JP2008263377A - Information communication equipment, transmission destination confirmation method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To insure that a transmission destination instructed by a user is capable of performing communication, and to provide information for making it easy for a user to realize the mistake of designating wrong transmission destination, and to precisely confirm the transmission destination. <P>SOLUTION: Domain information (organization name and organization address, or the like) is acquired from a "whois" server for managing the Internet mail, based on the domain of the mail address of the transmission destination instructed in a mail transmission request (S101 to S104), and indicated through an input screen to a user, and used for the confirmation of the transmission destination of mail (S105, S106). Thus, it is possible to prevent input errors of the input of an address character string or designation input, based on an address book or the like. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information communication apparatus that transmits and receives electronic mail via a network, and more specifically, can check a destination mail address instructed in an electronic mail transmission request by management information related to a domain provided by a whois server. The present invention relates to an information communication apparatus having a function for performing transmission, a destination confirmation method and program for confirming a destination mail address, and a program for realizing the function.

In recent years, with the development of networks, various types of information devices (hereinafter referred to as “information communication devices”) having a network interface have been developed. The information communication device can send created data and data stored in recording media to other information devices via the network in units of files, so internal information that should be kept confidential via the network due to operational errors, etc. There is often a problem of leaking to the outside, and interest in prevention methods is increasing.
As a means of communicating information between information communication devices via a network, one of the cases where information is leaked in widely used e-mails is that an e-mail address is entered incorrectly when sending e-mail, or That is, an e-mail is transmitted to an unintended transmission destination due to a specification mistake when selecting a transmission destination from the address book.
In this case, since it sometimes leads to a serious mistake, a preventive measure is required, and a function for confirming the destination at the time of transmission has been proposed.

As a conventional example showing this destination confirmation function, the following Patent Document 1 can be cited.
In Patent Document 1, it is checked that the destination instructed by the user is a registered fax destination, and the result is displayed on the screen together with the fax number to notify the user, and the user waits for a transmission confirmation input operation. The function to perform transmission is shown. This function has a certain effect on prevention of erroneous transmission.
JP 2006-157173 A

However, the destination confirmation function described in Patent Document 1 is such that a destination such as a fax number is registered in advance by a user's own input operation using a method such as one-touch key registration, and a destination such as a registered fax number is supported when a destination is transmitted. It is simply displayed and the user confirms the destination.
Therefore, there is no guarantee that the transmission destination input by the user can actually communicate. For example, if the user input is incorrect, or if the transmission destination is changed after registration, erroneous transmission will occur. In addition, in the case of electronic mail, there is a problem that it is difficult to notice an error in specifying a destination simply by displaying a pre-registered mail address.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems of the prior art in the information communication apparatus. The problem is that the transmission destination specified by the user is guaranteed to be communicable, and the transmission is performed. The purpose is to provide information that is easy for the user to notice the mistake in the designation of the destination, and to check the destination accurately.

