JP5705186B2 - Communication apparatus, transmission method, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication apparatus, a transmission method, and a program that, for example, divides large-size image data and transmits it as a plurality of e-mails when transmitting image data read by a scanner as an e-mail attachment.

  In recent years, with the spread of computers and the networking of information, electronic mail that transmits and receives character information over a network has become widespread. In addition to the mail text that is text information, various types of files can be attached to the e-mail. For example, by attaching an image TIFF (Tag Image File Format) file defined in the attached file, an image can be obtained. Internet FAX is known for performing transmission / reception.

  However, if an e-mail is sent with an image file having a large number of pages or a high-definition image file, the data size of the e-mail becomes enormous. When such an enormous amount of e-mail is transmitted, the function of the mail server that relays it in the middle may stop, or in the worst case, the mail server may be destroyed.

For this reason, the mail server is generally set so as not to receive e-mails of a certain size or larger. In order to transmit / receive large-size data in such an environment, RFC (Request for Comments) -2046 is a MIME (Multipurpose Internet) when data is divided and transmitted.
(Mail Extension) expression method is defined.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 discloses a technique for dividing and transmitting image data in units of pages so as not to exceed a predetermined size. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for dividing and transmitting a FAX reception document by dividing it into a predetermined size.

JP-A-11-184767 JP-A-11-196218

  However, the above-described conventional example has the following problems, and improvement has been demanded. In other words, the divided transmission method described in RFC-2046 does not always support the method of synthesizing the data divided and transmitted by the receiver. If the recipient did not support this synthesis method, the file could not be restored and restored even after all the files were received.

  Further, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, when data is divided and transmitted in units of image pages, the order of arrival at the receiver is not guaranteed even if the e-mails are transmitted in order, and the data is received by the receiver. If the printed e-mail is printed, the page order will be disturbed. Also, when another e-mail that is not related at all is received on the way, this e-mail is interrupted between one document, making it difficult to distinguish between the two.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a communication apparatus, a transmission method, and a program that can divide and transmit an e-mail by an appropriate method when transmitting image data by e-mail.

  In order to achieve the above object, a communication device according to the present invention is a communication device that transmits an e-mail attached with image data input in units of pages, and the size of the e-mail is set to a preset size. A first dividing unit that divides the e-mail into page units when exceeding, and a second dividing unit that divides the e-mail into predetermined sizes when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size. A dividing unit; a setting unit configured to set whether the electronic mail is divided by the first dividing unit or the electronic mail is divided by the second dividing unit; and the size of the electronic mail is set in advance In the case where the size exceeds the size, if the setting means is configured to divide the e-mail by the first dividing means, the first dividing means is set to the first dividing means. Control means for performing division by the second dividing means when the setting means is set to divide the e-mail by the second dividing means, and the control means And transmitting means for transmitting a plurality of electronic mails divided according to the control to the destination.

  According to the present invention, when image data is transmitted by electronic mail, the electronic mail can be divided and transmitted by an appropriate method.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the communication apparatus in 1st Embodiment. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an image input / output device in which a reader unit 1 and a printer unit 2 are provided integrally. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the reader part 1 of a communication apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the core part 10 of a communication apparatus. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a formatter unit 7. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a facsimile unit 4. FIG. It is a figure which shows the program structure in the network I / F part of a communication apparatus. It is a figure which shows the display screen of the operation part 115 at the time of transmitting an image. It is a flowchart which shows the facsimile transmission operation processing procedure. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a facsimile transmission operation processing procedure following FIG. 9. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the facsimile transmission operation | movement process procedure following FIG. 9 and FIG. It is a figure which shows the division | segmentation method at the time of dividing | segmenting and transmitting an electronic mail. It is a figure which shows the email data by which the division | segmentation in a page in FIG. 12 (A) was performed. It is a figure which shows the email data divided | segmented and transmitted per page in FIG.12 (B). It is a table which shows the address book in 2nd Embodiment.

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

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communication apparatus according to the first embodiment. The communication apparatus includes a reader unit 1, a printer unit 2, and an image input / output control unit 3. The reader unit 1 reads an image of a document and outputs image data corresponding to the document image to the printer unit 2 and the image input / output control unit 3. The printer unit 2 records an image corresponding to the image data output from the reader unit 1 and the image input / output control unit 3 on a recording sheet. The image input / output control unit 3 connects the reader unit 1, and includes a facsimile unit 4, a file unit 5, a network I / F unit (network interface unit) 7, a formatter unit 8, an image memory unit 9, and a core unit 10. Have.

