JP2002132693A - Data communication method, data communication server, and data sharing program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To use picture data stored in the hard disk or the like of a client machine in a chat system using JaveApplet. SOLUTION: A chat client being a chat program prepared as a JaveApplet is downloaded on the browser of a client machine. When picture data are uploaded from the browser of the client machine to a web server, and stored in an external storage device 24, the picture data are detected by a chat server. The chat program informs the char client in the middle of chat of the arrival of the picture data. Each chat client requests the download of the picture data to the web server in response to this. Thus, the picture data can be transmitted to each chat client, and the corresponding picture can be displayed at the display device of the client machine.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a data communication method using the Internet, and more particularly to a real-time data communication between terminals such as a so-called chat.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the spread of the Internet, many users have come to visit a variety of sites to browse contents. Electronic bulletin board (BBS)
Users can communicate with each other by text using chat rooms and chat rooms.

[0002] In particular, chat is used by many users because participants can communicate in real time. In recent years, JavaApplet
A method that reduces the load on the server by downloading a chat program to the client using (Java applet) has also been put to practical use. As a result, it is possible to avoid deterioration of the response and server down when a large number of people access.

[0003]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] JavaApplet
Is embedded in a web page, deloaded to the client, and runs on the client's browser. For this reason, there are many restrictions in consideration of security. Among the limitations, JavaApplet is
Access to the client's resources may not be allowed. Here, writing data to the hard disk of the client is not permitted, and reading data from the hard disk is not permitted. For this reason, data on the hard disk of the client cannot be read and used as Java Applet data. Therefore, even in a chat system using Java Applet, there is a problem that image data and the like stored on the hard disk of the client cannot be used.

According to the present invention, image data and the like stored in a storage device such as a hard disk of a client machine are transferred to a J-system.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a data communication system that can be used even in a chat system using avaApplet. Another object of the present invention is to make it possible to use not only tastes such as characters but also images including line drawings in real-time data communication such as chat.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to access a chat server by a chat program via the Internet and execute real-time communication with another user terminal via the chat server. A data communication method, wherein in the user terminal, providing a whiteboard for drawing an image,
Detecting a change in the image drawn on the whiteboard; and transmitting the change to a chat server, wherein the chat server transfers the change to another user terminal. The method is achieved by a data communication method comprising the steps of: drawing an image common to a whiteboard in each user terminal; and displaying the image on a screen of a display device of each user terminal.

According to the present invention, a whiteboard is provided in a user terminal, a change in an image drawn on the whiteboard is found, and the change is transmitted to a chat server. It is configured to be transmitted to. Therefore, drawing by a certain user can be transmitted to another user almost in real time. In the present specification, an image drawn by a user using a mouse or the like, such as an image in which a predetermined area is colored by a line drawing, paint, or the like, is used. be able to.

[0007] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the image in the whiteboard includes a background image and a drawing image drawn on the background image.
A step of selecting image data stored in a storage device; and a background image storage device capable of storing the background data via the Internet using the selected image data as background data indicating a background image. Transmitting the data to be stored in the background image storage device, comprising the step of storing the background data, wherein the chat server monitors the background data stored in the background image storage device. Detecting the presence or absence of the new background data; and, when the new background data is detected, the presence of the new background data in the user terminal and another user terminal that is performing data communication with the user terminal in real time. The user terminal and the other user terminal. Through includes a step of acquiring a background data wherein accommodated in the background image storage unit, wherein using the obtained background data, and updating the background image in said whiteboard.

According to the above embodiment, not only the other terminals in communication but also the update of the user terminal itself are transmitted to the external background image storage device connected via the Internet once, and are updated. The transmission of the background data is requested and transmitted via the Internet in response to a notification indicating the arrival of new background data via the Internet. Therefore, in the user terminal, the background image can be updated without directly accessing the user terminal device storing the background data. For example, as described later, even when a chat program exists as a JavaApplet on a browser, the chat program does not directly access the storage device of the user terminal, but indirectly,
It is possible to acquire a background image of the storage device and update it.

