JP2001325192A - Electronic mail system, electronic mail transmission- reception method and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the degree of affection of an agent which performs the virtual delivery of electronic mails. SOLUTION: The degree of affection is improved between agents by affecting their behaviors with each other, photographing freely the images by means of the image pickup cameras, taking out freely the agent of each transmission destination side or executing the unpredictable behaviors.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic mail system for transmitting and receiving electronic mail between communication terminals such as personal computers via a communication network, an electronic mail transmission / reception method, and a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art E-mail is widely used as one form of use of the Internet for providing a worldwide communication network environment in which information can be exchanged between distant computers.

In the Internet e-mail system, mail servers are provided separately for each domain, and a client (user) transmits / receives e-mail to / from a mail server in a domain to which the client belongs.

[0004] That is, the sender describes the contents to be conveyed in an e-mail client tool called a mailer (software for sending and receiving mail), and sends a necessary address and address to the receiver.

[0005] The mail server of the domain to which the sender belongs sends mail to be sent to a mail server representative of the organization. The representative mail server assigns the address of the server / node to be reached next and sends it to the network. While referring to the address, the network sequentially transfers the address to the mail server to which the communication partner (recipient) belongs.

[0006] The recipient can confirm that the e-mail has arrived at his / her post by various methods such as displaying an arrival notice when the mailer is activated, and can read the mail addressed to himself by the mailer. .

[0007] For delivery of electronic mail, TCP / IP (T
transmission Control Proto
SMTP (Simple Mail), which is a higher-level protocol of the Internet Protocol
Transfer Protocol) is used as a communication protocol. Normally, the format is automatically assembled by a mailer, and the mail body includes a date [Date:] and a mail sender name [FRO] in accordance with SMTP.
M:], destination name [TO:], title [SUBJEC
T:], Carbon Copy
[CC:], Blind Carbon Copy (Blin
d Carbon Copy) [BCC:] A header consisting of a line in which a phrase is described at the top is added to the top.

[0008] Further, the electronic mail system of the Internet is basically based on text (character information: character code), but in order to be able to handle multimedia data in languages other than English, images and voices. Is an extended format of MIME (Multipurpos
e Internet Mail Extension
n). That is, still image information, moving image information, audio information, and the like are compressed, converted into character codes, incorporated into text in MIME format, and transmitted. The receiving side automatically interprets the MIME format, checks the format of each of the embedded information, and activates a viewer / player tool for displaying / reproducing the information.

[0009] Here, for example, as an electronic mail system capable of transmitting and receiving electronic mail with information other than text added thereto, see, for example, JP-A-11-6
The technique described in Japanese Patent No. 5964 is known.

According to this electronic mail system, an electronic pet as an agent is virtually bred in a GUI screen imitating the inside of a room, and the behavior of the electronic pet agent is managed by agent parameters. . For example, when a user strokes the head of an electronic pet or raises a snack by operating the mouse, the agent parameters that determine the character and behavior of the electronic pet are updated in accordance with these operations, and the animated pet itself is displayed. Is changed according to the breeding environment.

When a transmission command for specifying transmission of an e-mail is received, the e-mail is transmitted with the agent parameter attached to the e-mail body with the e-mail header added thereto as an attached document of the e-mail. On the receiving side, based on the agent parameters attached to the email,
The electronic pet kept by the user of the transmission source appears on the GUI screen, and an animation indicating that the electronic pet has carried an e-mail is displayed. At this time, on the receiving side, it is possible to stroke the head of the electronic pet or raise a snack by operating the mouse in the same manner as the user who keeps the electronic pet, and according to these operations, Update the received agent parameters and automatically return this agent parameter.

[0012] When the agent parameter is returned to the user who keeps the electronic pet, an animation indicating that the electronic pet has returned is displayed on a GUI screen imitating the inside of the room.

As a result, an animation is displayed on the GUI screen imitating the interior of both the transmitting and receiving rooms as if the electronic pet were coming and going and delivering the letter. Therefore, both the sender and the recipient of the mail have a common consciousness of breeding virtual pets, giving and receiving e-mails with feelings, and furthermore, according to the new breeding environment as a means of communication. Emotion expression function can be added.

Also, image data of an agent for displaying a virtual pet animation is stored on both personal computers that send and receive e-mails, and in actuality, only agent parameters that control the behavior of the agent are sent. As a result, it is possible to obtain a result as if the image data of the agent is being sent. In this way, by sending agent parameters instead of sending image data, the connection time of the user is minimized, and in the case of a dial-up IIP connection user, connection and telephone charges for the Internet provider can be saved. Become. In addition, since the amount of data to be transmitted and received is relatively small, it is possible to reduce resources of the Internet as a whole.

Here, in the conventional e-mail system, for each electronic pet, a sentence example corresponding to the agent parameter is automatically selected from sentence examples that have been easily prepared in advance, and the sentence example is sent to the owner or the like. Information related to the contents of each e-mail experienced, etc. was sent spontaneously. This makes it possible to express as if the emotions were changed by various experiences obtained by the electronic pets, and it is possible to improve the atmosphere in which the electronic pets having emotions are bred.

[0016]

In the conventional e-mail system, as described above, the operation of each user on the electronic pet is updated as the experience of the electronic pet to update the agent parameters, and the updated agent parameters are corresponded. In this case, the user selects a sentence example to be displayed or selects and displays an animation corresponding to the agent parameter. There were certain restrictions on variations in behavior. In particular, since it has not been determined that each electronic pet has selected an action in response to various external factors other than the agent parameter, the action of the electronic pet may be unnatural depending on the situation.

For example, since the agent parameters are not updated unless the user operates, an action other than the user's operation and a human relationship between the transmission source and the receiving user are reflected in the action of the electronic pet. There was nothing.

Alternatively, even if an electronic pet is present in a virtual room as a GUI screen to which an electronic mail is to be sent, the electronic pet who has delivered the electronic mail reacts to the electronic pet in the room. There was no.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic mail system and an electronic mail transmission / reception method that allow an electronic pet to act spontaneously in response to not only agent parameters of the electronic pet itself but also various other external factors. And a recording medium.

