JP5492636B2 - Fax transmission system and fax transmission control device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for preventing erroneous transmission of a fax such as transmitting a fax to an incorrect destination or transmitting an inappropriate document when transmitting a fax using a multifunction device. is there.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, multifunction peripherals configured by storing a copy function, a fax function, a scanner function, and the like in a single casing have become widespread. In the prior art, when sending a fax from such a multifunction machine, it is common to enter the destination telephone number using the numeric keypad on the operation panel of the multifunction machine and send the fax.

  In addition, in the prior art, before setting a document in the multifunction device, it is generally performed that the user visually confirms the contents of the document to be faxed and checks whether the document is correct for fax sending. It has been broken.

JP 2006-253959 A

  In the method of manually inputting a telephone number with the numeric keypad as in the above prior art, there is a possibility that a fax is transmitted to an incorrect destination due to a difference in the number input.

  To solve this problem, register a telephone number for each fax destination in advance in the MFP, display the registered destination on the operation panel, and select the destination when sending a fax. There is a technology to send a fax.

  However, in general, since a large number of multifunction devices used in a company are installed in units such as each company base and each floor, in the method of registering the destination telephone number in advance, It takes a lot of effort to keep the registration information up to date.

  In other words, for example, when the telephone number of a certain destination is changed due to relocation, etc., in order to update the telephone number registered in many installed multifunction devices to the correct one, install the multifunction device. It is necessary to disseminate the change information to the departments in charge, and the registration information must be actually changed in each multifunction device. There is also.

  Therefore, in the method in which the telephone number of the transmission destination is registered in advance, the registered information may be incorrect, and in this case, the fax is transmitted to the wrong destination.

  Also, with the conventional method of checking the document to be faxed before setting it in the multifunction device, the document that has been confirmed and the document actually set in the multifunction device may be different due to some error. This is not a reliable confirmation method. In addition, for example, when an upper-level approver approves the fax transmission, a troublesome work such as actually showing the approver the document to be sent by the fax occurs. From the viewpoint of the approver, there is no guarantee that the confirmed document and the document actually faxed are the same, and there remains anxiety.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for preventing erroneous transmission of a fax in order to solve the above-described problems of the prior art and to eliminate errors in a fax destination and a transmitted document.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a fax transmission system in which a multifunction machine, a fax transmission control apparatus, and a fax transmission approval apparatus are connected to a communication network, and the fax transmission control apparatus Includes a destination information storage unit that stores destination information including destination identification information and a destination telephone number, and the fax transmission control device receives a request from the multifunction device from the destination information storage unit. The transmission destination information is read, the transmission destination information is transmitted to the multifunction peripheral, and the multifunction peripheral displays the transmission destination information on a display unit so that a user can select a specific transmission destination. After a specific destination is selected on the screen, the document to be faxed is scanned based on instructions from the user. A document confirmation screen including a document image is displayed on the display means, and the MFP receives the information indicating that the document confirmation has been received, and then displays the document image and the selected destination telephone number. A fax transmission processing request including the document image and the destination telephone number, and sending the fax transmission approval request to the fax transmission approval device by e-mail. The fax transmission approval apparatus transmits the document image to the approver terminal connected to the communication network, and receives the approval notification from the approver terminal, and then includes the document image and the destination telephone number. A facsimile apparatus that transmits a transmission execution request to the multifunction device by e-mail, and the multifunction device corresponds the document image to the destination telephone number. Configured as a fax transmission system, characterized by facsimile transmission.

  The fax transmission control device generates fax transmission identification information for identifying the fax transmission after receiving the fax transmission processing request, stores the fax transmission identification information in status information storage means, and stores the fax transmission identification information in the fax In addition to the transmission approval request, the fax transmission approval device further includes the fax transmission identification information in the fax transmission execution request, and the fax transmission approval device includes status information relating to the approval to which the fax transmission identification information is added. To the fax transmission control device, and the multi-function peripheral transmits fax transmission status information to which the fax transmission identification information is added to the fax transmission control device, and the fax transmission control device transmits each status information, The fax transmission identification information It may be configured to store the status information storage unit in association with.