[0009] In a further preferred aspect of the present invention, the step of transmitting the background data is configured to transmit to a web server connected to the background image storage device, and the web server is configured to transmit the background data. Data is stored in the background image storage device.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the step of acquiring the background data includes the step of requesting a web server connected to the background image storage device to transmit the background data; Receiving background data transmitted from the web server in response to the request.

The present invention particularly includes a step of requesting a chat program created as a Java Applet to execute a chat at a user terminal, wherein the transmission of the background data is executed by a browser at the user terminal, Whiteboard installation,
This is useful in a configuration in which a request to transmit background data, acquisition of background data, and updating of a background image are performed by the chat program.

Another object of the present invention is a data communication method for sharing data constituting an image displayed on a display device of a user terminal with another user terminal almost in real time via the Internet. In the user terminal, a step of selecting data stored in the storage device, accessing the storage device, reading out the data, and via the Internet to an external storage device that can accommodate the data. Transmitting the data to be stored in the external storage device, wherein the external storage device includes the step of storing the background data, and in a server connected to the external storage device, the data stored in the external storage device. To detect the presence or absence of new data, and when new data is detected, the user terminal And notifying another user terminal in real-time data communication with the user terminal of the presence of new data, wherein the external image is transmitted via the Internet at the user terminal and the other user terminal. The present invention is also achieved by a data communication method including a step of acquiring data stored in a storage device and a step of updating an image displayed on a display device based on the acquired data. The data includes image data and text data. In a preferred embodiment, the user terminal includes a step of requesting a chat program created as a Java Applet to execute a process for sharing an image on a browser, and transmitting the data at the user terminal. Is executed by the browser, and the data transmission request, data acquisition, and image update are executed by the chat program.

[0013] Another object of the present invention is a data communication server connected to a storage device and connected to a user terminal via the Internet, wherein the data communication server receives data from the user terminal and stores the data in the storage device. A data reception processing means for storing the data, a storage device monitoring means for monitoring the storage device, and detecting the presence or absence of new data; and in response to the confirmation of the presence of the new data, A data arrival notifying means for notifying another user terminal that should share data with the user terminal of arrival of new data, and responding to a data transmission request from any of the user terminal and the other user terminal. Data transmission processing means for reading data stored in the storage device and transmitting the read data. It is also achieved.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment, the data communication server mediates data communication between users to realize a chat between user terminals, and the data includes a background image to be shared in connection with the chat. This is background image data to be represented. More preferably, the data reception processing unit and the data transmission processing unit are provided in a web server, and the storage device monitoring unit and the data arrival notification unit are provided in a chat server that controls a chat. .

Further, an object of the present invention is a data sharing program created as a Java Applet for executing a process for realizing data sharing between user terminals, wherein the data sharing program is provided separately from the user terminal via the Internet. Recognizing the arrival of the data transmitted to the server by a notification, requesting the server to transmit the data, receiving the transmitted data, and displaying an image related to the data. And a step of displaying on a browser. In a preferred embodiment, the data is image data, and further comprising the step of providing a whiteboard for holding the received image data.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a data storage method for storing data generated by activating a program created as a Java Applet in a user terminal in the user terminal comprises: Transmitting the data to a server via the Internet, and storing the received data in an external storage device at the server;
Notifying the program of the user terminal that the data is stored, and at the user terminal, the program responds to the reception of the notification, and requests a browser to acquire the data, In response to the request, the browser obtains data stored in the external storage device via the Internet, and stores the obtained data in a storage device connected to a user terminal And steps.
In a preferred embodiment, the program in the user terminal is a chat program, the data is image data, and the step of transmitting the data to the server includes:
The step of transmitting the image data to the chat server that controls the chat is performed, and the step of obtaining the data by the browser requests the web server connected to the external storage device to transmit the image data. And receiving image data read and transmitted by the web server.

