JP3158183B2 - Facsimile machine - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus that can easily realize a reply to a destination facsimile apparatus after receiving a facsimile.

[Related Art] Conventionally, when data is received by a facsimile apparatus, the data can be received without an operator's hand in an automatic reception mode. On the other hand, in the case of data transmission in a facsimile machine, in any case, dial in the destination telephone number or register the destination telephone number in advance and select speed dial etc. at the time of transmission I had no choice but to operate.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, after data is received by a partner in this type of facsimile machine, a reply may be required to the partner.

For example, especially when an important document or the like is received by facsimile, it is necessary to send a facsimile notification that the document has been received. In addition, if a store receives a product order by fax, the order must be received securely.
It is necessary to send back the delivery time and the like.

At this time, even in the case of such a reply, according to the conventional facsimile machine, the key in of the telephone number of the destination is performed,
Alternatively, it is necessary to select and operate a pre-registered speed dial or the like, and not only is the work of this reply troublesome, but also the possibility of replying to the wrong destination due to incorrect key operation is high.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a facsimile apparatus which can send a reply to a destination facsimile apparatus after receiving data extremely easily and reliably.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides a detecting means for detecting a telephone number of a destination facsimile apparatus in a receiving mode, a storing means for storing a plurality of telephone numbers detected in each of the receiving modes, A return dial key operated when replying to the other party's facsimile apparatus; display means for displaying a plurality of telephone numbers stored in the storage means after the return dial key is operated; and the display means 2 out of multiple phone numbers displayed in
Selecting means for selecting the above telephone number; a start key operated after the operation of the selecting means; and a plurality of telephone numbers based on the two or more telephone numbers selected by the selecting means after the start key is operated. Reply control means for automatically dialing the other party's facsimile machine.

[Operation] In the facsimile apparatus to which the present invention is applied, the telephone number of the destination facsimile apparatus is detected in each reception mode, and the detected plural telephone numbers are stored in the storage means. Thereafter, when replying to the destination facsimile machine, the return dial key is operated. When this key is operated, a plurality of telephone numbers stored in the storage means are displayed on the display means, and any two or more telephone numbers among them are selected by the selection means. Thereafter, when the start key is operated, the reply control means automatically dials the telephone number stored in the storage means. In this way, the reply to the plurality of destination facsimile devices can be identified by a simple series of operations of operating the return dial key, the selection means, the start key, and the plurality of destination facsimile devices in one series of operations.
Replies to a plurality of destinations will be made reliably. When the telephone number of the destination facsimile apparatus is used for both facsimile / telephone, the reply after the automatic dialing does not necessarily have to be performed by facsimile transmission, but may be made by telephone call.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a facsimile apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view of an operation panel unit of the facsimile apparatus, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control system for transmitting and receiving data.

In FIG. 2, a CPU 10 controls transmission and reception of the facsimile machine. As a characteristic configuration of the embodiment, the CPU 10 has a function of detecting a telephone number of a calling facsimile machine in a reception mode and a transmission operation. It has a function to perform automatic reply control which is one mode of
The CPU 10 corresponds to the detecting means and the reply control means of the present invention. The following various devices are connected to the CPU 10. In this embodiment, the normal mode is assumed, so that the calling side is the other party, and in the polling (calling side receiving) mode described later, the called side is the other party.

The reading unit 12 optically reads the image data of the transmission original, and outputs the read result to the CPU 10 as image data. At the time of this transmission,
The PU 10 converts the image data from the reading unit 12 into a signal according to a communication format, and outputs the signal to the modem 14.

The modem 14 modulates and demodulates a signal. At the time of transmission, the modem 14 modulates a signal from the CPU 10 and transmits the modulated signal to a telephone line via an NCU (network controller) 16. On the other hand, at the time of reception, a signal input via the NCU 16 is demodulated by the modem 14 and output to the CPU 10. The CPU 10 converts this signal into image data and outputs it to the printer 18.

The printer 18 prints on a predetermined sheet according to, for example, a thermal transfer method based on the image data from the CPU 10 and outputs the printed sheet.

The CPU 10 is connected to three memories. The main memory 20 mainly stores information of the output management report, and stores information such as the telephone number and / or the name of the destination of transmission and reception of the facsimile apparatus, the date and time of transmission and reception, the communication time, and the like. . The buffer memory 22 corresponds to the storage means of the present invention, and stores the telephone number of the calling facsimile machine detected by the CPU 10 in the reception mode. This buffer memory
As the storage contents of 22, in addition to storing the telephone number of the latest calling facsimile apparatus, for example, all the telephone numbers of the calling facsimile apparatus with which the communication was performed during one day can be stored. . The message memory 24 stores a message to be transmitted at the time of a reply operation to the calling facsimile machine.