  The facsimile unit 4 decompresses the compressed image data received via the telephone line, transfers the decompressed image data to the core unit 10, compresses the image data transferred from the core unit 10, and compresses the compressed image data. A circuit that transmits data to a telephone line.

  The file unit 5 is connected to the magneto-optical disk drive 6, compresses the image data transferred from the core unit 10, and sets the compressed image data in the magneto-optical disk drive 6 together with a keyword for retrieving the image data. Write to the recorded magneto-optical disk. The file unit 5 searches the compressed image data stored in the magneto-optical disk based on the keyword transferred via the core unit 10, reads out and decompresses the searched compressed image data, and decompresses the image data. Is transferred to the core unit 10.

  The network I / F unit 7 has an interface for connecting the image input / output control unit 3 to the network. This network is connected to a Mail server and a POP server 12, and is further connected to an Internet network 13 spread all over the world. The network I / F unit 7 is connected to a hard disk 52, and can store data received by Mail. The Internet network 13 includes a plurality of mail servers such as the Mail server 14 and can send and receive electronic mails with many people.

  The formatter unit 8 is a circuit that develops code data representing an image transferred from a computer connected to the network I / F unit 7 into image data that can be printed by the printer unit 2.

  The image memory unit 9 is a circuit that temporarily stores image data. The core unit 10 controls data transfer in each block of the reader unit 1, the facsimile unit 4, the file unit 5, the network I / F unit 7, the formatter unit 8, and the image memory unit 9. Details of the core unit 10 will be described later.

  The operation of the communication apparatus having the above configuration will be described. Here, an operation in which an image read by the reader unit 1 is attached to an e-mail and transmitted to the Mail client 15 is shown. The image read by the reader unit 1 to the mail client 15 is converted into an e-mail format, and the data is transmitted to the mail server 12 by SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol).

  The mail server 12 transfers data to the Mail server 14 via the Internet network 13 based on the mail address information of the designated Mail client 15. Upon receiving this mail, the Mail server 14 recognizes the address of the user managed by the mail server 14 based on the mail address information, and stores the received data in the mail BOX of the Mail client 15.

  The mail client 15 is installed with e-mail software capable of sending and receiving e-mails, and in accordance with POP3 (Post Office Protocol-Version 3) at regular intervals, new mail is stored in the mailbox of the POP server 14. To see if it has arrived. When a new mail arrives, the mail can be downloaded and an image read by the reader unit 1 can be obtained.

Similarly, when data is transmitted to the Internet FAX machine 17, it can be transmitted via the Mail server 12, the Internet network 13, and the mail server 14, and the received image is received by the Internet FAX machine 17 that has received this image. Printed. Similarly, an image read by the Internet FAX machine 17 can be received by the communication device via the mail server 14, the Internet network 13 and the Mail server 12, and the received image can be printed by the printer unit 3. .

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an image input / output device in which the reader unit 1 and the printer unit 2 are integrally provided. A document feeder 101 is mounted on the reader unit 1. The document feeder 101 feeds documents one by one from the last page to the platen glass 102 one after another. The original on 102 is discharged.

  When the document is conveyed onto the platen glass 102, the lamp 103 is turned on and the movement of the scanner unit 104 is started. The original is exposed and scanned by the movement of the scanner unit 104, and the reflected light from the original at the time of exposure scanning is guided to a CCD image sensor (hereinafter referred to as a CCD) 109 via mirrors 105, 106 and 107 and a lens. . The scanned image of the original is read by the CCD 109, and the CCD 109 converts the optically read image into image data by photoelectric conversion and outputs the image data. After predetermined processing is performed, the image data output from the CCD 109 is transferred to the printer unit 2 and the core unit 10 of the image input / output control unit 3 via a video bus (not shown).

  The printer unit 2 inputs the image data output from the reader unit 1 to the laser driver 201. The laser driver 201 drives the laser emission unit 221 based on the input image data. The laser emission unit 221 emits laser light corresponding to the image data output from the reader unit 1. The laser light is irradiated while being scanned on the photosensitive drum 202, and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the laser light is formed on the photosensitive drum 202.

  The electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 202 is visualized as a developer image by the developer supplied from the developing device 203. In addition, at a timing synchronized with the start of laser light irradiation, a recording sheet is fed from one of the cassette 204 and the cassette 205, and the recording sheet is conveyed between the photosensitive drum 202 and the transfer unit 206. The developer image formed on the photosensitive drum 202 is transferred by the transfer unit 206 onto the fed recording paper.

