JP2014176012A - Reception management apparatus and reception management method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a reception management apparatus and a reception management method which prevent received data from being neglected, by confirming whether there is unconfirmed received data and reporting the unconfirmed received data.SOLUTION: When data from the outside is received, a facsimile apparatus (10) reports data reception to a preset transmission destination. The facsimile apparatus (10) comprises: a data storage unit (54) which stores confirmation information on whether the received data is already confirmed or not; a determination unit (71) which confirms confirmation history information (92) in the data storage unit (54) at preset time intervals and determines whether there is unconfirmed received data; and a report processing unit (73) which, when the determination unit (71) confirms the presence of unconfirmed received data, sends report information about the unconfirmed received data to a manager.

Description

  The present invention relates to a reception management apparatus used for a communication apparatus such as a facsimile apparatus, and more particularly to a reception management apparatus and a reception management method for notifying unconfirmed data when data is received.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a facsimile apparatus that notifies a specific person by e-mail when image data is received. For example, in Patent Document 1, when image data is stored in a box, a specific person is notified by e-mail, and the specific person who receives the e-mail receives the image data stored in the box. Devices that can be browsed have been proposed.

JP 2002-218141 A

  However, in this apparatus, only the notification is given to a specific person at the time of receiving the image data, and it is not possible to manage whether or not the image data has been browsed thereafter. If an e-mail is missed, the image data will be left in the box without being confirmed by anyone, and the storage capacity will be used wastefully or the contents will be confirmed by a third party. There was a possibility of being erased without it.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a reception management apparatus and a reception management method for checking whether there is unconfirmed reception data and notifying the reception data by notifying the reception of unconfirmed reception data. .

  The present invention relates to a confirmation history storage that stores confirmation information on whether received data has been confirmed / unconfirmed in a reception management apparatus that notifies data reception to a preset transmission destination when data from the outside is received. A confirmation unit that confirms the confirmation history storage unit at a preset time interval to determine whether or not unconfirmed reception data exists, and the unconfirmed reception data is confirmed by the determination unit. A notification processing unit that sends notification information to the administrator regarding unconfirmed received data.

  According to the present invention, the presence / absence of unread received data is confirmed at set intervals, and if there is received data that is in an unconfirmed state after a certain period from the time of reception, By performing the notification, unconfirmed received data is not left unattended.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows an example of a communication system. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a facsimile machine. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of the facsimile apparatus. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the facsimile machine following FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing one operation of the facsimile machine following FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the browsing confirmation log | history information. It is a figure which shows the example of the email addressed to an administrator.

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

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an example of a communication system.
This communication system is composed of facsimile apparatuses 10a and 10b and terminal apparatuses (user PCs 20a, 20b and 20c and administrator PC 30). The facsimile apparatuses 10a and 10b and the terminal apparatuses 20a to 20n and 30 are connected to a network 40. Connected through. Image data is transmitted from the facsimile machine 10a to the facsimile machine 10b through a telephone network. The facsimile apparatus 10 (10a, 10b) is an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) capable of not only a facsimile function but also functions of a printer and a scanner and mail transmission / reception. The terminal device includes user PCs 20a to 20n used by general users and an administrator PC 30 used by an administrator of the facsimile machine 10b.

When the image data is transmitted from the transmission side facsimile apparatus 10a, the reception side facsimile apparatus 10b receives the image data and temporarily stores it. Then, the user browses the received data or prints the data by using the main body of the facsimile apparatus 10b or each of the PCs 20a to 20n. This process is stored in the facsimile apparatus, and if there is received data that the user has not confirmed in a preset period, the administrator is notified of the unconfirmed data by e-mail. Furthermore, unacknowledged received data is automatically deleted after a certain period from reception.
In this way, the facsimile machine 10b functions as a reception management device.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a facsimile apparatus.
Although the facsimile apparatuses 10a and 10b have the same configuration, in the present embodiment, they are described separately on the reception side and the transmission side.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration example of a facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.
With the following configuration, the facsimile apparatus 10 transmits image data of a read original as facsimile data, and also receives facsimile data transmitted by facsimile from a counterpart device and forms an image on a recording medium such as recording paper.