In still another embodiment of the present invention, a data storage method for storing data generated by activating a program created as a Java Applet in a user terminal in another user terminal is characterized in that: In, the data, along with the information indicating the destination, transmitting to the server via the Internet, and in the server, the step of storing the received data in an external storage device, storing the data, Notifying the program of the destination user terminal, and in the destination user terminal,
The program, in response to the reception of the notification, requesting the browser to acquire the data, and in response to the request, the browser is stored in the external storage device via the Internet. Acquiring the acquired data, and storing the acquired data in a storage device connected to the user terminal of the transmission destination.

Also, a data generation / storage program which is created as a Java Applet, operates on a browser, and stores data generated by itself in a terminal, includes a step of transmitting the generated data to a server via the Internet. Receiving a notification indicating that the data has been stored in an external storage device from a server, and, in response to the reception, requesting the browser to acquire the data. The data storage is realized by downloading the data stored in the external storage device and storing the data in a storage device connected to the terminal.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a data communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the data communication system according to the present embodiment has a communication management server 12 which provides a chat room and realizes real-time communication between users. This communication management server 1
2 is connected to the Internet 14.

In addition to the communication management server 12, a large number of client machines 16-1, 16-2,... Operated by a user are connected to the Internet 14. The communication management server 12 includes a web server 20 that distributes web content via the Internet 14, a chat server 22 that manages chats by users,
Background image D that stores image data transmitted from the user
B24. These web server 20, chat server 22, and background image DB 24
Etc. are connected to each other via a communication line. In the present embodiment, each client machine 16 has a browser, and can browse contents and the like transmitted by the browser via the Internet.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the chat server 22 according to the present embodiment in more detail. As shown in FIG. 2, the chat server 22 communicates with the outside via the Internet 14,
A communication interface (I / F) 30 for controlling communication with another server or the like via a PC, a data receiving / analyzing unit 32 for analyzing data or the like received in a chat, and processing relating to character data in the received data , A drawing data processing unit 36 for executing processing related to drawing data indicating a drawing for forming an image in the received data, and a client computer for converting character data and drawing data as necessary. A data transmission processing unit 38 for executing a process for transmitting to a user, a history database (DB) 40 for storing texts communicated by chat as a history, and a chat stored with reference to data stored in a background image DB 24. A background image monitoring unit that determines whether a changed background image exists therein.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the web server 20 according to the present embodiment in more detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the web server 20 includes a communication I / F 50 that controls communication via the Internet 14 and communication with another server or the like via the LAN 26, and a user management that manages users participating in the chat. A background image processing unit 56 for receiving a background image transmitted from the client machine 16 and storing the background image in the background image DB 24; a background image processing unit 56 for receiving a background image transmitted from the client machine 16; A background image transmitting unit 58 that reads out background image data from the DB 24 and executes processing for transmitting the data to another client machine or the like.
And a web command analysis / content processing unit 60 that receives a command from the client machine 16 and executes necessary processing.

In the system configured as described above,
The communication management server 12 enables a chat by characters and a drawing chat by real-time display of drawing between the plurality of client machines 16-1, 16-2,.... In this drawing chat, as described later in detail, a line drawing drawn by a user operating a mouse or the like on a background image is reflected in real time on the client machine of another user in the chat. It is configured.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an outline of the communication procedure of this chat. As shown in FIG. 4, during the chat, data is transmitted to and received from the chat server 22 by a chat client 62 created as a Java Applet that operates on the browser 60 of each client machine 16. For example, in the client machine 16-2, when a user writes a sentence using a keyboard or the like, the chat client 62-2 transmits the sentence to the chat server 22 as text data (step 401). In response to this, the chat server 22 responds to the client machine of another user participating in the chat (in FIG. 4, the client machine 1
Push-transmit text data to 6-1) (step 402). The chat client 62-1 of the client machine 16-1 receives the request and operates to display it on the browser. Thus, the text entered by a certain user can be displayed on the screen of the display device of the client machine of another user.