  The recording paper on which the developer image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing unit 207, and the fixing unit 207 fixes the developer image on the recording paper by heat-pressing the recording paper. The recording paper that has passed through the fixing unit 207 is discharged by a discharge roller 208, and the sorter 220 stores the discharged recording paper in each bin and sorts the recording paper. Note that the sorter 220 operates to store the recording paper in the uppermost bin when the sorting is not set. When double-sided recording is set, the recording paper is transported to the position of the discharge roller 208, and then the rotation direction of the discharge roller 208 is reversed, and the flapper 209 operates to guide it to the refeed conveyance path. Furthermore, when multiple recording is set, the flapper 209 is switched to guide the recording paper to the refeed conveyance path so that the recording paper is not conveyed to the discharge roller 208. The recording paper guided to the refeed conveyance path is fed again between the photosensitive drum 202 and the transfer unit 206 at the timing described above.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the reader unit 1 of the communication apparatus. The image data output from the CCD 109 is subjected to analog / digital conversion by the A / D / SH unit 110 to be converted into digital data, and shading correction is performed on the digital data. The image data processed by the A / D / SH unit 110 is transferred to the printer unit 2 through the image processing unit 111, and at the same time, the image input / output control unit 3 through the I / F unit (interface unit) 113. Are transferred to the core unit 10. The image processing unit 113 performs various types of image processing such as trimming processing, and controls the interface with the core unit 10 such as capturing data including image data transferred from the core unit 10.

  The image processing unit 111 and the I / F unit 113 are controlled according to the setting content set by the operation unit 115 by the CPU 114. For example, when a copy mode for performing copying by performing trimming processing on the operation unit 115 is set, the CPU 114 executes trimming processing in the image processing unit 111, and the image data on which the trimming processing has been performed is performed on the printer unit 2. Control to transfer to. When the facsimile transmission mode is set on the operation unit 115, the CPU 114 controls the I / F unit 113 to transfer image data and a control command corresponding to the set mode to the core unit 10.

  Such control by the CPU 114 is executed according to a control program stored in the memory 116. The memory 116 is also used as a work area for the CPU 114.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the core unit 10 of the communication apparatus. The core unit 10 includes an I / F unit 122 that interfaces with the reader unit 1. The image data transferred from the reader unit 1 is transferred to the image data processing unit 121 via the I / F unit 122, and the control command from the reader unit 1 is transferred to the CPU 123. The image data processing unit 121 performs image processing such as image rotation processing and scaling processing on the input image data as necessary, and the image data subjected to the image processing by the image data processing unit 121 is a reader. In response to the control command transferred from the unit 1, it is transferred to the facsimile unit 4, the file unit 5, or the network I / F unit 7 via the I / F unit 120.

  In addition, printer data representing an image input via the network I / F unit 7 is transferred to the image data processing unit 121 and then transferred to the formatter unit 8 to be developed into image data. The image data is transferred to the image data processing unit 121 and then transferred to the printer unit 2 via the facsimile unit 4 or the I / F unit 122. The image data received by the facsimile unit 4 is transferred to the image data processing unit 121 and then transferred to the printer unit 2, the file unit 5, or the network unit 7. The image data output from the file unit 5 is transferred to the image data processing unit 121 and then transferred to the printer unit 2, facsimile unit 4, or network unit 7.

  The CPU 123 performs data transfer control between blocks in accordance with a control program stored in the memory 124 and a control command transferred from the reader unit 1, and controls execution of image processing by the image data processing unit 121. The memory 124 includes a ROM and a RAM, and the RAM is also used as a work area for the CPU 123.

  In this way, the core unit 10 can be used as a center to perform processing that combines various functions such as document image reading, image printing, image transmission / reception, image storage, and data input / output from a computer. is there.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of the formatter unit 7. The formatter unit 7 includes a core I / F unit 220, a CPU 222, a font ROM 223, a program ROM 224, a DRAM 225, an image processing circuit 226, a video I / F circuit 227, and a video clock 228.

Data created by an application such as a word processor on the PC client 11 is a page such as PS (postscript) that can be printed by a printer using a printer driver.
Converted to Description Language (PDL). The converted data is transferred to the formatter unit 7 via the network I / F unit 7, the core unit 10, and the core I / F unit 220.