  The facsimile apparatus 10 includes a main control unit 51, a control memory 52, a control buffer 53, a data storage unit 54, an image reading unit 55, an image forming unit 56, a display unit 57, an operation unit 58, a clock unit 59, an encoding / decoding unit. 60, a LAN interface (I / F) 61, a network control (NCU) unit 62, and a modem 63. The facsimile apparatus 10 is an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) that also functions as a printer and a scanner.

  The main control unit 51 is realized by a CPU or the like, and comprehensively controls the entire facsimile apparatus 10. As a reception management device function of the main control unit, a determination unit 71, a notification creation unit 72, a notification processing unit 73, and an erasing processing unit 74 are provided, but control as another facsimile apparatus is also performed.

  The control memory 52 includes a nonvolatile memory such as a ROM, a backed up volatile memory, and the like, and stores various control programs 81 and destination information (transmission destination telephone number, abbreviated number, etc.) 82. In addition, system data and various data necessary to execute these control programs are stored.

  The control buffer 53 is made up of a RAM or the like, and stores data necessary for operating the control program.

  The data storage unit 54 stores received data 91 received by facsimile. In addition to this, image data encoded by each data or data after format conversion is stored, and data read from an image reading unit 55 described later, data after decoding, and the like are also stored. Further, confirmation history information 92 indicating whether or not the user has confirmed the received data is also stored in association with the received data.

  The image reading unit 55 is a scanner that uses a photoelectric conversion device (CCD) as a document reading unit, and reads a document with a predetermined resolution. As a result of reading, dot image data is output.

  The image forming unit 56 includes an electrophotographic printer device, and hard copies (prints out) data such as a document image received by facsimile communication or a document image read by the image reading unit 55.

The display unit 57 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display device (LCD) or a CRT display, and displays an operation state, a transmission destination, an operation screen, and the like.
The operation unit 58 includes keys (input devices) necessary for operation.
The facsimile apparatus 10 is formed with a touch panel in which the display unit 57 and the operation unit 58 are integrated, and an operation is performed from the touch panel.

  The clock unit 59 is for outputting current time information.

  The encoding / decoding unit 60 performs encoding of the read document image data and decoding when receiving the image data. That is, the encoding / decoding unit 60 encodes and compresses the original image data read by the image reading unit 55 by an encoding operation, and decodes the encoded image data received into the original data. To do. The encoding / decoding unit 60 can use encoding methods such as MH (Modified Hufman), MR (Modified READ), MMR (Modified Modified READ), and JBIG, which are generally used in facsimile communication.

The LAN interface (I / F) 61 is for connecting to a LAN (Local Area Network) in order to perform transmission / reception communication with an external device (terminal device) via the Internet.

  The network control unit 62 is hardware that performs line control operations for closing and opening a line with an analog public telephone line network (PSTN), and connects the modem 63 to the public telephone line network as necessary. That is, the network control unit 62 performs transmission / reception of image data and transmission / reception of control signals according to the G3 communication protocol, and also performs automatic outgoing / incoming processing.

  The modem 63 is composed of a facsimile modem that modulates a transmission signal of G3 communication into a form suitable for transmission of a line and demodulates a modulation signal transmitted from the line. The modem 63 is connected to a public telephone line via a network control unit (NCU) 62.

  3 to 5 are flowcharts showing an operation of the facsimile apparatus.

  In step S11, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 of the facsimile apparatus 10b determines whether or not the data transmitted from the facsimile apparatus 10a has been received. If received, the process proceeds to step S14. If not received, the process proceeds to step S12.

  In step S12, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the user has requested to browse the received data stored in the data storage unit 54 using the PCs 20a to 20n. If it is determined that there is a browsing request, the process proceeds to step S20 in FIG. 4 to perform browsing processing, and if no browsing request is detected, the process proceeds to step S13.

  The browsing request here refers to, for example, a browsing request for received data generated by operating the facsimile apparatus 10b itself provided with the data storage unit 54, or a PC (20a to 20a ~) connected via the external network 40. 20n, 30) or the like means a browsing request for received data.

