JP2002158704A - Real time type internet facsimile communication system and gateway - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To conduct facsimile communication in real time without the need for negotiation to match communication speeds in two public phone networks. SOLUTION: A main control section 101 of a gateway 60B executes a flow control processing in a way that the main control section 101 inserts an inter- frame flag or a fill bit to image data during transmission and transmits the resulting image data to a destination facsimile terminal 20B (step S15) when receiving no image data from a gateway 60A (NO in step S11 shown in Figure) and transmitting the image data to the destination facsimile terminal 20B in the case that the communication speed of the Internet 40 is faster than the communication speed of the public phone network 50. On the other hand, the main control section 101 temporarily stores the received image data to a hard disk drive 108 (step S13) when transmitting he image data to the destination facsimile terminal 20B and receiving the image data from the gateway 60A (YES in step S12) in the case that the communication speed of the Internet 40 is slower than the communication speed of the public phone network 50.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a first communication network such as a public telephone network for converting facsimile image data from an originating communication terminal such as a facsimile apparatus, and converting the image data into packet data. A gateway device, a second communication network such as the Internet, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a partner such as a facsimile device via a third communication network such as a public telephone network. The present invention relates to a real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a communication terminal device and a gateway device used in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, facsimile image data from a source facsimile machine is transmitted through a public telephone network, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, the Internet, and the packet data is inversely converted into image data. Via a second gateway device and a public telephone network to a facsimile device of the other party, according to ITU-T Recommendation T.30. A real-time Internet facsimile communication system (hereinafter, referred to as a conventional example) for transmitting data according to a communication procedure similar to the facsimile communication procedure of ITU-T Recommendation T.30 has been put into practical use. 38.

In this conventional example, a normal facsimile apparatus of a transmission source is compliant with ITU-T Recommendation T.30. The facsimile image data is transmitted to the first gateway device via the public telephone network by the facsimile communication procedure of No. 30. Then the first
The gateway device converts the received facsimile image data into predetermined packet data and transmits the packet data to the second gateway device via the Internet. And
The second gateway device reversely converts the received packet data into facsimile image data and transmits the image data to the destination facsimile device via the public telephone network. Here, the signal of the communication procedure between the transmission source facsimile apparatus and the destination facsimile apparatus is described in ITU-T Recommendation T.30. A communication procedure signal similar to the 30 facsimile communication procedure signal is used. However, a communication procedure signal between the two gateway devices is transmitted by facsimile using packet data.

In the real-time type Internet facsimile communication system configured as described above, since the entire distance of the section of the public telephone network can be shortened, the communication fee for transmitting facsimile image data can be reduced. There are advantages.

[0005]

However, in this conventional real-time Internet facsimile communication system, a facsimile communication procedure signal is exchanged between a source facsimile apparatus and a destination facsimile apparatus in real time. Therefore, when a difference in communication speed occurs between the public telephone network on the transmitting side and the public telephone network on the receiving side, the communication speed in the public telephone network on the transmitting side and the communication speed in the public telephone network on the receiving side are changed. There is a problem that it is necessary to perform negotiation communication so as to match the lower communication speed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to perform real-time facsimile communication in a real-time Internet facsimile communication system without necessity of negotiation for matching the communication speeds of two public telephone networks. It is an object of the present invention to provide a real-time type Internet facsimile communication system and a gateway device.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a real-time Internet facsimile communication system which transmits facsimile image data from a communication terminal device of a transmission source to a first communication network and packetizes the image data. A first gateway device for converting data to data, a second communication network, and a second for inversely converting the packet data into image data.
In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a gateway device and a third communication network, the communication speed of the second communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network. If late,
The first gateway device temporarily stores the received image data in the storage device when receiving the image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source while the image data is being transmitted to the second gateway device. Then, after the transmission to the second gateway device is completed, a flow control process is performed so as to transmit the temporarily stored image data to the second gateway device.

A real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to a second invention of the present application transmits facsimile image data from a communication terminal device of a transmission source.
A first communication network, a first gateway device that converts the image data into packet data, a second communication network, a second gateway device that reversely converts the packet data into image data, and a third communication network. In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system transmitting to a communication terminal device of the other party via the communication network, if the communication speed of the third communication network is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second gateway device When image data is received from the first gateway device while image data is being transmitted to the destination communication terminal device, the received image data is temporarily stored in a storage device, and the destination communication terminal device is received. After the transmission to the communication terminal device, a flow control process is performed so as to transmit the temporarily stored image data to the communication terminal device of the other party. .

