JPH11328062A - Electronic mail device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an electronic mail device which displays the reply condition to realize an efficient reply processing. SOLUTION: Flags F2 and F3 and a corresponding FAT number TFN are provided for every file allocation table FAT, which individually manages reception mails, as attribute information indicating whether a reception mail is already read or left unread, whether a reply mail is generated or not, and whether the reply mail is transmitted or not transmitted yet. These flags F2 and F3 and corresponding FAT number TFN are referred to display the reply condition of each reception mail in a list, and consequently, trouble is avoided that a user forgets transmitting the reply mail to transmit the same reply mail again or the user forgets to transmit the generated reply mail to leave it untransmitted, thus realizing the efficient reply processing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic mail apparatus suitable for use in a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) connected to a network by wireless or wired communication.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an electronic mail apparatus for transmitting and receiving electronic mail via the Internet or an intranet. Have been put to practical use. Now, when sending and receiving mail by dial-up connection with a mail server computer (hereinafter abbreviated as a server), such an e-mail device first logs on to the server and then mails to its own address (hereinafter referred to as received mail). ) Is checked, and if there is an incoming mail, it is delivered from the server side and stored in its own reception list. Thereafter, when the mail to be transmitted is stored in its own transmission book, the mail is transmitted to the server side, and upon completion of transmission, the user is logged off from the server.

[0003]

By the way, in the conventional e-mail apparatus, it is determined whether a reply mail has been created for the received mail, whether the created reply mail has not been transmitted, and the like. The reply status cannot be displayed.
For this reason, for example, if you forget to send a reply mail and send the same reply mail redundantly, you may forget to send the created reply mail and leave it unsent, etc. A problem that hinders the response process. Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and has as its object to provide an electronic mail device capable of displaying a reply status and realizing efficient reply processing.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mail receiving means for receiving a mail and storing the mail in a storage means, and for each received mail stored in the storage means. Attribute assigning means for assigning attributes indicating at least whether a reply mail is created and whether the reply mail is sent / unsent, and stored in the storage means with reference to the attribute assigned by the attribute assigning means. Status display means for displaying a reply status for each received mail.

[0005] According to the second aspect of the present invention, the attribute assigning means opens and closes the received mail stored in the storage means and creates the reply mail. When the reply mail has been sent, the contents of the corresponding attributes are updated.

According to the third aspect of the invention, there is provided a mail receiving means for receiving a mail and storing the mail in a storage means, and for each of the received mails stored in the storage means, at least presence or absence of creation of a reply mail and a reply mail. Attribute assigning means for assigning an attribute indicating transmission / non-transmission of the attribute, attribute assigning means for designating one of the attributes assigned by the attribute assigning means, and matching the attribute designated by the attribute assigning means. And a status display unit for extracting a received mail in a reply status from the storage unit and displaying the extracted mail.

In the present invention, for each received mail stored in the storage means, at least an attribute indicating whether a reply mail is created and whether the reply mail is transmitted / unsent is assigned, and the attribute is referred to. Since the response status of each received mail is displayed, as in the past, for example, if you forget to send a reply mail and send the same reply mail redundantly, or send the created reply mail It is possible to avoid adverse effects such as forgetting and leaving the data unsent, so that efficient reply processing can be realized.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An electronic mail device according to the present invention
In addition to a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) connected to a network through wired communication, the present invention can be applied to a mobile communication terminal (PHS or mobile phone) accessible to a network through wireless communication. Hereinafter, an e-mail device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described as an example with reference to the drawings.

A. 1. Configuration of Embodiment (1) Overall Configuration FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mail system to which an electronic mail device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.
In this figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a server computer (hereinafter, abbreviated as a server) connected to the network NT, which manages mail transfer for each mail address under its own domain. In the case of this embodiment, the server 1 temporarily stores the received mail in a folder corresponding to the destination address, and when the terminal 2 corresponding to the destination address accesses the received mail, stores the received mail in the folder. Is configured to be delivered.