  In step S13, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the predetermined time has been reached. If the predetermined time has been reached, the process proceeds to step S23 in FIG. Return to step S11. The predetermined time here is, for example, a time such as 0:00 every day or the like, and can be arbitrarily set. At this time, the facsimile machine 10b performs unconfirmed received data processing shown in FIG. In this way, processing of unconfirmed received data is periodically performed.

The processes in steps S14 to S19 are normal facsimile reception processes.
In step S14, the main control unit 51 determines whether the data received by the image forming unit 56 is set to be stored in the data storage unit 54 without printing, or to be printed without being stored. If the setting is stored in the data storage unit 54, the process proceeds to step S15. If the setting is to be printed by the image forming unit 56, the process proceeds to step S19.

In step S15, the received data is stored in the data storage unit 54 together with the reception date and time obtained by the clock unit 59.
In step S <b> 16, the main control unit 51 specifies the sender of the received data by the other party telephone number stored in the control memory 52.

  Further, in the control memory 52, the telephone number of the other party that is supposed to receive the data and the e-mail to be notified are associated with each other and stored as the other party information 82, and the main control unit 51 stores the specified telephone number. A notification destination to be notified is specified by searching for a number.

  In step S17, the notification creation unit 72 of the main control unit 51 creates an e-mail message indicating that the received data is stored in the notification destination specified in step S16. In step S18, the notification processing unit 73 An electronic mail is transmitted to the destination facsimile machine 10a from the LAN interface 61 via the network as the destination, and the process returns to step S11.

In step S20 shown in FIG. 4, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the determination is made by operating the main body of the facsimile machine 10b.
If it is determined that the operation is performed in the main body of the facsimile apparatus 10b, the process proceeds to step S21, and if it is not, the process proceeds to step S22.

  In the case of browsing from the main body of the facsimile apparatus 10b in step S21, an operation screen is displayed on the display unit 57, and the user operates the operation unit 58. In this case, the user is input. The user selects and inputs a process for displaying the received data on the display unit 57 and a printing process by the image forming unit 56. Thus, the user information and operation information are acquired.

  In step S22, since browsing is by access from the outside, the main control unit 51 acquires the IP address of the PC that has made the browsing request and operation information (display, printing, etc.).

  In step S <b> 23, the main control unit 51 assigns already-verified confirmation information as a history in association with the browsed received data, stores it in the data storage unit 54, and then returns to step S <b> 11.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of browsing confirmation history information. The browsing confirmation history information 92 is stored in the data storage unit 54, and the operation order (for example, “No. 1”), operation date / time (Day time), user number of the operation, and IP address of the operated external device ( User / IP) and operation content (operate) are stored in association with the received data.
No. The information No. 1 is based on an operation from the main body of the facsimile machine 10b, and indicates that an operation to be displayed by the user (user 1) was performed on August 30, 2012. No. The information 2 is based on an operation from an external PC. On August 31, 2012, a copy printing operation was performed from a PC having an IP address “xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx”. Yes.

  The confirmation history information includes information on the confirmed user, and it is possible to confirm to the user whether or not the received data can be further erased when the received data is erased.

FIG. 5 shows the processing contents when a predetermined time has elapsed in step S13.
In step S24, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether there is unconfirmed reception data among all reception data 91 stored in the data storage unit 54, based on the confirmation history information 92. If it exists, the process proceeds to step S25. If it does not exist, the process proceeds to step SS31.

  In step S25, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the current data has already passed three or more days from the reception date based on the time information of the clock unit 59. The process proceeds to S26, and if it has not elapsed, the process proceeds to Step S28. The period from the reception date can be arbitrarily set. In this way, received data that has passed a certain period can be included as unconfirmed data.

  In step S <b> 26, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the received data is already viewed data from the confirmation history information 92 stored in the data storage unit 54, and has already been viewed. If it is received data, the process proceeds to step S28, and if not yet browsed, the process proceeds to step S27.

  In step S27, the notification creation unit 72 of the main control unit 51 appends information indicating the received data to be processed as the presence of unconfirmed received data left in the e-mail to the administrator PC 30 set in advance. .

