JP3166753B2 - Facsimile apparatus and facsimile communication system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus that transmits and receives communication data having information such as a document and a figure via a communication network such as an Ocal Area Network and functions as a server for a plurality of users, and a facsimile communication system including a plurality of the facsimile apparatuses.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a facsimile apparatus having a mailbox function has been used. This facsimile apparatus is provided with a plurality of mailboxes for storing received data. When there are a plurality of users who use the facsimile apparatus, mailboxes are assigned to each user.

When facsimile data is received by the facsimile apparatus, the received data is stored in a mailbox assigned to a user addressed by an address designated by the transmission side. Then, when a request to output data stored in the user's own mailbox accompanied by input of a password or the like is made from the user terminal, the data is transmitted to the user terminal.

In recent years, a facsimile apparatus having the above-described mailbox and a personal computer of a plurality of users who function as a client using the facsimile apparatus as a server and have mailboxes assigned to the facsimile apparatus have been developed. Facsimile communication systems connected by a communication network such as a LAN have come to be seen.

In this facsimile communication system, a user's personal computer having a facsimile apparatus as a server is operated by remote control via a LAN.
A request for printing data stored in a mailbox assigned to the user is made, and printing is performed by a printer of a facsimile apparatus.

Further, in a facsimile communication system, when transmitting data to a facsimile machine, a plurality of users having the facsimile machine as a server are designated, and the LA is designated.
Transmission of data via N is also performed.

[0007] By using such a facsimile communication system, a single facsimile apparatus can be shared by a plurality of users.

[0008]

In the above-described facsimile communication system, when a plurality of users who function as a server of a facsimile apparatus are designated and facsimile data of the same content is transmitted, generally, S
MTP (Simple Mail Transfer)
Protocol).

In SMTP, when transmitting data, it is necessary to confirm all the users specified as destinations. Therefore, even if facsimile data of the same content is duplicated, the same number of users as the number of transmitting users is required. In such a case, the amount of information to be transmitted becomes enormous, and the processing load on the facsimile apparatus and the transmission load on the network increase.

[0010] Further, the facsimile machine on the receiving side must also store data of the same content for a certain period of time in duplicate for the number of users specified as destinations, so that a large storage area is required. There was a problem.

The present invention solves such a problem by reducing the amount of information to be transmitted when facsimile data of the same content is transmitted to a plurality of clients using the same server. It is an object of the present invention to reduce the amount of information required to be stored when facsimile data is transmitted to a plurality of clients.

[0012]

In order to solve this problem, a facsimile apparatus of the present invention functions as a mail server for a plurality of user terminals and transmits and receives facsimile data via a communication network. Transmission information analysis means for analyzing destination information of transmission destinations and creating a normal destination list for transmitting the number of destinations or a plurality of destination lists for transmission to a plurality of destinations in a single operation, and reception for analyzing received data Information analysis means, transmission means for transmitting data based on the normal destination list or multiple destination list created by the transmission information analysis means, having a mailbox and a common area respectively assigned to a plurality of user terminals, By the data management means for managing the received data and the analysis of the received information analyzing means, the received data having two or more When were those destined to the terminal, in which a received data storage means for storing the common area of the received data.

According to the present invention, when facsimile data is transmitted to a plurality of clients using the same server, the amount of information to be transmitted can be reduced, and facsimile data having the same contents can be transmitted. When transmitted to a plurality of clients, the amount of information that needs to be stored can be reduced.

Further, the facsimile communication system of the present invention functions as a mail server for a plurality of user terminals, has a common area for storing received data addressed to the plurality of user terminals, and transmits and receives facsimile data via a communication network. In a facsimile communication system including a plurality of facsimile apparatuses, a facsimile apparatus constituting a system transmits a facsimile data to a plurality of user terminals having a mail server as another facsimile apparatus constituting the system. A plurality of destination list creating means for creating a list with destinations, a sending means for sending data based on the multiple creation list,
Reception information analysis means for analyzing the reception data, a data management means having a mailbox and a common area respectively assigned to the plurality of user terminals, and managing the reception data; and analyzing the reception information analysis means. When the received data is destined for two or more user terminals, notification information that the received data is stored in the common area and that the data has been received in the mailbox corresponding to the user terminal specified as the destination And storage means for storing received data.