Further, a real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to the third invention of the present application converts facsimile image data from a communication terminal device of a transmission source to a first communication network, and converts the image data into packet data. A first gateway device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time Internet for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network In the facsimile communication system, when the communication speed of the third communication network is faster than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second gateway device transmits the image data to the communication terminal device of the other party. When the image data is not received from the first gateway device, the image data being transmitted has an inter-frame flag or a flag. Insert the Rubitto and executes the flow control process to be transmitted to the destination communication terminal device.

The gateway device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is a first gateway for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device into a first communication network, and converting the image data into packet data. Device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network. The communication speed of the second communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network, when the image data is being transmitted to the second gateway device. When image data is received from the communication terminal device of the transmission source, the received image data is temporarily stored in the storage device, and the second Characterized in that the transmission to the Towei device executes a flow control process so as to transmit the image data stored the temporarily after finishing the second gateway device.

Further, the gateway device according to the fifth invention of the present application is a first gateway for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device into a first communication network, and converting the image data into packet data. Via a device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a third communication network,
When the communication speed of the third communication network is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network in the gateway device that is the second gateway device for the real-time Internet facsimile communication system transmitting to the communication terminal device of the other party When image data is received from the first gateway device while image data is being transmitted to the communication terminal device of the other party, the received image data is temporarily stored in the storage device, After the transmission to the terminal device is completed, a flow control process is performed so that the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the communication terminal device of the other party.

Still further, a gateway device according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is a gateway device for converting facsimile image data from a communication terminal device of a transmission source into a first communication network and converting the image data into packet data. A gateway device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time type Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network , The image data is being transmitted to the destination communication terminal device when the communication speed of the third communication network is higher than the communication speed of the second communication network. Sometimes, when image data is not received from the first gateway device, the image data being transmitted has an inter-frame flag or fill-in flag. Insert the door and executes the flow control process to be transmitted to the destination communication terminal device.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the present embodiment conforms to ITU-T Recommendation T.30. The communication system is based on the communication system of the conventional example described in 38, and as shown in FIG. 1, the public telephone network 5 is connected between the facsimile machine 20A of the transmission source and the gateway device 60A.
0A and two gateway devices 60
A and 60B are connected via the Internet 40, and the gateway device 60B and the destination facsimile device 20B are connected via a public telephone network 50B. Here, the public telephone networks 50A and 50B may be the same public telephone network or different public telephone networks. The facsimile apparatuses 20A and 20B are well-known facsimile apparatuses that perform facsimile communication via a public telephone network of the prior art, and are generally denoted by reference numeral 20. Further, the gateway devices 60A and 60B are provided at different places, but are preferably constituted by the same device, and are generally denoted by reference numeral 60.

Here, the source facsimile machine 20A
Is based on ITU-T Recommendation T. A facsimile message including facsimile image data is transmitted via the public telephone network 50A to the gateway device 60 by the facsimile communication procedure of No. 30.
Send to A. Next, the gateway device 60A converts the received facsimile message including the facsimile image data into predetermined packet data and transmits the packet data to the gateway device 60B via the Internet 40.
Then, the gateway device 60B reversely converts the received packet data into a facsimile message including facsimile image data and transmits the facsimile message to the destination facsimile device 20B via the public telephone network 50B. Here, the signal of the communication procedure between the source facsimile machine 20A and the destination facsimile machine 20B is transmitted in accordance with ITU-T Recommendation T.30. A communication procedure signal similar to the 30 facsimile communication procedure signal is used. However, two gateway devices 60
The communication procedure signal between A and 60B is transmitted by facsimile using packet data. Further, in this specification, a facsimile message refers to a message signal for transmitting a procedure signal of facsimile communication and image data.

If the communication speed of the public telephone network 50B is lower than the communication speed of the public telephone network 50A, or if the communication speed of the Internet 40 becomes slower due to the inherent circumstances of the Internet 40, the communication speed of the Internet 40 becomes lower than that of the public telephone network 50A. Communication speed is slower than
Main control unit 1 of gateway device 60A according to the present embodiment
01 indicates that the image data is being transmitted from the facsimile machine 20A of the transmission source while the image data is being transmitted to the gateway apparatus 60B (YE in step S2 of FIG. 4).
S), the received image data is temporarily stored in the hard disk drive 108 (step S3), and after the transmission to the gateway device 60B is completed, the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the gateway device 60B. It is characterized by executing a flow control process.

If the communication speed of the public telephone network 50B is lower than the communication speed of the public telephone network 50A,
0B is lower than the communication speed of the Internet 40. At this time, the main control unit 101 of the gateway device 60B according to the present embodiment transmits the gateway data while transmitting image data to the facsimile device 20B of the other party. When the image data is received from the device 60A (YES in step S12 in FIG. 5), the received image data is temporarily stored in the hard disk drive 108 (step S13), and transmitted to the facsimile device 20B of the other party. After the processing is completed, a flow control process is performed so that the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the facsimile machine 20B of the destination.