The invention of claim 1 enables transmission / reception unit for sending / receiving e-mails via a network, mail data processing unit for creating e-mail data to be sent and analyzing data of received e-mails, exchanging information with users, An information communication apparatus having an operation unit that receives an input of an e-mail transmission request, and a system control unit that operates the transmission / reception unit and the mail data processing unit to transmit / receive an e-mail according to the transmission request made through the operation unit The system control unit issues a management information acquisition request regarding the domain of the destination mail address instructed to the e-mail transmission request made through the operation unit to the whois server via the network, and the whois server Management information acquisition means for receiving the management information sent from the management information acquisition means, Management information notification means for notifying the acquired management information related to the domain by the operation unit, and transmission destination confirmation means for confirming the transmission destination by an input operation received by the operation unit after the management information related to the domain is notified. It is characterized by that.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to the first aspect, the system control unit is configured to register whois servers for each top level domain, and whois server registration means for registering whois servers. Means for referring to the registration information of the whois server registration means according to the top level domain of the destination mail address specified in the transmission request, and switching the whois server making a management information acquisition request for the domain to the obtained whois server; It is characterized by having.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the system control unit is instructed by means for registering its own domain name and an e-mail transmission request made through the operation unit. On the condition that the domain of the destination email address corresponds to the registered own domain, and the management information acquisition means, on the condition that the determination result that it corresponds to the own domain is obtained, The management information notifying unit and the transmission destination confirmation unit are unnecessary.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the management information regarding the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is an organization name.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is an organization address.
A sixth aspect of the present invention is the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the registration date of the domain name. Features.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the effective date of the domain name. Features.
The invention according to claim 8 is the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the management information regarding the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the name of the person in charge of management. .
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the organization name of the person responsible for management. Features.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the electronic mail address of the manager. Features.
The invention according to claim 11 is the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is a telephone number of a manager. And
The invention according to claim 12 is the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the system control unit can send destination domains of a plurality of destinations. The management information acquisition means acquires management information related to the domain of the mail address, the management information notification means notifies the management information, and the transmission destination confirmation means confirms the transmission destination. .
The invention according to claim 13 is the information communication device according to claim 12, wherein the system control unit obtains management information related to a domain of an email address by the management information obtaining unit, every time input of one transmission destination is completed, The management information is notified by the management information notification means and the transmission destination is confirmed by the transmission destination confirmation means.
The invention according to claim 14 is the information communication device according to claim 12, wherein the system control unit collects the mail address by the management information acquisition unit in a lump after completing the input for all the plurality of transmission destinations. The management information related to the domain is acquired, the management information is notified by the management information notification means, and the transmission destination is confirmed by the transmission destination confirmation means.
According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication device according to any one of the first to fourteenth aspects, when the system control unit cannot acquire management information related to the domain of the mail address from the whois server, A warning is made to reconfirm the destination mail address designated in the e-mail transmission request.
According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information communication apparatus according to the fifteenth aspect, the system control unit issues a warning by sound to reconfirm the destination mail address instructed in the e-mail transmission request. And
The invention according to claim 17 is a program for causing a computer to function as the system control unit included in the information communication apparatus according to claims 1 to 16.
The invention of claim 18 is a recording medium on which the program according to claim 17 is recorded so as to be readable by a computer.
The invention according to claim 19 is a transmission destination confirmation method for transmitting an e-mail via a network, the transmission request receiving step for receiving an input of an e-mail transmission request through a user interface, and the transmission to the whois server. A management information acquisition step for making a management information acquisition request for the domain of the destination mail address instructed in the e-mail transmission request received in the request reception step, and receiving the management information sent from the whois server; A management information notification step of notifying the user who has requested to send an e-mail of the management information acquired in the information acquisition step through a user interface, and a user after notifying the management information regarding the domain in the management information notification step By user input operations accepted through the interface. And a transmission destination confirmation step of confirming the transmission destination.

  According to the present invention, a whois server having update management information can check whether or not a destination mail address instructed in an e-mail transmission request is managed, and management information related to the domain is provided from the whois server. Therefore, since the user can easily confirm whether the intended transmission destination is based on the management information, erroneous transmission can be reliably prevented.

Hereinafter, as an embodiment of the information communication apparatus of the present invention, an example in which an MFP (Multi-Function Peripherals) is used as an implementation apparatus is shown.
The MFP according to the present embodiment has a composite function such as a copy / printer / facsimile / scanner / document box, etc., and uses images generated and stored by these functions for print output and the like, as well as external devices via a network. It is sent by e-mail (hereinafter referred to as “mail transmission”) to a PC (Personal Computer, facsimile machine, etc.) and made available at the destination.
In addition to the basic functions described above, the MFP manages the destination e-mail address specified in the e-mail transmission request with the whois server that manages the e-mail system of the network so that the e-mail transmission to the external device can be performed without error. And a function of acquiring management information related to the domain of the destination mail address from the whois server and confirming the destination of the e-mail (hereinafter referred to as “e-mail destination confirmation function”).

FIG. 1 shows a hardware configuration of MFP 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention.
In the MFP 100 of FIG. 1, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 1 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 2, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 3, and an NVRAM (Non Volatile RAM) 4 connected via a data bus 16. A system control unit that controls the entire system is configured. The ROM 2 stores program codes, fonts, and other static data. The RAM 3 provides a temporary storage location and is used as a work memory. The NVRAM 4 is a non-volatile memory that stores control data that needs to be saved, device management data, and the like.
The program stored in the ROM 2 includes e-mail data processing and an e-mail transmission destination confirmation function (described later) in addition to a program for performing control operations necessary for print output and image transmission to an external device. A program for realizing (detailed in the control flow) is installed. That is, the system control unit constitutes means for realizing the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function by the program stored in the ROM 2.