  The present invention also relates to a fax transmission control apparatus used in a fax transmission system configured by connecting a multifunction peripheral, a fax transmission control apparatus, and a fax transmission approval apparatus to a communication network, and identifying a transmission destination. Destination information storage means for storing destination information including information and destination telephone number, multifunction peripheral processing control means for transmitting control information describing processing contents in the multifunction peripheral to the multifunction peripheral, and the communication network Mail communication function means for performing mail transmission / reception above, and the multifunction peripheral processing control means reads destination information from the destination information storage means based on a request from the multifunction peripheral, and Control information including information is transmitted to the multi-function peripheral, and the multi-function peripheral that has received the control information receives the control information based on the control information. Displaying the transmission destination information on a display means so that a recipient can be selected, and after receiving notification of information indicating that a transmission destination has been selected from the multifunction peripheral, the multifunction peripheral processing control means, Control information including document confirmation screen information is transmitted to the multi-function peripheral, and the multi-function peripheral displays a document confirmation screen including a document image of a fax transmission target obtained by scanning based on the received control information on the display unit. Then, after receiving the information indicating that the document has been confirmed, a fax transmission processing request including the document image and the selected destination telephone number is transmitted to the fax transmission control device, and the fax transmission is performed. The mail communication function means in the fax transmission control apparatus that has received the processing request sends a fax transmission approval request including the document image and the destination telephone number to the fax transmission approval request. It may be configured as a facsimile transmission control device, characterized by Email in box transmission approval apparatus.

  According to the present invention, since fax transmission can be performed using a telephone number managed by the fax transmission control device, it is possible to eliminate a mistake in inputting a number in a method of manually inputting a telephone number.

  Also, by managing telephone numbers centrally in the fax transmission control device, compared to the prior art where registration information must be updated in each of a large number of multifunction devices, there is less time and effort involved in managing updates and the like. In addition to being greatly reduced, it is possible to eliminate omissions in updating telephone numbers and to always send a fax based on the latest telephone number.

  In addition, by using the present invention, it is possible to confirm the document image that is actually transmitted by fax (the user of the multifunction machine), so that it is possible to surely check the document content before transmission. . In addition, the approver can automatically confirm the document image, and there is no need for approval, and for the approver, the document image to be actually sent by fax is confirmed. Certain approvals can be made.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a fax transmission system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a functional configuration diagram of the multifunction machine 3. FIG. 2 is a functional configuration diagram of a fax transmission control device 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of transmission destination information stored in a transmission destination information storage unit 16. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the user information stored in the user information storage part. It is a figure which shows the example of the status information stored in the status information storage part. 3 is a functional configuration diagram of a fax transmission approval device 2. FIG. It is a sequence chart for demonstrating operation | movement of the fax transmission system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence chart for demonstrating operation | movement of the fax transmission system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed on the multifunction machine 3. FIG.

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

(System configuration)
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a fax transmission system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a fax transmission system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a fax transmission control device 1, a fax transmission approval device 2, and a multifunction device 3, which are connected to a communication network 4. Is done.

  Further, an approver terminal 5 that communicates with the fax transmission approval device 2 is connected to the communication network 4. The multifunction machine 3 is also connected to a public telephone network 6 to which a fax machine 7 that is a fax transmission destination is connected.

  The communication network 4 may be an IP network, and its form is not limited to a specific one. For example, the communication network 4 is an in-house private network, the Internet, or a network to which these are connected. Further, for example, a wireless network may be used as an access part from the multifunction machine 3 to the communication network 4.

  The communication network 4 includes a mail server, and each device connected to the communication network 4 can communicate by mail.

  For convenience of illustration, only one multifunction device 3 is shown in FIG. 1, but in reality, many multifunction devices are connected to the communication network 4 and communicate with the fax transmission control device 1 or the like. Thus, the same operation as the illustrated multifunction machine 3 is performed.

<Multifunction device>
The multifunction machine 3 is a device that includes a copy function, a scanner function, a fax function, and the like, and is also called an MFP. As the multifunction machine 3 used in the present embodiment, a commercially available multifunction machine can be used. Note that in order to realize the functions described in the present embodiment, it is not essential that the multifunction machine 3 has a copy function.

  FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration diagram of the multifunction machine 3 in the present embodiment. Note that FIG. 2 shows only functions related to the present embodiment among the functions of the multifunction machine 3.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the multifunction machine 3 includes a display unit 31, an operation input unit 32, a network communication unit 33, a mail communication function unit 34, a fax function unit 35, a scanner function unit 36, a command interpretation execution unit 37, and A data storage unit 38 is included.

  The display unit 31 is a functional unit for displaying data on the screen based on an instruction from the instruction interpretation execution unit 37. The operation input unit 32 is a functional unit that receives an operation input from the user and notifies the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 of an operation event. The display unit 31 is realized by using, for example, a touch panel as a hardware element. Further, the operation input unit 32 may be realized by using a hardware key on the operation panel of the multifunction machine, or may be realized by a software key displayed on a touch panel used for the display unit 31.

  The network communication unit 33 is a functional unit that performs data communication via the communication network 4, and includes a network interface as hardware, a TCP / IP communication function as software, and the like.

  The mail communication function unit 34 is a function unit that performs mail transmission / reception according to SMTP via the network communication unit 33. The mail communication function unit 33 also includes an Internet FAX gateway function that performs mutual conversion between mail communication and fax communication via the public telephone network 6.

  The fax function unit 35 has a function of transmitting and receiving a fax (G3 or the like) with the fax machine 7 via the public telephone network 6. The scanner function unit 36 has a scanner function of reading a document set in the multifunction machine 3, converting it into image data, and storing it in the data storage unit 38.

  The command interpretation execution unit 37 is a functional unit realized by, for example, a Web browser, and receives a command sentence (specifically, for example, in an HTML document and an HTML document from the fax transmission control device 1 via the network communication unit 33). , Etc.), and in accordance with the command statement, performs a screen display, a process according to an operation input by the user, a process instruction to each function unit of the multifunction machine, and the like. Since the multifunction device 3 is controlled based on the command statement, the command statement may be referred to as “control information”.

  The data storage unit 38 is realized by a storage device such as a memory or a hard disk, and is appropriately referred to by each functional unit of the multifunction machine 3 to perform data writing / reading.

<Fax transmission control device>
The fax transmission control device 1 communicates with the command interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction device 3 to display screen display content (transmission destination information, etc.) to be displayed on the multifunction device 3 and a command statement that defines the operation of the multifunction device 3. Are sent to the multifunction device 3, and when the multifunction device 3 is instructed to perform fax transmission, the document image data to be faxed is received from the multifunction device 3, and a fax transmission approval request including the document image data is received. Is sent to the fax transmission approval device 2 by e-mail.

  FIG. 3 shows a functional configuration diagram of the fax transmission control apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the fax transmission control apparatus 1 includes a network communication unit 11, a multifunction device processing control unit 12, a mail communication function unit 13, a status processing unit 14, a control data storage unit 15, a transmission destination information storage unit 16, A user information storage unit 17 and a status information storage unit 18 are included.

  The network communication unit 11 is a functional unit for performing data communication via the communication network 4. The mail communication function unit 13 is a functional unit that can send and receive general mail and can also send and receive mail that conforms to the Internet FAX protocol.

  The multifunction device processing control unit 12 communicates with the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction device 3, and in response to a request received from the multifunction device 3, data and instructions for screen display from the control data storage unit 15 and the like. It has a function of acquiring a sentence and transmitting an instruction sentence composed of the sentence to the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction machine 3. When the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 in the multifunction device 3 is realized by a web browser, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 includes a web server function as a corresponding function.

  When receiving a fax transmission processing request, the status processing unit 14 generates (or pays out) identification information (hereinafter referred to as a message ID) that can identify the fax transmission, and status information together with the user ID. The status information is stored in the storage unit 18 and information on each status received from the multifunction machine 3 and the like is stored in the status information storage unit 18.