[0020]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems,
The invention according to claim 1 is an agent for displaying an agent on a screen in a plurality of terminals, managing the behavior of the agent by agent parameters, and determining the behavior of the agent in a mail body with a mail header added. In an e-mail system for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with parameters attached between the terminals, the terminal has an imaging camera that starts up based on the agent parameters and takes an image of the surroundings. The captured image is transmitted to any of the terminals together with the agent parameters.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in accordance with a program and data stored in a predetermined recording medium of a plurality of terminals, and the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters. In an electronic mail system for transmitting and receiving an electronic mail with an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent to a mail body to which a mail header is added between the terminals via a predetermined base station, the agent parameter includes: The base station includes information on the creation time of the program and the data in the recording medium of each terminal, and the base station, based on the information on the creation time in the agent parameter, stores the information on the recording medium of each terminal. To determine if the programs in are up to date If not the latest one, and transmits a force to the said program and a program for updating and / or adding the data in the recording medium of each of the terminals.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. In an e-mail system for transmitting / receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter attached between the terminals, when the same e-mail is transmitted to a plurality of the terminals, the agent transmitted from the source terminal In response to the parameters and / or the agent parameters related to the agent of the destination terminal, the agent parameters related to the agent of each destination terminal are returned to the source terminal, and the source terminal is The device displays agents from multiple other terminals. It is intended.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. An e-mail system for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter for the terminal between the terminals, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, according to the agent parameter The display time displayed on the destination terminal is determined.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. In an e-mail system for transmitting and receiving e-mail with an agent parameter for the terminal between the terminals, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent And selecting and displaying the animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium. When selecting the animation data for each of the agents, based on the agent parameters of the respective agents and the agent parameters of the other agents. Before It is to select the animation data.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. In the electronic mail system for transmitting and receiving an electronic mail with the agent parameter for the terminal between the terminals, a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of each terminal is stored in the agent parameter, and the source terminal When the agent of the machine is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is selected and displayed from animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, and the animation data of each agent is displayed. When selecting the agent And selects the animation data based on the flag indicating the relationships in the parameters.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in a plurality of terminals having an imaging camera for imaging the surroundings, an agent is displayed on a screen, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and a mail header is displayed. In an email sending and receiving method for sending and receiving an email with an agent parameter for deciding the behavior of the agent to the attached mail body between the terminals, the imaging camera starts up based on the agent parameter, An image captured by an imaging camera is transmitted to any of the terminals together with the agent parameters.

According to the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen according to a program and data stored in a predetermined recording medium of a plurality of terminals, and the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters. An email sending and receiving method for sending and receiving an email with an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent to a mail body to which a mail header is added between the terminals via a predetermined base station, wherein the agent parameter The base station includes information on the creation time of the program and the data in the recording medium of each terminal, and the base station performs the recording of each terminal based on the information on the creation time in the agent parameter. Determine if the program on the medium is up to date , And transmits when not current, forces the said program and a program for updating and / or adding the data in the recording medium of each of the terminals.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter attached thereto between the terminals, wherein when the same e-mail is transmitted to a plurality of the terminals, the e-mail transmitted from the transmission source terminal is transmitted. Corresponding to the agent parameter and / or the agent parameter relating to the agent of the destination terminal, the agent parameter relating to the agent of each destination terminal is returned to the source terminal, and The terminal displays agents from multiple other terminals. Is shall.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail attached with agent parameters between the terminals, the agent of the source terminal being displayed on the destination terminal according to the agent parameters. Thus, the display time displayed on the destination terminal is determined.

According to the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. In the e-mail transmitting and receiving method for transmitting and receiving e-mail with the agent parameter between the terminals, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent Is selected from animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium and displayed, and when selecting the animation data for each agent, the agent parameter of each agent and the agent parameter of another agent are used. Based And selects the animation data.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in a plurality of terminals, an agent is displayed on a screen, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body to which a mail header is added. In the electronic mail transmitting and receiving method for transmitting and receiving an electronic mail with an agent parameter between the terminals, a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of each terminal is stored in the agent parameter, When the terminal agent is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is selected and displayed from animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium. When selecting data, the agent And selects the animation data based on the flag indicating the relationships in the preparative parameters.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals having an imaging camera for imaging the surroundings, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and a mail header is displayed. In a recording medium recording a program for transmitting and receiving an electronic mail between the terminals, the agent including an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent in the attached mail body, the program includes the terminal, the agent, And transmitting the captured image captured by the imaging camera to any one of the terminals together with the agent parameter.

According to the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body to which a mail header is added. A recording medium for recording a program for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter between the terminals, wherein the program transmits the same e-mail to a plurality of the terminals; Corresponding to the agent parameter transmitted from the terminal and / or the agent parameter relating to the agent of the destination terminal, the agent parameter relating to the agent of each destination terminal is returned to the source terminal. Is sent to the source terminal. One in which the agent of the end machine is displayed.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in a plurality of terminals, an agent is displayed on a screen, the behavior of the agent is managed by an agent parameter, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body to which a mail header is added. In a recording medium recording a program for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter for sending and receiving between the terminals, the program is executed when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal. The display time displayed on the destination terminal is determined according to the agent parameter.

According to the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. In a recording medium recording a program for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter for sending and receiving between the terminals, the program is executed when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal. The behavior of each of the agents is selected and displayed from animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, and when selecting the animation data for each of the agents, the agent parameter of each of the agents and other parameters are selected. Agent Age And selects the animation data based on the cement parameters.

According to the present invention, an agent is displayed on a screen in a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the behavior of the agent is determined in a mail body with a mail header added. A recording medium for recording a program for transmitting and receiving e-mail with the agent parameters for the terminals between the terminals, wherein a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of the terminals is stored in the agent parameters, However, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is selected from animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium and displayed. The animation data for each agent When selecting, and selects the animation data based on the flag indicating the relationships in the agent parameters.

[0037]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the operation of an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention. This e-mail system, as shown in FIG. 1, delivers e-mail through a virtual agent. Each agent has an artificial intelligence function and controls the behavior of each agent based on agent parameters. In addition, each agent performs a spontaneous action by the artificial intelligence function based on other information.

<Basic Configuration> This electronic mail system
For example, as shown in FIG.
A plurality of personal computers (terminals) 21 and 22 connected to the Internet 10 via the Internet service providers 11 and 12 transmit and receive e-mails.

Internet service provider 11
Is a LAN (Local Area Network) 1
It is composed of a router 11A, a communication server 11C, a mail server 11D, etc., connected to each other via 1B. The mail server 11D is provided with a mail spool 11E composed of a hard disk drive for temporarily storing electronic mail.
The public telephone line 1 is provided on the communication server 11C.
And a modem 11F for connecting to the personal computer 21 via the PC. This Internet
The service provider 11 sends an e-mail sent from a personal computer 21 of a client (user) connected to the communication server 11C via the public telephone line 1 by dial-up IP.
The mail is transferred to the server 11D, and the mail server 11D transfers the transferred electronic mail to the mail server (not shown) of the Internet service provider 12 of the domain to which the other party belongs via the Internet 10. Internet service provider 11
When an electronic mail addressed to a client (user) is transferred via the Internet 10, the electronic mail is accumulated and stored in a mail spool 11E, and when a transfer request is received from the client (user), the client (user) receives the transfer request. E-mail to (user). Note that the other Internet service providers 12 also have the same electronic mail storage / transfer functions as the Internet service provider 11 described above.

