JP2007156534A - Communication apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable even a third party who does not use communication services to browse a communication history of messages between users as necessary. <P>SOLUTION: Message data sent from first user terminals UT1-UTn used by service users are received and stored in a message storage part 14a, together with the time of reception. The message data are read from the message storage part 14a and distributed in real time to all the first user terminals UT1-UTn belonging to the same communication group. Also when a request to browse a summary is sent from second user terminals TT1-TTM used by third parties, a partial summary of the message data stored is created for each communication group; the partial summaries are combined to create one combined summary. The combined summary is sent to the second user terminals that have requested the browsing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication apparatus for performing the message exchange process in a system for exchanging messages between user terminals via a communication network.

  In recent years, a system for realizing a service in which a plurality of user terminals are connected to a communication server via a communication network, and a text message transmitted from the user terminal is distributed to other user terminals in real time by the communication server. Has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP-A-8-249242

  However, in the proposed system, text messages are exchanged only between user terminals using the communication service, and a third party who does not use the communication service can exchange between the user terminals. There was no way to obtain the message communication history, and the communication history could not be confirmed.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above circumstances, and the purpose of the invention is to browse the communication history of messages between users as needed, even if a third party does not use the communication service. An object of the present invention is to provide a communication device that makes it possible to do this.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of first user terminals belonging to any of a plurality of communication groups and a second user terminal not belonging to any of the plurality of communication groups. A communication device connected via a communication network, wherein the message data transmitted from the first user terminal is received via the communication network, and the received message data is received by the communication group. Store them separately. Then, summary information of the stored message data is generated for each communication group, and the generated summary information is requested via the communication network in response to a browsing request from the second user terminal. Is transmitted to the second user terminal.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, when a third party who does not belong to a communication group transmits a browsing request from the second user terminal, summary information of message data exchanged between users belonging to the communication group is requested. Delivered to the original user terminal. For this reason, even if the third party does not belong to the communication group, the communication history of the message data exchanged between the users belonging to the communication group can be confirmed as necessary.

Further, the present invention is characterized by having the following various configurations.
In the first configuration, the transmission means selectively aggregates summary information of a plurality of communication groups generated by the summary generation means in response to a browsing request from the second user terminal, thereby providing one aggregated summary. Information is generated, and the generated aggregated summary information is transmitted to the second user terminal as the request source.

  By providing such a configuration, the summary information of the requested communication group is selectively aggregated and distributed to the third party in response to a browsing request from the third party. For this reason, a third party can acquire and check summary information of a plurality of communication groups all at once.

The second configuration stores message data including information indicating whether browsing is possible, and stores the stored message data based on the information indicating whether browsing is possible when the summary generating means generates summary information. The message data that can be browsed is selected from the above, and summary information is generated for the selected message data.
By providing such a configuration, summary information is generated only for message data permitted to be browsed. For this reason, for example, if all messages sent by a specific user are set to non-viewable, or even a general user sets a specific message sent by the user to non-viewable, these It is possible to prevent the message from being viewed by a third party, thereby ensuring security for the message.

In the third configuration, when the received message data is stored in the message storage unit, time information indicating the reception time of the message data is added and stored, and when the summary information is generated by the summary generation unit, Based on the time information, message data of a predetermined number or time period is read from the storage means in the order of reception time, and summary information is generated for the read message data.
With such a configuration, it is possible to generate summary information by selecting message data transmitted from users belonging to the same communication group within a certain range in order of reception time from oldest to newest Thus, the third party can confirm the communication history of the message from the past to the present in time series based on the summary information of the communication group.

The fourth configuration further includes prohibited word storage means for storing prohibited words, and whether or not the prohibited word stored in the prohibited word storage means is included in message data used for generating summary information. judge. Then, when a prohibited word is included, the prohibited word is set to non-display.
By providing such a configuration, even if a message includes prohibited words such as a slandering word or an adult word, these prohibited words are automatically set to non-display when the summary information is generated. For this reason, even if a third party is a minor, for example, it is possible to browse with peace of mind.