Reference numerals 2-1 to 2-N denote portable information terminals (hereinafter abbreviated as PDAs) to which the electronic mail device according to the present invention is applied, and dial-up to a server 1 on a network via a public line LC. Connecting. This PDA2-
1-2-N have a plurality of independent processing functions such as a scheduler function and a timekeeping (calendar) function like a well-known electronic organizer, and when an e-mail function is selected and executed among them, The user logs on to the server 1 to receive the received mail, or sends the created outgoing mail to the server 1.

The PDAs 2-1 to 2-N are composed of elements 2a to 2g. Reference numeral 2a denotes a CPU for controlling each unit of the apparatus, and its characteristic operation will be described later. 2b is CP
It is a ROM that stores various control programs loaded into the U2a and screen data that forms various display screens (described later) related to mail transmission / reception and mail creation. Some of the various screen data stored in the ROM 2b are transferred to a RAM 2c described later. R
The AM 2c is used as a work area of the CPU 2a, and has various storage areas used when creating a mail or sending and receiving a mail. The main memory configuration will be described later.

Reference numeral 2d denotes a display unit composed of an LCD panel or the like, which displays various screens (described later) relating to mail transmission / reception based on a display control signal supplied from the CPU 2a. Reference numeral 2e denotes a key switch formed from a power switch, a numeric keypad, a keyboard for inputting characters, or the like, and generates a switch signal corresponding to the key switch to be operated. An input device 2f is configured by a transparent touch panel or the like laid on the LCD panel and generates input data according to a touch operation (or a pen touch operation). Reference numeral 2g denotes a communication control unit including a modem, an I / O controller, and the like, which controls mail transmission and reception with the server 1 according to a predetermined protocol under the instruction of the CPU 2a.

(2) Memory Configuration of RAM 2a Next, a main memory configuration of the RAM 2a will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, an MSE is a mail creation area used as a work area for creating an outgoing mail. The outgoing mail created in the mail creation area MSE is formed from a destination address AAD, a subject KM, and a text HB, and is stored and managed as a file in a mail area ME described later. The mail area ME is an area used as a reception list and a transmission list. The mail area ME includes a FAT (file allocation table) area and a file area for storing and managing outgoing mail and received mail in file units.

The FAT area is formed from file allocation tables FAT (0) to F (N) for managing files respectively corresponding to outgoing mail and received mail stored in the file area of the mail area ME.
The file allocation table FAT (hereinafter, abbreviated as table FAT) is formed from FAD, ST, TFN, and VOL. FAD is a file head address indicating the storage location of the file in the file area. ST is a status indicating the attribute of the file, and is composed of flags F1 to F3.

The flag F1 is a flag for identifying an outgoing mail / received mail.
“0” is set for a received mail. Flag F2
Indicates that the file is a received mail (flag F1
Is "0"), a flag is used to identify whether the mail is an unread mail in an unopened state or a read mail that has been opened. If the mail is an unread mail, "1" indicates that the mail has been read. "0" is set for mail. The flag F3 is
If the file is an outgoing mail (if the flag F1 is “1”), this is a flag for identifying whether or not the file has not been transmitted. If there is, "0" is set. TFN is the corresponding FAT number. When the file managed by the table FAT is a received mail, the corresponding FAT number is a table FAT that manages a mail returned to the received mail.
Points to the number. VOL is data representing the file capacity.

B. Next, the operation of the embodiment having the above configuration will be described. In the following description, the server 1 has a function of distributing a received mail to the logged-on PDA 2 and a function of receiving a transmitted mail from the PDA 2 and sending it to a destination address. Therefore, here, the details of the processing operation of the server 1 will not be described, and only the characteristic operation of the PDA 2 will be described.