  This data is interpreted by the CPU 222 and an image is formed using the font ROM 223 and DRAM 225. This image is subjected to image processing by the image processing circuit 226, and the image is transferred from the video I / F circuit 227 to the core unit 10 in synchronization with the synchronization signal generated by the video clock 228. The transferred image data is printed by the printer unit 2. The program ROM 224 is a ROM that stores a program for controlling the above operation. In this way, PDL such as PS can be printed.

  The formatter unit 7 can be changed for each PDL, and the ROM 224 in the formatter unit 7 is different for each PDL and its version, and the user can select a PDL and a version according to the purpose.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the facsimile unit 4. An NCU (Network Control Unit) 230 is a circuit for connecting a facsimile machine (FAX) to a telephone, and switches between telephones and faxes, detects a ringing signal upon reception, and holds a DC loop signal from the telephone exchange during a call. Circuit.

  A MODEM (Modulator / DEModulator) 231 is a modulation / demodulation circuit that changes an analog signal to a digital signal and vice versa.

  Data transmitted from another FAX is received by the NCU 230 and converted into a digital signal by the MODEM 213. This data is data obtained by encoding an image with MH, MR, MMR, JBIG or the like. This data is decoded by the encoding / decoding circuit 236, and the image data is developed in the DRAM 235. The resolution is converted by this resolution conversion circuit 234 and image processing is performed by the image processing circuit 237. This image data is transferred to the core unit 10 by the video I / F circuit 238 in synchronization with the clock generated by the video clock 239 and printed by the printer 2.

  At the time of transmission, the image data read by the reader unit 1 is developed in the DRAM 235 by the video I / F circuit 238, the video clock 239, and the image processing circuit 237 via the core unit 10. The resolution of the data is converted by the resolution conversion circuit 234 and encoded by the encoding / decoding circuit 236 into MH, MR, MMR, or JBIG. The encoded data is converted into an analog signal by the MODEM 231 and transmitted via the NCU 230.

  The CPU 232 is a circuit that controls the above control. The program ROM 233 stores a program executed by the CPU 232. The facsimile unit 4 is detachable and is mounted according to the user's application.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a program configuration in the network I / F unit of the communication apparatus. The network I / F unit 7 includes a program that operates an IP (Internet Protocol) 250, a TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) / UDP (User Datagram Protocol) 251, and an application layer protocol 252.

The IP 250 is an Internet protocol layer that provides a service for sending a message in cooperation with a relay node such as a router from a source host to a destination host. The most important information for delivering a message is the address of the origination and destination, and the address of the origination and destination is managed by the IP 250. According to the address information, the route of how the message is delivered to the destination host according to the address information is IP250.
To do.

  The TCP / UDP 251 is a transport layer that provides a service for delivering a message from a transmission application process to a reception application process. TCP is a connection-type service and guarantees high communication reliability. On the other hand, UDP is a connectionless service and does not guarantee reliability.

The application layer protocol 252 defines a plurality of protocols. This protocol includes FTP (File Transfer Protocol) as a file transfer service, SNMP as a network management protocol, LPD as a server protocol for printer printing, HTTPd as a WWW (World Wide Web) server protocol, and e-mail transmission / reception Protocol SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol), mail download protocol POP3 (Post
Office Protocol-Version 3) exists.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a display screen of the operation unit 115 when an image is transmitted. In the drawing, a reading size 300 is an area for designating a paper size of an image read by the scanner unit 104. A5, A4, A3, B5, B4, automatic can be specified, and automatic is set by default.

  A resolution 301 is an area for designating the resolution of an image read by the scanner unit 104. It is possible to select resolutions of 200 × 100, 200 × 200, 200 × 400, 300 × 300, 400 × 400, and 600 × 600 dpi, and 200 × 200 dpi is set by default.

  When the detailed setting button 302 is pressed, a window (not shown) for specifying settings at the time of scanning such as density setting at the time of scanning, document type specification, double-sided reading, page continuous shooting specification, image quality adjustment, etc. is displayed, and values are set. It is possible.

  A destination 303 is a button for inputting an e-mail transmission destination. When this button is pressed, an alphabetic software keyboard is displayed and an e-mail address can be entered. In addition, it is possible to specify the destination from an address book (not shown) or from a one-touch key.

  A Subject 304 is a column for inputting the subject of an electronic mail. A text 305 is a field for inputting the text of the electronic mail. The maximum transmission size 306 is the maximum size of e-mail data at the time of e-mail transmission, and e-mail exceeding this size is not transmitted.