The personal computer 21 of the client (user) of the Internet service provider 11 has an arithmetic processing unit (CPU: Centra).
lProcessing Unit) 21a, read only memory (ROM: Read Only Memory)
ry) 21b, random access memory (RAM: Ra)
ndom Access Memory 21c, Hard Disk Drive (HDD: Hard Disk)
Drive) 21d, Floppy (registered trademark) disk drive (FDD = Floppy Disk Drive)
e) 21e, CD-ROM drive 21f, display control unit (CRTC: Cathode RayTube Con)
controller 21g, a modem 21h, an interface unit (I / F) 21i, a video RAM 21j, etc., a device main body 21A, a CRT display device 21B connected to the display control unit 21g, and a device connected to the interface unit 21i. Keyboard 21C and mouse 2
1D.

The personal computer 21
Is connected to the public telephone line 1 via a modem 21h provided in the apparatus main body 21A.

The personal computer 21 is, for example,
The CD-ROM drive 21f uses the CD-ROM 21E.
It functions as a mailer by reading and installing the e-mail transmission / reception program stored in.
Also, the electronic mail transmission / reception program is a WWW operated by a predetermined base station on the Internet 10.
(World Wide Web), and can be downloaded and installed via the Internet service provider 11 and the public telephone line 1. Therefore, the program supply medium in the claims of the present invention is, for example, a CD-ROM 2
This means a medium in a broad sense that includes not only recording media such as 1E, but also transmission media such as the Internet and digital satellite data broadcasting.

Each personal computer 21 has:
An imaging camera 21F for imaging a user using the personal computer 21 is provided. The imaging camera 21F uses a predetermined image sensor such as a plurality of CCDs arranged in a two-dimensional array, transmits images captured by these image sensors to the apparatus main body 21A for each frame, and outputs the image as a still image or a moving image to the CPU 21a. Image processing. The operation of the image processing at this time is defined by various software programs stored in the HDD 21d and the like. In particular, when instructed by the e-mail transmission / reception program, the image of the user and the user Device 21 as a still image
A. The activation timing of the imaging camera 21F at this time will be described later.

When the e-mail transmission / reception program is improved by the developer or when various data used in the e-mail transmission / reception program are improved by the developer or user, the improved e-mail transmission / reception is performed. An improved change program (hereinafter, referred to as an "update program") having a function of overwriting or adding a program and data to an already installed e-mail transmission / reception program and data before the improvement is provided by a WWW operated by the base station. Stored on the server,
By activating this update program, the electronic mail transmission / reception program in each personal computer 21 is updated. The update function of the electronic mail transmission / reception program will be described later.

In this embodiment, the other personal computer 22 also functions as a mailer by installing the same electronic mail transmission / reception program as the personal computer 21.

In the personal computer 21 in which the e-mail transmission / reception program is installed, when the mailer is activated, the arithmetic processing unit 21a transmits a GUI (Cratical
User Interface) generates bitmap data corresponding to the screen and displays the video RA of the display control unit 21g.
The information is written on M21j, and a GUI screen (hereinafter, referred to as a “main screen”) 100 as shown in FIG. 2 is displayed on the screen of the display device 21B by the display control unit 21g.

Further, the arithmetic processing unit 21a displays the pointing cursor 10 on the main screen 100.
The bitmap data of the pointing cursor 101 is written at a predetermined position on the video RAM 21j in order to display 1 superimposed. Thereby, the display device 21
Mouse 21 on main screen 100 displayed on screen B
A pointing cursor 101 is displayed at the position designated by D.

In this case, the arithmetic processing unit 21a
Is displayed on the main screen 100 as an agent for transmitting / receiving an e-mail, for example, to superimpose a character 103 or the like imitating a human, a doll, an animal, or an imaginary creature on the main screen 100. The character 103 is superimposed on the corresponding bitmap data.
Is written in a predetermined position on the video RAM 21j. Thus, the character 103 is displayed on the main screen 100 on the display device 21B.

Here, a plurality of types of characters 103 are prepared, and one of these types can be registered and used as an agent for each user. In addition, the character 10
The behavior of the character 3 is determined by the agent parameter of the character 103 itself, and the behavior is also influenced by the agent parameter of another user's agent. Such a function will be described later.

On the left side of the main screen 100 shown in FIG. 2, a GUI screen for text description (hereinafter referred to as "text description screen") 110 as shown in FIG.
Icon 105A for writing a mail to instruct the display of
Also, a received mail browsing icon 105B for instructing display of a GUI screen (hereinafter, referred to as a “received book”) for browsing a received mail (not shown), and a GUI screen (hereinafter, referred to as a “transmitted book”) for viewing a not-shown transmitted mail ) Is displayed, and a mail check icon 105D for instructing connection for mail check is displayed.

The user moves the pointing cursor 101 to the main screen 1 by operating the mouse 21D, for example.
00, for example, is moved to the icon 105A for writing a mail, and the icon 105A for writing the mail is clicked.
The bitmap data in a state where the text description screen 110 is superimposed on 0 is written to a predetermined position on the video RAM 21j. As a result, the main screen 100 and the text description screen 110 are displayed as a multi-window on the screen of the display device 21B.

In the text description screen 110, the upper half is a first display area 113 for displaying the contents of a mail header, and the lower half is a second display area 113 for displaying a mail text as text. A display area 114 is provided. In the first display area 113, the destination [TO:], the source [FROM:], and the title [SUBJE] input by the user operating the keyboard 21C, for example, are displayed.
CT:], Carbon Copy
Header information such as [CC:] and the attached document [ATTACHMENT] are displayed. Also, the first display area 1
13 displays a character transmission icon 115A for instructing the character 103 to send out a mail, and a character non-use transmission icon 115B for instructing mail sending out without using the character 103.

In the second display area 114, a mail text as a text input by the user operating the keyboard 21C is displayed.

Then, the user operates the mouse 21D to move the pointing cursor 101 (see FIG. 2) to the character transmission icon 115A on the text description screen 110.
When the mouse button is moved up and the mouse button is clicked, the arithmetic processing unit 21a executes a process as defined in a predetermined transmission subroutine program and transmits an agent mail.

That is, the arithmetic processing unit 21a, as shown in FIG. 4, sends an e-mail data which is obtained by attaching an agent parameter 203 for determining the behavior of the character 103 as an attached document to a mail body 202 to which a mail header 201 is added. Is generated and sent to the other party as agent mail.