According to the present invention, when facsimile data is transmitted to a plurality of clients using the same server in a facsimile communication system, the amount of information to be transmitted can be reduced, and the facsimile having the same contents can be achieved. When data is transmitted to a plurality of clients, the amount of information that needs to be stored can be reduced.

[0016]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a facsimile apparatus 100 of the present embodiment and a facsimile apparatus 1 of the present embodiment.
In this example, the transmission and reception of information by SMTP (SMTP (Simpl)
e Mail Transfer Protocol)
LAN (Local Area Network)
k) A configuration of a facsimile communication system (hereinafter, referred to as “system”) performed via 110.

The system of this embodiment is a facsimile machine 10
0, a user terminal A120 and a user terminal B functioning as a client with the facsimile apparatus 100 as a server.
121, the user terminal C122, and the facsimile machine 1
Another facsimile apparatus 200 having the same configuration as 00
And a user terminal X210, a user terminal Y211 and a user terminal Z212 functioning as a client with the facsimile apparatus 200 as a server, and a facsimile apparatus 300 as a client server (not shown). Data is sent and received via the LAN 110. In this case, LAN1
The number of facsimile apparatuses having the configuration of the facsimile apparatus 100 of the present example connected to the facsimile apparatus 10 is not limited to two but may be a configuration in which three or more facsimile apparatuses are connected.

A user terminal A 120, a user terminal B 121 and a user terminal C 122 using the facsimile apparatus 100 as a server, or a user terminal X 210, a user terminal Y 211 and a user terminal Z 212 using the facsimile apparatus 200 as a server are connected to, for example, a personal computer connected to the LAN 110. Such as a terminal. Note that any number of clients may use each of the facsimile machines 100, 200, or 300 as a server.

As shown in FIG. 1, for example, the configuration of the facsimile apparatus 100 of this embodiment is an operation unit 101 for performing various settings such as designation of a data transmission destination and identification of a transmission source by a key operation by a user. For example, a document reading unit 102 that reads information such as characters and figures written on the paper (hereinafter referred to as “document”) and converts it into digital data, and a user operates the operation unit 101 when transmitting data. And a transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 that analyzes transmission source information and destination information of received data when data is received, and a transmission / reception unit 104 that performs protocol control related to data transmission and reception. And a main control unit 105 that controls the entire apparatus such as processing for storing received data. In this case, various settings made by operating the operation unit 101 are not limited to key operations by the user, but may be performed by a user terminal.
It can also be done by request via 110.

The transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 analyzes the transmission destination information at the time of data transmission, creates a normal destination list for normal transmission, or converts the same facsimile data into a plurality of data using the same apparatus as a server. When transmitting to a client, a high-speed destination list for performing high-speed transmission with a server common to the plurality of clients as a transmission destination is created.

Further, the facsimile apparatus 100 of the present embodiment
A data management unit 106 that manages received data and a data printing unit 107 that prints and reproduces characters, graphics, and the like based on the received digital data, for example, on paper. In the facsimile apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the units 101 to 107 are connected via a system bus 108.

As shown in FIG. 2, for example, the data management unit 106 includes a mailbox 400 for storing received data individually for a plurality of users and a common area for storing common data transmitted to a plurality of users as a representative. 410, and an information management area 420 for managing information as to which user the data stored in the common area is received data sent to.

The mailbox 400 included in the data management unit 106 is constituted by a rewritable storage medium such as a RAM, and a part of the storage area is provided to a client having the facsimile apparatus 100 as a server. Is assigned as That is, the mailbox 400 included in the data management unit 106 of this example
Is n (arbitrary number) terminal mailboxes MB1
In this example, the terminal A mailbox MB1 is assigned to the user terminal A120, the terminal B mailbox MB2 is assigned to the user terminal B121, and the terminal C mailbox MB3 is assigned to the user terminal C122. is there. In the information management area 420, management information corresponding to each data stored in the common area 410 is stored.

