JPH06189019A - Facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To set the increase/decrease of the number of times for ringing a dummy bell and to eliminate trouble for a user to disable answering to a telephone call by ringing the dummy bell with a control means while setting the number of times of ringing set by an operating means to the maximum limit. CONSTITUTION:An operation pare 7 is provided with a dummy bell time setting switch 7a in addition to general operation keys such as a ten-key required for designating normal facsimile operations. While a dummy ring back tone is sent to the opposite side, a signal processing part 4 performs control so as to generate prescribed dummy tones at from a speaker SP at fixed time intervals by sending a prescribed signal to a sound signal generating circuit 6a but the number of times of ringing the dummy bell defines the previously set number of times as the maximum number of times and more ringing is controlled so as not to be generated. Therefore, when the facsimile communication operation is not started after automatic call incoming is performed, the previously set number of times of ringing the dummy bell is turned to the maximum limit, and the dummy bell is rung.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile machine, and more particularly to a facsimile machine of a type having a function of ringing a so-called pseudo bell.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, various facsimile machines having an automatic telephone / facsimile switching function have been proposed. In such a facsimile machine, an automatic incoming call is made when a ringing signal from the circuit switch is received a predetermined number of times, and then a facsimile communication operation is started if a predetermined signal such as a CNG signal is transmitted from the other party.
Otherwise, the pseudo-bell of the fax machine is typically configured to ring to prompt the user to pick up the handset and make the call.
Here, the "pseudo bell" is a bell ringing unique to the facsimile machine, unlike a ringing ring based on a ringing signal from the circuit switch.

Thus, conventionally, in any of the facsimile machines, the number of times the pseudo bell rings is fixed according to the manufacturer's specifications, and the user cannot arbitrarily increase or decrease the number of times. That is, conventionally, the user can arbitrarily increase or decrease the number of ringing of the bell based on the ringing signal from the circuit switch, that is, the number of ringing of the ringing ring from the start of the incoming call to the automatic incoming call. However, the number of times the pseudo bell of the facsimile machine to be sounded after that was not considered, and the actual situation was fixed.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the above conventional one,
Regardless of the conditions under which the facsimile machine is used, the pseudo-bell will only ring with the maximum number of times set by the manufacturer. There was a case where I couldn't answer the phone because the pseudo-bell stopped ringing by the time I visited, which caused inconvenience.

The present invention has been proposed in view of the above points, and it is assumed that the pseudo bell ringing frequency can be set to be increased or decreased according to the usage conditions of the facsimile apparatus, and the user cannot answer the telephone. The purpose is not to cause.

[0006]

A facsimile apparatus according to the present invention, which has been proposed to achieve the above object, is provided with a control means for ringing a pseudo bell when a facsimile communication operation is not started after an automatic incoming call. And has an operating means for selecting the ringing frequency setting mode of the pseudo bell and for setting the ringing frequency in the mode state, and the control means sets the ringing frequency set by the operating means to the maximum limit. It is configured to ring a pseudo bell.

[0007]

In the facsimile machine according to the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the pseudo bell ringing frequency setting mode is selected and set in advance by a predetermined operation means, and then the pseudo bell ringing frequency is set to a desired frequency. If this is done, when the facsimile communication operation is not started after the automatic incoming call is made, the pseudo bell will ring with the preset number of times of ringing the pseudo bell as the maximum limit. That is, in the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention, the number of times the pseudo bell rings can be increased or decreased according to the user's request. For example, a user who takes a long time to pick up the handset after an automatic incoming call can increase the number of pseudo bell rings. By doing so, it becomes possible to appropriately execute a call with the other party.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a facsimile apparatus F according to the present invention.
3 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of FIG. This facsimile device F includes a telephone 1 and a facsimile main unit Fa.
One of the telephones 1 is provided with an off-hook detecting means 2 for detecting an off-hook of the telephone 1 based on turning on / off of a call circuit 1a, a handset 1b, and a hook switch 1c.

