JPH0630217A - Facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide facsimile equipment not provided with an inexpensive and miniaturized ADF device with low cost in which a long time can be taken for the setting of the next original to easily take the set timing of the original by an operator and also, communication time can be prevented from increasing wastefully as possible corresponding to the information quantity of the original, and the transmission of the original can be efficiently performed as the facsimile equipment. CONSTITUTION:This equipment is comprised in such a way that picture information read by a scanner 1 is encoded and compressed by an ecoder/decoder part 3, and is stored in picture information memory 4 for ECM, and is made into an HDLC frame. A time (Td) until the transmission of data reading the original of a prescribed page is completed is calculated, and it is compared with a time (Tth) required for the setting of the next original on the reading position of the scanner 1 by the operator. When it is Tth>Td, an in-ter-frame flag is inserted into the prescribed position of the HDLC frame, and transmission completion time is extended, which enables the setting time of the next original to be secured by the operator.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus, and more particularly to a facsimile apparatus in which a user supplies a transmission original by manual paper feeding and transmits the read image information using an error resending method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional facsimile apparatus, an automatic document feeder (ADF device) is used for sequentially transmitting a plurality of pages of originals, that is, so-called multi-page transmission. This ADF device automatically feeds a plurality of originals to a reading position of an original reading unit including a scanner while separating the originals one by one. When a transmission document is fed using this ADF device, when the trailing edge of the document on the previous page is detected, the document on the next page is immediately guided to the reading position of the scanner. ), The multi-page transmission can be performed well.

Further, in the case of a facsimile machine not equipped with the above ADF device, the operator on the transmitting side manually inserts the originals one by one into the reading position of the original reading section and inserts the next original each time the reading is completed. Was there. By the way, in the above-mentioned facsimile apparatus equipped with the ADF device, since a plurality of originals are automatically guided to the reading position sequentially, there is a time lag between the completion of the reading of the original image information of each page and the completion of the transmission of the read image information. There is no problem because the next original can be set in about 5 seconds (for example, about 5 seconds), but in the case of manual feeding, it is necessary to secure the time required for the operator to set the original. By using the above means, the transmission end time of the image information is extended.

For example, as shown in the sequence chart of the conventional example of FIG. 7, in the case of multi-page transmission, the next original setting time indicated by A in the figure is set between the image information of the previous page and the image information of the next page. Is secured by a preamble or the like. Further, as shown in the sequence chart of another conventional example of FIG. 8, a message end signal (EO
By sending M (End of Message) after the image information of the previous page, the next original setting time shown by A in the figure is secured.

Further, in addition to the above, by setting file data as image information, a setting time for the next original document is secured.

[0006]

However, in such a conventional facsimile apparatus, when multi-page transmission is performed using the ADF apparatus, the facsimile apparatus on the receiving side receives an image from the facsimile apparatus on the transmitting side. Protocol signals that are sent immediately after sending information (for example,
EOP, MPS, EOM, etc.) are used to determine the presence or absence of the original on the next page. Therefore, the facsimile machine on the transmission side may send a protocol signal after the transmission of image information of a page is completed. It is necessary to judge whether there is a next page. In this respect, the facsimile apparatus equipped with the ADF device can determine the presence / absence of the next page because the setting operation of the next original is performed immediately after the reading of the previous page original is completed. However, the provision of this ADF device raises the problem that the cost of the main body of the facsimile device increases and the size of the device itself increases.

Therefore, the facsimile apparatus which does not include the ADF apparatus has the advantages that the cost of the apparatus main body is low and the apparatus can be downsized. However, since this operator sets the next original document by the operator himself, it is very difficult to determine the timing of setting the next original document. Therefore, the protocol control shown in FIGS. The settable time is created so that the operator can easily determine the next document set timing. However, when these protocol controls are used, the communication time is fixedly extended irrespective of the amount of information of the original, and the communication time is extended more than necessary, and the communication cost is increased. .

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above conventional problems, and is a facsimile apparatus which does not include an ADF apparatus which is inexpensive and can be downsized, and which facilitates the operator to set the document set timing. Therefore, it is possible to provide a facsimile apparatus that can take the next original set time longer, prevent the communication time from unnecessarily increasing according to the amount of information of the original, and can perform efficient original transmission. To aim.