Further, when the communication speed of the public telephone network 50B is higher than the communication speed of the public telephone network 50A,
If the communication speed of the public telephone network 50B becomes slower, the communication speed of the public telephone network 50B becomes faster than the communication speed of the Internet 40. At this time, the main controller 101 of the gateway device 60B according to the present embodiment transmits Device 60A when image data is being transmitted to
When image data is not received from (step S in FIG. 5)
11 (NO at step S11), a flow control process is performed such that an inter-frame flag or a fill bit is inserted into the image data being transmitted and transmitted to the facsimile machine 20B of the destination (step S15).

FIG. 2 shows the facsimile apparatus 20 (2
0A, 20B). In FIG. 2, a facsimile apparatus 20 has a facsimile communication function of a conventional G3 system or the like. The main control unit 1 is specifically constituted by a CPU, is connected to the following hardware units via a bus 13, controls them, and executes various software functions to be described later.
The image reading unit 2 reads an original with a scanner using a CCD or the like, and outputs dot image data converted to binary black and white. The image recording unit 3 is a printer device of an electrophotographic system or the like, and prints out and records image data received from another facsimile device by facsimile communication as a hard copy. The display unit 4 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a CRT display, and displays an operation state of the facsimile machine 20, and displays image data of a document to be transmitted and received image data. .

The operation unit 5 includes a character key, a numeric keypad for dialing, and a keypad necessary for operating the facsimile machine 20.
It has speed dial keys, one-touch dial keys, and various function keys. In addition, by making the above-mentioned display unit 4 a touch panel type, this operation unit 5
A part or all of the various keys may be substituted.

The ROM 6 stores in advance various software programs necessary for the operation of the facsimile machine 20 and executed by the main control unit 1, wherein the programs are transmitted at least as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. Includes processing program. These programs are, for example, a floppy (registered trademark) disk, MO, DVD-
The program may be recorded on a recording medium such as a RAM, and may be loaded into the RAM 7 via the drive device as needed to execute the program. The RAM 7 is composed of an SRAM, and is used as a working area of the main control unit 1 and stores temporary data generated when a program is executed. The compact flash (registered trademark) 8 has an image data memory area 8a for storing image data before and after encoding or before and after decoding.

The fax modem 10 is connected to a public telephone line L
Is connected to the public telephone network 50 via a public telephone network, and has a function of a normal fax modem for facsimile communication. The modem demodulates data of transmission telephone number information received as an FSK signal and outputs it to the main control unit 1. . An NCU (Network Control Unit) 11 is a hardware circuit that performs closing and opening operations such as a DC loop of an analog public telephone line L and has an automatic dial function. To the public telephone line L. Here, the NCU 11 detects the ID receiving terminal activation signal and the ordinary telephone call signal in the outgoing telephone number notification service and, if necessary, the primary response signal and the second response signal in the outgoing telephone number notification service.
A next response signal can be transmitted. Note that NCU11
May be connected to a baseband transmission type digital line (for example, an ISDN line) via a predetermined terminal adapter and a DSU (Digital Service Unit).

In the facsimile communication function of the facsimile apparatus 20 of the present embodiment configured as described above, the dot image data read by the image reading unit 2 is MH, MR,
After being encoded by software according to an encoding method such as MMR, it is transmitted to the gateway device 60A, 60B or the other party's facsimile device, and conversely, the other party's facsimile device or the gateway device 60A, 60B.
Is also decoded into image data by software and output from the image recording unit 3 as a hard copy.

FIG. 3 shows the gateway device 60 (6
0A, 60B).

In FIG. 3, the gateway device 60
For example, the main control unit 101 is configured by a digital computer such as a personal computer and a workstation.
After receiving facsimile image data from the source facsimile apparatus 20A of FIG. 1 via the public telephone network 50 and the public telephone line L2, and converting the received facsimile image data into packet data of image data, the router The data is transmitted to the gateway device 60B via the device 109 and the Internet 40, and at this time, the flow control process shown in FIG. 4 is executed. On the other hand, the main control unit 101 sends the Internet 40 from the gateway device 60A of FIG.
After receiving the packet data of the image data via the router 109 and inversely converting the packet data of the received image data into image data for normal facsimile communication, the packet data is transmitted via the public telephone line L2 and the public telephone network 50B. hand,
The fax is sent to the destination facsimile machine 20B,
The flow control process shown in FIG. 5 is executed. It should be noted that the facsimile machine 20A sends the gateway devices 60A and 6A
When transmitting facsimile image data to the facsimile apparatus 20B via the facsimile apparatus 20B via the ITU-T Recommendation T.0B. 30
A procedure signal in the facsimile communication procedure is exchanged between the facsimile apparatus 20A and the facsimile apparatus 20B.

