JP3222077B2 - Communications 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 communication system, and more particularly to a communication system in which a user can operate a mail sent to a certain mail address at another mail address of the user.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a communication system in which a user operates a mail sent to one mail address at another mail address of the user is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-348635.
There is known a communication system disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. H10-26095. The communication system disclosed in this publication sends an e-mail from a user's e-mail address to another user's e-mail address, searches and reads out the contents of a mailbox, and transmits the result as an e-mail. there were.

[0003]

In a conventional communication system, in order to operate a mail sent to a certain mail address of a user at another mail address of a user connected via a network, a certain mail is required. It is necessary to transmit a mail including a request to transfer an operation target mail from an address to another mail address, and as a result, a desired mail is transferred from the other mail address. Therefore, the user has to wait until the mail to be operated is transferred.

Further, in a conventional communication system,
Specify which of the multiple e-mail addresses of the user has the operation target e-mail and send the transfer request, or send the e-mail transfer request to all of the other e-mail addresses of the user Was required, and the operation was complicated.

Further, in a conventional communication system,
Since the status of the mail folder after transfer is not the same for all mail addresses, the user recognizes which mail address the user currently uses and operates the mail conscious of the difference. It was necessary.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to allow a user having a plurality of e-mail addresses to transmit an e-mail sent to a certain e-mail address without being aware of a difference in the e-mail address in the other e-mail addresses, and furthermore, to use the mail between the e-mail addresses. An object of the present invention is to provide a communication system capable of operating without waiting for the end of transmission / reception.

[0007]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention described in claim 1 is a communication system in which a plurality of e-mail devices are connected to a communication network. The mail folder to be stored, the mail processing operation recording means for recording the processing operation performed by the user on the mail, and the mail sent to the user's mail address sent from a third party other than the user The received mail is forwarded to all other mail addresses of the user, and when the user finishes the mail processing operation, the processing operation on the mail recorded by the mail processing operation recording means so far is described as the contents of the mail. A mail transfer means for transmitting an e-mail to another user's e-mail address, and a processing operation sent from another e-mail address used by the user. And mail receiving means for updating the mail folders on the basis of the operation of the mail, and those with.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the first aspect, the user of the user in the mail folder until updating of the mail folder by the mail receiving means is completed based on the contents of the processing operation mail. It is assumed that operation lock means for locking the operation of the mail folder is provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication system according to the second aspect, wherein one mail address of a user is provided.
A storage unit for storing the order of the mail folder specified by the user when there are a plurality of mail folders for the dress; and a storage unit for storing the mail folder based on the contents of the processing operation mail when updating the mail folder. And a lock release means for updating the mail folder according to the order of the mail folders and releasing a lock from the mail folder after the update.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the third aspect, the contents of a plurality of processing operation mails sent from another user's mail address to the user's mail address are stored in the communication system. It is assumed that a means for storing the information in the storage means, sorting the processing operations according to the order of the mail folders specified by the user, and updating the mail folder is provided.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the second aspect, an unread mail of a user is stored.
For e-mail that has been sent from a third party other than the user by e-mail that has been sent to the default folder that is paid, before
Serial receive mail to a temporary mail folder if the default folder is locked, the means for coupling to the default folder temporary mail folder after the lock of the default off <br/> folder is released Shall be provided.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the first aspect, when the mail transfer unit transfers the mail, the transfer address and the attribute of the mail to be transferred to the transfer address are specified. Storage means for storing the
Attached to the e-mail to transfer Okua dress and its transfer address
In accordance with the specification contents of all the attributes, a mail to be transferred to another mail address of the user and means for limiting the transfer destination are provided.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the first aspect, an e-mail is sent to the user at regular time intervals other than at the time of the user's operation by the user's designation. It is assumed that the system is provided with a mail transfer means for checking whether the mail has been sent and, if the mail has been sent, transferring the mail to another mail address of the user.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the first aspect, when a mail sent from a third party other than the user is received, a unique identifier is assigned in the system. It is assumed that a means for storing a mail identifier in a log when a delete operation is performed on the mail is provided.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the sixth aspect, addition and deletion of a transfer address and change of an attribute of a transfer mail are performed by changing a user's mail address to another user's mail address. Means for changing the designation of the mail transfer by sending the processing operation mail.