Further, under the control of the CPU 1 constituting the system control unit, the panel control unit 5 and the operation panel 6, the engine control unit 7 and the scan / print engine 8, the disk driver 9 and the storage device 10, the modem 11, the external I / F ( Interface) 12, power supply control unit 13, PSU (Power Supply Unit) 14, and communication control unit 15 are connected to each other via a data bus 16.
The panel control unit 5 and the operation panel 6 serve as an interface with the user. For example, processing requests and execution instructions for jobs using various functions such as copying performed through an operation screen of an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) touch panel. And has a function of notifying the user of the job execution result.

The engine control unit 7 and the scan / print engine 8 execute reading of a paper document and printing on a recording medium (paper) as image data input / output units.
A storage device 10 using a disk driver 9 and a medium such as a hard disk accumulates a large amount of image data input through various paths so that it can be used as a database.
The communication control unit 15 is connected to a network such as Ethernet (registered trademark) by wire or wireless, and enables communication with an external device (host PC or the like).
The modem 11 is connected to a public line and enables communication with an external device.
The external I / F 12 can directly communicate with the host PC or an external device using an interface such as Centronics, RS-232C, or USB.
The power control unit 13 and the PSU 14 convert the power taken from the external power source and supply it to each device in the apparatus.
The data bus 16 enables communication between the various devices described above and the CPU 1 and between the various devices.

Next, the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function that the MFP 100 of this embodiment has will be described.
The MFP 100 according to the present embodiment is connected to a network such as Ethernet, and can be transmitted to an external device by Internet mail. For example, read image data of a document input by the scan / print engine 8 or stored in the storage device 10. The sent image file can be mailed to a PC as an external device.
The transmission request to the external device is made by an input operation to the operation panel 6 by the user. Taking scanner transmission as an example, a screen that uses a scanner function can be called, and the scanned image data can be directly attached to a transmission destination and sent to the transmission destination when the scanner is scanned by an instruction on the screen.

On the screen for requesting scanner transmission, an input operation for designating a transmission destination is performed. In the case of e-mail transmission, the input method is to enter the e-mail address directly in the input field of the transmission destination or by selecting the transmission destination from the pre-registered address book and performing an operation for specifying it. The method is taken.
The former method of directly entering an e-mail address is likely to cause an input error. This input error can be reduced by a selection operation from the latter address book, but a destination that is not registered in the address book is input. Mistakes that occur at the time cannot be prevented, and even in the method based on the selection operation from the address book, erroneous transmission cannot be prevented as described in the section “Problems to be solved by the invention”.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is confirmed whether the destination mail address specified in the mail transmission request is managed by the whois server that manages the Internet mail system, and the domain of the destination mail address from the whois server. E-mail transmission destination confirmation function is provided for acquiring management information related to the e-mail and using it for confirmation of the e-mail transmission destination.
The destination confirmation procedure performed by this function is to extract the domain part from the email address of the destination instructed in the email transmission request and send the domain to the existing whois server that publishes system management information. Inquiries are made in the form of management information acquisition requests for

If a response indicating that the inquired domain does not exist is obtained as a response from the whois server to this inquiry, it can be regarded as an input error of the destination mail address.
In addition, if the inquired domain is a domain managed by the whois server, the management information of the domain can be acquired, so whether the acquired management information is an intended transmission destination to the user who is operating, Shown to encourage confirmation.
Since the user can know more detailed information about the transmission destination (see FIG. 3) from the management information shown, conventionally, the information displayed in the confirmation column of the transmission destination is the email address itself, Since it is a name registered in the address book itself, there was a lack of objectivity and the confirmation function did not work effectively, but this led to improvements in this point. In other words, when confirming the input destination, if only the email address or the destination registered by the user is displayed in the confirmation column, it is not possible to check it, so there is no oversight of the user's designation, etc. Can be reduced.

By the way, the whois server is an institution that manages a domain that is an organization to which a mail address belongs. The whois server publishes information related to domain name registrants that are held as management information so that the Internet mail system can operate smoothly. The information managed by the server can be received, such as searching for the information of a person.
However, in this embodiment, whenever a mail transmission request is generated, the management information of the domain of the whois server is accessed and the information is acquired. When this method is executed, the whois server side Therefore, it is assumed that the system can be supported by increasing the number of servers so that it can cope with an access from a use device that is expected to increase.