Here, the main control unit 101 is, specifically, a CP
U, which is connected to the following hardware units via a bus 13 to control them and execute various software functions described later. Display unit 10
Reference numeral 4 denotes a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a CRT display, which displays the operation state of the gateway device 60. The operation unit 105 includes a character key, a dial numeric keypad, a speed dial key, a one-touch dial key, and a character key necessary for operating the gateway device 60.
And various function keys.

The ROM 106 stores the gateway device 6
The program of various software which is necessary for the operation of FIG. 0 and executed by the main control unit 101 is stored in advance, and the program includes at least the program of the flow control processing of FIGS. 4 and 5. In addition, these programs include, for example, floppy disk, MO, DVD
-The program may be recorded on a recording medium such as a RAM, and loaded into the RAM 107 via the drive device as needed, to execute the program. RAM 107 is an SRAM
And is used as a working area of the main control unit 101 and stores temporary data generated when the program is executed. The hard disk drive 108 is, for example, a storage device having a built-in hard disk for recording and reproduction, and stores data of facsimile messages transmitted and received.

Further, the fax modem 110 and the NC
U111 is configured similarly to the fax modem 10 and the NCU 11 of the facsimile machine 10, respectively.
111 is connected to the public telephone network 50 via the public telephone line L2. Also, the router device 109 is connected to the Internet 4
0 through the gateway device 60A or 60B of the other party
(FIG. 1). Here, the gateway device 60
The packet data transmitted from A is transferred from the router device 109 of the gateway device 60A and sent to the gateway device 60B of the destination via the Internet 40. Conversely, the packet data transmitted from the gateway device 60B is transferred from the router device 109 of the gateway device 60B and transmitted to the gateway device 60A of the other party via the Internet 40. Note that the line connection from the router device 109 to the Internet 40 is not limited to a dedicated line or the like, but may be a dial-up connection using the public telephone line L2.

In the real-time Internet facsimile communication system shown in FIG. 1, when facsimile communication is performed, for example, in the facsimile communication of the public telephone network 50A on the transmitting side, negotiation is established at a speed of 19.2 kbps, while the public on the receiving side is established. In the facsimile communication of the telephone network 50B, it is assumed that the negotiation is established at a speed of 33.6 kbps. In this case, when receiving image data, the receiving-side gateway device 60B may cause an underflow because image data transmission to the facsimile device 20B is faster than reception of image data from the gateway device 60A. Therefore, the gateway device 60B appropriately adds an inter-frame flag or fill bit to the image data so that the facsimile transmission 20B on the receiving side does not time out or decode error when receiving the image data (step S1 in FIG. 5).
5). Further, for this purpose, the gateway device 60B needs to analyze a frame break or a line break in the image data.
Receiving data transmitted via 0, decoding and encoding image data, adding fill bits, transmitting inter-frame flags, and the like are performed in parallel.

In the real-time Internet facsimile communication system shown in FIG. 1, when facsimile communication is performed, for example, in the facsimile communication of the public telephone network 50A on the transmitting side, negotiation is established at a speed of 33.6 kbps, and In the facsimile communication of the public telephone network 50B, it is assumed that the negotiation is established at a speed of 19.2 kbps. In this case, the receiving-side gateway device 60B overflows because receiving image data from the gateway device 60A is faster than sending image data to the facsimile device 20B when receiving image data. Therefore, image data that cannot be sent to the facsimile device 20B is transmitted to the gateway device 6
By transmitting the image data to the facsimile device 20B while storing the image data in the hard disk drive 108 in the hard disk drive 0B (step S13 in FIG. 5), data loss due to overflow is prevented. Further, in the case of the communication speed of the above negotiation, the gateway device 60A on the transmission side receives the image data when the gateway device 60A receives the image data.
The transmission of the image data from the source facsimile machine 20A is faster than the transmission of the image data to B, so that an overflow occurs. Therefore, image data that cannot be transmitted to the gateway device 60B is transmitted to the gateway device 60B while being stored in the hard disk drive 108 in the gateway device 60A (FIG. 4).
Step S3) prevents data loss due to overflow.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow control process during image data transmission executed by the main control unit 101 of the gateway device 60A of FIG. In step S1 of FIG. 4, it is first determined whether or not image data has been received from the facsimile machine 20A, and the process of step S1 is repeated until the result is YES. If YES, the gateway device 60B is determined in step S2.
It is determined whether or not image data is being transmitted to the server. If YES, the received image data is converted into packet data of image data in step S4 and temporarily stored in the hard disk drive 108, and immediately after the current transmission is completed. To the gateway device 60B, and returns to step S1.
On the other hand, if NO in step S2, step S4
Is converted into packet data of image data and transmitted to the gateway device 60B, and the process returns to step S1.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a flow control process during image data transmission executed by the main control section 101 of the gateway device 60B of FIG. In step S11 of FIG. 5, first, the gateway device 60A
It is determined whether or not packet data has been received from the
If S, the process proceeds to step S12, while if NO, the process proceeds to step S15. In step S12, it is determined whether or not data is being transmitted to facsimile machine 20B.
If S, the process proceeds to step S13, while if NO, the process proceeds to step S14. In step S13, the received packet data is inversely converted into image data for facsimile communication, stored in the hard disk drive 108, and immediately after the current transmission is completed, the destination facsimile apparatus 20B
And returns to step S11. Step S1
In step 4, the received packet data is converted into image data for facsimile communication and transmitted to the facsimile apparatus 20B, and the process returns to step S11. Further, in step S15, the image data being transmitted is inserted with the inter-frame flag or fill bit and transmitted to the facsimile apparatus 20B, and the process returns to step S11.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, there is a difference in communication speed between the two public telephone networks 50A and 50B. At this time, the gateway device 60A switches between the public telephone network 50A and the Internet 40. Even if the communication speed is different, or the gateway device 60
B, even if there is a difference in communication speed between the Internet 40 and the public telephone network 50B, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and the communication speed in the two public telephone networks 50A and 50B can be adjusted. Without negotiating,
That is, facsimile communication can be performed in real time without requiring a complicated communication procedure.