Here, the agent parameter 203
As shown in FIG. 4, transmission date and time information 203A indicating the transmission date and time of the mail, and mail life information 20 indicating whether or not the receiving side needs to modify this data and return a reply.
3B, serial number information 203C indicating the number of mails handled by the character so far, and character parameter information 203 such as character environment information, stimulus information, and desire information.
D, etc., each consisting of 4 bytes of data.

The character parameter information 203D has, for example, internal parameters and external parameters.
Internal parameters include, for example, email count, age, gender, intelligence, physical strength, energy, friendship (with owner), hunger,
Happiness, cleanliness, biorhythm (uncertainty), noise (uncertainty), friendship (with the partner), aggressiveness / negativeness (+/-), cheerfulness / depression (+/-), gentleness / filled Sa (+/-), concentration / distraction (+/-), fashionable /
It has items of rugged (+/-), decoration degree, attractiveness, and taste level. Further, the external parameters include items such as a user action such as a position, comfort of a room, and being hit, and a guest action to be called or shown to be hostile. Also, character parameter information 2
03D also includes an item relating to a human relationship between users as described later. These parameters are input to an emotion unit, which will be described later, to activate the behavior unit, and serve as factors for determining the behavior of the character 103.

Then, the agent parameter 203
Is an extension of Internet mail, MIME
(Multipurpose Internet Ma
il, AZ, az,
It is converted into Base64 format using characters 0 to 9 and attached. MIME defines two types of encoding methods, and RFC (Request for
Comments) 1512, Base6
In No. 4, the width of the code is narrowed by dividing the three bytes into four, and the value indicated by each byte is stored in 64 types of numerical values from 0 to 63, and the 64 types of numerical values are A to Z, a to z,
Character codes 0 to 9 are assigned.

On the other hand, the user operates the mouse 21D to move the pointing cursor 101 (see FIG. 2) to FIG.
When the mouse button is clicked on the character-non-use transmission icon 115B on the text description screen 110 shown in (1) and the mouse button is clicked, the arithmetic processing unit 21a executes a process defined by a predetermined transmission subroutine block to execute a normal e-mail. Send

That is, the arithmetic processing unit 21a simply calculates
E-mail data including an e-mail body 202 to which an e-mail header 201 is added is generated, and this is transmitted to a destination as a normal e-mail.

<Characteristic Configuration> Next, a characteristic configuration of the electronic mail system will be described.

<First Characteristic Function> In this electronic mail transmission / reception program, as shown in FIG. 5, an Internet service is transmitted from a source personal computer (terminal) 31 to a destination personal computer (terminal) 32. When the agent parameter AP0 is transmitted as an attached document in addition to the e-mail text and the header information of the e-mail through the provider 33, the imaging camera 21F is automatically activated in the personal computer 32 of the transmission destination. The captured image captured by the imaging camera 21F is attached to the agent parameter AP0 as shown in FIG. 6, and is returned to the personal computer 31 of the transmission source.

Here, the returned captured image is a still image, and the image captured by the capturing camera 21F is compressed in a predetermined compression format such as JPEG, and a file name is given in accordance with a predetermined rule. Be transformed into

The imaging camera 21F sends the agent parameter AP to the destination personal computer 32.
It may be started always when 0 is reached, but may be started only when a predetermined condition is met. For example, the date, month, day, hour, minute, and second at the time when the agent parameter AP0 reaches the destination personal computer 32 are digitized according to a predetermined rule, and this digitized number is divided by a predetermined prime number (for example, “17”). The imaging camera 21F is activated only when it is divisible. As a result, it is possible to give an effect as if the agent captured the captured image on a whim.

<Second Characteristic Function> In this e-mail system, the agent parameter AP0 added as an attached document of the e-mail includes the e-mail transmission / reception program and the version number relating to the data creation time. Has become.

In the Internet service provider 33 (reference numeral 11 in FIG. 1) as a base station,
When an e-mail to which no e-mail body (the reference numeral 202 in FIG. 4 is attached) and the agent parameter AP0 is attached passes through the communication server 11C of the service provider 33, this is a trigger. Update judgment program 3 to be started
4 (FIG. 7) are stored in the communication server 11C in advance. More specifically, the update determination program 34 determines whether the personal computer 3
1 sends an e-mail to another destination personal computer 32 with the agent parameter AP0 attached thereto, and then has an opportunity to return the agent parameter AP0 from the destination personal computer 32 to the source personal computer 31. It will start by capturing. Then, the update determination program 34 determines whether or not the version number in the agent parameter AP0 is the latest version number. If the version number in the agent parameter AP0 is not the latest version number, the update The program 35 and the data 36 are automatically attached.

Here, the update program 35
Improved e-mail sending and receiving program and data
An e-mail transmission / reception program and data that are automatically started when the personal computer 31 of the transmission source is reached as described above are included, and include an e-mail transmission / reception program that has been compressed in a predetermined compression format such as an ab format or a zip format. Automatically decompresses and then has the function of forcibly overwriting or adding to the pre-improved e-mail sending and receiving program and data already installed.

The data to be added includes, for example, data of snacks and toys to be given to the agents of each character, which will be described later.

<Third Characteristic Function> In this electronic mail system, according to a predetermined item in an agent parameter AP0 added as an attached document of an electronic mail,
Main screen 10 of destination personal computer 32
The time displayed on 0 (stay time) is changed.

Here, the main screen 10 of each agent
Examples of the agent parameter AP0 that affects the display time on 0 include friendship (with the other party), age,
Weighting and adding multiple items such as gender, intelligence, cleanliness, aggressiveness / negative polarity (+/-), cheerfulness / depressiveness (+/-), gentleness / dullness (+/-) and attractiveness The display time (stay time) increases as the weighted and added score increases.

For example, the display time increases as the score of the friendship between the two (with the partner) increases, and the display time increases as the difference between the scores of the two ages decreases. The time increases, the display time increases as the difference between the two intelligence scores decreases, the display time increases as the cleanliness score increases, and the aggressiveness / depolarization (+/-) score increases (the aggressiveness decreases). Higher), the display time increases, and the higher the score of cheerful / depressive (+/-) (the higher the cheerfulness), the longer the display time, and the higher the score of gentleness / dullness (+/-) (gentleness). The higher the degree, the longer the display time, and the higher the attractiveness of the partner agent, the longer the display time.

Alternatively, the agent parameter AP0
The item for increasing or decreasing the staying time may be included as an attribute of each agent.