  As described above, the control data storage unit 15 stores screen information to be displayed on the multifunction device 3, a command statement for controlling the operation of the multifunction device 3, and the like. Based on the information stored in the control data storage unit 15, a command statement is constructed and sent to the multifunction device 3.

  The transmission destination information storage unit 16 stores transmission destination information. FIG. 4 shows an example of transmission destination information stored in the transmission destination information storage unit 16. As shown in FIG. 4, the transmission destination information in this example corresponds to a destination organization name such as a company name, an intra-organization destination such as a specific personal name (including a representative) in the organization, and an intra-organization destination. Includes telephone number (fax number). These pieces of information are updated as needed by the administrator of the fax transmission control apparatus 1 as necessary, and are kept up-to-date.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of user information stored in the user information storage unit 17. As shown in FIG. 5, the user information in this example includes a user ID, a password, and transmission destination information registered in advance for each user. This transmission destination information is, for example, the company name of the business partner in charge of the user.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of status information stored in the status information storage unit 18. As shown in FIG. 6, the status information in this example includes a user ID, a message ID, and a status indicating completion of fax transmission.

  The fax transmission control apparatus 1 having each function described above can be realized by mounting a program for performing processing corresponding to each function unit on a general computer including a storage unit such as a memory and a hard disk and a CPU. The program may be installed in the computer from a recording medium such as a portable memory or a disk, or may be downloaded from a server on a network to the computer and installed.

  Further, the internal functional classification of the fax transmission control apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to that shown in FIG. 3, and any function can be used as long as the operation shown in the present embodiment can be realized. Such functional division may be used.

<Fax transmission approval device>
The fax transmission approval device 2 performs a fax transmission approval process in response to receiving the fax transmission approval request from the fax transmission control device 1, and transmits a fax transmission execution request to the multifunction device 3 when the approval is made. It is a device having a function such as.

  FIG. 7 shows a functional configuration diagram of the fax transmission approval apparatus 2. As shown in FIG. 7, the fax transmission approval apparatus 2 includes a network communication unit 21, an approval function unit 22, a mail communication function unit 23, and a data storage unit 24.

  The network communication unit 21 is a functional unit for performing data communication via the communication network 4. The mail communication function unit 23 is a function unit that can send and receive general mail and can also send and receive mail that conforms to the Internet FAX protocol.

  When the approval function unit 22 receives a fax transmission approval request from the fax transmission control device 1 via the mail communication function unit 23, the approval function unit 22 is associated with the user ID of the user who performs fax transmission. It is a functional unit that performs an approval process by sending an approval request by e-mail to the approver's terminal 5 (e.g.). The data storage unit 24 stores data related to processing.

  Note that there are already various techniques for performing approval related to transmission contents online in e-mail transmission and the like, and it is possible to perform approval in various forms in this embodiment. The approval process performed by the approval function unit 22 in the present embodiment is merely an example.

(System operation)
Next, the operation of the fax transmission system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the sequence charts of FIGS. An example of a screen displayed on the display unit 31 in the multifunction machine 3 is shown in FIG. 10, and FIG. 10 is also referred to as appropriate.

  The address (URL) of the fax transmission control device 1 is registered in the data storage unit 38 of the multifunction device 3, and the user of the multifunction device 3 designates the address on the display unit 31, whereby the multifunction device 3. (The command interpretation execution unit 37) accesses the fax transmission control apparatus 1 (step 1). Note that when the menu is displayed on the display unit 31 and “FAX transmission” is selected, the fax transmission control apparatus 1 may be accessed.

  In the fax transmission control apparatus 1 that has received the access, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 sends a command statement including login information to the multifunction device 3 (step 2). In the MFP 3 that has received the command statement, the command interpretation execution unit 37 displays a login screen shown in FIG. When the user ID and password are input from the operation input unit 32, the command interpretation execution unit 37 transmits a login request including the user ID and password to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 (step 3).

  Upon receiving the login request, the MFP processing control unit 12 of the fax transmission control apparatus 1 performs user authentication by checking whether the user ID and password included in the login request exist in the user information storage unit 17. . Here, it is assumed that the user authentication is successful.