  In step S28, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not determination has been made for all reception data stored in the data storage unit 54, and there is reception data that has not been determined yet. In this case, the process returns to step S25, the next received data is determined, and if there is no received data that has not been determined yet, the process proceeds to step S29.

  In step S29, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether there is reception data to be notified to the administrator in the processes in steps S25 to S28, and receives the notification target. If there is data, the process proceeds to step S30. If not, the process proceeds to step S31.

  In step S30, the notification processing unit 73 of the main control unit 51 transmits the notification mail created in step S26 to the administrator's PC 30 via the LAN interface 61.

FIG. 7 shows an example of an e-mail addressed to the administrator.
In this mail, a list of “reception date”, “sender”, and “unviewed period” is presented for unconfirmed received data. The received manager performs processing such as urging each user to pay attention to browse.

  In step S31, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not a mode for automatically erasing received data is set. If the mode is set, the process proceeds to step S32, where the setting is made. If not, the process returns to step S11.

  In step S32, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether or not the received data has already passed one month or more from the reception date. If it is determined that it has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S33. If not, the process proceeds to step S35. The period from the reception date can be set arbitrarily, but is set longer than the period of step S25.

  In step S33, the determination unit 71 of the main control unit 51 determines whether the determined received data is already browsed data based on the confirmation history information in the data storage unit 54. The process proceeds to step S34, and if it is not already browsed data, the process proceeds to step S35.

In step S <b> 33, the erasure processing unit 74 of the main control unit 51 erases the confirmed received data from the data storage unit 54. In this way, the confirmed received data is erased from the data storage unit 54, and the storage capacity is secured.
Note that the storage capacity of the data storage unit 54 becomes insufficient if unconfirmed received data is also stored. Therefore, a long period (naturally longer than the period of step S25) is set to such a degree that it can be regarded that “the user is left unchecked is unnecessary data”, and received data exceeding that period is set. May also be deleted. In this way, it is possible to prevent the storage capacity of the data storage unit 54 from becoming insufficient.

  In step S35, it is determined whether or not determination has been made for all received data 91 stored in the data storage unit 54. If there is received data that has not been determined yet, the process returns to step S34 to continue. If there is no received data that has not been determined yet, the process returns to step S11.

  In this way, the presence / absence of unread received data is confirmed at set intervals, and if there is unacknowledged received data after a certain period from the time of reception, the administrator is notified. By doing so, unconfirmed received data is not left unattended. Furthermore, by automatically erasing unconfirmed data after a predetermined period, it is possible to prevent the storage capacity of the data storage unit 54 from being insufficient due to unconfirmed data.

  In the above embodiment, the facsimile apparatus is provided with a reception management function. However, a server connected to the network may be provided with the reception management function. In addition to facsimile reception data, an apparatus that manages reception of electronic mail may be used.

  A program that operates on a device having a reception management device according to the present invention is a program (a program that causes a computer to function) that controls a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or the like so as to realize the functions of the above-described embodiments related to the present invention. May be. Information handled by these devices is temporarily stored in RAM (Random Access Memory) during the processing, and then stored in various ROMs such as Flash ROM (Read Only Memory) and HDD (Hard Disk Drive). Reading, correction, and writing are performed by the CPU as necessary. In addition, a program for realizing the function of each component may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to perform processing of each unit. Good. Here, the “computer system” includes an OS and hardware such as peripheral devices.

  The “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a storage device such as a flexible medium, a magneto-optical disk, a portable medium such as a ROM and a CD-ROM, and a hard disk incorporated in a computer system. Furthermore, the “computer-readable recording medium” dynamically holds a program for a short time like a communication line when transmitting a program via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. In this case, a volatile memory in a computer system serving as a server or a client in that case, and a program that holds a program for a certain period of time are also included. The program may be a program for realizing a part of the functions described above, and may be a program capable of realizing the functions described above in combination with a program already recorded in a computer system. Also, some or all of the devices in the above-described embodiments may be realized as an LSI that is typically an integrated circuit. Each functional block of each device may be individually formed as a chip, or a part or all of them may be integrated into a chip. Further, the method of circuit integration is not limited to LSI, and may be realized by a dedicated circuit or a general-purpose processor. In addition, when an integrated circuit technology that replaces LSI appears due to the advancement of semiconductor technology, an integrated circuit based on the technology can be used.