Next, an operation related to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of MFP 100 will be described based on the illustrated control flow.
In the following, “Embodiment 1” to “Embodiment 6” are shown as embodiments of this operation.
“Embodiment 1” shows a basic operation.
“Embodiment 2” shows an example of changing operation based on “Embodiment 1” and aimed at reducing the processing load.
“Embodiment 3” shows an example of a change operation aimed at reducing the processing load based on “Embodiment 2”.
“Embodiment 4” and “Embodiment 5” show an operation example that can respond to mail transmission requests to a plurality of transmission destinations based on “Embodiment 3”.
“Embodiment 6” shows an operation example adapted to cope with a case where management information cannot be acquired from a whois server, based on “Embodiment 5”.

“Embodiment 1”
In this embodiment, the basic operation related to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function outlined above will be described based on the control flow of FIG.
When the CPU 1 of the system control unit receives an input operation of a mail transmission request performed by the user through the operation panel 6 and starts the control flow of FIG. 2, first, the user inputs a mail transmission destination through the operation panel 6 and inputs the input result. Temporarily store in the RAM 3 (step S101).
Next, the CPU 1 recognizes and extracts a portion indicating the domain represented by the character string on the right side of “@” from the mail address indicating the input mail transmission destination (step S102). If the user's input of the mail destination is performed by selecting and instructing the name registered in the address book, the mail address corresponding to the registered name is searched from the address book database. Domain from the email address.

Next, in order to access information held by the whois server that manages the domain, the CPU 1 recognizes the address of the whois server previously set and stored in the RAM 3 based on the domain obtained in the previous stage (step S103). The address of the whois server stored in advance in the RAM 3 may be registered in association with each domain, or a method of registering addresses of a plurality of frequently used servers may be used.
Thereafter, the CPU 1 transmits a command requesting acquisition of management information (hereinafter referred to as “domain information”) regarding the domain extracted in step S102 to the recognized whois server, and sent from the whois server in response to the command. The incoming domain information is received, and the acquired information is temporarily stored in the RAM 3 (step S104).

The CPU 1 displays the domain information acquired through the operation panel 6 (step S105). Since this domain information is displayed in order to confirm the mail transmission destination input by the user, a method of displaying it over a part of the mail transmission request input screen is effective.
FIG. 3 shows an example of display of domain information. As shown in the figure, the destination address is shown in the headline, clearly indicating that it was obtained from the whois server, and the domain information includes “domain name”, “organization name”, “organization address” and “registration date” Is shown.
As shown in FIG. 3, by displaying the “organization name”, “organization address”, and “registration date” related to the domain in addition to the domain name, the transmission destination is the transmission destination intended by the user. It is possible for the user to easily recognize whether or not an input mistake that tends to occur when only the mail address or the destination registered by the user is displayed in the confirmation column.

Next, the CPU 1 looks at the displayed domain information and checks whether it is confirmed that the destination is the intended transmission destination through the user's operation on the operation panel 6 (step S106).
In this embodiment, an “Ok” / “Cancel” key is provided on the screen shown in FIG. 3, and confirmation is performed by a user operation on either key.
Here, when the user operates the Cancel key, the destination is not the intended destination, so the process returns to the first destination input step (step S101) in order to re-input the correct mail destination.

On the other hand, if the user operates the OK key, the transmission process proceeds to the next step (step S107). In this step, the CPU 1 determines the mail transmission destination and temporarily stores it in the RAM 3.
Thereafter, the CPU 1 transmits an e-mail to the mail transmission destination determined in the previous step (step S108).
Here, an e-mail transmission server (not shown) set and stored in the RAM 3 is connected through the communication control unit 15, and the e-mail is transmitted to the e-mail destination determined in step S107. .

Note that for the mail itself to be transmitted in the electronic mail transmission step (step S108), a processing flow relating to creation of a message necessary for mail transmission and attachment of a file is started in accordance with a user instruction on an input screen for requesting transmission. It is prepared by this processing flow. The control flow of this embodiment shown in FIG. 2 mainly shows the process of confirming the mail transmission destination, so the description of the process for generating the e-mail itself that can be performed by the existing processing method is omitted. .
When the transmission is completed in the mail transmission step (step S108), the control flow ends.

“Embodiment 2”
This embodiment shows an example in which the confirmation operation of the e-mail transmission destination is changed with the aim of reducing the processing load based on the first embodiment.
In the first embodiment, in order to access information held by the whois server, the address of the server is recognized. As a method for recognizing the address of this server, in the above, it is possible to cope by registering in association with the domain extracted from the mail transmission destination address, or registering addresses of a plurality of frequently used servers. An example is shown.
However, the former is a method of searching in the domain represented by the character string on the right side of “@”, and the latter is also a method of trying access in order from the server with the highest use frequency. However, the processing load when performing a process of selecting an appropriate server is large.