The CPU 10 is connected to an operation panel 30 provided with various operation keys and the like, which are operated particularly during transmission. As shown in FIG. 1, the operation panel 30 includes a numeric keypad group 32, a shortened dial group 34, a stop key 36, a start key 38, a return dial key 40, a display unit 42, and the like. A characteristic configuration of the present embodiment is that the operation panel 30 is provided with a return dial key 40.

Next, a description will be given of the operation when the facsimile apparatus is transmitted from the destination and the subsequent reply operation.

When a call is transmitted from the calling facsimile machine as the destination, a signal is first transmitted and received with the called facsimile machine of the present embodiment in accordance with the facsimile transmission control procedure. There are various types of signals for this transmission control procedure, but CSI (called terminal identification signal) and TSI (transmitting terminal identification signal) among optional non-standard function signals are transmitted and received mutually. Become. By using the CSI, the calling-side facsimile apparatus that is the destination can obtain the telephone number of the called-side facsimile apparatus that is the apparatus of the present embodiment. On the other hand, in the called facsimile machine, by using the TSI,
It is possible to know the telephone number of the calling facsimile machine as the destination. In the calling facsimile apparatus as the present embodiment, the TSI is detected by the CPU 10 among the signals input through the NCU 16 and the modem 14, and the calling telephone number is stored in the buffer memory 22. become.

After the exchange of the signal of the transmission control procedure of the facsimile apparatus is completed, the original data read by the calling facsimile apparatus is transmitted to the telephone line, and the called facsimile apparatus of the present embodiment transmits the data to the NCU 16 and the modem. The document data is taken into the CPU 10 via the printer 14, and the printer 18 is driven and controlled, so that the document data can be printed out. Further, the information for the management output report is taken into the main memory 20 via the CPU 10, and after the printing of all the manuscript data is completed, the telephone line is disconnected and the reception mode ends.

By the way, after receiving important facsimile data transmission, give a reply confirming that the data has been received, or if you receive a product order by facsimile at a store etc., make sure that the order is It is necessary to reply to the appointment.

In the present embodiment, after the facsimile data is received as described above, the return dial key on the operation panel 30 is used.
By operating 40, automatic dialing to the latest calling facsimile machine can be performed. When the return dial key 40 is operated, the operation is confirmed by the CPU 10, and the CPU 10 calls the latest telephone number of the destination facsimile machine stored in the buffer memory 22. Such an operation may be performed after operating the return dial key 40, displaying a telephone number on the display unit 42, and waiting for the operated start key 38 after the confirmation. After reading the telephone number from the buffer memory 22, the CPU 10 performs automatic dialing to the destination facsimile apparatus according to the telephone number, and thereafter, after a necessary facsimile transmission control procedure signal, a predetermined number stored in the message memory 24. Will be sent automatically. The contents of the message include the telephone number of the facsimile apparatus, its name, and the like, as well as a statement that the original data has been received.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, after operating the return dial key 40, the reply operation to the latest calling facsimile machine can be automated, and the telephone number of the destination facsimile machine is changed each time. Since there is no need to check the address using an address book or the like, the reply operation can be performed quickly and reliably.

Here, as the CPU 10, every time transmission is performed from the destination facsimile machine, in other words, every time the present facsimile machine enters the reception mode, if the content of the buffer memory 22 is updated by overwriting, By operating the return dial key 40, it is possible to always automatically dial the telephone number of the destination facsimile machine in the latest reception mode, and to reliably perform a reply operation only by operating the return dial key 40. Can be.

In addition, it is also possible to write the telephone number of the destination facsimile apparatus into different memory areas each time the facsimile apparatus enters the reception mode in the buffer memory 22. For example, when an order for a product is received by a facsimile machine at a store or the like, it is troublesome to operate the return dial key 40 every time the facsimile is received. Therefore, for example, there may be a case where it is desired to perform a reply operation to a plurality of destinations already received at a certain timing. In such a case, by storing all destinations in the buffer memory 22, it is possible to select a destination telephone number and perform a reply operation. For example, when the return dial key 40 is operated, the telephone number stored in the buffer memory 22 is displayed on the display unit 42, and the other party's telephone number is selected, for example, by operating the ten key group 32, Thereafter, after operating the start key 38, a reply operation may be performed to the designated destination facsimile machine. In such a case, it is convenient to send a reply to a plurality of destinations at once, and after specifying the telephone number with the numeric keys of the numeric keypad group 32, for example, use an asterisk key or a sharp key to separate the numbers. And then select another number and finally start key 38
By operating, it is also possible to continuously perform a reply operation to a plurality of destination facsimile machines. Then, the telephone number to which the reply was sent can be automatically deleted. In the case where a plurality of destination telephone numbers are stored in the buffer memory 22 in this way, the contents of the buffer memory 22 are all cleared for a predetermined time, for example, at midnight at 24:00,
It is possible to prevent the useless data from being stored in the buffer memory 22, thereby keeping the storage capacity of the buffer memory 22 small.