  In general, an e-mail server used in the Internet environment has a fixed capacity limit, and an error occurs when e-mail data exceeding this size is received. In addition, when sending / receiving large-size e-mail data, capacity restrictions are often applied to avoid the e-mail service from being stopped due to an increase in the load on the e-mail server. If data exceeding the set size is transmitted in an environment in which the capacity of the electronic mail server is limited, a transmission error occurs. In order to avoid this problem, a maximum transmission size 306 is provided. The numerical value set by default is 3 MByte, and when the value 0 is set, it means unlimited.

  The divided transmission 307 is a switch for setting whether or not to divide an electronic mail when the mail data size exceeds the maximum transmission size 306. This setting can be switched between “Yes” and “No”, and “Yes” is set by default.

  The intra-page division 308 is an item that is valid only when the division transmission 307 is set to “Yes”, and when it is set to “No”, the display is shaded and the setting is invalid. When the division transmission 307 is set to “Yes”, data exceeding the transmission maximum size 306 is divided and transmitted.

  The intra-page division 308 is a switch for selecting whether to divide by page unit or to divide by the data size itself when transmitting an image composed of a plurality of pages. If the sender knows in advance that the receiver supports this in-page division method, the receiver can play the image by setting this switch to “ON”. . On the other hand, if the sender knows in advance that the receiver does not support this in-page divided reception, set this switch to “No” and send the data divided in units of pages. The person can form an image.

  9, FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 are flowcharts showing the facsimile transmission operation processing procedure. This processing program is stored in the memory 124 in the core unit 10 and is executed by the CPU 123. Here, the images to be transmitted are an image read by the reader unit 1, a FAX reception image received by the facsimile unit 4, and an IFAX reception image received by the network I / F unit 7.

  First, it is determined whether or not the image read by the reader unit 1 is transmitted (IFAX transmission) (step S1). In the case of IFAX transmission, an image is read from the reader unit 1 (step S2). On the other hand, if it is not IFAX transmission, it is determined whether or not the FAX reception image is transferred (step S3). When the FAX reception image is transferred, FAX reception processing is performed (step S4). On the other hand, when the FAX reception image is not transferred, it is determined whether or not the IFAX reception image is transferred (step S5). If the IFAX received image is transferred, IFAX reception processing is performed (step S6). On the other hand, if the IFAX received image is not transferred, this process is terminated.

  Then, after reading an image from the reader unit 1 in step S2, after performing a FAX reception process in step S4, or after performing an IFAX reception process in step S6, variables i (page numbers), j ( (Transmission number), Ssize (transmission data size), Psize [i] (data size of the i-th page), etc. are initialized to 0 (step S7).

  Based on the From information set in the user mode (not shown), the To information from the information set in the destination 303, the Date information from the built-in clock (not shown), and the Subject information 304, the e-mail header is changed. Create (step S8). Further, the value 1 is added to the variable i (page number), and the page number to be processed is set as the first page (step S9).

  In order to convert the image data of the i-th page read in step S2 or the like into character data that can be transmitted by e-mail, known BASE64 conversion is performed (step S10). The data size after the BASE64 conversion is Psize [i] (the page data size of the i-th page).

  It is compared whether or not the size obtained by adding Ssize (transmission size) and Psize [i] exceeds the maximum transmission size 306 (step S11). If the comparison result shows that the maximum transmission size 306 is not exceeded, Psize [i] is added to Ssize (step S12), and transmission data is created based on the created BASE64 data and the like (step S13).

Thereafter, it is determined whether or not there is a next page (step S14). If there is still a page to be processed, the process returns to step S9 to add the value 1 to the page number to be processed and continue the same processing.

  On the other hand, if the next page does not exist in step S14, MIME information indicating that the e-mail data is terminated is created (step S15), the mail data is transmitted by SMTP transmission (step S16), and this process is terminated. .

  On the other hand, if the data size obtained by adding Psize [i] to Ssize exceeds the transmission data size 306 in step S11, it is determined whether or not the divided transmission 307 is set to “ON” (step S17). Here, when “No” is set, the data size has exceeded the maximum transmission size 306, so an error is written in a transmission log (not shown) as a transmission error (step S18). finish.

  On the other hand, if “YES” is set in step S17, it is determined whether or not the intra-page division 308 is set to “YES” (step S19). If “Yes” is set, partial data indicating that the attached file of the e-mail is divided in the file is created (step S20), and the number of remaining data is substituted for the transmission data size Ssize. (Step S21), the process proceeds to Step S25.