The invention described in claim 10 is the sixth invention.
The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising storage means for storing a password for a user's mail address, wherein the password is sent together with a processing operation mail sent from the user's mail address to another user's mail address, and The mail folder is updated in accordance with the contents of the processing operation mail only when the password stored in the password storage means at the mail address of the user who received the processing operation mail and the password matches the received password. I do.

The invention described in claim 11 is the first invention.
0, a password change command and a new password are sent together with a processing operation e-mail and a password sent from the user's e-mail address to another user's e-mail address, and the processing operation e-mail, the password and the password change Only when the password stored in the password storage means at the mail address of the user who received the command and the new password matches the received password, the mail folder is updated according to the contents of the processing operation mail and the password is changed. It is assumed that the password stored in the storage means is changed to the received new password.

The invention described in claim 12 is the first invention.
In the communication system described in the above, according to the content of the processing operation mail sent from the other mail address of the user,
When storing the mail that has been transferred from another e-mail address of the user to the user's mail folder, the sender's e-mail address of the mail, some in the mail of the transfer source
From the user's other email address,
It is assumed that the e-mail address is changed to the e-mail address of the sender of the e-mail.

The invention described in claim 13 is the first invention.
Means for recording the time as a mail attribute when a user performs a processing operation for adding a mail to a mail folder, and a processing operation mail sent from a plurality of mail addresses of the user in the communication system described in 1. Means for resolving the inconsistency in the state of the mail folder caused when the arrival is delayed for some reason based on the recorded time.

[0020]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the communication system according to the present embodiment, a mail folder 4 for storing a mail received by a user, a mail processing operation recording unit 3 for recording a processing operation performed on the mail by the user,
Processing operation mail that forwards e-mail sent from a third party to another user's e-mail address and uses the processing operation of the e-mail that was memorized when the user finished processing the e-mail. And mail receiving means 2 for receiving mail and updating the state of the mail folder in accordance with the processing operation included in the processing operation mail sent from another mail address used by the user. The plurality of e-mail devices 5 are connected to a communication network 6. In the present embodiment, the communication system includes a storage unit that can be accessed by the above-described units.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a processing operation mail containing processing operations on mail according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, the processing operation mail includes a source mail address, a destination mail address, a password, one or more commands, parameters for the command, and a processing time at which the command was executed.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing commands included in the processing operation mail shown in FIG. 2 and their command parameters. In the present embodiment, the commands for reading the mail, deleting the mail, moving the folder, sending a reply, transferring the mail, changing the password, adding the transferred mail address, deleting the transferred mail address, and changing the attribute of the transferred mail are included. Is included.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of designation of the forwarding mail address and the forwarding mail attribute stored in the above-mentioned storage means. In the present embodiment, the attributes of the forwarded mail include the source, the received time, the received day, the received date, and the mail format of the mail. In the specification of the attributes of the forwarded mail shown in FIG.
The binary mail received at 2:00 is sent only to the mail addresses α, β, and θ.

When a mail is sent to one of the mail addresses used by the user, the sent mail is stored in a mail spool uniquely corresponding to the mail address of the user. When the user starts the mail operation at this mail address, the mail sent from the third party is automatically transferred to the remaining mail address used by the user when extracting all the received mail from the mail spool Is done. Thereafter, the user performs a processing operation such as reading or deleting the mail or the mail already stored in the user's folder. At this time, these processing operations are stored in the storage means together with the execution of the processing operations. When the user finishes the operation of the mail, the processing operation mail having the processing operation stored in the storage means as the contents of the mail is transmitted to the remaining mail addresses used by the user.

When the user subsequently moves to another mail address of the user and starts a mail operation, a mail from a third party is sent to this mail address in the same manner as the processing at the previous address. Check if it has been sent and forward it to the rest of the email address used by the user. The forwarded e-mail and the processing operation e-mail are sent to this e-mail address from the e-mail address used earlier. Therefore, before accepting the user's mail operation, the mail is processed according to the processing operation included in the processing operation mail. As a result, the processing operation performed by the user at the previous mail address is reflected on the currently used mail address.

Thereafter, the processing operation performed by the user on the mail is stored in the storage means in the same manner as the processing at the previous mail address, and when the user has finished processing the mail, the processing operation is performed on the storage means. Is transmitted to the other mail address of the user as the processing operation mail.

The mail transfer means 1 of the communication system performs the following processing.