Next, the transmission process of the facsimile apparatus 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3. First, in step S101, a document reading process of reading a document of data to be transmitted by the facsimile device 100 and converting it into digital data. I do. In this example, the document reading process is performed by the document reading unit 102, and the document reading unit 102 transmits the document in which the information to be transmitted is described to the main control unit 1.
Under the control of step 05, a process of reading image data and converting it into digital data is performed.

When the original is read and converted into digital data, destination setting processing for setting a destination address is performed in step S102. In this example, the destination setting process is performed by a communication protocol (in this example, SMT) by an operation of the operation unit 101 by a user or a remote operation from a user terminal.
The setting according to P) is performed, and when transmitting to a plurality of destinations, the addresses of a plurality of destinations are specified.

In the destination setting process, for example, the user terminal A which is a client of the facsimile apparatus 100 of the present embodiment
120, a user terminal X210 functioning as a client with the facsimile machine 200 as a server,
When performing processing for transmitting facsimile data to the user terminal Y211 and a user terminal α (not shown) and the user terminal β (not shown) functioning as a client using the facsimile apparatus 300 as a server, for example, FIG.
Set as shown.

Here, the setting contents shown in FIG. 4 will be described. A plurality of destination addresses 500 are designated after a header “To” by separating them with “,”, and a source address 510 is set after a header “From”. These addresses are respectively a user name, an at mark (＠), a server host name, an organization name such as a company name (here, “abc” as an example), an organization attribute (here, “co” indicating a company), a country The codes are specified in the order of the codes (here, "jp" indicating Japan). In FIG. 4, the user name “user2X” is the user terminal X210,
“User2Y” is the user terminal Y, “user2α” is the user terminal α, and “user1A” is the user terminal A12.
0, “user3β” means the user terminal β, respectively, and the server host name “fax2” means the facsimile device 200, “fax1” means the facsimile device 100, and “fax3” means the facsimile device 300, respectively. Things.

When the destination setting process is performed in step S102, in step S103, a list of a plurality of destinations is analyzed for the destination and a high-speed reception process described below (hereinafter, "high-speed storage process").
It is determined whether or not a user terminal (hereinafter, referred to as a “target terminal”) having a facsimile apparatus capable of performing the same is included. In this example, the main control unit 105 makes this determination based on the analysis of the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103.

In this case, for example, an apparatus capable of performing high-speed storage processing is registered in advance in a storage area (not shown) in the facsimile apparatus 100, and the apparatus registered in the host name of the transmission destination address set in step S102. The transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 analyzes whether or not the data exists, so that the main control unit 105 makes a determination. In addition,
The device capable of performing the high-speed storage processing corresponds to, for example, an apparatus having the same configuration as the facsimile apparatus 100 of the present example. Therefore, the facsimile apparatus 200 corresponds to the apparatus capable of performing the high-speed storage processing, and the user terminal X210 and the user terminal Y21
1 and the user terminal Z212 both correspond to target terminals.

That is, when the destination is set as shown in FIG. 4, for example, "fax2" indicating the facsimile apparatus 200 exists in the host name of the transmission destination address.
It is determined that the destination includes a target terminal whose device is a device capable of performing high-speed storage processing.

If it is determined in step S103 that the target terminal is included in the destination, the terminal managed by the server of the target terminal (ie, the target terminal managed by the same server) becomes the destination. It is determined in step S104 whether two or more are included. In this example, this determination is also made by the main control unit 105 based on the analysis of the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103. In this case, for example, an analysis is performed to determine whether or not there are two or more destination addresses that specify, as the host name, the device determined to be the server that manages the target terminal that is the destination in step S103. The information analysis unit 103 performs the determination, and the main control unit 105 determines based on the result.

