JP2008061164A - Network facsimile apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a user-friendly network facsimile apparatus capable of transmitting/receiving electronic data such as read-in documents safely in terms of security. <P>SOLUTION: The network facsimile apparatus is provided with at least two communication means, one of which passes through a public switched telephone network and the other of which passes through an Internet network. At a transmitter side, the electronic data 16 of the read-in document are encoded with a password 15 as a key, and sent via the Internet network. In addition, the password 15 for decoding the electronic data 16 is converted to a QR code 20 and sent via the public switched telephone network. At a receiver side, the received QR code 20 is decoded to obtain the password 15, and the electronic data 16 are thus decoded. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a network communication technique in a facsimile apparatus, and more particularly to a security technique.

  In addition to the conventional fax function, a multi-function network facsimile apparatus having a network function that enables transmission and reception of electronic data via the Internet is known in addition to the conventional fax function. is there. Patent Document 1 discloses that a password associated with a control command is encrypted and set in an e-mail document for facsimile transfer in Internet facsimile communication. A technique of using a QR code for encryption processing is disclosed in Patent Document 2. There, an encryption key / decryption key for encrypting / decrypting an electronic file is encoded into a two-dimensional code such as a QR code and decoded at the time of encryption / decryption. The QR code is used by directly pasting or printing on the document to be encrypted.

JP 2002-190903 A JP 2000-324095 A

  In the case of the network facsimile apparatus as described above, it is also possible to read a document such as a document with a scanner function through the Internet network, convert it into a PDF file, and send it attached to an e-mail (e-mail). It is. However, with conventional G3 facsimile transmission, since it passes through a public switched telephone network (PSTN) where security is ensured, it is safe to send it as it is. It is indispensable to secure security without reading the contents.

  In this regard, even a PDF file can be encrypted and transmitted depending on the specifications. However, when the PDF file is encrypted, the receiving side needs to separately acquire a password for decrypting the encrypted PDF file from the transmitting side. In addition, since it is necessary to communicate secretly, verbal communication of telephones is performed, but it is difficult to accurately and easily convey complicated passwords, which is very troublesome.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a network facsimile apparatus that can transmit and receive electronic data such as a document that is safely read while being simple. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a user-friendly network facsimile apparatus that does not require a human operation such as password communication or password input for decryption.

  In order to solve the above problems, a network facsimile apparatus of the present invention is a network facsimile apparatus provided with at least two communication means: a communication means via a public switched telephone network and a communication means via an Internet network, Encrypted data transmission means that encrypts and transmits electronic data that has been read via the Internet network, and information for decrypting the electronic data is converted into an image code and transmitted via the public switched telephone network The decrypted data transmitting means and the encrypted electronic data received via the Internet network, the image code received via the public switched telephone network, and the information obtained by decoding the image code And a decoding means for decoding the electronic data on the basis thereof.

  Specifically, the encrypted data transmission means includes a data reading means for reading a document and converting it into electronic data, an encryption means for encrypting the electronic data converted using a password as a key, and the encrypted electronic data as electronic data. And an electronic mail sending means for sending the mail via the Internet network. The decrypted data transmitting means transmits the password and the ID information for identifying the e-mail to an image code converting means for converting to an image code, and transmits the converted image code via a public switched telephone network. And an image code transmitting means. The decryption means decodes the received image code and receives the password used as an encryption key and ID information for specifying an e-mail, and the received password and ID information. Electronic data decrypting means for decrypting the encrypted electronic data attached to the electronic mail.

  The image code may include a QR code.

  Since the decryption information is transmitted using a public switched telephone network that is secured separately from the Internet network, safety can be ensured for security.

  Since the electronic data transmitted via the Internet is encrypted, even if it is intercepted by a third party, the contents cannot be read. Therefore, the confidentiality of electronic data can be completely ensured.

  Since a series of processes for encrypting and decrypting electronic data using a key password is automatically executed by the network facsimile machine on the transmission side and the reception side, troublesome operations for ensuring security are unnecessary. Extremely user friendly. It becomes possible to set a complicated and long password, which was difficult in oral communication, and it is difficult to decipher it so that the security can be improved.

  When information such as passwords is converted into image codes and sent via facsimile via the public switched telephone network, facsimile transmission is a proven transmission method with excellent image processing, so high-accuracy data communication is easy and reliable. And there is no risk of communication problems.