Therefore, in this embodiment, a whois server is registered for each top level domain that is a part of the domain, and the registered whois server is obtained by referring to the top level domain of the destination mail address specified in the mail transmission request. Make an access request to the whois server.
By doing so, it is possible to select an appropriate server and to reduce the processing load only by having limited data such as whois servers for each top level domain.

FIG. 4 shows a control flow according to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of the present embodiment. The control flow shown in the figure is different from the control flow shown in the first embodiment (FIG. 2) in that an operation for selecting a whois server that makes an access request is performed based on the top level domain of the destination mail address. But otherwise it is basically the same.
Therefore, the description of FIG. 2 above will be made on the parts performing the same operation, that is, steps S201 and S202 (corresponding to steps S101 and S102 in FIG. 2) and steps S205 to S209 (corresponding to steps S104 to S108 in FIG. 2). The description is omitted here.

In the control flow of FIG. 4, after extracting the domain part from the destination mail address in step S202, the CPU 1 selects the whois server in order to access information held by the whois server that manages the domain.
In this embodiment, this whois server is selected by selecting the whois server to be accessed based on the top-level domain shown in the domain part extracted in the previous stage.
Therefore, first, the top level domain is recognized and extracted from the domain part extracted in the previous stage (step S203). In this processing, since the rightmost hierarchy of the domain part represented by the character string on the right side of “@” normally represents the top level domain, this is recognized as the top level domain and is extracted.

Next, the CPU 1 refers to the server for the corresponding top level domain from the related information indicating the correspondence between the plurality of top level domains preset and stored in the RAM 3 and the whois server of each domain, and the server indicated there A name (address) is selected as an appropriate server to be accessed (step S204).
FIG. 5 shows an example of related information indicating the correspondence between the top level domain and the whois server of each domain. This figure shows the correspondence between the top-level domain and the whois server name (address) of each domain in a table format. As illustrated in the first line of the table shown in the figure, in the case of a jp domain, JPRS (Japan Registry Services; http://whois.jprs.jp/) is the address of the corresponding whois server. Further, in FIG. 5, in addition to JP, corresponding whois servers are registered for the top level domains of COM, NET, and UK.
The registration in this table can be set by the user when necessary, or may be stored in the ROM 2 or NVRAM 4 at the time of factory shipment.

In step S204, the whois server to be accessed based on the top-level domain of the destination address is selected, and the confirmation operation of the mail destination after step S205 for acquiring the domain information held by the selected whois server is the same as in the first embodiment. There is no change, and after confirming the mail transmission destination and mail transmission, this control flow is terminated.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, an appropriate server can be obtained simply by having a database with a limited amount of data such as related information indicating the correspondence between the top-level domain and the whois server name (address) of each domain. Can be selected, so that the processing burden can be reduced.

“Embodiment 3”
This embodiment shows an example in which the confirmation operation of the e-mail transmission destination is changed with the aim of reducing the processing load based on the second embodiment.
In the second embodiment, the operation of accessing the information held by the whois server is performed when the domain of the transmission destination address is within the domain of the address of the MFP (hereinafter referred to as “own domain”) or the domain other than the own domain (Hereinafter referred to as “external domain”).
However, the confirmation of the mail transmission destination is intended to prevent leakage of internal information due to erroneous transmission. If it is within its own domain, even if there is a user input error and an erroneous transmission occurs, It is usually impossible to leak internal information. In the second embodiment, the confirmation operation of the e-mail transmission destination is performed without considering such an impossible situation. For this reason, processing delays may be caused, and the processing load is not small.

Therefore, in this embodiment, before performing the operation of accessing the information held by the whois server, it is determined whether the domain of the destination address is the own domain or the foreign domain, and Only to access the information held by the whois server.
In this way, when an erroneous transmission occurs, only the external domain destination that leads to the leakage of internal information is used to check the email destination, reducing the operating time for the destination of the local domain. And reduction of processing burden.

FIG. 6 shows a control flow according to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of this embodiment. The control flow shown in the figure performs the above operation in that it performs an operation to determine whether the domain of the destination address is its own domain or an external domain before performing the operation of accessing the information held by the whois server. Although it is different from the control flow (FIG. 4) shown in the form 2, it is basically the same except for the above.
Therefore, the description of FIG. 4 will be made on the parts performing the same operation, that is, steps S301 and S302 (corresponding to steps S201 and S202 in FIG. 4) and steps S304 to S310 (corresponding to steps S203 to S209 in FIG. 4). The description is omitted here.