In the client machine 16-2, when a user operates a mouse or the like to draw a line drawing in an image window provided on the screen of the display device, drawing data corresponding to the line drawing is written. Is transmitted from the chat client 62-2 to the tea and server (step 411). In response, the chat server 22 pushes the drawing data to the client machine (in FIG. 5, the client machine 16-1) of another user participating in the chat (step 41).
2). The chat client 62-1 of the client machine 16-1 receives the request and operates to display an image reflecting the drawing data. As a result, the drawing can be displayed on the screen of the display device of the client machine of another user almost in the same manner as the chat using text.

The sharing of image data and the real-time display of drawing data (drawing chat) will be described in more detail. As shown in FIG. 5A, the chat client 62 has a whiteboard 70 for holding an image substantially the same as that of another user during the chat and displaying the image on the screen of the display device. I have. On the whiteboard,
A background image 70B and a line drawing drawn on the background (for example,
70L). The user can draw a desired line drawing by using a mouse or the like, and can change the background image itself to a desired one.

The chat client 62 detects a line drawing created by a user operating a mouse, or creates a line drawing on a whiteboard based on drawing data created by another user and transmitted via the chat client. A drawing data management unit 72, a background data reception processing unit 74 that executes processing for updating data (background data) representing a background image, and a background data update detection that detects a change in the background image by another user And a portion 76. In addition, the browser 60 according to the present embodiment
Has a background data transmission processing unit 78 that executes processing for transmitting background image data corresponding to a background image that the user desires to update, and a data transmission / reception processing unit 80 that controls data transmission / reception. The background data processing unit 78 and the data transmission / reception unit 80 in the browser 60 can be realized by the functions of a general browser.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5B, when one user moves the mouse and the line drawing drawn on the whiteboard 70-1a changes, the client of another user who is chatting has Whiteboard 70 in the machine
-1b. For example, when one user moves the mouse to draw, and the line drawing changes as shown on the whiteboard 70-1b,
In response, the drawing data management unit 72 on one user side
Represents a change from a line drawing in the whiteboard 70-1a, for example, as drawing data represented by a vector. When the drawing data is transmitted to the other user, the drawing data management unit on the other user operates to detect the change and update the whiteboard (reference numeral 70-2b).

Next, the data communication between the client machine, the web server and the chat server will be described in more detail. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure in which a user's client machine accesses the communication management server 12 and participates in a chat. Prior to participating in the chat, the user registers the user's handle name and password in the communication management server 12. This is web server 2
0 is executed by the user management unit 52. The information registered by the user is stored in the user DB 54.
User information is used to identify who is participating in the chat.

As shown in FIG. 6, the client machine 1
6 is connected to the web server 20 (step 60).
1) The web command analysis / content processing unit 60 of the web server 20 is activated and transmits a predetermined web page to the client machine. The client machine downloads the web page (step 60).
2). Since a Java Applet is embedded in the web page, when this is detected (step 60)
3) The client machine 16 requests transmission of the Applet (step 604), and the Web server 20 transmits the Applet in response to the request. Apple
When t is downloaded (step 605), JavaVM is started on the client machine (step 606), and Applet is executed (step 6).
07). At this point, a chat client 62 is generated in the browser 60 of the client computer 16. When the applet is executed, data communication between the client machine 16 and the chat server 22 is started (see step 608).