<Second Embodiment> FIG. 6A shows a second embodiment according to the present invention. In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system, a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60B and the facsimile device 20B. FIG. 6B is a timing chart showing a case where a predetermined time has elapsed after the occurrence of the communication error. Also in the second embodiment, the real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the first embodiment, the facsimile apparatus 20 in FIG. 2 and the gateway apparatus 60 in FIG. 3 are used, but as shown in FIG. Is interrupted, the gateway device 60B continues to receive the facsimile message from the gateway device 60A, stores the received facsimile message in the hard disk drive 108, recalls the other party's facsimile device 20B, and stores the received facsimile message. A facsimile message is transmitted.

In the second embodiment, in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system of the first embodiment, the gateway device 60B transmits data of the facsimile message being communicated to the gateway device 6B.
0A when received from the hard disk drive 108
After that, the data is converted into data for normal facsimile communication and transferred to the facsimile machine 20B of the other party. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, a communication error occurs due to, for example, a trouble in the image recording unit 3 during communication of the facsimile machine 20B on the receiving side or a line failure of the public telephone network 50B. Gateway device 60
When the communication between the first communication device B and the facsimile device 20B is interrupted, the gateway device 60B
The communication with A is continued without interruption, that is, the data of the facsimile message from the gateway device 60A is received and stored in the hard disk drive 108, and the communication with the gateway device 60A is completed normally. Thereafter, after a lapse of a predetermined time, for example, 5 minutes, the gateway device 60B sets the facsimile device 2
By making a call to 0B and retransmitting a facsimile message that could not be transmitted due to a communication error, there is no need to retransmit from the facsimile apparatus 20A. In this case, the gateway device 6
OB generates a management table in which the data received from the gateway device 60A and stored in the hard disk drive 108 is associated with the telephone number of the facsimile device 20B and stored in the RAM 107.

As described above, according to this embodiment, even if communication is interrupted due to a line failure of the public telephone network 50B on the way, there is no need to retransmit from the facsimile machine 20A of the transmission source, and the image to be transmitted is not required. The data can be reliably transmitted to the destination facsimile machine 20B.

In the second embodiment, the transmission time in the facsimile machine 20A and the transmission time in the facsimile machine 20A are different.
A difference occurs in the reception time at B. If this poses a problem, the function may be turned off by setting.

<Third Embodiment> FIG. 7A shows a third embodiment according to the present invention. In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system, a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B. FIG. 7B is a timing chart showing a case where a predetermined time has elapsed after the occurrence of the communication error. In the third embodiment, the real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the first embodiment, the facsimile machine 20 in FIG. 2 and the gateway device 60 in FIG. 3 are used. However, as shown in FIG. Is interrupted, the gateway device 60A continues to receive the facsimile message from the source facsimile device 20A, stores the received facsimile message in the hard disk drive 108, and then transmits the stored facsimile message to the gateway device 60B. It is characterized by:

In the third embodiment, in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system of the first embodiment, the gateway device 60A transmits the data of the facsimile message being communicated to the facsimile device 2
0A when received from the hard disk drive 108
After that, it is converted into packet data for Internet communication and transferred to the gateway device 60B. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, a failure occurs in the gateway device 60B on the receiving side due to a trouble or the like, or a communication error occurs due to a line failure of the Internet 40, and the communication between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B is performed. When the communication is interrupted, the gateway device 60A
Continues the communication with the facsimile machine 20A without interruption, that is, continues to receive the data of the facsimile message from the facsimile machine 20A and store it in the image memory 8 or the RAM 7, and normally communicates with the facsimile machine 20A. Complete the communication. Thereafter, after a lapse of a predetermined time such as 5 minutes, the gateway device 60A transmits a call signal to the gateway device 60B,
By performing retransmission processing for retransmitting a facsimile message that could not be transmitted due to a communication error, it is not necessary to retransmit from the facsimile apparatus 20A. In this case, the gateway device 60A generates a management table in which data received from the facsimile device 20A and stored in the image memory 8 or the RAM 7 is associated with destination identification information (IP address or telephone number, etc.) of the gateway device 60B. It is stored in the RAM 107.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, even if the communication is interrupted due to a line failure of the Internet 40 on the way, it is not necessary to retransmit from the facsimile machine 20A of the transmission source, and the image data to be transmitted is not transmitted. The data can be transmitted to the destination facsimile machine 20B without fail.

In the third embodiment, the transmission time in the facsimile machine 20A and the transmission time in the facsimile machine 20A are different.
A difference occurs in the reception time at B. If this poses a problem, the function may be turned off by setting.

<Fourth Embodiment> FIG. 8A shows a fourth embodiment according to the present invention. In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system, a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B. FIG. 8B is a timing chart illustrating a case where a predetermined time has elapsed after the occurrence of the communication error. Also in the fourth embodiment, the real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to the first embodiment, the facsimile machine 20 in FIG. 2 and the gateway device 60 in FIG. 3 are used, but as shown in FIG. Is interrupted, the gateway device 60A continues receiving the facsimile message from the source facsimile device 20A, stores the received facsimile message in the hard disk drive 108, and then directly re-calls the destination facsimile device 20B. And transmitting the stored facsimile message.

In the fourth embodiment, in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system of the first embodiment, the gateway device 60A transmits the data of the facsimile message being communicated to the facsimile device 2
0A when received from the hard disk drive 108
After that, it is converted into packet data for Internet communication and transferred to the gateway device 60B. Here, as shown in FIG. 8, for example, a failure occurs in the gateway device 60B on the receiving side due to a trouble or the like, or a communication error occurs due to a line failure of the Internet 40, and the communication between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B is performed. When the communication is interrupted, the gateway device 60A
Continues the communication with the facsimile machine 20A without interruption, that is, continues to receive the data of the facsimile message from the facsimile machine 20A and store it in the image memory 8 or the RAM 7, and normally communicates with the facsimile machine 20A. Complete the communication. Thereafter, after a predetermined time elapses, for example, 5 minutes, the gateway device 60A directly re-calls the facsimile device 20B (not the gateway device 60B) and retransmits the facsimile message that could not be transmitted due to a communication error. By performing the retransmission processing, the facsimile apparatus 20A is bothersome.
There is no need to retransmit from. In this case, the gateway device 60A generates a management table in which data received from the facsimile device 20A and stored in the image memory 8 or the RAM 7 is associated with the telephone number of the facsimile device 20B, and stored in the RAM 107.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, even if the communication is interrupted due to a line failure of the Internet 40 on the way, there is no need to retransmit from the facsimile machine 20A of the transmission source, and the image data to be transmitted is reliably transmitted to the destination. To the facsimile machine 20B.

<Modification> In the above embodiment, the public telephone networks 50A and 50B and the Internet 40 are used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the public telephone networks 50A and 50B may be used.
50B may be the same public telephone network or other various circuit-switched networks, and the Internet 40 may be various packet-switched networks or dedicated lines.

In the above embodiment, an example of the facsimile machine 20 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a telephone, data, etc. connected to a public network such as a public telephone network or a public digital communication network. The present invention can be applied to a communication terminal device including a communication device and the like.

[0047]

As described above in detail, according to the real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to the first invention of the present application, the facsimile image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source is transmitted to the first communication network. Communication of the other party via a first gateway device that converts image data into packet data, a second communication network, a second gateway device that reversely converts the packet data into image data, and a third communication network In a real-time Internet facsimile communication system transmitting to a terminal device, a second
When the communication speed of the communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network, the first gateway device transmits the image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source while transmitting image data to the second gateway device. When data is received, the received image data is temporarily stored in a storage device, and after the transmission to the second gateway device is completed, the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the second gateway device. The flow control process is performed as follows. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the communication speeds in the two communication networks, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and negotiations for matching the communication speeds in the two communication networks are not required, that is, the communication is complicated. Facsimile communication can be performed in real time without requiring a complicated communication procedure.