  Thereafter, communication between the multifunction device 3 and the fax transmission control device 1 is performed, whereby fax transmission control is performed (steps 4 and 5). This process will be described with reference to the sequence chart of FIG.

  After successful user authentication, the MFP processing control unit 12 acquires the registered transmission destination of the user from the user information storage unit 17 based on the user ID that has been successfully authenticated, and transmits the transmission destination information corresponding to the registered transmission destination. Is acquired from the transmission destination information storage unit 16 (step 101). Then, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 transmits a command statement including the destination screen information to the multifunction device 3 (step 102). The instruction interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction device 3 that has received the command statement displays a transmission destination selection screen including transmission destination information as shown in FIG. 10B (step 103).

  Instead of performing the processing using the registered transmission destination as described above, a search word (such as the first few characters of the company name) is received from the multifunction machine 3, and the transmission destination information corresponding to the search word is transmitted to the transmission destination information. A command sentence acquired from the storage unit 16 and including the destination information may be transmitted.

  When one transmission destination is designated by the user on the display screen shown in FIG. 10B and the OK button is pressed (step 104), the selected transmission destination telephone number is stored in the data storage unit 38. At the same time, the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 transmits a destination selection completion notification to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 (step 105).

  When the multifunction device processing control unit 12 of the fax transmission control device 1 confirms that the transmission destination selection is completed by the transmission destination selection completion notification, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 transmits a command statement including the document scan operation instruction screen information to the multifunction device 3. (Step 106).

  The instruction interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction machine 3 that has received the command statement displays a document scan instruction screen as shown in FIG. 10C on the display unit 31 (step 107). When the user sets a document in the multi-function device 3 and presses the “scan execution” button (step 108), the command interpretation execution unit 37 executes the command included in the above-described command statement, thereby causing the scanner function. The unit 36 is instructed to scan the document and store the document image data in the data storage unit 38. Thereby, the scanning process is executed and completed (step 109).

  When the scanning process is completed, a scan completion notification is notified from the scanner function unit 36 to the command interpretation execution unit 37, and the command interpretation execution unit 37 transmits a scan completion notification to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 (step 110).

  In the fax transmission control apparatus 1, when the multifunction device processing control unit 12 receives the scan completion notification, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 confirms that the scanning is completed, and then sends a command statement including transmission confirmation screen information. The data is transmitted to the multifunction machine 3 (step 111).

  Upon receiving the command statement, the command interpretation execution unit 37 of the multifunction machine 3 displays the screen shown in FIG. 10D on the display unit 31 (step 112). When the user sees this screen information and confirms that the transmission destination is correct, the user presses the transmission confirmation button (step 113). Then, a transmission confirmation notification indicating that the transmission confirmation button has been pressed is sent to the multifunction device processing control unit 12 of the file transmission control device 1 (step 114), and the multifunction device processing control unit 12 performs the transmission confirmation. Make sure. The screen display in step 112 is effective for confirming the telephone number of the transmission destination. However, since the telephone number is confirmed before transmission, the processing related to the display in step 112 can be omitted. It is.

  Subsequently, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 transmits a command statement including document confirmation screen information to the multifunction device 3 (step 115). In the multi-function peripheral, the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 that has received the command statement acquires the document image data stored in the data storage unit 38 based on the command of the command statement, as shown in FIG. A document confirmation screen is displayed on the display unit 31 (step 116).

  When the user confirms that the content of the document is correct, the user presses a document confirmation button (step 117). A document confirmation notification indicating that the document confirmation button has been pressed is sent to the multifunction device processing control unit 12 of the file transmission control apparatus 1 (step 118), and the multifunction device processing control unit 12 confirms that the document confirmation has been performed. Check.

  Subsequently, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 transmits a command statement including fax transmission execution screen information to the multifunction device (step 119). In the multifunction device 3, the instruction interpretation execution unit 37 that has received the command statement displays a fax transmission execution screen as shown in FIG. 10F on the display unit 31 (step 120). Here, the operation after the user presses the transmission execution button (step 121) will be described with reference to FIG. 8 (step 6 and subsequent steps).