In the above embodiment, the CPU 10 detects the telephone number of the other party's calling side facsimile apparatus by detecting the TSI. However, in the case of polling (calling side reception), the following procedure may be performed. Polling means that the calling side receives a document set on the called side. In this case, after the facsimile apparatus of the present embodiment is initially in the transmission mode, the transmission right is delegated to the destination facsimile apparatus, and the facsimile apparatus enters the reception mode. At this time, it is possible to know the telephone number of the destination facsimile machine of the transmission destination by the CIG in the signal of the transmission control procedure. Therefore, in this case, the other party's telephone number may be detected based on the CIG and stored in the buffer memory 22.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment,
Various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to an automatic reception type facsimile apparatus. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to a facsimile apparatus by manual reception.

In the above-described embodiment, the message memory 24 is connected to the CPU 10, and in the reply mode, the message stored in the message memory 24 is automatically transmitted to the destination. However, such a message memory 24 is indispensable. Not a configuration. For example, in a reply mode in which the return dial key 40 is operated, a predetermined document is set in the reading unit 12, and at the time of a reply operation, the document data is read by the reading unit 12,
The data may be transmitted as reply data to the destination.

Further, the memory for storing the other party's telephone number and the like in the reception mode is not limited to the buffer memory 22 as in the above embodiment, but can also be used as the main memory 20 for management output reports. When the return dial key 40 is operated, for example, the immediately preceding telephone number corresponding to the bit is automatically dialed, or the telephone number corresponding to the bit is displayed on the display unit 42 when the return dial key 40 is operated.
Can be displayed and selected.

In the case where the past destination telephone number is displayed on the display unit 42 and the telephone number is subsequently selected, it is preferable that the additional information is displayed together with the telephone number to facilitate the selection. As such additional information, for example, the contents of the first two or three lines corresponding to the letterhead or the like of the received document may be displayed in addition to the name of the destination detected at the time of communication. For example, in a FAX with a redial function, after the first transmission is busy and is interrupted, the contents of the original are read and stored in a memory, and when redialing, transmission is performed according to the memory contents. FAX with such large memory capacity
In this case, it is possible to easily use this memory to store two or three lines of the original at the time of reception each time as additional information at the time of return dialing.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, the telephone numbers of a plurality of destination facsimile apparatuses are detected and stored in each reception mode, and a reply operation is performed to the plurality of destination facsimile apparatuses. A single operation of operating the return dial key, the selection means, and the start key can automatically perform automatic dialing for replying to a plurality of facsimile apparatuses, thereby simplifying the replying operation. , Speed and reliability can be achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an operation panel of a facsimile apparatus to which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a control system block diagram of the facsimile apparatus according to the embodiment. 10 detection means, reply control means (CPU), 22 storage means (buffer memory), 24 message memory.

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A receiving means for detecting a telephone number of a destination facsimile apparatus in a reception mode, a storage means for storing a plurality of telephone numbers detected in each reception mode, and a reply to a plurality of destination facsimile apparatuses. A return dial key operated at the time of operation, display means for displaying a plurality of telephone numbers stored in the storage means after the return dial key is operated, and a plurality of telephone numbers displayed on the display means Selecting means for selecting two or more telephone numbers from among the following: a start key operated after operating the selecting means; and two or more telephone numbers selected by the selecting means after operating the start key. And a reply control means for automatically dialing a plurality of destination facsimile machines based on the following. 2. A facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for erasing, from the storage means, the telephone number of the destination facsimile apparatus returned by automatic dialing by the reply control means. 3. A facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a memory for a management output report is also used as said storage means. 4. A message storage device according to claim 1, further comprising a message storage device, wherein the reply control device stores the message in the message storage device after automatic dialing for a plurality of destination facsimile machines. A facsimile apparatus for controlling transmission of a predetermined message.