[0009]

The invention according to claim 1 is
The user manually feeds the transmission original to the image reading unit, and at the same time, the image information of the original read by the image reading unit is transferred to the CCI.
T. of T.T. Error Retransmission Method (ECM
When transmitting a document by connecting a line using the error resending system in a facsimile device that transmits to a partner station according to the method), the image reading unit reads the image information of a predetermined page of the transmission document, A calculation unit that calculates the time until the page image information is completely transmitted to the other station, and the time calculated by the calculation operation is shorter than the set time required for the user to manually feed the next document. Is
Transmission time extension means for arbitrarily inserting an inter-frame flag at a predetermined position of the HDLC frame of the transmission image information to extend the transmission end time.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the facsimile apparatus according to the first aspect, the maximum extension time for extending the transmission end time by inserting the interframe flag into the HDLC frame of the transmission image information is 60 seconds or less. It is characterized by According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the facsimile apparatus according to the first aspect, the insertion position of the inter-frame flag that is inserted in the HDLC frame of the transmission image information to extend the transmission end time is the image information frame and the RCP frame. It is characterized in that

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the facsimile apparatus according to the first aspect, while the inter-frame flag is inserted into the HDLC frame of the transmission image information to extend the transmission end time, the next original is When set to the reading position of the image reading unit, the extension of the transmission end time for inserting the inter-frame flag is stopped even immediately before the set time required for the user to manually feed the next original, and immediately RCP
It is characterized by transmitting a frame.

[0012]

In the invention described in claim 1, the error retransmission method (EC
When transmitting a document to a partner station by (M method), after the image information of a predetermined page of the transmission document is read by the image reading unit,
Calculate the time until the image information of that page is sent to the partner station, and if it is shorter than the set time required for the user to manually feed the next original, place it at the predetermined position of the HDLC frame of the transmitted image information. The interframe flag is inserted arbitrarily to extend the transmission end time. Therefore, in the HDLC frame of the image information peculiar to the ECM mode, the "interframe flag" for making the frame transmission wait until the data for one HDLC frame is normally prepared, and the ECM is used.
By creating the timing of setting the next original in the mode, the operability is improved and the original can be efficiently transmitted.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the maximum extension time for extending the transmission end time by arbitrarily inserting the inter-frame flag into the HDLC frame of the transmission image information is set to 60 seconds or less, thereby stipulating the CCITT convention. Therefore, the communication performance is not deteriorated. In the invention according to claim 3, since the inter-frame flag is inserted between the image information frame of the HDLC frame of the transmission image information and the RCP frame to extend the transmission end time, among the frame configurations of the ECM mode, Since the image information is quickly transmitted to the partner station while avoiding the time extension in the image information frame, and the plotter on the receiving side prints out at once, the information can be efficiently transmitted.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, even if the interframe flag is inserted and the transmission end time is being extended, if the next page document is set at the reading position of the image reading unit,
Immediately stopping the insertion of the inter-frame flag and transmitting the RCP frame makes it possible to set the time for setting the next original as long as possible, suppress the increase in communication time as much as possible, and perform efficient original transmission.

[0015]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described below based on examples.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a scanner which conveys a document to be transmitted line by line and outputs the image data as image data while reading the document line by line using, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device).

A plotter 2 prints out the received data on a recording paper by using a thermal printer or an ink jet printer. An encoding / decoding unit 3 encodes and compresses image data to be transmitted, or decodes and expands compressed reception data. 4 is ECM
In the image information memory, image information transmitted / received by the error resending method (ECM method) is accumulated.

A communication control unit 5 decodes and understands the communication control information and executes transmission control and error control. An operation display unit 6 is provided with a keyboard input unit or the like necessary for operating the facsimile apparatus, and displays the operating status of the facsimile apparatus, data contents input from the keyboard input unit, operation procedures, and the like. It is composed of a display device such as an LCD or LED that provides guidance.