When the user starts a mail processing operation at one of a plurality of mail addresses used by the user, a start notification is sent from the mail processing operation recording means 3 to the mail transfer means 1 and the mail is sent. The transfer means 1 starts. The mail transfer means 1 can be automatically activated at regular time intervals designated by the user. In any of the activation methods, the activated mail transfer means 1 checks whether a new e-mail has been sent from a third party to the e-mail address of the user. In the present embodiment, the location of the spool of the mail in which the mail sent to the user's mail address is stored first is not limited in the present embodiment. Whether a new mail has been sent to the user's mail address is determined by checking whether the mail is included in the spool of mail uniquely corresponding to the user's mail address.

When a new mail has been sent, the mail transfer means 1 checks whether the mail matches the conditional expression of the mail attribute specified by the user for each transfer address. In this embodiment, the attribute of the mail such as who sent the mail for each transfer address and the specification of the conditional expression are stored in the storage means. The mail transfer unit 1 transfers only the mail that matches this specification to the transfer address. Here, the mail to be transferred refers only to a mail sent from a third party, and does not include a mail transferred from another mail address of the user and a processing operation mail.

The mail transfer means 1 moves all received mails from the mail spool to an unread folder when checking whether a new mail has been sent to the mail address of the user. The unread folder is one of a plurality of mail folders 4 existing on the auxiliary storage device and is a folder for storing a mail that has not been read by the user yet. At this time, in the case of mail newly sent to the user from a third party instead of forwarded mail from another mail address of the user, the user uses it when moving from the mail spool to the unread folder A unique identifier such as “mail address”, “reception date”, and “serial number” is attached to the mail, which is unique among the plurality of mail addresses. When the mail transfer means 1 is activated by the mail processing operation recording means 3, when a series of processing of checking the received mail, transferring the mail, and moving the mail from the mail spool to the unread folder is completed, the mail transfer means 1 is started. Sends a processing end notification to the mail processing operation recording means 3. If the mail transfer means 1 is automatically started at regular time intervals, the mail transfer means 1 ends automatically when a series of these processes is completed.

When the mail transfer means 1 receives the processing operation mail transfer notification from the mail processing operation recording means 3, the mail processing means stores the processing operation, processing time and mail stored in the storage means by the mail processing operation recording means 3. Create and send a processing operation mail with the attribute of At this time, of the processing operations stored in the storage means, only processing operations that target mails that match the conditions of the forwarded mail for each forwarded mail address are extracted. The contents of the processing operation mail include the extracted processing operation, the processing time, the attribute of the target mail, and the password stored in the storage unit. When the mail transfer unit 1 finishes sending the processing operation mail to another mail address of the user, the mail transfer unit 1 deletes the processing operation from the storage unit and ends the processing.

The mail processing operation recording means 3 performs the following processing.

When the user operates a mail, the mail processing operation recording means 3 is started. In this embodiment, the mail processing operation recording means 3 reads the mail from the user, deletes the mail, moves the folder, sends a reply, transfers the mail, changes the password, adds the transfer destination mail address,
Delete forwarding email address, change forwarding email attribute,
Accept the end command. The processing operation mail is not a target of the processing requested by the user.

When activated, the mail processing operation recording means 3 first sends a start notification to the mail transfer means 1 and waits for a processing end notification to be sent from the mail transfer means 1. When the processing completion notification is sent from the mail transfer means 1, a start notification is sent to the mail reception means 2, and the process waits until the mail reception means 2 sends the folder lock completion notification. When a folder lock completion notice is sent from the mail receiving means 2, a command input is accepted from the user thereafter. At this time, if the mail folder 4 that is the target of the command requested by the user is locked by the mail receiving unit 2, the user is notified that the folder is locked without performing the command processing.

If the mail folder 4 that is the target of the requested command is not locked, the mail is processed according to the user's command. At this time,
The processing operation, processing time, and attribute of the target mail that were performed at the same time are recorded in the storage unit. Also, the processing time is added to the operated mail. When the mail is deleted, the identifier of this mail is recorded in the deletion log.

The mail folder 4 has a default folder in which a mail is automatically stored when a user reads a mail which has not been read yet. The mail processing operation recording means 3 receives a reading operation of a mail sent from a third party even when the default folder is locked. In this case, the mail processing operation recording means 3 creates a temporary folder and stores mail from a third party in this folder. When the user finishes the mail processing and notifies the mail processing operation recording means 3 of the end, the mail processing operation recording means 3 sends a processing operation mail transfer notification to the mail transfer means 1 and ends. When an error notification is sent from the mail receiving unit 2, the mail processing operation recording unit 3 reports the error to the user.