That is, when the destination is set as shown in FIG. 4, for example, the host name "fax2" indicating the facsimile apparatus 200 determined to be the server of the target terminal is specified in step S103. Address is 3
Since there are cases, it is determined that two or more target terminals managed by the same server are included in the destination.

If it is determined in step S104 that two or more target terminals managed by the same server are included in the destination, a process of creating a multiple destination list is performed in step S105. This processing is performed by the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 according to the control of the main control unit 105 in this example. When a destination includes two or more target terminals managed by the same server, the multiple destination list sets the server that manages the plurality of target terminals as the transmission destination, and the other addresses include, for example, transmission information as additional information. Is a destination list created by including the same destination in the case where facsimile data of the same content is transmitted to a plurality of users using the same device as a server. This is to perform a creation process.

That is, when the destination is set as shown in FIG. 4, for example, an address specifying a user terminal β (not shown) having the facsimile apparatus 300 as a host, which means "fax3", is used as a transmission destination. Device 20
User terminal X210, user terminal Y2, host 0
11 and the user terminal α as destinations, the facsimile apparatus 200 is set as a transmission destination, and an address specifying each user terminal is created as a high-speed destination list with additional information.

When it is determined in step S103 that the target terminal is not included in the destination, or in step S104
When it is determined that only one target terminal managed by the same server is included in the destination in step S106,
A normal destination list is created in which all destinations indicated by the destination address are designated as destinations. This processing is performed by the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 according to the control of the main control unit 105 in this example.

When a multiple destination list is created in step S105 or a normal destination list is created in step S106, a data transmission process is performed in step S107.
In this case, high-speed transmission processing based on the multiple destination list or normal transmission processing based on the normal destination list is performed. In this data transmission process, under the control of the main control unit 105 based on the created destination list, the transmission / reception unit 104
This is performed via the LAN 110 according to P.

After data transmission in step S107, it is determined in step S108 whether transmission to all transmission destinations has been completed. This determination is made based on the necessity in SMTP, and in this example, the main control unit 105
Judge. In this case, for example, when the destination is set as shown in FIG. 4 and the high-speed transmission process is performed in step S107, the user terminal β (not shown) and the three user terminals Is determined as to whether transmission to the facsimile apparatus 200 is completed. If it is determined that transmission to all transmission destinations has not been completed, the process returns to step S107 to perform data transmission processing to transmission destinations for which transmission has not been completed, and transmission to all transmission destinations has been completed. When it is determined that the data transmission has been completed, the data transmission processing here ends.

Next, data reception processing in the facsimile apparatus 100 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
This processing is performed by the facsimile apparatus 10 of this example from another apparatus.
The process starts when data having a destination of 0 is transmitted. First, in step S201, a process of receiving data is performed.
This receiving process is performed by the transmitting / receiving unit 104 in this example, and the transmitting / receiving unit 104
The data transmitted according to MTP is received.

When the data is received, it is determined in step S202 whether or not the transmission source is a device having a function of creating a multiple destination list. In this example, the main control unit 105 makes this determination based on the analysis of the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103. In this case, for example, a device capable of creating a multiple destination list is registered in advance in a storage area (not shown) in the facsimile device 100, and the registered device exists in the host name of the transmission source address in the reception information. The transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 analyzes whether or not to perform
The determination by the main control unit 105 is performed.

If it is determined in step S202 that the transmission source is an apparatus having a function of creating a plurality of destination lists, it is determined in step S203 whether a plurality of destinations are specified in the received data. Make a decision. This decision
In this example, the main control unit 105 performs the processing based on the analysis of the transmission / reception information analysis unit 103. In this case, for example,
The transmission / reception information analysis unit 103 determines whether or not a plurality of addresses are specified in the received data or whether or not the received destination list is created as a multiple destination list.

If it is determined in step S203 that a plurality of destinations are specified in the received data, high-speed reception processing is performed in steps S204 to S206.