(1) Operation of Main Routine (Outline of Operation) As described above, the PDA 2 has a plurality of independent various processing functions such as a scheduler function and a timekeeping (calendar) function in addition to an e-mail function. It is assumed that a mail icon is touch-operated (or pen-touched) on a main menu screen (not shown) to execute the e-mail function from among them. Then, the main routine shown in FIG. 3 is executed, and the CPU 2a proceeds to step SA1.
Processing proceeds to In step SA1, after clearing the display of the main menu screen (not shown), various registers and flags required for executing this routine are initialized, and the flow advances to next step SA2 to display the menu screen SMG on the display unit 2d. indicate.

Here, referring to FIG. 4, menu screen SM
G will be described. The menu screen SMG is formed from four process selection icons RL, TL, TR, and MS. RL is a reception list icon for activating a reception list display processing routine (described later) in response to a touch operation.
TL is a transmission book icon that activates a transmission book display processing routine (described later) in response to a touch operation. TR is a transmission / reception icon for activating a transmission / reception processing routine (described later) in response to a touch operation, and MS is a mail creation icon for activating a mail creation processing routine (described later) in response to a touch operation.

When such a menu screen SMG is displayed, the CPU 2a advances the processing to step SA3 and thereafter, and executes processing corresponding to the touch operation of the icons RL, TL, TR and MS. That is, when the reception icon RL is touch-operated, the result of the determination in step SA3 becomes “YES”, and the reception list display processing routine (described later) is executed via step SA4, and the reception stored in the mail area ME is performed. List emails,
A process such as specifying any one of the received mails displayed in the list and opening it is performed, and upon completion of this reception list display processing routine, the menu screen SMG is displayed again via step SA2.

When the transmission / reception icon TR is touch-operated, the result of the determination at step SA5 is "YES", a transmission / reception processing routine (described later) is executed via step SA6, and the server 1 is logged on to receive. A process of receiving the distribution of the mail or transmitting the untransmitted transmission mail to the server 1 is performed, and when the transmission / reception processing routine is completed, the menu screen SMG is displayed again via the step SA2.

If the mail creation icon MS is touched, the result of the determination in step SA7 is "YES", and a mail creation processing routine (described later) is executed via step SA8, and the mail creation area MSE is executed. Processing such as creating an e-mail and registering the created e-mail in the mail area ME as an outgoing e-mail is performed. When this e-mail creation processing routine is completed, the process returns to step SA2 to display the menu screen SMG again.

If the transmission list icon TL is touched, the result of the determination in step SA9 is "YES", the transmission list display processing routine is executed via step SA10, and the transmission mail stored in the mail area ME is transmitted. Is displayed in a list, or any of the outgoing mails displayed in the list is designated as a transmission target. When the transmission list display processing routine is completed, the process returns to step SA2 and the menu screen SMG is displayed again. indicate.

(2) Operation of Transmission / Reception Processing Routine Next, the operation of the transmission / reception processing routine will be described with reference to FIGS. Assuming that the transmission / reception icon TR is touched to transmit / receive mail to / from the server 1 on the above-described menu screen SMG, the CPU 2a executes the transmission / reception processing routine shown in FIG. 5 through step SA6 (see FIG. 3) of the main routine. The process proceeds to Step SB1. In step SB1, a user ID and a password are input to make a dial-up connection to the server 1, and in the subsequent step SB2, the server 1 waits until the authentication of the server 1 is completed and a logon state is established. Then, when the user logs on to the server 1, the determination result is “YES”, and the process proceeds to step SB 3 and thereafter to execute a process of transmitting and receiving a mail to and from the server 1. Hereinafter, the description will proceed with the transmission processing and the reception processing divided into cases.

Transmission processing First, in step SB3, a pointer register n for temporarily storing a value corresponding to the table FAT number is reset to zero. Next, at step SB3, it is determined whether or not the file managed by the table FAT (n) corresponding to the value of the pointer register n is an outgoing mail, that is, the flag F1 () constituting the status ST of the table FAT (n). It is determined whether or not (see FIG. 2) is “1” (outgoing mail). If the flag F1 is "0", that is, if the flag F1 is the table FAT (n) corresponding to the received mail, the determination result is "NO" and a step SB described later is performed.
8, the process goes to the next step SB5 if the flag F1 is “1” (transmitted mail), the judgment result is “YES”, and the process goes to the next step SB5.