The mail receiving means 2 performs the following processing.

The mail receiving means 2 is started by sending a start notification from the mail processing operation recording means 3 when a user operates a mail. Mail receiving means 2
Checks whether the processing operation mail is stored in the unread folder in the mail folder 4. If the processing operation mail is included, the mail receiving means 2 checks the password. Only when the password included in the operation processing mail matches the password stored in the storage means, the reception of the mail and the update of the mail folder are performed in accordance with the command included in the content of the processing operation mail. At this time, the mail receiving means 2 first acquires locks of all the mail folders 4 of the user on the auxiliary storage. When the lock is acquired, a folder lock completion notification is sent to the mail processing operation recording means 3. The mail receiving means 2 takes out all the processing operation mails existing in the unread folder, and executes the processing operation commands in the processing operation commands in the order of unlocking the mail folder 4 specified by the user in advance. Sort according to number . The contents of the mail folder 4 are updated by operating the mail according to the command after the sorting. At this time, the processing time included in the processing operation mail is simultaneously stored in the mail folder 4 as an attribute of the mail.

The mail receiving means 2 is provided for each mail folder 4
Releases the lock secured at the time when the processing of the last command for has been completed. When releasing the lock of the default folder, the mail receiving means 2 checks whether there is a temporary folder generated by the mail processing operation recording means 3, and if this folder exists, combines it with the default folder.

When the mail receiving means 2 updates the state of the mail folder 4 in accordance with the contents of the processing operation mail, the processing operation mail does not exist in a predetermined folder because the arrival of the processing operation mail is delayed for some reason. The command in the operation mail and the state of the mail folder 4 may be inconsistent. In this case, the mail receiving means 2 searches all folders for the target mail based on the identifier attached to the mail specified by the command. If the mail to be operated is found in another folder, the processing time attached to the mail and the processing time attached to the command in the processing operation mail are stored in the mail processing operation recording means 3 when the mail is operated. comparison, the process was carried out later to update the e-mail folder to reflect.

In some cases, the mail to be operated is already deleted and does not exist in any mail folder. In this case, the mail receiving unit 2 checks whether or not the deletion log stored by the mail processing operation recording unit 3 includes the identifier of the mail to be operated. If the deletion log includes the identifier of the mail to be operated, the processing operation on this mail is ignored. If the deletion log does not include the identifier of the operation target mail, an error notification is sent to the mail processing operation recording means 3 to report the error to the user.

When the contents of the processing operation mail include a command for adding or deleting a transfer address or a command for changing the attribute of the transfer mail, the mail receiving means 2 transmits the transfer address stored in the storage means in accordance with the content of the command. Update the attribute specification of the forwarded mail.

If the received processing operation mail contains a password change command and a new password as a command parameter, the mail receiving means 2 sends the password stored in the password storage means to the designated new password. Change to

The mail receiving means 2 transfers the mail from the mail address of the mail source when the mail transferred from the user's other mail address is moved from the unread folder to another mail folder. Change the email from the user's other email address to the email address of the third party who sent the email to the user's other email address.

Next, the operation of each program when receiving a mail using the communication system according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to flowcharts.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing an example of a processing procedure in which the mail transfer means 1 checks a newly sent mail and performs a transfer process. First, the mail transfer unit 1 is started by receiving a start notification from the mail processing operation recording unit 3, or is started automatically at a time interval designated by the user.

The mail transfer means 1 checks in step 101 whether a new mail has been sent to the spool corresponding to the mail address of the user. If there is a newly sent mail, one of the newly sent mails is selected in step 102.

In step 103, step 102
Check whether the mail selected in step 3 is sent from a third party. If the selected mail is a mail sent from a third party, in step 104,
The mail selected in step 102 is given a unique identifier within a plurality of mail addresses used by the user, such as “mail address”, “reception date”, and “serial number”.

In Step 105, Step 10
For the mail selected in step 2, it is checked whether there is a transfer address whose attribute satisfies the transfer condition. If there is a transfer address that satisfies the condition, step 106
The selected mail is transferred to all transfer addresses satisfying the conditions. If there is no transfer address satisfying the condition of the mail attribute, the mail is not transferred.