Further, according to the real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to the second invention of the present application, facsimile image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source is converted into the first communication network, and the image data is converted into packet data. A first gateway device for conversion, a second communication network,
In a real-time type Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting packet data to image data through a second gateway device and a third communication network to a destination communication terminal device, the communication of the third communication network If the speed is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second
When receiving image data from the first gateway device while transmitting image data to the communication terminal device of the other party, the gateway device temporarily stores the received image data in a storage device, After the transmission to the destination communication terminal device is completed, the flow control process is executed so that the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the destination communication terminal device. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the communication speeds in the two communication networks, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and negotiations for matching the communication speeds in the two communication networks are not required, that is, the communication is complicated. Facsimile communication can be performed in real time without requiring a complicated communication procedure.

Further, according to the real-time type Internet facsimile communication system according to the third aspect of the present invention, the facsimile image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source is converted into the first communication network, and the image data is converted into the packet data. A first gateway device for conversion, a second communication network,
In a real-time type Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting packet data to image data through a second gateway device and a third communication network to a destination communication terminal device, the third communication device communicates with the third communication network. If the speed is faster than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second
When image data is not being received from the first gateway device while image data is being transmitted to the destination communication terminal device, the gateway device inserts an inter-frame flag or fill bit into the image data being transmitted. The flow control process is performed so as to transmit the data to the destination communication terminal device. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the communication speeds in the two communication networks, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and negotiations for matching the communication speeds in the two communication networks are not required, that is, the communication is complicated. Without the need for complicated communication procedures,
Facsimile communication can be performed in real time.

Further, according to the gateway device of the fourth aspect of the present invention, the facsimile image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source is converted into the first communication network, and the first image data is converted into packet data. Gateway device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time Internet facsimile communication to be transmitted to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network When the communication speed of the second communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network in the gateway device that is the first gateway device for the system, image data is being transmitted to the second gateway device. When the image data is received from the communication terminal device at the time of transmission, the received image data is temporarily stored in a storage device, Transmission to the second gateway device executes a flow control process so as to transmit the image data stored the temporarily after finishing the second gateway device. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the communication speeds in the two communication networks, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and negotiations for matching the communication speeds in the two communication networks are not required, that is, the communication is complicated. Without the need for complicated communication procedures,
Facsimile communication can be performed in real time.

Further, according to the gateway device of the fifth aspect of the present invention, the facsimile image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source is converted into the first communication network, and the first image data is converted into packet data. Gateway device,
A second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network. Second
In the gateway device which is the gateway device of
When the communication speed of the third communication network is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network, when image data is received from the first gateway device while image data is being transmitted to the communication terminal device of the other party Is configured to temporarily store the received image data in a storage device, and to transmit the temporarily stored image data to the destination communication terminal device after the transmission to the destination communication terminal device is completed. Execute the flow control process. Therefore, even if there is a difference between the communication speeds in the two communication networks, the speed difference can be absorbed in the communication procedure, and negotiations for matching the communication speeds in the two communication networks are not required, that is, the communication is complicated. Without the need for complicated communication procedures,
Facsimile communication can be performed in real time.

Further, according to the gateway device of the sixth aspect of the present invention, the facsimile image data from the source communication terminal device is converted to the first communication network, and the facsimile image data is converted to packet data. A first gateway device, a second communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a real-time Internet facsimile for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network When the communication speed of the third communication network is faster than the communication speed of the second communication network in the gateway device that is the second gateway device for the communication system, image data is being transmitted to the communication terminal device of the other party. If the image data is not received from the first gateway device when the image data is transmitted, the inter-frame flag or the flag is added to the image data being transmitted. Insert the Rubitto executes the flow control process to be transmitted to the destination communication terminal device. Therefore, even if there is a difference in communication speed between the two communication networks,
A facsimile communication that can absorb a speed difference in a communication procedure and does not require negotiation for matching the communication speeds in two communication networks, that is, does not require a complicated communication procedure, and performs facsimile communication in real time. Can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows the facsimile apparatus 20 (20A, 20A) of FIG.
It is a block diagram which shows the structure of B).

FIG. 3 shows a gateway device 60 (60A, 60) shown in FIG.
It is a block diagram which shows the structure of B).

4 is a main controller 1 of the gateway device 60A of FIG.
11 is a flowchart illustrating a flow control process performed during image data transmission performed by the image processing unit 01.

5 is a main controller 1 of the gateway device 60B of FIG.
11 is a flowchart illustrating a flow control process performed during image data transmission performed by the image processing unit 01.