<Fourth Characteristic Function> In this electronic mail system, carbon copy (Carb) is sent to a plurality of destinations.
on Copy) When sending [CC:], instead of delivering the email to the multiple recipients at once,
Agents deliver e-mail one after another in chronological order in the order entered in the carbon copy input field 110a in the text description screen 110 shown in FIG. According to a predetermined item in the added agent parameter AP0, an agent of a counterpart virtually inhabiting the main screen 100 of the personal computer 32 of the transmission destination is taken out and taken with the driver. Therefore,
As shown in FIG. 8, the source personal computer (terminal) 41 attaches the agent parameter AP0 relating to the agent 41a, and includes a plurality of (two in the example of FIG. 8) destination personal computers (including the carbon copy). When transmitting e-mails to the terminal devices 42 and 43, first, as shown in FIG. 9, the agent 42a of the personal computer 42 of the first destination is taken along and the e-mail is sent to the personal computer 43 of the next destination. Copy, and as shown in FIG. 10, both agents 41a and 42a take out the agent 43a in the personal computer 43 of the next transmission destination and gather them in the personal computer 41 of the transmission source. Dissolved in the main screen 100, as shown in FIG. Each personal computer 4
The agents 42a and 43a are returned to the devices 2 and 43, respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, the agent 42a, 43a has the agent information in the header information (mail header 201 in FIG. 4).
By attaching the agent parameters AP1 and AP2, the personal computers 41 to 43 recognize the way of the agents 42a and 43a.

Here, whether or not the other party's agent is to be companion is determined by the agent parameter AP0.
Is determined according to. Specifically, the friendship (with partner), age, gender, intelligence, cleanliness, aggressiveness / polarity (+/-), cheerfulness / depression (+ /
-), A plurality of items such as gentleness / tightness (+/-) and degree of attractiveness are weighted and added, and when the weighted and added score exceeds a certain threshold value, a traveling companion is allowed. It has become. For example, the higher the score of friendship between both (the other party), the higher the weighted and added points,
The smaller the difference between the scores of the two ages is, the more the weighted and added points are.The more the two genders are different, the more the weighted and added points are.The smaller the difference between the two intellectual scores is, the more the weighted and added points are. The higher the cleanliness score, the higher the weighted and added score,
The higher the negative polarity (+/-) score (higher aggressiveness), the greater the weighted and added score, and the brighter / sader (+/-)
The higher the score of (the higher the clarity), the higher the score of weighted addition, and the higher the score of gentleness / tightness (+/-) (the higher the degree of gentleness), the greater the score of weighted addition. The higher the attractiveness of the other party's agent, the greater the number of points to be weighted and added.

Alternatively, the agent parameter AP0
Items for increasing / decreasing the degree of request for traveling with each other may be included as attributes of each agent.

<Fifth Characteristic Function> In this electronic mail system, an item relating to a human relationship between users is included in the agent parameter AP0 added as an attached document of the electronic mail.

As shown in FIG. 5, when an e-mail attached with the agent parameter AP0 is transmitted to the destination personal computer 32, the behavior of the agent displayed on the main screen 100 of the destination personal computer 32 is shown. , Agent parameter AP0
It changes based on the items of human relations.

Here, the items of the human relationship of the agent parameter AP0 include “friend”, “boss”, “subordinate”.
Alternatively, the content of “fighting friends” and the like are quantified and stored, and are previously input in the relation entry field 121 of the mail address list 120 as shown in FIG. Mail address list 1
When the mail address 122 in 20 is specified, the human relation data corresponding to the mail address is stored in the agent parameter AP0.

When the item of the personal relationship of the destination user described in the “master's name” 122 column of the mail address list 120 is “boss”, the agent operates the main screen 100 of the destination personal computer 32. Is displayed, the agent performs an animation operation of, for example, three fingers in front of the transmission destination agent. Also, when the item of the human relationship is “subordinate” or “friend”, it is compatible with the behavior of the destination agent. For example, when the destination agent is dancing, dance or walk together. And so on. These behaviors are selected so as to correspond to an animation randomly selected for the partner agent.

Further, due to this human relationship, for example, in the case of a “fighting friend”, the companion described in the fourth characteristic function is rejected.

<Sixth Characteristic Function> In this electronic mail system, a predetermined item of an agent parameter added as an attached document of an electronic mail is compared with an agent parameter item of an agent to which the electronic mail is transmitted. Thus, both behaviors are determined.

Here, the main screen 10 of each agent
Examples of the agent parameter AP0 that affects the display time on 0 include friendship (with the other party), age,
There are gender, intelligence, cleanliness, aggressiveness / negative polarity (+/-), cheerfulness / depression (+/-), gentleness / dullness (+/-), attractiveness, and the like. When the condition is satisfied, the behavior of each agent is determined.

For example, when the score of friendship between both (with the other party) is higher than a certain level, one behavior (for example, dancing) and the other perform the same behavior. If the difference between the two age scores is greater than a certain value, the smaller the age score is, the more three fingers are put on the larger age score.

As described above, the scores of the predetermined items in both agent parameters are compared, and when a predetermined criterion is satisfied, a predetermined animation operation related to the correspondence between the two agents is selected. It has become.

When a plurality of items of the agent parameter AP0 satisfy the respective conditions and the behaviors determined based on them are inconsistent, a priority is assigned to each behavior based on a predetermined random number table or the like. The animation is sequentially selected according to the priority.

<Operation> Next, the operation of the personal computer 21 in which the above-described electronic mail transmission / reception program is installed will be described.

First, in step SP1 of FIG. 13, it is determined whether or not the operation by the user is an operation on his / her (user's own) agent. That is, the mouse 21D is operated by the user, and the pointing cursor 101 shown in FIG.
Operation of moving the mouse 21D left and right, clicking the mouse button, or selecting "wash" or "snack" from a predetermined pull-down menu (not shown) to take care of the character 103, etc. Is performed, these user operations
It is determined that the operation is for the own (user's own) agent, and the process proceeds to step SP2. If the operation is any other operation, the process proceeds to step SP4.

At step SP2, when the electronic mail transmission / reception program is started, the agent parameters of the own agent which are read from the HDD 21d and stored in the RAM 21c are updated.

Then, in the next step SP3, a process for displaying an animation of the behavior of the agent corresponding to the updated agent parameter is executed, and then the process returns to step SP1.

At step SP1, it is determined that the operation is not an operation for the agent of the own (user's own), and the process proceeds to step SP4.
It is determined whether or not the icon 105A for writing a mail has been clicked on. In the case of a positive result, the process proceeds to step SP5, and in the case of a negative result, the process proceeds to step SP7.

In step SP5, a subroutine for inputting a header or a body text of an e-mail to be transmitted is executed. First, a text description screen 1 shown in FIG.
After 10 is displayed, the header and the body text of the e-mail are created according to the text input instruction by the user, and then the process proceeds to step SP6.

In step SP6, an e-mail is transmitted through the Internet 10 or the like, and then, in step S6
Return to P1.