In the fifth configuration, when information indicating the user name of the first user terminal that transmitted the message data is added to the stored message data, the prohibited word storage means is added to the user name. It is determined whether or not the stored prohibited word is included. If a prohibited word is included, the prohibited word included in the user name is set to non-presentation.
By further providing such a configuration, even when the user name includes prohibited words such as a slandering word or an adult word, these prohibited words can be automatically set to non-display.

  In short, according to the present invention, summary information of the message data transmitted from the first user terminal is generated for each communication group, and the above-mentioned summary is generated in response to a browsing request from the second user terminal of a third party. By sending information to the requesting second user terminal, even a third party who does not use the communication service browses the communication history of messages between users as necessary. It is possible to provide a communication device that can be used.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a communication system including a communication device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  In this system, a plurality of first user terminals UT1 to UTn used by a message communication service user can be connected to a communication server SV as a communication device via a communication network NW. At the same time, a plurality of second user terminals TT1 to TTm used by a third party can be connected to the communication server SV via the communication network NW. Then, message communication for each communication group is enabled between the first user terminals UT1 to UTn via the communication server SV. Further, in response to the browsing request from the second user terminals TT1 to TTm, the summary information of the message data communicated between the first user terminals UT1 to UTn is sent from the communication server SV to the second use of the request source. Distribution to the user terminals TT1 to TTm.

  The first user terminals UT1 to UTn are composed of portable terminals such as personal computers, cellular phones or PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), for example, and have a function of transmitting / receiving the message data to / from the communication server SV. Have. Similarly to the first user terminals UT1 to UTn, the second user terminals TT1 to TTm are also composed of personal computers or portable terminals. It has the function to receive.

  The communication network NW includes, for example, an IP (Internet Protocol) network represented by the Internet and a plurality of access networks for accessing the IP network. As the access network, for example, a DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) or a wired subscriber network using an optical transmission line, a CATV (Cable Television) network, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network), a mobile communication network, or a dedicated line network is used.

By the way, the communication server SV is configured as follows. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration.
That is, the communication server SV includes a central processing unit (CPU) 11. A program memory 13, a data memory 14, a communication interface (communication I / F) 15, and an input / output interface (input / output I / F) 16 are connected to the CPU 11 via the bus 12.

  The data memory 14 stores various data necessary for message data communication and summary information generation processing, and includes a message storage unit 14a and a prohibited word storage unit 14b. The message storage unit 14a stores message data transmitted from the first user terminals UT1 to UTn. The prohibited word storage unit 14b stores in advance a list of prohibited words that violate public order and morals, such as words corresponding to slander and adult words. As a storage medium for the data memory 14, an optical disk such as a CD-ROM or DVD, a memory card, or the like can be used in addition to a semiconductor memory such as a ROM or a flash memory or a magnetic disk such as a hard disk.

  The communication I / F 15 performs communication between the first user terminals UT1 to UTn and the second user terminals TT1 to TTm according to a communication protocol defined by the communication network NW under the control of the CPU 11. . For example, TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol) is used as the communication protocol.

  An input unit 17 and a display unit 18 are connected to the input / output I / F 16. The input unit 17 includes a keyboard and a mouse, for example. The display unit 18 includes, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD). The input / output I / F 16 takes in the operation information from the input unit 17 and displays the operation information input by the input unit 17, the information received by the communication I / F 15, the information processed by the CPU 11, and the like. To display.

  In the program memory 13, message processing program 13a, message output control program 13b, aggregation summary generation program 13c, partial summary generation program 13d, and prohibited word removal are provided as application programs necessary for carrying out the present invention. Each program 13e is stored.

  The message processing program 13a causes the communication I / F 15 to receive message data transmitted from the first user terminals UT1 to UTn, adds a reception time to the received message data, and stores the message in the data memory 14 The CPU 11 executes the process to be stored in the unit 14a.

  The message output control program 13b reads the message data in real time each time new message data is stored in the message storage unit 14a. Then, the CPU 11 is caused to execute a process of transmitting this message data from the communication I / F 15 to all the first user terminals belonging to the same communication group as the first user terminal that is the transmission source.

  The partial summary generation program 13d reads a predetermined number of message data stored in the message storage unit 14a in order of reception time for each communication group, generates summary information (partial summary) of each read message data, and generates a message. The CPU 11 is caused to execute processing to be stored in the storage unit 14a.