In the text chat, when a text is input on one client machine 16-1, this is transmitted from the chat client 62-1 of the client machine 16-1 to the chat server 22 via the Internet 14. Chat server 22
The data receiving / analyzing unit 32 determines that the data is text data and activates the character data processing unit 34. The character data processing unit 34 stores the text data in a predetermined area of the history DB 40. On the other hand, the character data processing unit 3
4 requests the data transmission processing unit 38 to transmit text data to other users in the chat.
The data transmission processing unit 38 identifies another user (destination of data) participating in the chat and transmits it to the communication I / O.
Via F30, push transmission is performed to the client machine (for example, 16-2) of the user participating in the chat. When the other client machine 16-2 receives the text data, a process of displaying the character string indicated by the data on the screen of the display device is executed.
By repeating such a procedure, a text chat is realized.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing data communication and the like between the client machine and the chat server in the drawing chat. For example, when the user of the client machine 16-1 draws a line drawing using a mouse (step 701), the drawing data management unit 72 of the chat client 62-1 detects a change in the line drawing (step 702), and The drawing data indicating the change is created (step 703). This drawing data is transmitted to the data transmission / reception processing unit 78 of the chat client 62-1 and the chat server 22 via the Internet 14 (step 704).

The data receiving / analyzing unit 32 of the chat server 22 detects that the received data is drawing data, and transfers it to the drawing data processing unit 36. In response, the drawing data processing unit 36 requests the data transmission processing unit to transmit the drawing data to the other users in the chat. The data transmission processing unit 38 identifies another user (destination of data) participating in the chat, and transmits this to the client machine of the user participating in the chat (for example, via the communication I / F 30). 1
6-2) and push-transmit (steps 706 and 707)
reference). For example, in another client machine 16-2, upon receiving the drawing data, the drawing data management unit 72 specifies a change in the line drawing (Step 708), and updates the line drawing in the whiteboard 70 (Step 70).
9). By repeating such a procedure, FIG.
As shown in (b), it is possible to maintain the same whiteboard almost in real time between client machines during a chat.

Next, a description will be given of the process of updating the background image in the whiteboard according to the present embodiment. As described above, in the present embodiment, since the chat client is configured by JavaApplet, the image data stored on the hard disk of the client machine is used as the background of the whiteboard used in the chat. Even if they try to do so, the image data cannot be read from the hard disk due to the operation of the chat client. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the background image for both the user who tried to change the background image and the side of another user participating in the chat by the processing procedure shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. Update has been realized.

As shown in FIG. 9, the client machine 1
When the user operating 6-1 wants to change the background image in the whiteboard, inputs a predetermined command and specifies a file, and the background data representing the background image to be transmitted is displayed in the browser 60-. The first background data transmission processing unit 78 receives the background data (step 801), and the background data is transmitted to the web server 20 (step 802).

FIG. 10A shows the client machine 16.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image displayed on the screen of the display device of FIG. In FIG. 10A, a reference numeral 1001 corresponds to an image on the whiteboard. Here, the user operates a mouse or the like to set a “change background” button 100.
When 2 is turned on, a file designation image as shown in FIG. 10B is displayed. The user operates a mouse or the like to select a desired file by referring to the file name displayed in the window 1003, and a “select” button 1004
Is turned on, the background data transmission processing unit 78 described above operates in response to this.

In the web server 20, the background image receiving unit 56 transmits the transmitted background data to the background image DB2.
4 is stored in a predetermined area (step 803). On the other hand, in the chat server 22, the background image monitoring unit 4
2 periodically monitors the background image DB 24 to see if the background image has been changed, that is, whether new background data has been saved (step 804). When the background image monitoring unit 42 detects that the background image has been changed (Yes in step 805), the data transmission unit 38 transmits the background data to the client machine 16-1, and The chat client 62 of another client machine during the chat is notified that the background image has been updated (see steps 806 and 807).

In FIG. 10, the chat client 6
When the background data update detection unit 76 receives the notification, the background data reception processing unit 74 requests the web server 20 to transmit the background data (step 901). In response to the transmission request, the background image transmission unit 58 of the web server 20 transmits the background image DB 24
From the corresponding background data (step 90).
2) It is transmitted to the client machine (for example, 16-1) which is the transmission source of the transmission request (step 903).

When the background data reception processing unit 74 of the chat client 62 of the client machine 16 receives the background data, a process of updating the background image of the whiteboard 70 is executed (step 904). In this way, for example, an image including the background as illustrated in FIG. 10A is changed to an image including the background illustrated in FIG. 10C (see reference numeral 1005).