Next, in step 107, the mail selected in step 102 is moved to the unread mail folder. If the selected mail is not a third-party mail but a mail sent from another mail address of the user, the mail is stored in an unread mail folder in step 107.

Thereafter, the flow returns to step 101 to check whether there is still a newly sent mail. If there is no newly sent mail, it is checked in step 108 whether or not the mail has been automatically started. If the mail has been automatically started, the process ends. If the process is started by sending a start notification from the mail processing operation recording means 3, a processing end notification is sent to the mail processing operation recording means 3 in step 109, and the processing operation mail transfer from the mail processing operation recording means 3 is performed. It waits in step 110 for the notification to be sent.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure for transmitting a processing operation mail when the above-mentioned mail transfer means 1 receives a processing operation mail transfer notification from the mail processing operation recording means 3. Mail processing operation recording means 3
When the processing operation mail transfer notification is transmitted, the process exits from the waiting state in step 110 and receives the processing operation mail transfer notification in step 1111. Thereafter, the mail transfer means 1 stores the processing operation stored in the storage means by the mail processing operation recording means 3 in step 112.
Is selected, and the attribute of the mail to be operated and the processing time are taken out together from the storage means.

Next, in step 113, for the selected processing operation , the attribute of the mail to be operated is the condition of the transfer address and the transfer mail attribute recorded on the recording means (for example, see FIG. 4) . Check if there is a forwarding address that satisfies. If there is a transfer address that satisfies the condition of the mail attribute, in step 114, the processing operation selected for each address and the attribute and time of the mail to be operated are stored. If there is no transfer address satisfying the condition of the mail attribute, step 115 is executed.

At step 115, it is checked whether or not a processing operation still remains in the storage means. If there is a processing operation, the flow returns to step 112 to repeat the processing. If all processing operations have been taken out, step 11
In step 6, the processing operation mail stored for each address, the processing operation mail including the attribute of the mail to be operated and the processing time and the password plus the password is transmitted to each address, and the process is terminated.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing procedure of the mail processing operation recording means 3 when a user operates a mail. The mail processing operation recording means 3 is activated when a user operates a mail. The mail processing operation recording means 3 sends a start notification to the mail transfer means 1 in step l2l, and waits for a processing end notification from the mail transfer means 1. When the processing completion notice is sent from the mail transfer means 1, the process exits from the waiting state, sends a start notification to the mail receiving means 2 in step 122, and waits for the mail receiving means 2 to send a folder lock completion notice. When a folder lock completion notification is sent from the mail receiving means 2, the process exits from the waiting state and receives a command input from the user in step 123.

In step 124, it is checked whether or not the mail folder 4 which is the target of the input command is locked by the mail receiving means 2. If it is locked, it is checked in step 125 whether the command input by the user is a read operation of a mail sent from a third party. If the command is a read operation of a mail sent from a third party, step l
At step 26, a temporary mail folder is created, and mail sent from a third party existing in the unread folder is read into this mail folder. If the command is other than a read operation of a mail sent from a third party, the command is not processed and the user is notified in step 127 that the mail folder 4 is locked.

In step 124, the mail folder 4
If is not locked, it is checked in step 128 whether the command has been terminated. If the command is not the end processing, in step 129, the command requested by the user is executed. Then, the processing operation executed in step 130 is stored in the storage means together with the attribute of the mail to be operated and the processing time. Here, when the input command is the deletion of the mail, the identifier attached to the mail to be deleted is added to the deletion log.

If the command is an end processing in step 128, the mail processing operation recording means 3 sends a processing operation mail transfer notification to the mail transfer means 1 in step 131 and ends.

When an error notification is sent from the mail receiving means 2 during execution of these steps shown in FIG. 7, the mail processing operation recording means 3 reports an error to the user.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing procedure of the mail receiving means 2 activated from the mail processing operation recording means 3 when the user performs a mail receiving operation. The mail receiving means 2 is started when a start notification is sent from the mail processing operation recording means 3. The mail receiving means 2 acquires the locks of all the mail folders 4 in step 141. When the lock is obtained, a folder lock completion notification is sent to the mail processing operation recording means 3 in step 142.