  In response to the browsing request from the second user terminals TT1 to TTm, the aggregation summary generation program 13c reads out the partial summaries of the plurality of communication groups specified by the request from the message storage unit 14a. A plurality of partial summaries are aggregated to generate one aggregated summary. Then, the CPU 11 is caused to execute a process of transmitting the generated aggregation summary from the communication I / F 15 to the second user terminals TT1 to TTm that are the browsing request source.

  The prohibited word removal program 13e determines whether the prohibited word stored in the prohibited word storage unit 14b is included in the message body and the user name in the partial summary generation process by the partial summary generation program 13d. If it is included, the CPU 11 is caused to execute a process for masking the prohibited word.

Next, the operation of the communication server SV configured as described above will be described. 3 to 5 are flowcharts showing the control procedure and control contents of the operation.
(1) Message distribution control to user terminal When performing message communication with other users, the user first connects the first user terminals UT1 to UTn used by the user to the communication server SV. To establish a session. In this state, a message body is input by operating a pointing device such as a keyboard or a mouse.

  Then, the first user terminal UT1 includes the identification information (user ID) of the user, the group identification information (group ID) of the communication group to which the user belongs, and a third party in the input message body. The message data is generated by adding information (viewing flag) indicating whether or not the message body can be browsed, and the generated message data is transmitted to the communication server SV.

  On the other hand, the CPU 11 of the communication server SV monitors the arrival of message data from the first user terminals UT1 to UTn in step 3a as shown in FIG. In this state, when message data is received by the communication I / F 15, the CPU 11 first adds a reception time to the received message data in step 3b, and then adds the message data to which the reception time is added in step 3c. The message is stored in the message storage unit 14b in the data memory 14. Thereafter, each time message data is similarly received, the message data is stored in the message storage unit 14a after the reception time is added. FIG. 6 shows an example of message data stored in the message storage unit 14a.

  Next, the CPU 11 reads the stored message data from the message storage unit 14a in real time in step 3d. Then, the read message data is transmitted to all the first user terminals belonging to the same communication group in step 3e.

On the other hand, the first user terminals UT1 to UTn receive the message data sent from the communication server SV, and display the message body included in the received message data on the display unit together with the sender name. FIG. 7 shows an example of message data displayed on the first user terminals UT1 to UTn. In the display screen, 7a indicates a display area of the message body inputted by the user, and 7b indicates a send button.
Thus, message communication using text data is performed in real time between the first user terminals UT1 to UTn belonging to the same communication group.

(2) Distribution control of summary to third party terminal Second party used by third party when browsing communication history of messages between first user terminals UT1 to UTn. The browsing request is transmitted on the user terminal. At this time, the third party designates the group ID of the communication group to be browsed. Then, a browsing request including the browsing target group ID is transmitted from the second user terminal to the communication server SV.

  On the other hand, the CPU 11 of the communication server SV monitors the arrival of browsing requests from the second user terminals TT1 to TTm used by a third party in step 4a as shown in FIG. In this state, it is assumed that a browsing request has arrived from any of the second user terminals TT1 to TTm. Then, the CPU 11 of the communication server SV first proceeds to step 4b, and executes a process for generating a partial summary for each communication group as follows.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5, first, for each communication group designated by a third party in step 5a, the CPU 11 selects one of the message data belonging to the communication group having the latest reception time. The selected message data is read from the message storage unit 14a in step 5b.

  Next, in step 5c, the CPU 11 determines whether or not the message data can be browsed based on the browse flag included in the read message data. If the result of this determination is that browsing is possible, the process proceeds to step 5d, where a summary of the message data is generated. This summary is described in a format defined by RSS 2.0 as shown in FIG. 8, for example. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the correspondence between the extension tag used in the description in the RSS 2.0 format and its meaning.

  When a summary of one message data is generated as described above, the CPU 11 subsequently proceeds to step 5e to determine whether or not a prohibited word is included in the message body and user name of the summary. The determination of the presence or absence of the prohibited word is performed based on a list of prohibited words stored in the prohibited word storage unit 14b in the data memory 14. As a result of the determination, if the prohibition word is not included in the message body and the user name, the process proceeds to step 5g as it is to determine whether selection of all message data belonging to the group is completed. If message data remains, the process returns to step 5a.