  When the transmission execution button is pressed by the user, the command interpretation execution unit 37 controls the transmission of a fax transmission processing request (including a destination telephone number and identification information of the multifunction device 3) including the document image data to be transmitted. This is transmitted to the multifunction device processing control unit 12 of the apparatus 1 (step 6).

  Upon receiving the fax transmission processing request, the MFP processing control unit 12 instructs the status processing unit 14 to generate a message ID for identifying fax transmission, and stores the message ID together with the corresponding user ID in status information. The data is stored in the unit 18 (step 7).

  Then, the multifunction device processing control unit 12 sends a fax transmission approval request including the document image data, the destination telephone number, the message ID, and the user ID, which is a fax transmission target, by fax using the mail communication function unit 13. It transmits to the transmission approval apparatus 2 (step 8). This fax transmission approval request is transmitted based on the Internet FAX protocol.

  Upon receipt of the fax transmission approval request, the approval function unit 22 of the fax transmission approval device 2 stores the information included in the fax transmission approval request in the data storage unit 24 and the user with the user ID included in the fax transmission approval request. The mail communication function unit 23 is used to send an approval request to the address of the approver corresponding to (the address of the approver terminal 5 and stored in advance in the data storage unit 24). This approval request includes link information (URL) for accessing the document image data.

  Here, it is assumed that the approver is selected by the user ID, but this is only an example. For example, the approver may be selected based on the identification information of the multifunction device 3. Further, the approver may be fixedly determined.

  When the approver selects (clicks) the link information on the approver terminal 5 (step 9), a document screen to be transmitted is displayed on the approver terminal 5 (step 10). Is clicked (step 11), information indicating that the approval is completed (approval completion notice) is sent from the approver terminal 5 to the fax transmission approval apparatus 1 (step 12). ).

  As described above, there are various existing forms of online document approval processing using e-mail or the like, and the above example is merely an example.

Upon receiving the approval completion notification, the mail communication function unit 23 in the fax transmission approval apparatus 1 transmits a fax transmission execution request including the document image data, the message ID, and the transmission destination telephone number to the multifunction machine 3 by mail (step 13). . This mail is transmitted to the Internet FAX based on the protocol.
In the MFP 3, the mail communication function unit 34 that has received the fax transmission execution request instructs the fax function unit 35 to send a fax, and the fax function unit 35 receives the document image data document included in the fax transmission execution request. The image is faxed to the fax machine 7 with the destination telephone number (step 14).

  On the other hand, in the fax transmission approval apparatus 2 that has received the approval completion notification, the mail communication function unit 23 transmits status information (including the message ID) indicating that the approval is completed to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 by e-mail ( Step 15). In the fax transmission control apparatus 1, the status processing unit 14 stores information indicating approval completion in the status information storage unit 18 in association with the message ID. Of course, if applicable, status information indicating that the approval has failed and status information indicating that the approval is in progress are sent to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 and stored in the status information storage unit 18.

  On the other hand, the fax function unit 35 that has detected the successful fax transmission notifies the mail communication function unit 34 to that effect, and the mail communication function unit 34 controls the fax transmission control by e-mail with the fax transmission completion notification including the message ID. It transmits to the apparatus 1 (step 16). In the fax transmission control apparatus 1, the status processing unit 14 stores status information indicating completion of fax transmission in the status information storage unit 18 in association with the message ID. Of course, if applicable, status information indicating that the fax transmission has failed is sent to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 and stored in the status information storage unit 18.