  In the case of a QR code, it may be encoded and decoded according to a predetermined rule, and can be easily applied. Since a large amount of information can be recorded in a small area, the time required for communication is reduced accordingly, and there is an advantage that communication cost can be suppressed.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an outline of a network facsimile apparatus 1 according to the present invention. The network facsimile apparatus 1 is a so-called digital multi-function peripheral (MFP) having a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and the like. Inside, there are provided a control unit 2 composed of a CPU or the like for controlling each function and each means of the present invention described later, and a storage unit 3 composed of a RAM, an HDD or the like for storing electronic data. The communication means includes a communication unit 6 that transmits and receives via the Internet network, in addition to the communication unit 5 called G3 facsimile that transmits and receives via the conventional public switched telephone network (PSTN). The Internet network is connected via a LAN 7 and a router 8. A plurality (two are shown in FIG. 1) of personal computers 10 (hereinafter referred to as PCs) are connected to the LAN 7, and electronic data is transmitted and received between the network facsimile apparatus 1 and the PC 10 via the LAN 7. Is possible. A reading unit 11 that reads a document such as a document, an operation unit 12 configured with a touch panel, a printer 14 that outputs electronic data to a paper medium, and the like are also provided.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the network facsimile apparatus 1 is connected to at least a public switched telephone network and the Internet network, and is used by constructing a network system among a number of network facsimile apparatuses 1. In order to simplify the description, a network system using two network facsimile apparatuses 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as a transmitter and a receiver) functioning as a transmitter and a receiver is shown.

  In order to ensure security in communication, the transmitter encrypts and transmits the electronic document 16 that has been read to the receiver via the Internet network (encrypted data transmission), and also via the public switched telephone network. Thus, the information for decoding the electronic data 16 is converted into the image code 20 and transmitted (decoded data transmission). In contrast, the receiver decodes the received electronic data 16 based on information obtained by decoding the received image code 20 (decoding).

  That is, the network facsimile apparatus 1 includes an encrypted data transmission unit 101, a decryption data transmission unit 102, and a decryption unit 103, and each unit is realized by the control unit 2 or the like. FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of each means in the control unit 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the encrypted data transmission unit 101 includes a data reading unit 104, an encryption unit 105, and an e-mail sending unit 106. The decoded data transmission unit 102 includes an image code conversion unit 107 and an image code transmission unit 108. The decoding unit 103 includes a decoding unit 109 and an electronic data decoding unit 110.

  This point will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 show flowcharts at the transmitter and the receiver, respectively.

  {Transmission of encrypted data} In the operation unit 12 of the transmitter, a series of processes is started when the sender selects a mode for performing a predetermined operation. For example, “scan to e-mail” indicating a predetermined operation displayed on the touch panel is selected. As a result, a series of subsequent operations are displayed on the operation unit 12, and the sender operates accordingly.

  The sender inputs the password 15 used for encryption and decryption from the operation unit 12 of the transmitter (step S1). Since it is not necessary to contact the password 15 to be input separately, a complicated and long password such as “AB12... Cd34” shown in FIG.

  The sender inputs the destination of the receiver as the destination, that is, the e-mail mail address of the receiver (step S2). In addition to inputting the destination directly from the operation unit, the main destination may be stored in advance in the storage unit 3 and selected from there.

  The sender causes the transmitter to read a document such as a document from the reading unit 11 (step S3). The read information is converted by the data reading means 104 of the transmitter into image information (electronic data) 16a compressed in a format such as MMR and temporarily stored in the storage unit 3.

  The sender gives an instruction to start transmission (step S4). By this operation, the image information 16a is encrypted by the encryption unit 105 of the transmitter using the previously input password 15 as a key (step S5). Then, it is stored together with the encrypted password 15 in one PDF file 18 (step S6).

  The PDF file 18 including the encrypted image information 16 is attached to the e-mail, and is automatically sent to the destination receiver specified via the Internet network by the e-mail sending means 106 of the transmitter. The message is transmitted to the receiver, specifically, to the predetermined mail server of the receiver by SMTP (step S7). Since the image information 16a to be transmitted is encrypted, even if it is intercepted by a third party, the contents cannot be read. In addition, in the present invention, as will be described later, the password 15 is automatically decrypted, so that it is possible to set a complicated and long password that has been difficult in oral communication or the like. Even if intercepted by a person, there is no risk of being deciphered.

  {Transmission of decrypted data} Subsequently, the previously input password 15 and Message-ID (ID information) added to the e-mail mail header are converted into image code conversion means of the transmitter as shown in FIG. A pair of QR codes 20 and 20 is formed by being converted into QR codes 20 (image codes) by 107 (step S8). Since the Message-ID is an identification mark of each e-mail added to the e-mail mail header, the e-mail can be reliably identified (indicated by reference numeral 19 in FIG. 4). In the case of a QR code, a predetermined rule has already been established, and encoding and decoding may be performed in accordance with the rule. Therefore, the QR code can be suitably used with versatility. Since a large amount of information can be recorded in a small area, even a complicated and long password does not require time for communication and the communication cost can be suppressed. It should be noted that the encryption technology using the password as a key can be effectively used by the combination of the QR code 20 and the decryption automation.

  The converted pair of QR codes 20 and 20 are automatically converted into image data by the image code transmission means 108 of the transmitter, and are transmitted to the receiver via the public switched telephone network (PSTN). (Step S9). The information such as the password is converted into the QR code 20 and transmitted by facsimile. Since the facsimile transmission is excellent in image processing and has been used for many years, high-accuracy data communication is possible. This is because it can be secured easily and reliably.