In the control flow of FIG. 6, after extracting the domain part from the destination mail address in step S302, the CPU 1 extracts it in the previous stage before performing the operation for accessing the information held by the whois server that manages the domain. It is determined whether the domain is its own domain or an external domain (step S303).
This determination is made by comparing the own domain name set and stored in the RAM 3 in advance with the domain name extracted from the destination mail address, and checking for a match / mismatch of the domain names. Judging.

According to this determination result, it is determined whether or not to perform an operation for accessing information held by the whois server. In other words, if the domain name does not match (YES in step S303), since it is an external domain, an operation for accessing information held by the whois server is performed, and the process proceeds to step 304.
On the other hand, if it matches the own domain name (step S303-NO), the operation proceeds to step 309 without performing the operation for accessing the information held by the whois server.
In step S304 and S305, the whois server to be accessed based on the top-level domain of the destination address is selected, and the confirmation operation of the mail destination after step S304 in which the domain information held by the selected whois server is acquired. This is the same as 2 and after sending the mail after confirming the mail destination, this control flow is terminated.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the confirmation operation of the email transmission destination is performed only for the transmission destination of the external domain that leads to the leakage of the internal information, and the confirmation operation of the email transmission destination with respect to the transmission destination of the own domain Therefore, the operation time for the own domain can be shortened and the processing load can be reduced.

“Embodiment 4”
This embodiment shows an operation example based on the third embodiment so as to be able to respond to mail transmission requests to a plurality of destinations.
In the third embodiment, since the input of the mail transmission request does not correspond to the case where there are a plurality of transmission destinations, in such a case, a method of returning to the initial screen for each case and newly inputting is performed. Because it must be taken, it takes time and effort.
Therefore, in this embodiment, even when there are a plurality of transmission destinations, it is possible to confirm the mail transmission destination by inputting the electronic mail transmission destination and acquiring domain information from the whois server without returning to the initial screen for each case. To do.
In this embodiment, input of e-mail destinations and confirmation of mail destinations based on domain information are performed for each case, and this operation is repeated for a plurality of destinations to support a plurality of mail destinations. Make it possible.

FIG. 7 shows a control flow relating to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of the present embodiment. The control flow in the figure checks the mail transmission destination, confirms the transmission destination, checks whether there is an uninput transmission destination, and if so, proceeds to the step of inputting the next transmission destination. Although it differs from the control flow (FIG. 6) shown in the third embodiment in that the returning operation is performed, the rest is basically the same.
Therefore, for the parts performing the same operation, that is, steps S401 to S409 (corresponding to steps S301 to S309 in FIG. 6) and step S411 (corresponding to step S310 in FIG. 6), refer to the description of FIG. The description is omitted here.

In the control flow of FIG. 7, after confirming the mail transmission destination based on the domain information acquired from the whois server and determining the mail transmission destination in step S409, the CPU 1 determines whether there is an unentered one that should be the transmission destination. The user is asked whether or not (step S410).
Here, if there is still a destination to be input (step S410-YES), the process returns to the step of inputting the destination (step S401), and the operation of confirming the mail destination for the destination to be added is performed.
On the other hand, if there is no transmission destination to be input (step S410-NO), mail transmission is executed (step S411), and this control flow is terminated.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to repeat the input operation of a plurality of destinations and the confirmation operation of the mail destination by the domain information for a plurality of times without returning to the initial screen for each case, thereby making it easy for the user. Can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to deal with a plurality of transmission destinations by simply changing the operation procedure.

“Embodiment 5”
This embodiment shows an operation example based on the third embodiment so as to be able to respond to mail transmission requests to a plurality of destinations.
The present embodiment has the same purpose as that of the fourth embodiment in that it can respond to mail transmission requests to a plurality of transmission destinations.
However, in this embodiment, it is possible to input a plurality of destinations at a time and to request the domain information acquisition to the whois server in a batch so that the mail destination can be confirmed. This is different from the above-described fourth embodiment in which a mail transmission destination input operation and a mail transmission destination confirmation operation based on domain information are performed every time, and this operation is repeated for a plurality of transmission destinations.