Reference numeral 7 denotes a system control unit, which is a CPU (Central
Processing Unit) and controls the entire facsimile system. In this embodiment, the time from the reading of the image information of a predetermined page of the transmission original to the end of the transmission of the image information to the partner station is calculated (calculation means), which is necessary for the operator to set the next original. If the calculated time is shorter than the set time as compared with the set time, an inter-frame flag is inserted in the HDLC frame of the transmission image information, and an operation of extending the transmission end time is performed (transmission time extending means). ).

Reference numeral 8 is a modem, which connects to the line L via the network control unit 9.
The image signal is modulated and demodulated for transmitting and receiving data between the facsimile terminals connected to the. A network control unit 9 is connected to the line L and executes communication procedures such as ringing detection and dial call required for communication with a partner terminal when transmitting / receiving facsimile data.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a system bus, which is a data path for exchanging data between respective units of the facsimile apparatus. Next, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a transmission frame structure in the ECM mode of the facsimile apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, CCITT (International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee) T.S. 30 Error Retransmission Method (EC)
In the M method), the image information to be transmitted is divided into 256 bytes or 64 bytes, and this is converted into an HDLC (high level data link control procedure) frame and transmitted.
This ECM system uses CRC (Cyclic Red) for each frame.
Since the error check can be performed by the undancy check), it is possible to eliminate the transmission error of the image information by retransmitting the frame in which the error is detected.

As shown in FIG. 2, the HDLC frame has an RCP frame for indicating the end added to the end of the image information frame. Therefore, first, the scanner 1 scans the transmission original, the image information read by the system control unit 7 is converted into an HDLC frame, and the time until the transmission is completed to the other station is calculated and predicted. If it is determined that there is not enough time to set, the next original setting time is created by continuously sending the inter-frame flag to a predetermined position of the HDLC frame or extending the inter-frame flag for each frame. To go.

Since the inter-frame flag is determined to be 60 seconds or less in the CCITT standard, by setting it to 60 seconds or less as described in claim 2, the communication performance with the other company's machine does not deteriorate. Next, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state in which an interframe flag is inserted between image information frames of a transmission frame. As shown in FIG. 3, here, an inter-frame flag is inserted between the previous image information frame and the next image information frame, the transmission end time of the previous image information frame is extended, and the next original is copied. This is to ensure the time to set in the reading unit.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which an interframe flag is inserted between the image information frame of the transmission frame and the RCP frame. As shown in FIG. 4, HDLC
By setting the position of the inter-frame flag to be inserted in the frame before the RCP frame, the image information that needs to be decoded on the receiving side can be sent first,
There is no delay in image information due to continuous flag transmission, and the error in time prediction for the next original set can be reduced.

Further, in FIG. 4, it is possible to extend the transmission time by inserting the inter-frame flag between each RCP frame. Next, the operation will be described. 5 and 6 are flowcharts for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention. First, as shown in FIG. 5, the transmission original is read from the scanner 1 (step 100), the image information read by the encoding / decoding unit 3 is encoded and compressed (step 101), and the image information is stored in the ECM image information memory. 4 (step 102). The operation of reading the original document and the operation of accumulating it in the memory 4 are repeated until the transmission original document is completed in step 103.

The compressed image information stored in the memory 4 is sequentially transmitted to the partner station via the communication controller 5, the modem 8 and the network controller 9. In parallel with the above operation, the system controller 7 calculates the time until the end of transmission from the untransmitted data in the memory and the modem rate, and sets this as Td (step 104). Further, the operator presets the time (Tth) required for sequentially setting the originals at the reading position of the scanner 1 with a margin, and compares this Td with Tth (step 105).

Here, when Tth ≦ Td, that is,
If the time required for the transmission data to be transmitted is equal to or longer than the time required for the operator to set the next original, the time required to extend the transmission time (Tf)
Becomes "0" (step 106). Also, Tth> T
In the case of d, that is, when the time required for the transmission data to be transmitted is shorter than the time required for the operator to set the next original, the difference (Tth-Td) is the time required to extend the transmission time (Tth-Td). Tf), which is calculated (step 107), the time corresponding to the Tf is inserted by inserting the inter-frame flag described above, and the time is extended until there is no untransmitted data (step 108).