Next, the mail receiving means 2 executes step 14
In 3, it is checked whether a processing operation mail is stored in the unread folder of the mail folder 4. If the processing operation mail is stored, take out one of it,
In step 144, it is checked whether the password in the processing operation mail matches the password stored in the storage means. If the passwords match, the content of the processing operation mail is stored in the storage means in step 145. If the passwords do not match, the process returns to step 143 to repeat the check of the processing operation mail.

If there is no processing operation mail stored in the unread folder in step 143, step 14
In step 6, it is checked whether there is a processing operation extracted from the processing operation mail on the storage means. If there is no processing operation extracted from the processing operation mail in the storage means, the locks of all the mail folders 4 acquired in step l47 are released. If there is a processing operation in the storage means in step 146, the process target folder is sorted in step 148 so that the folders specified by the user are in the order of the folder specified by the user.

Next, in step 149, the mail folder 4 is updated in accordance with the sorted order of the processing operations. At this time, the processing time extracted by the processing operation mail is added to the mail as a mail attribute. Also,
If the processing operation is the last processing operation on the mail folder, the locked mail folder 4 is released.

Thereafter, in step 150, it is checked whether or not the temporary folder generated by the mail processing operation recording means 3 exists, and if there is a folder, the folder is combined with the default folder. When the mail folder 4 has been updated for all the sorted processing operations, the mail receiving means 2
Ends.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure when the mail folder 4 is updated in accordance with the processing operation of the processing operation mail in step 149 of the mail receiving means 2 shown in FIG. In step 151, the mail receiving means 2 searches for the mail to be operated in the mail folder to be operated specified by the operation processing mail.

If a mail to be operated is found in step 152, the folder is updated in step 153 according to the processing operation. If the mail to be operated is not found in step 152, the mail to be operated is searched in the entire mail folder of the user in step 154.

In step 155, if there is a mail to be operated, the processing time attached to the mail in step 156 is compared with the processing time of the processing operation of the processing operation mail. If the processing time of the mail is later, the content of the processing operation mail is ignored. If the processing time of the processing operation mail is later, in step 157, the folder is updated according to the processing operation. At this time, the processing time of the processing operation is added to the processing operation mail.

If the operation target mail is not found in step 155, the operation proceeds to step 158 to search the deletion log for the identifier of the operation target mail. If the identifier of the mail to be operated is found in step 159, the contents of the processing operation mail are ignored. In step 159, when the identifier of the mail to be operated is not found, an error notification is sent to the mail processing operation recording means 3 to report an error to the user.

As described above, in the communication system according to the present embodiment, the mail transfer means 1 is newly sent at the user's mail address at the start of operation or at regular time intervals specified by the user. Check for incoming mail. When an e-mail is received from a third party, only the e-mail that matches the attribute specified by the user with respect to the e-mail address of the user is transferred to the mail transfer unit
Will transfer. The mail processing operation recording unit 3 records the processing operation performed on the mail when the user receives the mail and the processing operation performed on the mail already existing in the mail folder 4 on the storage unit. When the user completes the processing operation on the mail, the mail processing operation recording means 3 replaces the mail processing operation previously recorded on the storage means by the mail transfer means 1 with another mail of the user specified by the user. Send to the address as a processing operation mail. When the user operates a mail, the mail receiving means 2 checks whether a processing operation mail has been sent from another mail address of the user. When the processing operation mail is sent from another mail address of the user, the mail folder 4 is updated based on the operation in the processing operation mail.

Further, in the communication system, the mail transfer means 1 transmits the password together with the processing operation mail. The mail receiving means 2 performs processing on the processing operation mail only when the password included in the operation processing mail matches the stored password.

Further, in the communication system, when the received processing operation mail contains a password change command and a new password in addition to the password, the new password received from the password storage means is received. Change to

Further, in the communication system, when the received processing operation mail includes a command for adding or deleting a transfer address or changing the attribute of the transfer mail, the transfer mail address stored in the storage means is stored. Add or delete the forwarded mail address and change the forwarded mail attribute in response to the specification of the user of the forwarded mail attribute.

Further, in the communication system, when updating the mail folder 4 based on the contents of the processing operation mail, the mail receiving means 2 first locks the mail folder 4 for storing the user's mail. When the mail folder 4 has been updated, the lock on the mail folder 4 is released.