  On the other hand, if the intra-page division 308 is set to “No” in step S19, it is determined whether or not the data size Psize [i] of the i-th page exceeds the maximum transmission size 306 (step S22). If it exceeds the maximum transmission size 306 for only one page, the transmission error processing in step S18 is performed, and this processing ends.

  On the other hand, if not exceeded in step S22, a divide data creation process for creating e-mail data without performing intra-page division is performed (step S23), the transmission data size is cleared to 0, and the process of step S25 is performed. Migrate to

  Thereafter, a value 1 is added to the variable j indicating the transmission number (step S25), data is transmitted by SMTP transmission (step S26), and a mail header of the next e-mail to be transmitted is created (step S27). Then, it is determined whether or not the next page exists (step S28). If the next page exists, the process returns to step S9. On the other hand, if the next page does not exist, the data remaining due to the intra-page division is transmitted (step S29), and this process ends.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a dividing method when an electronic mail is divided and transmitted. FIG. 3A shows an example in which two e-mails are transmitted by dividing the page into a total of three pages of images. In this case, since the maximum transmission size 306 is exceeded in the middle of the third page, the portion 450 up to the boundary of the maximum transmission size 306 is transmitted as the first email data, and the remaining portion 451 is transmitted as the second email. Send as e-mail data.

  FIG. 5B shows an example in which two e-mails are transmitted without performing intra-page division for a total of three pages of images. In this case, since the maximum transmission size 306 is exceeded in the middle of the third page, the first and second page image data portions 452 that do not exceed the maximum transmission size 306 are transmitted as the first e-mail data. The third page portion 453 is transmitted as the second e-mail data.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the e-mail data subjected to the intra-page division in FIG. This e-mail data corresponds to the partial data created in step S20 described above. 13A shows the first e-mail data, and FIG. 13B shows the second e-mail data.

  When the user inputs “image” in the Subject 304, a mail division order number (corresponding to a transmission number j which is a variable) and a total division number are added to the Subject field of the mail data so that the recipient can easily understand. . That is, the information “1” is added to the first message shown in FIG. 5A, and the information “2/2” is added to the second message shown in FIG. As a result, Subject becomes “image 1” and “image 2/2”.

  Message-ID is mail-specific data for specifying an e-mail, and as shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B, the transmission date, the hour, minute and second of the transmission time, the transmission reception number (reception No. 0001). ), And an e-mail address (ifax@figaro01.abc.co.jp).

  The transmission reception number is a transmission number given by the device at the time of transmission, and is also described in a transmission log that proves transmission and is a number that the user is aware of.

  When the receiver receives the transmitted data, if an error occurs such that some mails do not arrive normally and part of the id number is missing, the receiver describes the Message-ID of the received mail. Return the sent email to the sender. The transmitter can describe that an error has occurred in the transmission log based on the reception number included in the Message-ID. The transmitter can also re-send the error e-mail.

  In the line of Content-Type: Message / Partial ;, MIME information indicating that this mail is divided into files is described. Among these, the id number consisting of id = “receiveNo.0001ifax@figaro01.abc.co.jp” is a division number of the division within the file, and is composed of a reception number and a mail address.

  If an error such as part of the id number missing due to the insertion of the receipt number, the receiver will receive a message with the Message-ID of the received mail. To the sender. The transmitter can describe that an error has occurred in the transmission log based on the reception number included in the Message-ID. The transmitter can also re-send the error mail.

  The number = 1 in the next line indicates the transmission number that is the variable j described above. In FIG. 13B, since the file transmitted in a divided manner is the final file, number = 2; total = 2 and the total number are entered to indicate the final mail data.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram showing e-mail data that is divided and transmitted in units of pages in FIG. This e-mail data corresponds to the divide data created in step S23 described above. An image composed of three pages is divided into two e-mails at a page boundary and transmitted.

  When the user inputs “image” in the Subject 304, a mail division order number (variable j) and a total division number are added to the Subject field of the mail data so that the recipient can easily understand. The information “1” is added to the first message shown in FIG. 14A, and the information “2/2” is added to the second message. As a result, Subject becomes “image 1” and “image 2/2”.

Message-ID is mail-specific data for specifying an e-mail, and includes a transmission date, an hour / minute / second of a transmission time, a transmission reception number (receive No.0001), and an e-mail address (ifax@figaro01.abc.co. jp).