  As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and the invention may be changed in design without departing from the gist of the present invention. Is also included.

  The present invention relates to a confirmation history storage that stores confirmation information on whether received data has been confirmed / unconfirmed in a reception management apparatus that notifies data reception to a preset transmission destination when data from the outside is received. Unit (54), a determination unit (71) for confirming whether or not unconfirmed received data exists by checking the confirmation history storage unit (54) at a preset time interval, and the determination unit A notification processing unit (74) for sending notification information to the administrator about the unconfirmed received data when the unconfirmed received data is confirmed in (71).

  As a result, the presence / absence of unread received data is confirmed at set intervals, and if there is received data that has not been confirmed even after a certain period from the time of reception, the administrator is notified. As a result, unconfirmed received data is not left unattended.

  In the reception management apparatus of the present invention, the determination unit (71) makes a determination on received data that has passed a predetermined period from the date and time when the received data is received.

  As a result, it is possible to extract the reception data left unconfirmed and notify the administrator.

  The reception management apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that an erasure processing unit (74) for erasing unconfirmed received data that has passed for a longer period than the predetermined period is provided.

  As a result, the unconfirmed data is automatically deleted after the predetermined period, thereby preventing the storage capacity from being insufficient due to the unconfirmed data.

  In the reception management apparatus of the present invention, the confirmation history storage unit (54) stores a confirmed confirmer together.

  As a result, it is clear who has confirmed, so it is possible to further confirm, for example, when the received data is deleted.

  The present invention also provides the reception management device, a communication unit (61, 62) for receiving received data from outside and transmitting notification information to the outside, a storage unit (54) for storing received data, and a receiving unit. An image forming unit (56) for forming an image of data on a recording medium.

  Further, the present invention provides a confirmation history storing confirmation information as to whether or not received data has been confirmed / unconfirmed in a reception management method for notifying data reception to a preset transmission destination when data from the outside is received. A confirmation history storage step stored in the unit (S22), and a determination step of determining whether there is unconfirmed reception data by checking the confirmation history storage unit at a preset time interval (S22). And a notification processing step of sending notification information to the administrator about the unconfirmed received data when the unconfirmed received data is confirmed in the determination step (S30).

10, 10a, 10b Facsimile machines 20a to 20n User PC
30 Administrator PC
40 network 51 main control unit 52 control memory 53 control buffer 54 data storage unit 55 image reading unit 56 image forming unit 57 display unit 58 operation unit 59 clock unit 60 encoding / decoding unit 61 LAN interface 62 network control unit 63 modem 71 determination Unit 72 Notification creation unit 73 Notification processing unit 74 Erase processing unit

Claims (5)

In a reception management device that notifies data reception to a preset destination when receiving data from the outside,
A confirmation history storage unit that stores confirmation information as to whether the received data is confirmed / unconfirmed;
A determination unit that checks the confirmation history storage unit at a preset time interval and determines whether there is unconfirmed reception data;
If unconfirmed reception data is confirmed by the determination unit, a notification processing unit that sends notification information to the administrator about unconfirmed reception data;
A reception management device comprising:   The reception management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit performs determination on received data whose predetermined period has elapsed from a date and time when the received data is received.   The reception management apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising an erasure unit that erases unconfirmed reception data that has passed for a period longer than the predetermined period. The reception management device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A communication unit that receives received data from the outside and transmits notification information to the outside;
A storage unit for storing received data;
An image forming unit that forms an image of received data on a recording medium;
Facsimile machine equipped with. In the reception management method of notifying the reception of data to a preset destination when receiving data from the outside,
A confirmation history storage step for storing confirmation information on whether the received data is confirmed / unconfirmed in the confirmation history storage unit;
A determination step of checking the confirmation history storage unit at a preset time interval to determine whether or not unconfirmed received data exists;
A notification processing step of sending notification information to the administrator about the unconfirmed received data when unconfirmed received data is confirmed in the determination step;
A reception management method comprising:

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