On the other hand, in step SP7, it is determined whether or not the received mail viewing icon 105B has been clicked. If the result is affirmative, the process proceeds to step SP8, and if the result is negative, the process proceeds to step SP9. In step SP8, after a received mail browsing display subroutine process for displaying a GUI screen (not shown) of a "receiver" (not shown) is executed, the process returns to step SP1 again.

At step SP9, it is determined whether or not the transmitted mail viewing icon 105C has been clicked. If the result is affirmative, the process proceeds to step SP10, and if the result is negative, the process proceeds to step SP11. In step SP10, after a transmission mail browsing display subroutine process for displaying a GUI screen of a “transmission list” (not shown) is executed, the process returns to step SP1 again.

At step SP11, it is determined whether or not the mail check icon 105D has been clicked. When the result is affirmative, the process proceeds to step SP12, and when the result is negative, the process proceeds to step SP13. Step SP12
In, an e-mail is received by e-mail check, and if an agent parameter exists as an attached document in the received e-mail, an animation indicating the character of the agent is selected according to the agent parameter, and the main screen 100 is displayed. indicate. Thereafter, the agent parameters relating to the character are updated in response to a user operation or the like on the main screen 100, and the updated agent parameters are returned to the transmission source personal computer together with the header information (mail header 201 in FIG. 4). Then, the process returns to step SP1 again. In step SP13, after the other processing is performed, the process returns to step SPl.

Next, the processing operation relating to the first characteristic function will be described.

In this electronic mail transmission / reception program, when a mail check is performed in the destination personal computer 32 in the above-described step SP12, FIG.
When the contents of the e-mail include the agent parameter AP0 as an attached document, the imaging camera 21F of the personal computer 32 of the transmission destination is automatically activated, and the captured image of the user is displayed. Is imaged. The captured image is compressed in a predetermined compression format such as JPEG, is given a file name according to a predetermined rule, is filed, attached to the agent parameter AP0 as shown in FIG. Is returned to the personal computer 31.

At this time, for example, the date, month, day, hour, minute, and second at the time when the agent parameter AP0 reaches the destination personal computer 32 are digitized according to a predetermined rule.
This digitized number is converted to a predetermined prime number (for example, “17”)
And the imaging camera 21F is activated only when it is divisible. As a result, it is possible to give an effect as if the agent captured the captured image on a whim.

The processing operation relating to the second characteristic function will be described.

First, an update determination program 34 (FIG. 7) and an update program 35 are stored in advance in the communication server 11C of the Internet service provider 33 (reference numeral 11 in FIG. 1) as a base station.
And data 36 are stored.

In the process of step SP6, as shown in FIG. 5, the version number of the e-mail transmission / reception program and the data is included in the e-mail agent parameter AP0.

After the e-mail is received and processed in the personal computer 32 of another user as in step SP12, an animation indicating the character of the agent is selected according to the agent parameter in the e-mail. And the main screen 1
Display at 00. After that, the agent parameters related to the character are updated in accordance with the operation of the user on the main screen 100, and the updated agent parameters together with the header information (mail header 201 in FIG. 4)
A reply is sent to the transmission source personal computer via the communication server 11C of the service provider 33.

Since the data returned at this time does not include the mail text (reference numeral 202 in FIG. 4) and has the agent parameter AP0 attached thereto, this data is received by the communication server 11C. As a result, the update determination program 34
(FIG. 7) is activated.

Then, according to the update determination program 34, the communication server 11C determines whether or not the version number in the agent parameter AP0 is the latest version number, and determines whether the version number in the agent parameter AP0 is the latest version number. If it is not the version number, the update program 35 and the data 36 are automatically attached.

The update program 35 includes an improved e-mail transmission / reception program and data.
An e-mail transmission / reception program and data which are automatically started when the personal computer 31 of the transmission source is reached as described above are included, and include an e-mail transmission / reception program which has been compressed in a predetermined compression format such as the b format or the zip format. After automatically decompressing, forcibly overwrite or add to the preinstalled e-mail sending and receiving program and data already installed.

The processing operation relating to the third characteristic function will be described.

At step SP12, after the e-mail is received, an animation representing the character of the agent is selected according to the agent parameter in the e-mail and displayed on the main screen 100.

The display time (stay time) at this time is determined by the agent parameter AP0 of the agent.
It changes according to. For example, the higher the score of the friendship between both (the other party), the longer the display time, the smaller the difference between the ages of both, the longer the display time, and the longer the gender of both, the longer the display time The display time increases as the difference between the two intelligence scores decreases, the display time increases as the cleanliness score increases, and the aggressiveness / depolarization (+/-) score increases (the aggressiveness increases). Display time increased,
The display time increases as the score of gloom (+/-) is higher (brighter), and the display time increases as the score of gentleness / thickness (+/-) is higher (the degree of gentleness is higher). The display time is increased as the attractiveness of the other agent is higher.

Alternatively, the agent parameter AP0
The item for increasing or decreasing the staying time may be included as an attribute of each agent.

Thereafter, the agent parameters relating to the character are updated in accordance with the operation of the user on the main screen 100, and the updated agent parameters are updated together with the header information (mail header 201 in FIG. 4) of the service provider 33. Communication server 11
A reply is sent to the transmission source personal computer via C.

The processing operation according to the fourth characteristic function will be described.

First, in step SP5, FIG.
A plurality of transmission destinations are entered in the carbon copy input field 110a in the text description screen 110 shown in FIG.

In this case, instead of distributing the e-mail to the plurality of destinations at once, the agent does not send the e-mail in the order entered in the carbon copy input field 110a on the text description screen 110 shown in FIG. Deliver e-mails one after another in a series.

That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the source personal computer 41 attaches the agent parameter AP0 relating to the agent 41a, and includes a plurality (two in the example of FIG. 8) of destination personal computers including the carbon copy. When the e-mail is transmitted to the personal computers 42 and 43, first, as shown in FIG.
E-mail to the next destination personal computer 43 with the agent 42a
Copy and further, as shown in FIG.
a and 42a are personal computers 43 of the next transmission destination.
The agent 43a is taken out and gathered in the sender's personal computer 41, and finally disbanded in the main screen 100 of the sender's personal computer 41.
As shown in FIG. 11, the agents 42a and 43a are returned to the personal computers 42 and 43, respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, the agent 42a, 43a includes the agent 42a, 43a in the header information (mail header 201 in FIG. 4).
Is attached to each of the personal computers 41 to 43 so that the personal computers 41 to 43 recognize the way of the agents 42a and 43a.