In step SB5, the table FAT
It is determined whether the flag F3 (see FIG. 2) constituting the status ST of (n) is “1” (not transmitted). Here, if the flag F3 is “0”, the table FAT
Since the file managed by (n) is a transmitted mail, the determination result is "NO", and the process proceeds to Step SB8 described later. On the other hand, if the unsent mail has the flag F3 of “1”, the determination result is “YES”, the process proceeds to the next step SB6, and the table FAT
The file (unsent mail) managed by (n) is transmitted to the server 1 side. Then, after this, step SB
7 and the flag F of the table FAT (n)
3 is set to "0" to set the transmission state.

When the transmission of the unsent mail has been completed,
The CPU 2a advances the process to step SB8, increments the pointer register n by one, and advances the pointer register n. In the following step SB9, the table FAT (n) corresponding to the incremented value of the pointer register n is a free area. Determine whether or not. Then, if it is a free area, the determination result is “YES”, and the receiving process after the next step SB10 is executed, but if not, the determination result is “N”.
O ", and the above-described processing in step SB4 and thereafter is repeated.

As described above, in the transmission process, each table FAT is set according to the value of the pointer register n which is incremented.
The file storing the unsent mail is searched by referring to the flags F1 and F3 of (n), and when a corresponding file (unsent mail) is found, the file is transmitted to the server 1, and after the transmission is completed, the file is managed. Table FAT (n)
The flag F3 is set to "0" to be set as transmitted. Then, when such a transmission process is being performed, if there is a free area table FAT (n), the process proceeds to the reception process in step SB10 and thereafter, which will be described later.

Reception processing During the above-mentioned transmission processing, a table FAT of an empty area
If (n) exists, the CPU 2a advances the process to step SB10 to determine whether or not there is a received mail distributed from the server 1. Here, if there is no received mail distributed from the server 1, the determination result is “NO”, and the process proceeds to step SB14 (see FIG. 6) described later. "YES" is determined, and the process proceeds to step SB11 shown in FIG.

At step SB11, the received mail distributed from the server 1 is stored in the file area of the mail area ME. Next, in step SB12,
Table FAT for managing this received mail (file)
For (n), the file start address FAD and the capacity VO
L and status ST are set respectively. In this case, in the status ST, "0" is set in the flag F1 to indicate that the mail is a received mail, and "1" is set in the flag F2 to indicate that the mail is unopened. When the received mail is stored in this manner, the CPU 2a advances the process to step SB13, increments the value of the pointer register n by one, and proceeds by step SB13.
At 14, it is determined whether or not the table FAT (n) corresponding to the incremented value of the pointer register n is the table end END.

If the end of the table has been reached, the received mail cannot be stored in the file area any more, so that the determination result is "YES" and the step S
The process proceeds to B15 to log off the server 1, and in the subsequent step SB16, the routine is completed by on-hook to disconnect the connection to the public line LC. On the other hand, if the end of the table has not been reached, step S
The determination result in B14 is "NO", and the process returns to step SB4 described above to repeat the transmission process and the reception process again.

As described above, in the receiving process, the server 1
If there is a received mail distributed from the side, the received mail is stored in a file area, and a file head address F is stored in a table FAT (n) corresponding to the stored file.
In addition to setting the AD and the capacity VOL, a status ST including a flag F1 indicating the received mail and a flag F2 indicating the unopened mail is set.

(3) Operation of Receive Book Display Processing Routine Next, the operation of the receive book display processing routine will be described with reference to FIGS. When an unread mail (an unread received mail in which the flag F2 is “1”) is stored in the mail area ME by the above-described transmission / reception processing routine, the user opens the above-described menu screen SMG (to open the unread mail). 4), a touch operation is performed on the reception list icon RL. Then, the CPU 2a executes the reception list display processing routine shown in FIG. 7 through step SA4 (see FIG. 3) of the main routine, and executes step SC1.
Processing proceeds to At step SC1, the display of the displayed menu screen SMG is cleared, and the subsequent step S1 is executed.
In G2, the reception list screen RMG is displayed on the screen.