In the high-speed reception processing, first, in step S204, processing for storing the received data in the common area 410 is performed. In this storage processing, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, common reception data Doc2 sent to a plurality of users is stored in a common area 410 of the data management unit 106. The reception data stored in the common area 410 includes data obtained by converting a document read by a transmission source into digital data, and transmission information such as a transmission destination address.

After storage in the common area 410, the management information is created and stored in step S205.
In this process, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, management information such as information on a mailbox assigned to the user designated as the destination of the received data is created and stored in the information management area 420 of the data management unit 106. Perform the process of storing. In this example, one piece of management information (here, Doc2 management information 421) is provided corresponding to the reception data Doc2 stored in the common area 410. Here, the user terminal A120, the user terminal B121, and the user terminal n (not shown) receive the reception data Do.
c2, the management information of the received data Doc2 is the information of the mailbox assigned to all the users specified as the destination, that is, the terminal A Information Mb1 indicating mailbox MB1, mailbox M for terminal B
Information Mb2 indicating B2 and mailbox MB for terminal n
It has information Mbn indicating n.

The management information is created and the information management area 420 is created.
Then, in step S206, a process of notifying that data exists in the common area 410 is performed for each mailbox assigned to the user who is the destination of the received data. In this process, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, the data addressed to the user is received in the mailbox assigned to the user specified as the destination in the received data Doc2 in the mailbox 400 of the data management unit 106. Notification information to the effect that the notification information is stored in the common area 410. Here, the user mailboxes respectively assigned to all the users specified as the destinations, namely, the mailboxes A1 for terminal A, the mailbox MB2 for terminal B, and the mailbox MBn for terminal n, Notification information D2i indicating that data addressed to the user is stored in the common area 410 is stored. In FIG. 6, received data Doc1 stored in mailbox A1 for terminal A is data that has been received and stored in the past. Note that the processing from step S202 to step S206 is the high-speed storage processing of this example.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S202 that the transmission source is not an apparatus having a function of creating a list of multiple destinations, or if it is determined in step S203 that a plurality of destinations are not specified in the received data, In step S207, a process of storing the received data in the user mailbox is performed. In this process, the received data is stored in the user mailbox corresponding to the address specified in the received data in the mailbox 400 of the data management unit 106.

When the high-speed reception processing ends, or when the storage processing in step S207 ends, the data reception processing ends.

Next, a process of extracting data stored in the common area 410 of the data management unit 106 of the facsimile apparatus 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

When the received data is stored in the common area 410, the facsimile apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment determines whether or not a print request has been made in step S301 and whether or not a pickup request has been made in step S302. For example, the user makes a print request from a user who knows that the data addressed to him / her is stored in the common area 410 by viewing the notification information stored in his / her mailbox via the LAN 110. Waiting for a takeover request.

In the waiting state, the operation unit 1
When there is a print request by the operation of No. 01 or a remote operation of the user terminal, a printing process is performed in step S303. The printing process is performed by the data printing unit 107 in this example.

Steps S301 and S3
02, when there is a data collection request by the user terminal via the LAN 110 in the waiting state at step S30, the process proceeds to step S30.
At 4, a data transmission process for transmitting data to the user terminal that has made the collection request is performed. This processing is, in this example,
The transmission / reception unit 104 performs the control according to the control of the main control unit 105, and sends the request to the user terminal that has received the request.

When the data printing process or the data sending process is performed, it is determined in step S305 whether to delete the data stored in the mailbox 400 or the data stored in the information management area 420. This determination is made, for example, by the user who has taken out the data by remote control from the operation unit 101 of the facsimile apparatus 100 or the user terminal. If it is determined that the data is not to be erased, the process returns to the wait state in steps S301 and S302.

If it is determined in step S305 that the data is to be deleted, the management information is updated. In this process, in this example, under the control of the main control unit 105, the information managed by the data management unit 106 is updated. That is,
For example, in the storage state shown in FIG. 6, when the data Doc2 is taken by the user terminal B121 and it is determined that the data is to be deleted, the notification information D2i and the Doc2 management stored in the mailbox B2 for the terminal B are determined. The management information Mb2 stored as the information 421 is deleted.