  On the other hand, it is assumed that the prohibition word is included in the message body and the user name. In this case, the CPU 11 executes a masking process for replacing the prohibited word with a symbol having no other meaning in step 5f. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, only the prohibition word is replaced with “***”. In this way, it is possible to prevent the problem that prohibited words such as words or adult words corresponding to slander are presented to a third party as they are.

  When the masking process for the prohibited word is completed, the CPU 11 proceeds to step 5g to determine whether or not there is unselected message data. If unselected message data remains, the CPU 11 returns to step 5a. Then, unselected next message data belonging to the same communication group is selected and read from the message storage unit 14a, and thereafter, a partial summary generation process is performed in steps 5c to 5g as described above. Thereafter, similarly, the partial summary generation process in steps 5a to 5g is repeatedly executed until selection of all message data belonging to the same communication group is completed.

  On the other hand, when the selection of all message data belonging to the same communication group is completed, the CPU 11 proceeds from step 5g to step 5h, where the partial summary relating to the one communication group generated here is stored in the message storage unit 14a. Let When the generation and storage of the partial summary relating to one communication group is completed, the CPU 11 selects the next communication group, and the partial summary of each message data belonging to the selected communication group is determined according to the procedure shown in FIG. The message is generated and stored in the message storage unit 14a.

  In the above description, for each communication group, all message data belonging to one communication group are sequentially selected to generate a partial summary. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a partial summary may be generated by selecting only a predetermined number of message data in the order of reception time. In this case, the number of selections of the message data may be specified by a third party so that the specified information is included in the browsing request and notified to the communication server SV, and the communication server SV is arbitrarily set. May be.

  When the generation of the partial summary for each communication group is completed as described above, the CPU 11 of the communication server SV shifts to step 4c as shown in FIG. 4, where the partial summaries of the generated communication groups are aggregated. One aggregated summary. FIG. 10 shows an example of this aggregation summary, and this aggregation summary is also described in a format defined by RSS 2.0, like the partial summary. In step 4d, the generated aggregation summary is transmitted to the third party user terminals TT1 to TTm as the browsing request source.

  When a summarization summary arrives from the communication server SV, the third party user terminals TT1 to TTm as the browsing request source store the summarization summary and display the contents on the display unit. Thus, the third party can confirm the communication history of the message communication performed between the first user terminals UT1 to UTn.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the message data transmitted from the first user terminals UT1 to UTn used by the service user is received and stored together with the reception time in the message storage unit 14a. The message data is read from the storage unit 14a and distributed in real time to all the first user terminals UT1 to UTn belonging to the same communication group. Further, when a summary browsing request is sent from the second user terminals TT1 to TTM used by a third party, a partial summary of the stored message data is generated for each communication group, and this partial summary is generated. Are aggregated to generate one aggregation summary, and this aggregation summary is transmitted to the second user terminal that is the browsing request source.

  Therefore, even a third party who does not belong to the communication group transmits a browsing request from the second user terminal TT1 to TTm to the communication server SV as necessary, so that the user who belongs to the communication group. It is possible to browse a summary of message data exchanged between them. At that time, when a third party designates a communication group to be browsed, the third party can acquire and browse partial summaries of the plurality of designated communication groups at once.

  Also, the message data including the browsing flag is stored, and when generating a partial summary, only message data that can be browsed is selected from the stored message data based on the browsing flag. Yes. For this reason, for example, if all messages sent by a specific user are set to non-viewable, or even a general user sets specific message data sent by the user to non-viewable, these The message data can be prevented from being viewed by a third party.

  Further, the message data is stored with its reception time, and when a partial summary is generated, a predetermined number of message data based on the reception time is read in the order of reception time. For this reason, it is possible to generate partial summaries by selecting message data transmitted from users belonging to the same communication group in order from oldest to newest or newest, so that a third party can The summary makes it possible to browse the communication history of messages from the past to the present in time series.

  In addition, when a prohibited word storage unit 14b that stores a list of prohibited words is provided and a partial summary is generated, it is determined whether or not a prohibited word is included in the message body and the user name included in the summary. When a prohibited word is included, the prohibited word is masked. For this reason, even if the message body or the user name includes prohibited words such as a slandering word or an adult word, these prohibited words are automatically masked. For this reason, even if a third party is a minor, for example, it is possible to browse the summary with peace of mind.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the embodiment, partial summaries of a plurality of communication groups are aggregated and distributed to a third party terminal, but partial summaries of designated communication groups may be distributed individually.