On the other hand, the facsimile main body Fa comprises a facsimile communication control section 3, a signal processing section 4 composed of a CPU and the like, and respective circuit devices described later connected to the signal processing section 4. Here, the facsimile communication control unit 3 includes a modem 3a for image data communication, and this modem 3a.
Line control section 3b for controlling line connection switching between the line L and the telephone 1 side, and tone signal detection for executing mutual transmission (handshake) of protocol signals executed prior to transmission / reception of image data. A circuit 3c, a tone signal generating circuit 3d, etc. are provided. this house,
The tone signal generation circuit 3d also has a function of transmitting a pseudo ringback tone to the calling side.

In addition to the facsimile communication control section 3 described above, the signal processing section 4 includes a calling signal detection circuit 5 for detecting a 16 Hz ringing signal (ring tone) transmitted from a circuit switch (not shown). , A sound signal generation circuit 6a having a speaker SP that functions as the pseudo bell sound generation means 6, an operation unit 7, a timer circuit 8, a display unit 9 including a liquid crystal display, a storage unit including a ROM and a RAM. 1
0, the image reading unit 11, the print output unit 12, and the like are also connected.

Here, the operation unit 7 includes a ten-key pad and general operation keys (not shown) necessary for designating a normal facsimile operation.
In addition to the above, a pseudo bell number setting switch 7a is provided. The pseudo bell number setting switch 7a is a switch for setting the facsimile apparatus F in the pseudo bell ringing number setting mode, and in the state of being set in such a mode, the ten key or the registration key is operated according to a predetermined operation procedure. Therefore, the number of times the pseudo bell rings is set to 1
Any number of times to 12 times can be arbitrarily selected and set. This data is, for example, R of the storage unit 10.
It is configured to be registered with the AM. The pseudo bell number setting switch 7a is not limited to a one-touch key type switch, but may be a combination operation of a function key and a numeric keypad, for example.

The signal processing unit 4 has a function of controlling the operation of each unit for executing the facsimile communication operation.
After a call is made to the facsimile apparatus F from another external communication terminal and a predetermined call signal is sent from the circuit switch, the following operation control is performed. That is, this signal processing unit 4 is
As shown in A of (a), when the call signal transmitted from the circuit switch is detected by the call signal detection circuit 5 twice in succession, the line connection with the line L is established at that time.
Then, the facsimile main body Fa side is controlled to make an automatic incoming call. After such an automatic incoming call, as shown in B of FIG. 2 (a), the tone signal generating circuit 3d generates a pseudo ringback tone and controls it to be sent to the other party. The number of times the pseudo ringback tone is transmitted is sequentially counted by the signal processing unit 4,
When the counted number reaches, for example, 12 times as the maximum number, a protocol signal (for example, CED) for starting the facsimile communication operation is then displayed as shown in C of FIG.
Signal or DIS signal) so as to be transmitted to the other party via the line L.

The signal processing unit 4 also outputs the sound signal generation circuit 6 while the pseudo ringback tone is being sent to the other party.
a by sending a predetermined signal to the speaker SP
Control is performed so that a predetermined pseudo bell sound is generated at a constant time interval, and the pseudo bell ringing frequency is set to a maximum number set in advance on the operation unit 7 and is controlled so that no further ringing occurs. ing. As an example of the method of controlling the number of times the pseudo bell rings, as shown in FIG. 2B, a time T from the time when an automatic call is received until the pseudo bell starts ringing is set by a timer. To be done. This time T becomes shorter as the number of times the pseudo bell ringing is set is larger, and becomes longer as the number of times of setting is smaller. This time T
During the period, the pseudo bell is not ringed and the CNG signal from the other party is waited without ringing.

However, the ringing of the pseudo bell and the sending of the pseudo ring back tone as described above are performed by the other party even before the maximum number preset by the operation unit 7 is reached.
When a signal is transmitted and detected by the modem 3a, it is configured to be stopped at that time. In this case, the execution of the handshake necessary for the facsimile communication procedure is started immediately thereafter. Further, the signal processing unit 4 is also configured to control to stop the ringing of the pseudo bell and the sending of the pseudo ringback tone even when the off-hook detecting means 2 detects the off-hook of the telephone 1. In this case, the telephone 1 is configured to be connected to the line L.