Further, in the communication system, the mail receiving means 2 stores the mail transferred based on the operation information of the processing operation mail in the mail folder 4 according to the order of the mail folder 4 specified by the user, and stores the mail in the mail folder 4. Then, the contents of the mail folder 4 are updated by performing an operation on the mail existing in the mail folder 4. The mail receiving means 2 releases the lock of the mail folder secured at the time when the update of the mail folder is completed. In addition, when the mail folder 4 is locked, the mail receiving means 2 sends the mail sent to the mail address currently used by the user to a mail transferred from another mail address and a mail other than the processing operation mail. As for, the mail is received in the temporary mail folder, and after the lock of the mail folder 4 is released, the temporary mail folder is combined with the existing mail folder 4. The e-mail receiving means 2 stores the e-mail address of the sender of the e-mail when the e-mail transferred from the e-mail address of the user is stored in the e-mail folder of the user. From to the sender when the email was sent to the user's other email address.

Further, in the communication system, when the user deletes the mail, the mail processing operation recording means 3 stores the mail identifier in the deletion log. If there is no mail to be deleted included in the received processing operation mail, the mail receiving means 2 searches the deletion log and checks whether the identifier of the target mail is included. If the target mail identifier is found in the deletion log, the mail receiving means 2 ignores all operations on the already deleted mail. If the target mail identifier is not found in the deletion log, report an error to the user.

[0076]

In the communication system according to the present invention,
The following effects can be obtained.

In a communication system, a mail sent from a third party to a mail address of a user can be operated at another mail address of the user connected to the network. Furthermore, in a communication system, mail is automatically transferred between mail addresses,
Since the mail folders of all the mail addresses of the user can be set in the same state, the user can operate the mail without being conscious of which mail address is used.

Further, in the communication system, by locking the mail folder until the state of the mail folder becomes the same, it is possible to prevent user operations from being performed at the same time and to maintain the consistency of the mail folder.

Further, in the communication system, the lock of the mail folder is divided for each folder. Therefore, the lock is performed even while the system is performing the processing for making the state of the user's mail folder the same as another mail address. The user's operation on the mail folder that has been released can be accepted, and the waiting time of the user can be reduced.

Further, in the communication system, the system performs the operation of making the state of the mail folder the same as that of another mail address of the user by sorting the mail folders in the order of the mail folder specified by the user. The waiting time for the user to lock the mail folder to be operated is reduced.

Further, in the communication system, even when the default folder in which the mail is stored is locked when the user reads the unread mail, the user can transfer the mail sent from the third party to the temporary mail. Since the data can be stored and read in the folder, the waiting time of the user is reduced.

Further, in the communication system, since the mail address of the user who transfers the mail can be limited according to the attribute of the mail, the communication load can be reduced.

Further, in the communication system, a mail sent from a third party is automatically checked even when the user does not start using the system, so that the mail is sent to a mail address that the user does not frequently use. The mail can be read at the user's other mail address at that address without the user activating the system.

Further, in the communication system, the mail sent from a third party is given a unique identifier in the system, so that the user can move or delete the mail before the system sends the desired mail. It is possible to prevent the processing from being interrupted without being found.

Further, in the communication system, the mail transfer designation can be set from another address of the user, so that the user sets the transfer setting of the mail address not frequently used by the user at the mail address. Eliminates the need.

Further, in the communication system, when the system sends a process for making the state of the user's mail folder the same as another mail address by e-mail, a password is added so that another person can illegally use the user's mail folder. Can be prevented from changing.

Further, in the communication system, since the passwords of all the mail addresses of the user can be changed from one mail address of the user, the password can be changed frequently and the security of the system can be improved.

Further, in the communication system, the reply to the mail is transmitted by changing the transmission source of the mail transferred from the other mail address of the user to the address of the third party who sent the mail to the user. At this time, it is possible to prevent the user from sending a reply to the mail address to which the mail was transferred.

Further, in the communication system, when the processing operation already performed by the user and the processing performed by the system to make the state of the user's mail folder the same as another mail address are inconsistent, the processing time is stored. So
It is possible to determine the later processing in time, and it is possible to resolve the inconsistency.

[Brief description of the drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a processing operation mail in the communication system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing commands and command parameters included in the processing operation mail.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing designation of a transfer address and a transfer mail attribute in the communication system.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure in which a mail transfer unit checks a newly sent mail and performs a transfer process in the communication system.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure in which a mail transfer unit transmits a processing operation mail when a user ends a mail operation in the communication system.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure of a mail processing operation recording unit when a user performs a mail operation in the communication system.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure of a mail receiving unit when a user performs a mail receiving operation in the communication system.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when a mail folder is updated by a mail receiving unit in the communication system according to the content of a processing operation mail.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 mail transfer means, 2 mail reception means, 3 mail processing operation recording means, 4 mail folders, 5 e-mail devices, 6 communication network.