Here, whether or not the other party's agent is to be companion is determined by the agent parameter AP0.
Is determined according to. Specifically, the friendship (with partner), age, gender, intelligence, cleanliness, aggressiveness / polarity (+/-), cheerfulness / depression (+ /
-), A plurality of items such as gentleness / tightness (+/-) and attractiveness are weighted and added, and when the weighted and added score becomes equal to or more than a certain threshold value, the traveling is allowed. For example, the higher the score of friendship between the two (the other party), the higher the weighted and added score, and the smaller the difference between the scores of both ages, the greater the weighted and added score, and the two genders are different. As the score of weighted addition increases, the score of weighted addition increases as the difference between the intellectual scores is smaller, and the score of weighted addition increases as the score of cleanliness increases. (+/-)
The higher the score (higher aggressiveness), the higher the weighted and added score, and the higher the score of “cheerful / depressive (+/−)” (the higher the cheerfulness), the greater the weighted and added score. The higher the score of plus (+/-) (the higher the degree of gentleness), the greater the weighted and added score,
The higher the attractiveness of the other party's agent, the greater the number of points to be weighted and added.

When the item of the human relationship in the agent parameter AP0 described in the fifth characteristic function is, for example, "fighting friend", the companion is rejected.

Alternatively, the agent parameter AP0
Items for increasing / decreasing the degree of request for traveling with each other may be included as attributes of each agent.

The processing operation relating to the fifth characteristic function will be described.

Each user enters, in the relation entry column 121 of the mail address list 120 as shown in FIG. 12, the contents of “friends”, “boss”, “subordinate”, “fight friends”, etc. as items of human relations. Enter These contents are digitized and stored when stored in the agent parameter AP0.

When the mail address 122 in the mail address list 120 is specified as the destination of the e-mail in the step SP5, the data of the human relation corresponding to the mail address is stored in the agent parameter AP0. . And, as shown in FIG.
E-mail to another user's personal computer 32
(Step SP6).

At the destination personal computer 32, when the electronic mail is received in step SP12, the behavior of the agent displayed on the main screen 100 of the destination personal computer 32 is changed according to the human relationship of the agent parameter AP0. Vary based on items.

For example, in the case where the item of the human relationship of the transmission destination user described in the “master's name” 122 column of the mail address list 120 is “boss”, the agent operates the main screen 100 of the transmission destination personal computer 32. Is displayed, the agent performs an animation operation of, for example, three fingers in front of the agent of the transmission destination.

When the item of the human relationship is “subordinate” or “friend”, it is compatible with the behavior of the destination agent, for example, when the destination agent is dancing, We take a walk together.

These behaviors are selected so as to correspond to the animation selected at random for the partner agent.

The processing operation relating to the sixth characteristic function will be described.

A predetermined item of the agent parameter added as a document attached to the e-mail is compared with an item of the agent parameter of the agent to which the e-mail is transmitted, and the behavior of both is determined.

For example, when the score of friendship between both (with the other party) is higher than a certain level, one behavior (for example, dancing) is followed by the other. If the difference between the two age scores is greater than a certain value, the smaller the age score is, the more three fingers are put on the larger age score. As described above, the scores of the predetermined items in both agent parameters are compared, and when a predetermined criterion is satisfied, a predetermined animation operation related to the correspondence between the two agents is selected.

When a plurality of items of the agent parameter AP0 satisfy the respective conditions, and the behaviors determined based on them are inconsistent, a priority is assigned to each behavior based on a predetermined random number table or the like. The animation is sequentially selected according to the priority.

As described above, in addition to determining the behavior of each agent in accordance with each user's operation, the agent can transmit a captured image of the other user in a whim, regardless of the operation of each user, Because the behavior of the agent is affected by the behavior of the agent at the transmission destination, or the behavior of the agent is affected by the human relationship between users, it is as if each agent has its own intention different from the intention of the user Gives a lively impression as if to behave, and increases attachment to each agent.

In the fourth characteristic function, when e-mails are transmitted to a plurality of destinations by carbon copy, the e-mails are sequentially transmitted to the individual destinations. The same e-mail attached with the same agent parameter AP0 is simultaneously transmitted to the transmission destination, the agents of each transmission destination are individually taken out, and a large number of agents are displayed at once only on the main screen 100 of the transmission source. But it doesn't hurt.

In the first characteristic function, the image captured by the image capturing camera 21F of the personal computer 32 of the transmission destination is transferred to the personal computer 3 of the transmission source.
However, the image captured by the source personal computer 31 may be transmitted to the destination personal computer 32.

[0134]

According to the first, seventh, and thirteenth aspects of the present invention, an image capturing camera is automatically started based on an agent parameter, and an image captured by the image capturing camera is transmitted to the agent. Since the parameter is transmitted to the terminal together with the parameter, it is possible to give an impression as if the captured image including the image of the user is transmitted to another terminal at the whim of the agent, and the attachment to the agent increases.

According to the second and eighth aspects of the present invention, the agent parameter includes information on the timing of creation of the program and data in the recording medium of each terminal, and the agent parameter is included in the base station. It determines whether the program in the recording medium of each terminal is up-to-date based on the information on the time of creation of the program, and if it is not the latest, forces the program in the recording medium of each terminal In addition, since a program for updating and / or adding data is transmitted, each program can be automatically updated to the latest one as long as each terminal transmits an e-mail via the base station.

According to the third, ninth, and fourteenth aspects of the present invention, when the same e-mail is transmitted to a plurality of terminals, the agent parameter and / or the agent parameter transmitted from the source terminal are transmitted. Or, in response to the agent parameter relating to the agent of the destination terminal, the agent parameter relating to the agent of each destination terminal is returned to the source terminal, and the source terminal is provided with a plurality of other Since the agent of the terminal device is displayed, it is possible to give an impression that the agent finally breaks up after having a lively party, and the fun is improved.

According to the fourth, tenth, and fifteenth aspects of the present invention, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the destination of the destination is determined according to the agent parameter. Because the display time displayed on the terminal is determined, the length of stay at each terminal can be changed depending on the situation of each agent,
In addition, since the user cannot predict the staying time, it gives the impression that each agent is behaving with free will, and the attachment to the agent increases.

According to the fifth, eleventh and sixteenth aspects of the present invention, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is determined in advance. When selecting animation data for each agent, the animation data is selected based on the agent parameters of each agent and the agent parameters of the other agents. Since it is possible to associate the behavior between a plurality of agents, the fun is improved.