The process shown in FIG. 9 is also performed on another client machine (eg, 16-2) during the chat other than the client machine (eg, 16-1) that has transmitted the image data of the background image. It will also be appreciated that updating of the background image is achieved. in this way,
According to the present embodiment, once the background image is transmitted to the web server by the browser, the web server stores the background image in the background image DB, and the chat server that detects the update transmits the background image to the chat client. The chat client notifies the web server of the update and, in response, updates the background image. Therefore, the chat client constituted by the Java Applet downloads the background image from the web server, so that the background image can be updated without accessing the hard disk of the client machine.

In the present embodiment, a user may store a line drawing drawn on a whiteboard by using a mouse or the like together with a background image or only a line drawing in a storage device such as a hard disk of the user. Is also possible. This processing will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 11, using the chat client 62 of the client machine 16, the user operates a mouse or the like to draw a line drawing on the whiteboard 70 (step 1101). When (not shown) is turned on, image data composed of a background image and a drawn image is compressed (step 1102). Here, only the data of the drawn line drawing may be selected, and the image data representing the line drawing may be compressed. These processes are realized by the operation of the chat client 62.

Next, the compressed image data is transmitted to the chat server 22 via the Internet 14 (step 1103). The chat server 22 restores the image data (Step 1104),
G ”or the like (step 1
105). The chat server 22 stores the image data in a predetermined format in the background image DB (step 11).
06), a notification that the output of the image file has been completed is transmitted to the chat client 62 of the client machine 16 together with a URL for downloading the image (step 1107).

The chat client 62 uses the browser 6
No. 0 is notified of the URL and requests access to the web server 20 to acquire an image (step 1).
108). As shown in FIG. 12, in response to this, the browser 60 accesses the web server 20 according to the URL (step 1201). Web server 20
Reads out predetermined image data from the background image DB 24 in response to this, and transmits it to the browser 60 of the client machine 16 (step 1203). Thus, an image can be displayed on the screen of the display device of the client machine 16. The user can operate the keyboard and mouse to store the image in a storage device such as a hard disk of the client machine 16 (step 1205).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, Ja
An image drawn by a chat client using vaApplet can be stored and stored in a storage device or a recording medium such as a hard disk, a floppy disk, or an MO.

When this function is used, JavaA
When an application program operating on a browser is used by using a pplet, it is possible to store data such as an image created therein in a storage device of its own client machine or another client machine. . FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing such a state. As shown in FIG. 13, in a certain client machine (for example, 16-1), Java
When image data is generated using an application program created as an Applet and subjected to compression processing (step 1301), after designation of a destination (step 1302), the compressed image data and destination (Destination information) indicating the chat server 22
(Step 1303). Although the chat server 22 is used here for convenience, the background image DB
Another server connectable to the server 24 may be used. Also,
It goes without saying that another DB may be used instead of the background image DB 24.

The chat server 24 restores the image data and converts it into a format such as "JPEG" (steps 1304 and 1305), and converts this into a background image D.
It is stored in B24 (step 1306). Thereafter, the chat server 22 sends a notification indicating the arrival of the image file to the transmission destination client machine (for example, 16-2) together with the URL for downloading the image to the transmission destination client machine 16-2. Java Ap
It is created as a plet and sent to the application running on the browser (step 1307).

The application instructs the browser to acquire an image (step 1308). In response, the browser accesses the web server 20 according to the URL and requests download of image data (step 1309). ).

The web server 20 reads the designated image data from the background image DB 24 (step 131).
0), and transmits this to the browser of another client machine 16-2 (step 1311). As a result, the image data is displayed on another client machine (step 1312). After that, the other client machines 16-
In (2), image data can be stored in a storage device or a recording medium such as a hard disk, a floppy (registered trademark) disk, and an MO.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the invention described in the claims, and these are also included in the scope of the present invention. Needless to say, this is done. For example, the updating of the background image can be replaced by erasing the background image. That is, instead of transmitting background data from the client machine to the web server, data indicating white or a command indicating deletion of the background may be transmitted, and an operation in response to the command may be performed.