The above operation is repeated until the next original is exhausted (step 109). FIG. 6 is a flow chart for explaining the interframe flag insertion operation of FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the data once stored in the memory 4 is read (step 200), converted into an HDLC frame (step 201), and this HDLC frame is transmitted (step 202). This operation is continued until the data in the memory 4 is completed (step 203).

After all the data in the memory 4 has been converted into HDLC frames in this way, if the time (Tf) requiring extension of the transmission time is not "0", that is, if the extension of the transmission time is required (step 204), the inter-frame flag is transmitted (step 205), and continues until Tf = 0 (step 206). In step 206, Tf
If the next original is set by the operator before = 0 (step 207), interrupt processing is performed to forcibly set Tf = 0 (step 208), and the process returns to step 204. This is because the time required for setting the next original is set in advance with a margin, but if the original is set faster than this, the time is extended by sending the inter-frame flag before the set time is reached. This is to cancel and transmit the RCP frame indicating the end (step 209).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the extension time can be changed according to the document setting operation speed of the operator, and the document can be efficiently transmitted, so that the communication cost can be suppressed to the necessary minimum.

[0030]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in the ECM mode transmission, the inter-frame flag of the HDLC frame of the transmission image information is used to make the insertion timing of the next document, so that there is an adequate margin. The next original can be set, and the operability is improved.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the interframe flag of the first aspect of the invention is inserted for 60 seconds or less, the CCITT convention can be satisfied and the communication performance can be maintained. According to the invention described in claim 3, since the insertion position of the inter-frame flag is between the image information frame and the RCP frame, time extension between the image information frames can be avoided and only the image information is transmitted to the partner station. You can send it quickly and communicate information efficiently.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, even when the timing of the next original setting time is being adjusted by inserting the inter-frame flag, the insertion of the inter-frame flag is immediately stopped when the next original is set. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the increase of the communication time to the necessary minimum while keeping the possible time for setting the next original as long as possible, and it is possible to perform the efficient original transmission without the communication cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is an E of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
It is a figure which shows the transmission frame structure in CM mode.

3 is a diagram showing a state in which an inter-frame flag is inserted between image information frames of the transmission frame of FIG.

4 is an image information frame and RCP of the transmission frame of FIG.
It is a figure which shows the state in which the inter-frame flag was inserted between the frames.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sequence chart illustrating a means for ensuring a next original setting time in a conventional example.

FIG. 8 is a sequence chart for explaining a means for securing a next original setting time in another conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Scanner 2 Plotter 3 Encoding / Decoding Section 4 ECM Image Information Memory 5 Communication Control Section 6 Operation Display Section 7 System Control Section 8 Modem 9 Network Control Section 10 System Bus

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A user manually feeds a document to be sent to an image reading unit, and the image information of the document read by the image reading unit is transferred to CCITT T.S. In a facsimile apparatus that transmits to an opposite station by an error resending method (ECM method) specified in 30 Recommendation, when the original is sent by connecting the line using the error resending method, the image reading unit sends A calculating means for calculating the time from the reading of the image information of a predetermined page to the end of transmitting the image information of the page, and the time calculated by the calculating operation, the user manually feeds the next original. If it is shorter than the set time required for the transmission, the transmission time extension means for extending the transmission end time by arbitrarily inserting an interframe flag at a predetermined position of the HDLC frame of the transmission image information is provided. And a facsimile machine. 2. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the maximum extension time for extending the transmission end time by inserting the inter-frame flag into the HDLC frame of the transmission image information is 60.
Facsimile machine characterized by being set to less than a second. 3. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the insertion point of the interframe flag for inserting the HDLC frame of the transmission image information to extend the transmission end time is between the image information frame and the RCP frame. A facsimile device characterized by the above. 4. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the next original is read by the image reading unit while the transmission end time is extended by inserting the inter-frame flag in the HDLC frame of the transmission image information. When set to, the extension of the transmission end time for inserting the inter-frame flag is stopped even before the set time required for the user to manually feed the next original, and the RCP frame is immediately sent out. A facsimile machine characterized by.