit 6234 Communication control unit 6310 Session management server 6900 Internet 7110 Caller 7120 Caller terminal 7210 Callee 7220 Callee terminal 7130 Caller message server 7131 Terminal communication unit 7132 Called message storage unit 7133 Message processing unit 7134 Communication control unit 7135 Browsing history storage unit 7230 Caller message server 7231 Terminal communication unit 7232 Store incoming message Unit 7233 message processing unit 7234 communication control unit 7310 session management server 7320 history management / section Money processing server 7321 Communication history storage unit 7322 Charge calculation unit 7330 Message storage / verification server 7331 Message storage unit 7332 Verification processing unit 7900 Internet 8110 Caller 8120 Caller terminal 8121 WWW browser APL
8210 Callee 8220 Callee terminal 8221 WWW Browser APL
8222 Summary Reader APL
8130 Caller message server 8131 Terminal communication unit 8132 Transmission message storage unit 8133 Message processing unit 8134 Communication control unit 8135 Browsing history storage unit 8230 Callee message server 8231 Terminal communication unit 8232 Incoming subject storage unit 8233 Message processing unit 8234 Communication control unit 8240 Notification server 8310 Session management server 8900 Internet

Claims (24)

A message delivery method for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the sender terminal to the receiver terminal,
A subject transmission step of transmitting the subject to the recipient terminal;
A content requesting step for requesting transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmitting step;
And a content transmission step of transmitting the content requested by the content requesting step to the recipient terminal. The content transmission step includes
The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the content is encrypted and transmitted to the callee terminal. An outgoing message storage step of storing the message sent from the caller terminal in a caller message server on a network;
The subject transmission step includes
The outgoing message storage step acquires the subject from the sender message server storing the message and sends it to the receiver terminal,
The content transmission step includes
The message delivery method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the outgoing message storage step acquires the content from a sender message server storing the message and transmits the content to the recipient terminal. The outgoing message storage step includes:
The change or deletion of the message stored in the caller message server is permitted when a request for changing or deleting the message is received from the caller terminal. Message delivery method. The outgoing message storage step includes:
When the request to change or delete the message is received from the caller terminal, the content transmission step stores the content stored in the caller message server on the condition that the content included in the message has not yet been transmitted. 4. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the message is allowed to be changed or deleted. The content transmission step includes
When the content is transmitted to the callee terminal and a request for forwarding the content is received from the callee terminal, the content is sent to the third party terminal designated by the forward request. 6. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted. An incoming message storage step of storing the subject and the content transmitted to the recipient terminal in a recipient message server on a network;
The content request process includes:
The request for transmission of the content is requested to the caller message server on condition that the transmission request for the content is received from the callee terminal that has received the subject. The message delivery method according to one. The subject transmission step includes
The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the subject is transmitted via a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management. The subject transmission step includes
The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the subject is transmitted without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management. The content request process includes:
10. The message delivery method according to claim 1, further comprising: requesting transmission of the content via a communication management server that performs handshake communication management. The content request process includes:
10. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the content transmission is requested without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management. The content transmission step includes
12. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the content is transmitted via a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management. The content transmission step includes
12. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the content is transmitted without going through a communication management server that performs handshake type communication management. The subject transmission step includes
The caller identifier for uniquely identifying the caller of the message is authenticated, and the subject is transmitted on the condition that the authentication is successful. Message delivery method. The subject transmission step includes
Based on the connection permission condition set for each caller identifier for uniquely identifying the message callee, the caller identifier for uniquely identifying the message caller matches the connection permission condition The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein the subject is transmitted on the condition of The subject transmission step, the content request step, or the content transmission step,
16. The message delivery method according to claim 1, wherein a history of the subject or the content handled by each process is recorded.   The message delivery method according to claim 16, further comprising a billing step of billing a caller or a callee based on the history of the subject sending step, the content requesting step, or the content sending step. .   It further includes a content verification step for verifying that the subject or the content is delivered without being modified based on the history of the subject transmission step, the content requesting step, or the content transmission step. The message delivery method according to claim 16 or 17, wherein:   The notification step of notifying the recipient terminal that the subject can be transmitted prior to the transmission of the subject by the subject transmission step is further included. The message delivery method described. A message delivery system for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the sender terminal to the receiver terminal,
Subject transmission means for transmitting the subject to the recipient terminal;
Content requesting means for requesting transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmitting means;
A message delivery system comprising: content transmission means for transmitting the content requested by the content request means to the recipient terminal.   21. The message delivery system according to claim 20, wherein a caller message server that holds the message transmitted from the caller terminal includes the subject transmission unit and the content transmission unit.   The message delivery system according to claim 20 or 21, wherein a recipient message server that holds the subject and the content transmitted to the recipient terminal includes the content request unit. A message delivery system for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal, and the call that holds the message sent from the caller terminal A caller message server program installed in a caller message server,
A subject transmission procedure for transmitting the subject to the recipient terminal;
When the transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the subject transmission procedure is requested, the computer executes the content transmission procedure of transmitting the requested content to the recipient terminal. Message server program. A message delivery system for delivering the message consisting of the content that is the body of the message and the subject that is the subject of the message from the caller terminal to the callee terminal, and the call that holds the message sent from the caller terminal A program for a recipient message server installed in a recipient message server that holds the subject and the content transmitted from the recipient message server to the recipient terminal,
A content request procedure for requesting the caller message server to transmit the content when the callee terminal requests transmission of the content corresponding to the subject transmitted by the caller message server. A program for a callee message server characterized by being executed.

Images