According to the sixth, twelfth and seventeenth aspects of the present invention, a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of each terminal is stored in the agent parameter, and the agent of the source terminal is stored in the agent parameter. When is displayed on the terminal of the transmission destination, the behavior of each agent is selected and displayed from animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, and when selecting animation data for each agent, the agent Since the animation data is selected based on the flag indicating the human relationship in the parameter, for example, the agent can be controlled so as not to be rude to the superior, Agents can behave in a friendly way, and not only the email body of the email, but also There is an effect that The of the emotional expression can be diverse.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main screen.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a text description screen.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a data structure of an electronic mail.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an operation of the electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an operation of the electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an electronic mail system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a mail address list.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of the electronic mail system.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Public telephone line 10 Internet 11 and 12 Internet service provider 21, 31, 32, 41 and 42 Personal computer 33 Internet service provider 34 Update judgment program 35 Update program 36 Data 41a, 42a and 43a Agent 100 Main screen 101 Pointing cursor 103 Character 110 Text description screen AP0, AP1, AP2 Agent parameters

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Akira Kawabata 3-13-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka F-term in Osaka International Building Minolta Co., Ltd. 5E501 AB16 AC15 AC25 AC34 BA17 CA02 DA02 EA02 FA13 FA14

Claims (17)

[Claims] An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail system for transmitting and receiving e-mail between the terminals, the terminal having an imaging camera for activating based on the agent parameter and imaging the surroundings, An e-mail system, wherein an image is transmitted to one of the terminals together with the agent parameter. 2. A mail body to which an agent is displayed on a screen according to a program and data stored in a predetermined recording medium of a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and a mail header is added. An electronic mail system for transmitting and receiving an electronic mail with an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent between the terminals via a predetermined base station, wherein the agent parameter includes the recording medium of each of the terminals The base station, based on the information about the creation time in the agent parameters, updates the program in the recording medium of each terminal. Judge whether or not it is not the latest , E-mail system and transmits forcibly the said program and a program for updating and / or adding the data in the recording medium of each of the terminals. 3. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail system for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein when the same e-mail is transmitted to a plurality of the terminals, the agent parameters and / or the transmission destination of the destination transmitted from the source terminal are transmitted. Corresponding to the agent parameter relating to the terminal agent, the agent parameter relating to the agent of each destination terminal is returned to the source terminal, and the source terminal is provided with a plurality of other terminals. Characterized by the fact that the agent of the machine is displayed Lumpur system. 4. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. In the e-mail system for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, according to the agent parameter, the destination terminal An e-mail system wherein a display time to be displayed is determined. 5. In a plurality of terminals, an agent is displayed on a screen, the behavior of the agent is managed by an agent parameter, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. In the e-mail system for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent,
In order to select and display the animation data from the animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, when selecting the animation data for each of the agents, based on the agent parameters of each agent and the agent parameters of other agents. An electronic mail system, wherein the animation data is selected. 6. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. In the e-mail system for transmitting and receiving e-mail between the terminals, a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of each terminal is stored in the agent parameter, and the agent of the transmission source terminal is When displayed on the terminal, the behavior of each of the agents,
In order to select and display the animation data from the animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, when selecting the animation data for each agent, the animation data is determined based on a flag indicating the human relationship in the agent parameter. E-mail system characterized by selecting. 7. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals having an imaging camera for imaging the surroundings, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and the agent is added to a mail body with a mail header added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail attached with an agent parameter for determining a behavior between the terminals, wherein the imaging camera is activated based on the agent parameter, and the imaging is performed by the imaging camera. An e-mail transmitting / receiving method, comprising transmitting an image together with the agent parameter to any of the terminals. 8. An agent body is displayed on a screen according to a program and data stored in a predetermined recording medium of a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent between the terminals via a predetermined base station, wherein the agent parameter includes the recording of each of the terminals. The base station includes information on the creation time of the program and the data in the medium, and the base station updates the program in the recording medium of each terminal based on the information on the creation time in the agent parameter. Judge whether it is the latest one or not. The electronic mail transmission and reception method characterized by transmitting a force to the said program and a program for updating and / or adding the data in the recording medium of each of the terminals. 9. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail between the terminals, wherein when the same e-mail is transmitted to a plurality of the terminals, the agent parameter and / or destination transmitted from the source terminal Corresponding to the agent parameter relating to the agent of the terminal, the agent parameter relating to the agent of each destination terminal is returned to the source terminal, and a plurality of other The terminal agent is displayed. E-mail transmission and reception method. 10. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the destination terminal is transmitted in accordance with the agent parameter. An e-mail transmission / reception method, wherein a display time displayed on the e-mail is determined. 11. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is:
Select and display animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium, and when selecting the animation data for each agent, based on the agent parameters of each agent and the agent parameters of other agents An e-mail transmission / reception method, wherein the animation data is selected. 12. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. In the method of transmitting and receiving electronic mail between the terminals, a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of the terminals is stored in the agent parameter, and the agent of the terminal of the transmission source transmits When displayed on the terminal of, the behavior of each of the agents,
In order to select and display the animation data from the animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, when selecting the animation data for each agent, the animation data is determined based on a flag indicating the human relationship in the agent parameter. An e-mail sending / receiving method characterized by selecting. 13. A plurality of terminals having an imaging camera for imaging the surroundings, displaying an agent on a screen, managing the behavior of the agent by agent parameters, and adding the agent to a mail body to which a mail header is added. A recording medium storing a program for transmitting and receiving an e-mail with an agent parameter for determining the behavior between the terminals, the program comprising: a step in which the terminal is started based on the agent parameter; Transmitting the captured image captured by the imaging camera to any of the terminals together with the agent parameter. 14. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. A recording medium storing a program for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein the program transmits the same e-mail to a plurality of the terminals, and the agent transmitted from the transmission source terminal. In response to the parameters and / or the agent parameters related to the agent of the destination terminal, the agent parameters related to the agent of each destination terminal are returned to the source terminal, and the source terminal is Machine has agents from multiple other terminals Recording medium, characterized in that indicated. 15. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. In a recording medium recording a program for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, the program, when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, according to the agent parameters A display medium, wherein a display time displayed on a transmission destination terminal is determined. 16. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. A recording medium recording a program for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein the program is configured such that when the agent of the source terminal is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is ,
Select and display animation data stored in advance on a predetermined recording medium, and when selecting the animation data for each agent, based on the agent parameters of each agent and the agent parameters of other agents A recording medium for selecting the animation data. 17. An agent is displayed on a screen at a plurality of terminals, the behavior of the agent is managed by agent parameters, and an agent parameter for determining the behavior of the agent is attached to a mail body to which a mail header is added. A program for transmitting and receiving the e-mail between the terminals, wherein a flag indicating a human relationship between operators of each terminal is stored in the agent parameter; and When the agent of the machine is displayed on the destination terminal, the behavior of each agent is
In order to select and display the animation data from the animation data stored in a predetermined recording medium in advance, when selecting the animation data for each agent, the animation data is determined based on a flag indicating the human relationship in the agent parameter. A recording medium characterized by being selected.