FIG. 6A is a timing chart illustrating a case where a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60B and the facsimile device 20B in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6B is a timing chart showing processing after a predetermined time has elapsed from the occurrence of the communication error.

FIG. 7A is a timing chart illustrating a case where a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6B is a timing chart showing processing after a predetermined time has elapsed from the occurrence of the communication error.

FIG. 8A is a timing chart illustrating a case where a communication error occurs between the gateway device 60A and the gateway device 60B in the real-time Internet facsimile communication system according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6B is a timing chart showing processing after a predetermined time has elapsed from the occurrence of the communication error.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Main control part, 2 ... Image reading part, 3 ... Image recording part, 4 ... Display part, 5 ... Operation part, 6 ... ROM, 7 ... RAM, 8 ... Compact flash, 8a ... Image data memory area, 10 ... Fax modem, 11 NCU, 13 Bus, 20, 20A, 20B Facsimile machine, 40 Internet, 50, 50A, 50B Public telephone network, 60, 60A, 60B Gateway device, 101 Main control unit, 104 ... Display unit, 105 ... Operation unit, 106 ... ROM, 107 ... RAM, 108 ... Image memory, 109 ... Router device, 110 ... Fax modem, 111 ... NCU, 113 ... Bus, L1, L2 ... Public telephone line.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04N 1/32 F term (Reference) 5C062 AA02 AA22 AA29 AA30 AB40 AB42 AB46 AC38 AC43 AE15 BA04 5C075 AB90 CA14 CD90 5K030 GA01 HA08 HB04 HC01 HC02 HD03 JT05 KA01 KA03 KA06 KA13 KA19 LC02 LD11 5K101 KK01 LL02 MM04 MM05 NN22 SS07 TT04 VV01

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A first communication network for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, and a second gateway device.
A real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a third communication network.
When the communication speed of the communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network, the first gateway device transmits the image data from the communication terminal device of the transmission source while transmitting image data to the second gateway device. When data is received, the received image data is temporarily stored in a storage device, and after the transmission to the second gateway device is completed, the temporarily stored image data is transmitted to the second gateway device. A real-time type Internet facsimile communication system, which executes a flow control process. 2. A first communication network for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device into a first communication device, a first gateway device converting the image data into packet data, and a second communication device.
A real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a third communication network.
When the communication speed of the communication network is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second gateway device transmits the image data from the first gateway device while transmitting image data to the communication terminal device of the other party. When the data is received, the received image data is temporarily stored in a storage device, and after the transmission to the destination communication terminal device is completed, the temporarily stored image data is stored in the destination communication terminal device. A real-time type Internet facsimile communication system, wherein a flow control process is executed so as to transmit the data to the Internet. 3. A facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device, a first communication network, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, and a second gateway device.
A real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a third communication network.
When the communication speed of the communication network is higher than the communication speed of the second communication network, the second gateway device transmits the image data from the first gateway device while transmitting image data to the communication terminal device of the other party. When no data is received, a flow control process is executed to insert an inter-frame flag or fill bit into the image data being transmitted and to transmit the image data to the communication terminal device of the other party. system. 4. A first communication network for converting facsimile image data from an originating communication terminal device, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, and a second gateway device.
Communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a first for a real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network. When the communication speed of the second communication network is lower than the communication speed of the first communication network, the communication of the transmission source while the image data is being transmitted to the second gateway device. When image data is received from the terminal device, the received image data is temporarily stored in the storage device, and after the transmission to the second gateway device is completed, the temporarily stored image data is stored in the second device. A gateway device that performs a flow control process so as to transmit the data to the gateway device. 5. A first communication network for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, a second gateway device,
Communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a second real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network. In the gateway device, the communication speed of the third communication network is lower than the communication speed of the second communication network, the first communication device is transmitting image data to the other communication terminal device. When the image data is received from the gateway device, the received image data is temporarily stored in the storage device, and after the transmission to the communication terminal device of the destination is completed, the temporarily stored image data is stored in the destination. A flow control process for transmitting the communication device to the communication terminal device. 6. A first communication network for converting facsimile image data from a source communication terminal device, a first gateway device for converting the image data into packet data, and a second gateway device.
Communication network, a second gateway device for inversely converting the packet data into image data, and a second real-time Internet facsimile communication system for transmitting to a destination communication terminal device via a third communication network. When the communication speed of the third communication network is higher than the communication speed of the second communication network, the first communication device is transmitting image data to the other communication terminal device. When image data is not received from the gateway device, the gateway performs a flow control process so as to insert an inter-frame flag or a fill bit into the image data being transmitted and transmit the image data to the destination communication terminal device. apparatus.