  The user logs in to the fax transmission control apparatus 1 from the multifunction machine 3 (or PC terminal), transmits a status confirmation request (step 17), acquires status information associated with the user ID, and receives the multifunction machine 3 ( Alternatively, it can be displayed on a PC terminal (step 18). As a result, the user can confirm whether or not the fax transmission has been normally completed.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and applications are possible within the scope of the claims. For example, in the processing of the above embodiment, the multifunction device 3 displays a screen and accesses the file transmission control device 1 and receives the next command every time an operation is performed. However, for example, the multi-function device 3 receives screen information and a command statement (program) that can execute transitions for a plurality of screens from the file transmission control device 1 and, according to the program, displays a plurality of screens. The above process may be executed without accessing the file transmission control apparatus 1.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Fax transmission control apparatus 2 Fax transmission approval apparatus 3 Multifunction machine 4 Communication network 5 Approver terminal 6 Public telephone network 7 Fax machine 11 Network communication part 12 Multifunction processing control part 13 Mail communication function part 14 Status processing part 15 Control data Storage unit 16 Destination information storage unit 17 User information storage unit 18 Status information storage unit 21 Network communication unit 22 Approval function unit 23 Mail communication function unit 24 Data storage unit 31 Display unit 32 Operation input unit 33 Network communication unit 34 Mail communication function Section 35 Fax Function Section 36 Scanner Function Section 37 Instruction Interpretation Execution Section 38 Data Storage Section

Claims (3)

A fax transmission system in which a multifunction device, a fax transmission control device, and a fax transmission approval device are connected to a communication network,
The fax transmission control device includes transmission destination information storage means for storing transmission destination information including transmission destination identification information and a transmission destination telephone number,
The fax transmission control device reads transmission destination information from the transmission destination information storage unit based on a request from the multifunction device, and transmits the transmission destination information to the multifunction device.
The MFP displays the transmission destination information on a display unit so that the user can select a specific transmission destination. After the specific transmission destination is selected on the screen of the display unit, the MFP responds to an instruction from the user. Based on this, the document to be faxed is scanned, and a document confirmation screen including a document image obtained by scanning is displayed on the display unit.
After receiving information indicating that the document has been confirmed, the multi-function peripheral transmits a fax transmission processing request including the document image and the selected destination telephone number to the fax transmission control device,
The fax transmission control device sends a fax transmission approval request including the document image and the destination telephone number to the fax transmission approval device by e-mail,
The fax transmission approval apparatus transmits the document image to an approver terminal connected to the communication network, and receives the approval notification from the approver terminal, and then includes the document image and the destination telephone number. Send a fax transmission execution request to the MFP by e-mail,
The fax transmission system, wherein the multi-function peripheral faxes the document image to a fax machine corresponding to the destination telephone number. The fax transmission control device generates fax transmission identification information for identifying the fax transmission after receiving the fax transmission processing request, stores the fax transmission identification information in status information storage means, and stores the fax transmission identification information in the fax In addition to the transmission approval request, the fax transmission approval device includes the fax transmission identification information in the fax transmission execution request,
The fax transmission approval device transmits status information related to the approval to which the fax transmission identification information is added to the fax transmission control device,
The multi-function device transmits status information of fax transmission to which the fax transmission identification information is added to the fax transmission control device,
The fax transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the fax transmission control device stores each status information in the status information storage unit in association with the fax transmission identification information. The fax transmission control device used in a fax transmission system configured by connecting a multifunction device, a fax transmission control device, and a fax transmission approval device to a communication network,
Destination information storage means for storing destination information including destination identification information and destination telephone number;
Control information describing processing contents in the multifunction device, multifunction device processing control means for transmitting to the multifunction device;
E-mail communication function means for sending and receiving e-mail on the communication network,
The MFP processing control means reads transmission destination information from the transmission destination information storage means based on a request from the MFP, transmits control information including the transmission destination information to the MFP, and transmits the control information. The received multifunction device displays the transmission destination information on the display means so that the user can select a specific transmission destination based on the control information,
After receiving a notification of information indicating that a transmission destination has been selected from the multifunction device, the multifunction device processing control means transmits control information including document confirmation screen information to the multifunction device, and the multifunction device. Is configured to display a document confirmation screen including a document image of a fax transmission target obtained by scanning on the display unit based on the received control information, and after receiving input of information indicating that the document confirmation has been obtained, A fax transmission processing request including a document image and the selected destination telephone number is transmitted to the fax transmission control device;
The mail communication function means in the fax transmission control apparatus that has received the fax transmission processing request transmits a fax transmission approval request including the document image and the destination telephone number to the fax transmission approval apparatus by e-mail. Fax transmission control device.

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