Next, an example of use and operation of the facsimile apparatus F having the above configuration will be described. First, the number of times the pseudo bell rings is set in advance according to the manufacturer's specifications. However, when the user wants to change this number, he / she operates the pseudo bell number setting switch 7a of the operation unit 7, The facsimile device F may be set to the pseudo bell number setting mode. In such a mode, the number of rings requested by the user may be entered using a ten-key pad,
For example, any one of 1 to 12 times can be arbitrarily designated and registered. Steps 100 to 102 of the flowchart of FIG. 3 show such a series of operation procedures. There are various possible operation procedures for the key operation for setting the number of times the pseudo bell rings, but in any case, the operation can be performed while watching the guide display on the display unit 9. It is desired to do.

After the setting of the number of times the pseudo bell rings as described above, when a call is made to the facsimile apparatus F from an external telephone, for example, a call signal of 16 Hz is transmitted from the circuit switch. , The facsimile machine F automatically receives an incoming call, so that the modem 3a
The side is connected to the line L. When the telephone 1 receives the ringing signal from the circuit switch, the telephone 1 rings the bell twice, but the ringing of the bell ends when an automatic call arrives.

Next, after the automatic incoming call, the tone signal generating circuit 3d sends a pseudo ringback tone to the other party at a constant time interval, and the silent period of time T shown in FIG. 2B elapses. At that point, the ringing of the pseudo bell is started. Thus, such a pseudo bell will ring the number of times set in advance by the operation unit 7 unless a CNG signal or the like is transmitted from the other party. That is, if the resident of a large house has set the number of ringing to a maximum of 12, for example,
Since it is possible to shorten the ringing period of the pseudo bell and keep the pseudo bell ringing for a long time, it is possible to avoid delay in picking up the handset 1b of the telephone 1. On the contrary, even if the number of pseudo bells is small, a user who can immediately pick up the handset 1b is
It is possible to make a small number of times the pseudo bell rings. This helps to avoid unnecessarily long ringing of pseudo bells in the absence. Therefore, in any case, the handset 1b can be picked up at a desired timing according to the usage conditions of the user, and then the call can be appropriately performed with the other party's telephone. On the other hand, when the handset 1b is not picked up within a certain period of time and the number of times the pseudo ring back tone is transmitted reaches the maximum number (for example, 12 times), the CED signal or DIS for executing the facsimile communication from the facsimile apparatus F thereafter. When a signal is sent and an appropriate protocol signal is not returned from the other party, a communication error occurs at that point and the line is cut off.

In contrast to the above, when the communication terminal on the calling side is a facsimile machine, a handshake for facsimile communication is made when a CNG signal is transmitted from the other party at the time of sending a pseudo ring bark tone after an automatic incoming call. Is started. Therefore, in this case, the transmission of the pseudo ringback tone is stopped at that time, and the ringing of the pseudo bell is also stopped before the set number of times is reached. Steps 200 to 216 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 show the above-described series of operation procedures. However, the relationship between "n" in step 207 and the set number of pseudo bell ringing in the figure is as shown in FIG. Further, in the present invention, FIG.
When the push tone signal (DTMF) is transmitted from the other party in the period indicated by B in (a), the transmission of the pseudo ringback tone and the ringing of the pseudo bell may be stopped at that point to disconnect the line. .

[0019]

As can be understood from the above description, according to the facsimile apparatus of the present invention, the pseudo bell ringing frequency can be arbitrarily increased or decreased according to the user's usage conditions. Appropriately eliminate the problem that the user can not answer the phone due to too few numbers, or the problem that the pseudo bell rings unnecessarily for a long time due to too many ringing times The effect of being able to do is obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a time chart showing an example of an operation state of the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure when setting the number of times the pseudo bell rings in the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a series of operation procedures of the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.

5 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the numerical value n and the number of times the pseudo bell is set in the flowchart shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Telephone 1b Handset 2 Off-hook detection means 3 Facsimile communication control section 3a Modem 3b Line control section 3d Tone signal generation circuit 4 Signal processing section 5 Ringing signal detection circuit 6 Pseudo bell sound generation means 7 Operation section 7a Pseudo bell number setting switch L line Fa fax machine F fax machine

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A facsimile apparatus comprising control means for ringing a pseudo bell when a facsimile communication operation is not started after an automatic incoming call, wherein a pseudo bell ringing frequency setting mode is selected and the ringing frequency of the ringing frequency is set in the selected mode. A facsimile apparatus, comprising: an operating means for making a setting, wherein the control means is configured to ring a pseudo bell with a maximum number of rings set by the operating means.