FIG. 8 shows a control flow according to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of the present embodiment. Since the control flow in the figure can input multiple destinations at once, it is a step according to this input method, and after confirming the mail destination and confirming the destination, the indeterminate destination This is different from the control flow (FIG. 6) shown in the third embodiment in that the operation to return to the step of acquiring domain information is performed. The same.
Accordingly, the description of FIG. 6 is referred to for the parts performing the same operation, that is, steps S501, S503 to S510 (corresponding to steps S301 to S309 in FIG. 6) and step S512 (corresponding to step S310 in FIG. 6). This is omitted here.

In the control flow of FIG. 8, since the input of the first-stage mail transmission destination can be made a plurality of inputs at a time, the CPU 1 asks the user whether or not there is an unentered one that should be the transmission destination ( Step S502).
If there is still a transmission destination to be input (step S502-YES), the process returns to the step of inputting the transmission destination (step S501), and all the transmission destinations are input. After that, the confirmation operation of the mail transmission destination based on the domain information is performed collectively.
In the case of the batch method, the mail transmission destinations are determined one by one for a plurality of transmission destinations. Therefore, after determining the mail transmission destination in step S510, the CPU 1 determines that the transmission destination is not yet determined. The user is asked whether or not there is (step S511).

If there is an indefinite transmission destination (step S511-YES), the domain information acquisition request is sent to the whois server, and the process returns to the step of confirming the mail transmission destination (step S503). Confirmation is performed.
On the other hand, if there is no destination to be confirmed (step S511-NO), mail transmission is executed (step S512), and this control flow is terminated.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, while inputting a plurality of destinations at a time, making a domain information acquisition request to the whois server in a lump so that the mail destination can be confirmed. Compared to the fourth embodiment, the user's trouble can be further reduced.

“Embodiment 6”
This embodiment is based on the fifth embodiment, and shows an operation example in which when the domain information cannot be acquired from the whois server, the user is warned to that effect.
In the fifth embodiment, since no warning is given when domain information cannot be acquired, if an input error is the cause, a transmission operation is performed wastefully. In addition, since the user does not receive the e-mail after that, the user can know the input error, but it takes time and effort since the input is newly performed again. In the present embodiment, giving a warning to the user in the control flow for confirming the e-mail transmission destination means that these disadvantages are solved.

FIG. 9 shows a control flow according to the e-mail transmission destination confirmation function of the present embodiment. The control flow in the figure performs the above operation in that after performing the operation to acquire the domain information from the whois server, it is checked whether or not the domain information has been acquired, and if it cannot be acquired, a warning to that effect is given. Although it is different from the control flow (FIG. 8) shown in the fifth embodiment, the rest is basically the same.
Accordingly, the description of FIG. 8 will be made on the parts performing the same operation, that is, steps S601 to S607 (corresponding to steps S501 to S507 in FIG. 8) and steps S610 to S614 (corresponding to steps S508 to S512 in FIG. 8). The description is omitted here.

In the control flow of FIG. 9, after performing the operation of acquiring the domain information from the whois server, the CPU 1 checks whether or not the domain information has been acquired (step S608).
If the domain information cannot be acquired (step S608-NO), the user is warned that the domain information could not be acquired (step S609).
FIG. 10 shows an example of warning display performed at this time. This screen displays a warning message that alerts the user to instruct the user to reconfirm the destination e-mail address instead of the domain information (see FIG. 3) displayed when the domain information can be acquired. . At the same time, attention may be drawn by a warning sound.

If you check again according to the instructions of this warning message and notice an input error, you can operate the Cancel key from among the “Ok” / “Cancel” keys provided on the screen shown in FIG. Returning to the destination input step (step S601), the correct mail transmission destination can be input again.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the domain information cannot be acquired, a warning can be given to the user so that the user can know an input error, and a control flow for re-inputting the transmission destination is provided. Therefore, it is possible to send an e-mail to the correct destination quickly without taking time and effort.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an MFP according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 1) which concerns on an email transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows an example of the display of the domain information performed in order to confirm a mail transmission destination. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 2) which concerns on an email transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows the relevant information which shows a response | compatibility with a top level domain and a whois server. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 3) which concerns on an e-mail transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 4) which concerns on an email transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 5) which concerns on an e-mail transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows the control flow (Embodiment 6) which concerns on an email transmission destination confirmation function. It is a figure which shows the example of a display when domain information cannot be acquired in the display of the domain information which confirms a mail transmission destination.