  In the embodiment, a partial summary is generated by reading a predetermined number of message data in the order of reception time. However, a summary is generated by reading message data included in a fixed time zone of the reception time. You may do it. At that time, the time zone may be designated by the third party in the browsing request, or may be arbitrarily set in the communication server SV.

  In addition, the configuration of the communication device, its control procedure and control contents, the types and configurations of the first and second user terminals, the description format of the summary information, and the like can be variously modified without departing from the scope of the present invention. Can be implemented.

  In short, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The schematic block diagram of the message delivery system provided with the communication server which is a communication apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the function structure of the communication server which is a communication apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the user delivery control procedure by the communication server shown in FIG. 2, and its content. The flowchart which shows the delivery control procedure to the third party by the communication server shown in FIG. 2, and its content. The flowchart which shows the partial summary production | generation procedure in the delivery control procedure to the third party shown in FIG. 4, and a processing content. The figure which shows an example of a structure of the message data memorize | stored in a communication server by the user delivery control shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the message delivered and displayed on a user terminal by the user delivery control shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the partial summary produced | generated by the partial summary production | generation process shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the aggregation summary produced | generated by the delivery control to the third party shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the partial summary by which the prohibition word was masked by the partial summary production | generation process shown in FIG. The figure which shows the extension tag name used in description of the summary shown in FIG. 8 thru | or FIG. 10, and its meaning.

Explanation of symbols

  SV ... communication server, UT1 to UTn ... user terminal, TT1 to TTm ... third party user terminal, NW ... communication network, 11 ... CPU, 12 ... bus, 13 ... program memory, 13a ... message processing program, 13b ... Message output control program, 13c ... Aggregation summary generation program, 13d ... Partial summary generation program, 13e ... Prohibited word removal program, 14 ... Data memory, 14a ... Message storage section, 14b ... Prohibited word storage section, 15 ... Communication interface ( Communication I / F), 16 ... Input / output interface (input / output I / F), 17 ... Input section, 18 ... Display section.

Claims (6)

Communication respectively connected via a communication network to a plurality of first user terminals belonging to any of a plurality of communication groups and a second user terminal not belonging to any of the plurality of communication groups A device,
Receiving means for receiving message data transmitted from the plurality of first user terminals via the communication network;
Message storage means for storing the received message data in association with group identification information of a communication group to which the user terminal of the transmission source belongs;
First transmitting means for transmitting the stored message data to another first user terminal belonging to the same communication group via the communication network;
Read message data from the message storage means based on the group identification information, summary generating means for generating summary information of the message data for each communication group,
Second transmission means for transmitting summary information generated by the summary generation means to the requesting second user terminal via the communication network in response to a browsing request from the second user terminal; A communication device comprising:   The second transmission means selectively aggregates summary information of a plurality of communication groups generated by the summary generation means in response to a browsing request from the second user terminal, and the aggregated summary information The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: is transmitted to the requesting second user terminal. The message storage means stores the received message data including information indicating whether or not the message data can be browsed,
The summary generation means selects message data that can be browsed from the stored message data based on the information indicating whether or not browsing is possible for each communication group, and the selected message data The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein summary information is generated. The message storage means stores the message data received by the receiving means with information indicating the reception time of the message data;
The summary generation means reads message data in a predetermined number or time period in order of reception time based on information indicating the reception time for each communication group, and extracts the summary information of the read message data. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein the communication device is generated. A prohibited word storage means for storing the prohibited word;
It is determined whether or not the prohibition word stored in the prohibition word storage means is included in the message data used for generating the summary information, and if included, the prohibition word is set to non-display. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising one prohibited word removing unit.   When information indicating the user name of the first user terminal that transmitted the message data is added to the stored message data, the prohibited word stored in the prohibited word storage means is added to the user name. And further comprising a second prohibited word removing means for determining whether or not the prohibited word included in the user name is hidden when it is included. Item 6. The communication device according to Item 5.

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