  {Decryption} After the above process, the receiver receives the PDF file 18 including the encrypted image information 16a and the pair of QR codes 20 and 20 into which the password 15 and Message-ID are converted. Are transmitted securely via two different paths. In addition, since the password 15 and the like are transmitted using a secure public switched telephone network that is separate from the Internet network that may be intercepted by a third party, it is possible to ensure safety. It has become.

  In the receiver, when a predetermined e-mail is received from the mail server by the POP 3, the PDF file 18 attached to the e-mail is taken out and stored in the storage unit 3 (step S10).

  When the receiver receives the QR code 20 of the Message-ID, the decoding unit 109 automatically decodes the QR code 20, acquires the Message-ID, and temporarily stores it in the storage unit 3. Then, the receiver compares the Message-ID acquired from the QR code 20 with the Message-ID of the received e-mail, and checks whether the QR code 20 with the matching Message-ID is received. (Step S11). If there is no reception, the check is repeated until reception is received (No in step S11).

  If received (Yes in step S11), the receiver identifies the e-mail whose Message-ID matches, and the decoding unit 109 uses the QR code 20 of the password 15 paired with the Message-ID. Is automatically decoded to obtain the password 20 input by the transmitter (step S12).

  The receiver uses the electronic data decryption unit 110 to automatically decrypt the encrypted image information 16a of the PDF file 18 stored in the storage unit 3 using the acquired password 15 as a key (step S13). The decoded image information 16b is stored in the storage unit 3 of the receiver together with the PDF file 18 so that it can be used without limitation (step S14). For example, even if a troublesome password is not input, it can be transferred as it is to the PC 10 via the LAN 7 and can be output to a paper medium by the printer 14. Even if the decryption process of the password 15 cannot be executed due to a trouble, the decryption is possible if the password 15 is obtained and inputted by oral communication or the like by a conventional method.

  As described above, a series of processes for decoding the image information 16 using the password 15 is automatically executed by the network facsimile machines 1 and 1 on the transmission side and the reception side. Therefore, while ensuring security, it is possible to construct a very user-friendly environment, eliminating the need for troublesome operations such as verbal communication of passwords over the phone and password input operations for decryption. became.

  The password 15 may be automatically set by the transmitter in addition to being directly input by the sender. Then, not only decryption but also encryption is not required, and it becomes even easier. The file format of the image information 16 (electronic data) is not limited to PDF. It may be TIFF, JPEG, or the like. The number of QR codes 20 may be converted into one QR code 20 in addition to two converted for each information as in the embodiment, or may be distributed over three or more. . In addition to the QR code, other two-dimensional codes can also be used. Further, not only a two-dimensional code but also a barcode may be used.

1 is a schematic diagram of a network facsimile apparatus. It is the schematic of the network using a network facsimile apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows each means which a control part has. It is explanatory drawing of an image code conversion means. It is a flowchart by the side of a transmitter. It is a flowchart in the receiver side.

Explanation of symbols

1 Network facsimile machine 5 Communication means (public switched telephone network)
6 Communication means (Internet network)
15 Password 16 Electronic data (image information)
19 Message-ID (ID information)
20 QR code (image code)
101 Encryption Data Transmission Unit 102 Decryption Data Transmission Unit 103 Decryption Unit 104 Data Reading Unit 105 Encryption Unit 106 Email Sending Unit 107 Image Code Conversion Unit 108 Image Code Transmission Unit 109 Decoding Unit 110 Electronic Data Decryption Unit

Claims (3)

A network facsimile apparatus comprising at least two communication means, a communication means via a public switched telephone network and a communication means via an Internet network,
Encrypted data transmission means for encrypting and transmitting electronic data of the read document via the Internet network;
Decoded data transmission means for converting information for decoding electronic data into an image code and transmitting it via a public switched telephone network;
In addition to receiving encrypted electronic data via the Internet network, receiving the image code via the public switched telephone network, and decoding the electronic data based on the information obtained by decoding the image code Decryption means;
A network facsimile apparatus comprising: The network facsimile apparatus according to claim 1,
The encrypted data transmission means is
Data reading means for reading a document and converting it into electronic data;
An encryption means for encrypting electronic data converted using a password as a key;
An electronic mail sending means for attaching encrypted electronic data to an electronic mail and sending it via the Internet;
Have
The decrypted data transmitting means
Image code conversion means for converting the password and ID information for specifying the e-mail into an image code;
Image code transmitting means for transmitting the converted image code via a public switched telephone network;
Have
The decoding means comprises:
Decoding means for decoding received image code to obtain ID information for identifying a password and an e-mail as an encryption key;
Electronic data decryption means for decrypting encrypted electronic data attached to the received electronic mail using the acquired password and ID information;
A network facsimile machine. The network facsimile apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
A network facsimile apparatus, wherein the image code includes a QR code.

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