Explanation of symbols

1 .... CPU (Central Processing Unit), 2 .... ROM (Read Only Memory), 3 .... RAM (Random Access Memory), 5 ... Panel control unit, 6 .... Operation panel, 7 .... Engine control unit, 8. Scan / print engine, 9. Disk driver, 10. Storage device, 15. Communication control unit, 16. Data bus, 100. MFP (Multi-Function Peripherals).

Claims (19)

Sending and receiving unit for sending and receiving e-mails via the network, e-mail data processing unit for creating e-mail data to be sent and analyzing data of received e-mails, enabling exchange of information with users and inputting e-mail sending requests An information communication device having a system control unit that operates an operation unit that receives e-mails, operates a transmission / reception unit and a mail data processing unit in response to a transmission request made through the operation unit, and transmits and receives an e-mail;
The system control unit requests the whois server via the network to obtain management information related to the domain of the destination mail address instructed in the e-mail transmission request made through the operation unit, and is sent from the whois server. Management information acquisition means for receiving said management information;
Management information notifying means for notifying the management information about the domain acquired by the management information acquiring means by the operation unit;
An information communication apparatus comprising: a transmission destination confirmation unit configured to confirm a transmission destination by an input operation received by the operation unit after notification of management information related to the domain. In the information communication apparatus according to claim 1,
The system control unit comprises whois server registration means for registering whois servers for each top level domain;
The registration information of the whois server registration means is referred to by the top-level domain of the destination mail address specified in the email transmission request made through the operation section, and the obtained whois server obtains management information related to the domain. An information communication apparatus comprising means for switching the whois server for performing In the information communication apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The system control unit is configured to register its own domain name;
Means for determining whether or not a domain of a destination mail address instructed in an e-mail transmission request performed through the operation unit corresponds to the registered own domain;
Information communication comprising means for making the operation of the management information acquisition means, the management information notification means, and the transmission destination confirmation means unnecessary on the condition that the judgment result that it corresponds to the own domain is obtained apparatus. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The information communication apparatus, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is an organization name. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The information communication apparatus, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is an organization address. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The information communication device, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the registration date of the domain name. The information communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The information communication device, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the effective date of the domain name. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The information communication device, wherein the management information regarding the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the name of the person in charge of management. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The information communication apparatus, wherein the management information regarding the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is an organization name of the manager. The information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
The information communication device, wherein the management information related to the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is the email address of the person in charge of management. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
The information communication apparatus, wherein the management information regarding the domain of the mail address acquired from the whois server is a telephone number of a manager. The information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein an electronic mail can be transmitted to a plurality of transmission destinations.
The system control unit obtains management information related to a domain of an email address by the management information acquisition unit, notification of the management information by the management information notification unit, and the transmission destination confirmation unit for each of a plurality of destination domains An information communication apparatus characterized by confirming a transmission destination. In the information communication apparatus according to claim 12,
The system control unit acquires management information related to a domain of an email address by the management information acquisition unit, notification of the management information by the management information notification unit, and transmission by the transmission destination confirmation unit every time input of one transmission destination is completed An information communication apparatus characterized in that the previous confirmation is performed. In the information communication apparatus according to claim 12,
The system control unit collects management information related to the domain of the mail address by the management information acquisition unit, notifies the management information by the management information notification unit, An information communication apparatus characterized in that a transmission destination is confirmed by the transmission destination confirmation means. In the information communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
The system control unit performs a warning for reconfirming a destination mail address instructed in an e-mail transmission request through the operation unit when management information relating to a domain of the mail address cannot be acquired from a whois server. Information communication device. The information communication device according to claim 15,
The information communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system control unit issues a warning by sound to reconfirm the destination mail address instructed in the e-mail transmission request.   A program for causing a computer to function as the system control unit included in the information communication apparatus according to claim 1.   The recording medium which recorded the program described in Claim 17 so that computer reading was possible. A destination confirmation method for sending an email via a network,
A transmission request receiving step for receiving an input of an e-mail transmission request through a user interface;
Management that requests the whois server to acquire management information related to the domain of the destination mail address specified in the e-mail transmission request received in the transmission request reception step, and receives the management information transmitted from the whois server Information acquisition process;
A management information notification step for notifying the management information about the domain acquired in the management information acquisition step through a user interface to a user who has requested transmission of an e-mail;
A transmission destination confirmation method comprising: a transmission destination confirmation step of confirming a transmission destination by an input operation of a user accepted through a user interface after notifying management information related to the domain in the management information notification step.

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