  The transmission reception number is a transmission number given by the device at the time of transmission, and is also described in a transmission log that proves transmission and is a number that the user is aware of.

  When the receiver receives the transmitted data, if an error occurs such that some mails do not arrive normally and part of the id number is missing, the receiver describes the Message-ID of the received mail. Return the sent email to the sender. The transmitter can describe that an error has occurred in the transmission log based on the reception number included in the Message-ID. In addition, the transmitter can re-send the error mail.

  The line Content-Type: image / tiff; name = “0002 — 001.tif” shown in FIG. 14A indicates that an image TIFF file is attached, and the file name is “0002 — 001.tif”. Show. The upper 4 characters in the file name are the reception number, and the lower 3 characters are the first page number. Therefore, it can be seen that the reception number 0002 and the first page number are 001.

  Similarly, since Content-Type: image / tiff; name = “0002 — 003.tif” shown in FIG. 14B, the file name is “0002 — 001.tif”, the reception number 0002, and the first page number 003. Recognize.

  X-Divide; id = “receive No.0002ifax@figaro01.abc.co.jp”; indicates that the data is divided and transmitted in units of pages, and the id number is determined from the reception number and the mail address. It is configured.

  When the receiver receives this data, arranges the page number and prints an image, if an error occurs such as part of the e-mail not being delivered normally and part of the id number missing, this id number By returning to the transmitter, it is possible to know the reception number where the error occurred on the transmitter side, so that it can be reflected in the transmission log. Also, the transmitter can retransmit the file in error again.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, by transmitting the intra-page divided image to the receiver corresponding to the intra-page division, the receiver can operate so as to synthesize a normal image. On the other hand, by transmitting images in page units to recipients that do not support intra-page division, the receiver can normally configure the images. Therefore, when transferring an image using the electronic mail protocol, even if large image data is divided and transmitted, it is possible to print in order on the receiver side.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 15 is a table showing an address book in the second embodiment. This table is an address book in which recipient addresses are registered as a list when transmitting an image. The address book includes items of a destination abbreviation 500, a mail address 501, a divided transmission 307, and an in-page division 308. The address that is actually the destination of the e-mail is the mail address 501.

  Here, the destination abbreviation 500 is a field in which it is difficult to remember an e-mail address that is often long, so that a name easy to understand for the sender can be registered.

  The divided transmission 307 is a switch for setting whether or not to divide an electronic mail when the mail data size exceeds the maximum transmission size 306. In this setting, “Yes” / “No” can be switched, and “Yes” is set by default.

  The in-page division 308 is an item whose setting is valid only when the division transmission 307 is set to “Yes”, and when it is set to “No”, the display is shaded and the setting is invalid. .

  When the division transmission 307 is set to “Yes”, data exceeding the transmission maximum size 306 is divided and transmitted. The intra-page division 308 is a switch for selecting whether to divide by page unit or to divide by the data size itself when transmitting an image composed of a plurality of pages. When the sender knows in advance that the receiver supports this in-page division method, the receiver can reproduce the image by setting this switch to “ON”. On the other hand, when the sender knows in advance that the receiver does not support this in-page division method, the receiver is set by setting this switch to “No” and transmitting the data divided in units of pages. Can form an image.

  When transmitting an image, a destination is selected from the address book and transmitted. The transmission operation in this case is performed according to the procedure shown in the flowcharts of FIG. 9, FIG. 10, and FIG. In addition, it is possible to select a plurality of destinations from the address book as destinations, and it is also possible to register the destinations as a group. When a plurality of destinations are selected, a transmission operation is performed for each designated destination according to the procedure shown in the flowcharts of FIGS.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to change the setting of whether or not to perform divided transmission and whether or not to divide within a page according to the system used by the recipient. In addition, since these settings are registered in the address book, it is not necessary to set them every time they are sent, and the operability can be improved when the same document is sent to a plurality of destinations at once. Therefore, as in the first embodiment, when transferring an image using the e-mail protocol, even if large image data is divided and transmitted, it is possible to print in order on the receiver side.

  The above is the description of the embodiments of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to the configurations of these embodiments, and the functions shown in the claims or the functions of the configurations of the embodiments are included. Any configuration that can be achieved is applicable.

  For example, the maximum transmission size is registered in the address book in the second embodiment, the registered maximum transmission size is compared with the size of the image data, and whether to perform divided transmission based on the comparison result. Further, it may be determined whether or not intra-page division is performed.