Claims (13)

(57) [Claims] 1. A communication system in which a plurality of e-mail devices are connected to a communication network, a mail folder for storing mail received by a user, and a mail process for recording a processing operation performed on the mail by the user. The operation recording means and, of the e-mails sent to the user's e-mail address, the e-mail sent from a third party other than the user is transferred to all other e-mail addresses of the user, and the user A mail transfer means for transmitting a processing operation mail having the contents of the processing operation for the mail recorded by the mail processing operation recording means to the other mail addresses of the user when the processing operation is completed; Mail receiving means for updating a mail folder based on an operation in the processing operation mail sent from another mail address used by the Communication system, comprising the. 2. An operation lock unit for locking a user's operation of a mail folder on a mail folder until the mail folder is updated by the mail receiving unit based on the contents of the processing operation mail. The communication system according to claim 1. 3. A storage unit for storing the order of a mail folder designated by a user when there are a plurality of mail folders for one mail address of the user, and based on the contents of the processing operation mail. When updating a mail folder, the mail folder is updated in accordance with the order of the mail folders stored in the storage means, and a lock release means for releasing a lock from the updated mail folder is provided. 3. The communication system according to 2. 4. A method for storing the contents of a plurality of processing operation mails sent from another mail address of the user to the mail address of the user in the storage means, and performing the processing operation according to the order of the mail folders specified by the user. 4. The communication system according to claim 3, further comprising means for sorting mails and updating a mail folder. 5. A default storage for storing unread mail of a user.
For mail sent to a default folder from a third party other than the user, the mail is received in a temporary mail folder when the default folder is locked, the Deformation a temporary mail folder after the lock of the default folder is released
3. The communication system according to claim 2, further comprising means for connecting to a default folder. 6. A storage means for storing the designation contents about the attributes of mail to be forwarded to a forwarding address and the transfer address for transferring the mail in the mail transfer means, feeding the rolling stored in said storage means address and its
Within the specified attributes for mail to be forwarded to a forwarding address
The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising: a mail to be transferred to another mail address of the user according to the contents , and means for limiting a transfer destination of the mail. 7. Check whether an e-mail has been sent to the user at regular time intervals other than at the time of the user's operation according to the specification of the user, and if an e-mail has been sent, use the e-mail. 2. The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising a mail transfer unit that transfers a mail to another mail address of a user. 8. When a mail sent from a third party other than the user is received, a unique identifier is assigned in the system,
2. The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising means for storing a mail identifier in a log when a delete operation is performed on the mail. 9. A means for changing the designation of the mail transfer by sending the addition and deletion of the transfer address and the change of the attribute of the transfer mail from the user's mail address to another user's mail address by the processing operation mail. The communication system according to claim 6, wherein: 10. A storage means for storing a password for a user's mail address, wherein said password is sent together with a processing operation mail sent from the user's mail address to another user's mail address, and said processing operation The mail folder is updated according to the contents of the processing operation mail only when the password stored in the password storage means at the mail address of the user who received the mail and the password matches the received password. Claim 6
The communication system according to claim 1. 11. A password change command and a new password are sent together with a processing operation mail and password sent from the user's mail address to another user's mail address, and the processing operation mail, password and password change command and a new password are sent. Only when the password stored in the password storage unit at the e-mail address of the user who received the password matches the received password, the mail folder is updated according to the contents of the processing operation mail, and the password is stored in the password storage unit. The communication system according to claim 10, wherein the stored password is changed to the received new password. 12. A mail transferred from another mail address of the user is stored in the mail folder of the user according to the contents of the processing operation mail sent from another mail address of the user. when the sender e-mail of the mail
Enter the address of the user from whom the email was forwarded
From the email address of
2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the mail is changed to a mail address of a transmission source of the mail. 13. A means for recording the time as a mail attribute when a user performs a processing operation for adding a mail to a mail folder, and a processing operation mail sent from a plurality of mail addresses of the user. 2. The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising: means for resolving the inconsistency in the state of the mail folder caused when the arrival is delayed for a reason based on the recorded time.