When the management information is updated, step S30
At 7, it is determined whether or not all the management information corresponding to the data extracted in step S303 or step S304 has been deleted. This determination is made by the main control unit 105. In this example, the information management area 42 of the data management unit 106 is used.
0, the management information (for example, the management information 32
This is performed by determining whether or not all the information managed in 1) has been deleted by the process of step S306. If the management information remains even after the processing in step S306, the processing proceeds to step S301 and step S3.
Return to the wait state at 02.

If it is determined in step S307 that all the management information corresponding to the previously extracted data has been deleted, then in step S308 the common area 410 is deleted.
A process for erasing the previously fetched data stored in the storage device is performed. When the erasing process is performed, the reception data extracting process of the present example ends.

By configuring the facsimile communication system as described above, a plurality of destination lists are created, and originals such as documents and drawings having the same contents are converted into digital data by a plurality of clients using the same apparatus as a server. When transmitting data, it is sufficient to transmit only one data, and the amount of information to be transmitted can be greatly reduced, so that transmission processing can be performed in a short time, The processing load on the network can be greatly reduced. In addition, since transmission is performed to the destination specified in the multiple destination list, the transmission may be performed using a protocol such as SMTP that specifies a plurality of users specified as the destinations. However, since only a single confirmation is required, it is possible to perform communication using data with a reduced amount of information without being restricted by a protocol.

Further, by configuring the facsimile communication system as described above, when data of the same content is sent to a plurality of clients using the facsimile apparatus 100 as a server, the data is collectively stored in the common area 410. By doing so, the storage capacity required by the server can be significantly reduced.

Further, as described above, the data management unit 10
7, the information management area 420 is provided.
It is possible to accurately grasp the retrieval status of the data stored in the common area 410, and
Since all the users who have received the notification of “0” need not take out the data stored in the common area 410 and store the data, the data can be immediately deleted. No, common area 41
0 storage area can be used effectively.

In the above-described embodiment, the facsimile apparatus 200 manages the addresses of the user terminals X210, Y220, and Z functioning as clients using the facsimile apparatus 200 as a server. May be placed under the control of the facsimile machine 100. With this configuration,
For example, when data of the same content is transmitted from a terminal connected to the LAN 110 to a plurality of clients using the facsimile apparatus 200 as a server, normal transmission is first performed to the facsimile apparatus 100 because the address is the client of the facsimile apparatus 100. After that, the facsimile apparatus 100 transmits the data to the facsimile apparatus 200 as one data. With this configuration, when transmitting the same data to a plurality of clients of a server having a high-speed storage processing function, the terminal connected to the LAN 110 that is the transmission source does not have a function of performing high-speed transmission processing. Even in this case, the data can be transmitted through a server having a high-speed transmission processing function, and the storage area used when the received data is stored in the destination device can be greatly reduced.

In the above-described embodiment, the LAN is used as the communication network. However, another network may be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the SMTP protocol is used for communication, but another protocol may be used.

In the above-described embodiment, a facsimile apparatus functioning as a server on a network has been described. However, it is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to other information processing apparatuses such as a personal computer having a mail transmission function.

According to the facsimile apparatus of the first aspect, when a plurality of destination lists are created and the same data is transmitted to a plurality of clients having the transmission destination apparatus as a server, one piece of data is transmitted. Since it is sufficient to simply transmit, the amount of information to be transmitted can be greatly reduced, so that transmission processing can be performed in a short time and the processing load on the network can be greatly reduced. . Further, when data based on a plurality of destination lists is received, data of the same content can be collectively stored in a common area, and the storage capacity required by the server can be significantly reduced. .

According to the facsimile apparatus of the second aspect, it is possible to receive a notification that data addressed to the user is stored in the shared area in his / her mailbox.
As when each user terminal receives normal mail,
Reception of mail can be recognized.