  It goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to a case where the present invention is achieved by supplying a program to an apparatus using a recording medium storing software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the new function of the present invention, and the program itself and the storage medium storing the program constitute the present invention.

  In the above embodiment, the program codes shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 9, 10, and 11 are stored in the ROM that is a storage medium. The storage medium for supplying the program code is not limited to the ROM, and for example, a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a DVD, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, or the like can be used.

1 Reader unit 4 Facsimile unit 10 Core unit 123 CPU
124 Memory 306 Maximum transmission size 307 Division transmission 308 In-page division

Claims (13)

A communication device that transmits an e-mail attached with image data input in units of pages,
First dividing means for dividing the e-mail into pages when the size of the e-mail exceeds a preset size;
A second dividing unit that divides the e-mail into predetermined sizes when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size;
Setting means for setting whether to split the electronic mail by the first splitting means or to split the electronic mail by the second splitting means;
When the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size, if the setting means is set to divide the e-mail by the first dividing means, the dividing by the first dividing means And when the setting means is set to divide the e-mail by the second dividing means, control means for controlling the dividing by the second dividing means,
A communication device comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit a plurality of electronic mails divided according to control by the control unit to a destination. A communication device that transmits an e-mail attached with image data input in units of pages,
First dividing means for dividing the e-mail into pages when the size of the e-mail exceeds a preset size;
A second dividing unit that divides the e-mail into predetermined sizes when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size;
When the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size, it is determined whether the e-mail is set to be divided by the second dividing means, and the second dividing means determines the e-mail. When it is determined that the e-mail is set to be divided, the second dividing unit performs the division, and the second dividing unit determines that the e-mail is not set to be divided. Control means for controlling to perform the division by the first dividing means,
A communication device comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit a plurality of electronic mails divided according to control by the control unit to a destination.   The communication according to claim 1, further comprising an image reading unit that reads an image and converts the image data into the image data, and the image data converted by the image reading unit is attached to the e-mail as an attached file. apparatus.   The information on the number of divisions and the division order is added to the header information of the e-mail divided by the first dividing unit or the second dividing unit. The communication device described.   5. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a common ID is assigned to header information of the e-mail divided by the first dividing unit or the second dividing unit. .   The file name including a common character string is assigned to each of a plurality of attached files when the first dividing unit divides the electronic mail. Communication equipment. A transmission method for transmitting an e-mail attached with image data input in page units,
A first dividing step in which a first dividing unit divides the e-mail into pages when the size of the e-mail exceeds a preset size;
A second dividing step in which a second dividing unit divides the e-mail into predetermined sizes when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size;
A setting step in which setting means sets whether to divide the e-mail in the first dividing step or to divide the e-mail in the second dividing step;
If the control means is set to divide the e-mail in the first dividing step in the setting step when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size, the first means A control step of performing division in the division step and controlling to perform division in the second division step when the setting step is set to divide the email in the second division step;
A transmission method comprising: a transmission step of transmitting a plurality of electronic mails divided according to the control in the control step to a destination. A transmission method for transmitting an e-mail attached with image data input in page units,
A first dividing step in which a first dividing unit divides the e-mail into pages when the size of the e-mail exceeds a preset size;
A second dividing step in which a second dividing unit divides the e-mail into predetermined sizes when the size of the e-mail exceeds the preset size;
The control means determines whether or not the electronic mail is set to be divided in the second dividing step when the size of the electronic mail exceeds the preset size, and the second When it is determined that the e-mail is set to be divided in the dividing step, the e-mail is divided in the second dividing step and the e-mail is set to be divided in the second dividing step. A control step for controlling to perform the division in the first division step when it is determined that it is not,
A transmission method comprising: a transmission step of transmitting a plurality of electronic mails divided according to the control in the control step to a destination.   The transmission according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising an image reading step of reading an image and converting the image data into the image data, wherein the image data converted by the image reading step is attached to the e-mail as an attached file. Method.   The information on the number of divisions and the division order is added to the header information of the e-mail divided by the first division step or the second division step. The transmission method described.   The transmission method according to any one of claims 7 to 10, wherein a common ID is assigned to header information of the e-mail divided by the first division step or the second division step. .   The file name including a common character string is assigned to each of a plurality of attached files when the first dividing step divides the electronic mail. How to send   A program for causing a computer to execute the transmission method according to any one of claims 7 to 12.

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