In the above embodiment, the Java
Although the aApplet is transmitted from the web server 20 to the client machine 16, the present invention is not limited to this, and the applet may be configured to be downloaded from the chat server 22 or another server (not shown).

Further, the image data to be transmitted is not limited to data representing a background image, and the present invention can be applied to use arbitrary data stored in a hard disk or the like of a client machine in a chat. . Also, the storage device connected to the client machine is not limited to a hard disk, but it is obvious that any type of device such as a floppy disk, an optical disk such as an MO, and a CD-ROM can be used.

In the above-described embodiment, a line drawing is drawn on a whiteboard, and this drawing data is transmitted to another user terminal. It goes without saying that an image using a brush may be used. In this specification, the function of one unit may be realized by two or more physical units, or the function of two or more units may be realized by one physical unit.

[0053]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a data communication system capable of using image data and the like stored in a storage device such as a hard disk of a client machine in a chat system using Java Applet. it can.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a data communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the chat server according to the present embodiment in more detail.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a web server according to the present embodiment in more detail.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an outline of a chat communication procedure according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a chat client and a browser according to the embodiment, and a diagram for explaining transition of a whiteboard;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure until a client machine participates in a chat in the present embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating data communication and the like between a client machine and a chat server in a drawing chat according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a background image changing process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a background image changing process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image displayed on a screen of a display device of the client machine according to the present embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an image storing process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an image storing process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a data transmission process according to the embodiment;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 data communication system 12 communication management server 14 internet 16 client machine 20 web server 22 chat server 24 background image DB 60 browser 62 chat client