According to the facsimile apparatus of the third aspect, it is possible to accurately grasp the state of data stored in the common area, and it is necessary for all users to take out the data and store the data. Since the data can be immediately erased when it has run out, the storage area of the common area can be used effectively without continuing to store useless data.

According to the facsimile communication system of the fourth aspect, when a plurality of destination lists are created and the same data is transmitted to a plurality of clients having the transmission destination device as a server, one data is transmitted. It is possible to reduce the amount of information to be transmitted, so that the transmission processing can be performed in a short time and the processing load on the network can be greatly reduced. Further, when data transmitted to a plurality of users is received, the same data can be collectively stored in the common area, and the storage capacity required by the server can be significantly reduced. Can be.

According to the facsimile communication system according to the fifth aspect, it is possible to accurately grasp the state of data stored in the common area, and it is necessary for all users to retrieve data and store the data. Since the data can be deleted immediately when the data is exhausted, the storage area of the common area can be used effectively without storing useless data.

According to the facsimile communication system of the present invention, when transmitting data of the same content to a plurality of clients whose facsimile apparatuses constituting the system are servers, a terminal which is a transmission source connected to a communication network Even if does not have the function of performing high-speed transmission processing, it is possible to transmit via a server having a high-speed transmission processing function, and the storage area used when storing the received data in the destination device is It can be significantly reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a data management unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a transmission process according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of destination setting in data transmission according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a reception process according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a storage state of received data according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of extracting received data according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100, 200, 300 Facsimile machine 101 Operation unit 102 Document reading unit 103 Transmission / reception information analysis unit 104 Transmission / reception unit 105 Main control unit 106 Data management unit 107 Data printing unit 108 System bus 110 LAN 120 User terminal A 121 User terminal B 122 User terminal C 210 User terminal X 211 User terminal Y 212 User terminal Z 400 Mailbox 410 Common area 420 Information management area

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04N 1/00-1/00 108 H04L 12/00-12/28 H04L 12/50-12/66

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A facsimile apparatus which functions as a mail server for a plurality of user terminals and transmits / receives facsimile data via a communication network, analyzes destination information of a destination, and creates a normal destination list or a plurality of destination lists. Transmission information analysis means for analyzing received data, transmission information analysis means for analyzing received data, transmission means for transmitting data based on a normal destination list or a plurality of destination lists created by the transmission information analysis means, and the plurality of users A data management unit having a mailbox and a common area respectively assigned to the terminals, and managing received data; and analyzing the received information analyzing unit, the received data being addressed to a user terminal having two or more received data. The received data is stored in the common area. Kushimiri apparatus. 2. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the data storage means stores notification information indicating that the data has been received in each mailbox assigned to the user terminal designated as the destination. 3. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the data management means has an information management area for storing management information of data stored in the common area. 4. A facsimile machine which functions as a mail server for a plurality of user terminals, has a common area for storing received data addressed to the plurality of user terminals, and includes a plurality of facsimile apparatuses for transmitting and receiving facsimile data via a communication network. In the communication system, the facsimile apparatus constituting the system is configured such that, when transmitting facsimile data to a plurality of user terminals having the other facsimile apparatus constituting the system as a mail server, a list addressed to the other facsimile apparatus Means for creating a plurality of destination lists, sending means for transmitting data based on the plurality of creation lists, reception information analyzing means for analyzing received data, and mail respectively assigned to the plurality of user terminals It has a box and a common area, and manages received data. When the received data is destined for two or more user terminals, the received data is stored in the common area and is designated as the destination. A facsimile communication system comprising: a received data storage unit that stores notification information indicating that data has been received in a mailbox corresponding to the user terminal. 5. The facsimile communication system according to claim 4, wherein the information management means has an information management area for storing management information of data stored in the common area. 6. The facsimile communication system according to claim 4, wherein the facsimile machine constituting the system manages addresses of a plurality of user terminals each having another facsimile machine constituting the system as a server.