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A data communication method for accessing a chat server via a chat program via the Internet, and executing real-time communication with another user terminal via the chat server. A step of providing a whiteboard for drawing an image, a step of detecting a change in the image drawn on the whiteboard, and a step of transmitting the change to a chat server. In the server, there is provided a step of transferring the change to another user terminal, an image common to a whiteboard in each user terminal is drawn, and the image is displayed on a screen of a display device of each user terminal. A data communication method, comprising: 2. The image in the whiteboard includes a background image and a drawing image drawn on the background image; and at the user terminal, further selecting image data stored in a storage device; Transmitting the selected image data as background data indicating a background image via the Internet for storage in a background image storage device capable of storing the background data, The apparatus further comprises a step of storing the background data, wherein the chat server monitors the background data stored in the background image storage device to detect the presence or absence of new background data; If data is detected, the user terminal and other users in data communication with the user terminal in real time. Notifying the terminal of the presence of new background data, wherein the user terminal and the other user terminal obtain background data stored in the background image storage device via the Internet, Updating the background image in the whiteboard using the acquired background data. 2. The data communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: 3. The step of transmitting the background data,
The background image storage device is configured to be transmitted to a web server connected thereto, and the web server is configured to store the background data in the background image storage device. Item 3. The data communication method according to Item 2. 4. The step of obtaining the background data includes: requesting a web server connected to the background image storage device to transmit background data; and transmitting the background data transmitted from the web server in response to the request. Receiving the background data. 4. The data communication method according to claim 2, further comprising the step of: 5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of requesting a chat program created as a Java Applet at the user terminal to execute a chat, wherein the transmission of the background data is executed by a browser at the user terminal; 3. The chat program according to claim 2, wherein the setting, the request for transmitting the background data, the obtaining of the background data, and the updating of the background image are executed by the chat program.
The data communication method according to any one of claims 4 to 4. 6. A data communication method for sharing data displayed on a display device of a user terminal with another user terminal substantially in real time via the Internet, wherein the data is stored in the storage device in one user terminal. Selecting the stored data; and accessing the storage device to read the data,
Transmitting the data to an external storage device capable of storing the data via the Internet; and storing the background data in the external storage device; A server connected to the device, wherein the data stored in the external storage device is monitored to detect the presence or absence of new data; and, when new data is detected, the user terminal and the user Notifying the other user terminal that is in real-time data communication with the terminal of the presence of new data, in the user terminal and the other user terminal, via the Internet, to the external image storage device Acquiring stored data; and displaying an image displayed on a display device based on the acquired data. And a step of updating the data communication method. 7. In the user terminal, Java is used to execute a process for sharing an image on a browser.
requesting a chat program created as an aApplet, wherein in the user terminal, the data transmission is executed by a browser, and the data transmission request, data acquisition, and image update are executed by the chat program. The data communication method according to claim 6, wherein: 8. A data communication server connected to a storage device and connected to a user terminal via the Internet, wherein the data communication server receives data from the user terminal and stores the data in the storage device. Means for monitoring the storage device and detecting the presence or absence of new data; and sharing data with the user terminal and the user terminal in response to the confirmation of the presence of the new data. Data arrival notifying means for notifying another user terminal to be notified of new data arrival; and in response to a data transmission request from any of the user terminal and the other user terminal, the storage device A data communication server comprising: data transmission processing means for reading stored data and transmitting the read data. 9. The data communication server mediates data communication between users in order to realize a chat between user terminals, wherein the data represents a background image to be shared in connection with the chat. The data communication server according to claim 8, wherein: 10. The data reception processing means and the data transmission processing means are provided in a web server, and
The data communication server according to claim 9, wherein the storage device monitoring unit and the data arrival notification unit are provided in a chat server that controls a chat. 11. A JavaAppl for executing processing for realizing data sharing between user terminals.
a data sharing program created as an et, wherein the step of recognizing, by notification, arrival of data transmitted from the user terminal to the server via the Internet, and requesting the server to transmit the data. And a step of receiving the transmitted data and displaying an image related to the data on a browser. 12. The data sharing program according to claim 11, wherein the data is image data, and further comprising a step of providing a whiteboard for holding the received image data. 13. A JavaAppl in a user terminal.
a data storage method for storing data generated by operating a program created as et in the user terminal, wherein the user terminal transmits the data to a server via the Internet; In the server, storing the received data in an external storage device, notifying the program of the user terminal that the data has been stored, and in the user terminal, the program responds to the reception of the notification. Requesting the browser to acquire the data; and in response to the request, the browser acquiring data stored in the external storage device via the Internet. Storing the acquired data in a storage device connected to the user terminal. Data storage wherein the was e. 14. The program in the user terminal is a chat program, the data is image data, and the step of transmitting the data to the server is configured to transmit the image data to a chat server that controls a chat. And the browser obtains the data, requesting a web server connected to the external storage device to transmit image data, and an image read and transmitted by the web server. Receiving the data. 14. The data storage method according to claim 13, further comprising: receiving data. 15. A JavaAppl in a user terminal.
A data storage method for storing data generated by operating a program created as et in another user terminal, wherein the user terminal stores the data together with information indicating a transmission destination via the Internet. Transmitting to a server; storing the received data in an external storage device in the server; notifying a program of the destination user terminal that the data has been stored; and In the user terminal, the program, in response to receipt of the notification, requests a browser to obtain the data, and, in response to the request, the browser, via the Internet, the external Acquiring the data stored in the storage device, and transmitting the acquired data to a transmission destination. Data storage method characterized by comprising the steps of storing in a storage device connected to the over THE terminal. 16. A data generating / storing program which is created as a Java Applet, operates on a browser, and stores data generated by itself in a terminal, and transmits the created data to a server via the Internet. And receiving a notification indicating that the data has been stored in an external storage device from a server; and, in response to the reception, requesting the browser to acquire the data. A data generation / storage program, wherein a browser downloads data stored in the external storage device and stores the data in a storage device connected to a terminal, thereby realizing data storage.