Here, referring to FIG. 9, the reception screen RMG
Will be described. The reception screen RMG includes a function selection icon group arranged at the top of the screen and a display field LI for displaying a list of received mails stored in the mail area ME.
ST. The icons for function selection include an opening icon KFI that is touch-operated when designating opening of a desired received mail, a mail creation icon MEI that is touch-operated when creating a new mail, and when completing the operation of this routine. And an end icon END touch-operated. In the display column LIST, each line in the column functions as a mail list icon ML, while each line is provided with display areas E1, E2, E3, and E4.

The mail list icon ML is used when designating the received mail on the corresponding line, and the display mode of the line changes according to a touch operation (for example, inversion display in which display dots are inverted). ) To indicate the designated state. In the display area E1, attributes relating to the received mail are displayed using symbols and characters with reference to the flags F2 and F3 (see FIG. 2) of the table FAT for managing the received mail. That is, when the flag F2 is “1”, a dot symbol “•” indicating that the mail is an unread mail (unopened state) is displayed. If the read mail is a read mail (opened received mail) and the flag F3 is “0”, a character “r” indicating that a reply mail is being created is displayed, and the flag F3 is set to “1”. ", A character" R "indicating that the reply mail has been sent is displayed. In the display area E2, the sender address SAD of the received mail is displayed.
3 displays the subject KM of the received mail, and the display area E4 displays the reception date and time RT.

Now, when such a reception screen RMG is displayed, the CPU 2a advances the process to step SC3.
The pointer register n is reset to zero, and the subsequent step S
At C4, whether the file managed by the table FAT (n) corresponding to the value of the pointer register n is a received mail, that is, whether the flag F1 included in the table FAT (n) is "0" Judge. Here, if the flag F1 is "1", that is, if it is a sent mail, there is no need to display it on the reception screen RMG, so the determination result is "NO", the process proceeds to step SC8, and the value of the pointer register n is Is incremented by 1 to keep the stepping.

On the other hand, if the flag F1 included in the table FAT (n) is "0",
Since the file managed in (n) is a received mail, the result of the determination in step SC4 is “YES”, and the process proceeds to step SC5. In step SC5, the sender address SAD, the subject KM, and the reception date / time RT are read from the file (received mail) managed in the table FAT (n), and these are displayed in the display areas E2 to E4 in the display column LIST. . Then
In step SC6, it is determined whether or not the status ST flag F2 read from the file (received mail) managed in the table FAT (n) is “0”, that is, whether or not the read mail has been opened.

If it is determined that the unread mail has the flag F2 of "1", the determination result is "NO", the process proceeds to Step SC7, and the unread mail is identified at the corresponding line position of the display area E1. After displaying the dot symbol ".", The process proceeds to step SC8, in which the value of the pointer register n is incremented so as to display the next received mail. on the other hand,
If the read mail has the flag F2 of “0”, the result of the determination in step SC6 is “YES”, and the CPU 2
a advances the process to step SC9. In step SC9, it is determined whether or not the corresponding FAT number TFN is registered in the table FAT (n). Corresponding FAT number TFN
Is not registered, the determination result is "NO", the process proceeds to Step SC10, and the corresponding line position in the display area E1 is blank (blank state), whereby the reply mail has not been created. After expressing the situation, the process proceeds to step SC8.

On the other hand, if the corresponding FAT number TFN is registered, the result of the determination in step SC9 is “YE
S ", and proceeds to the step SC11. In step SC11, the registered corresponding FAT number TFN
It is determined whether the file (outgoing mail) managed by the table FAT (TFN) corresponding to (1) is in the untransmitted state, that is, whether the flag F3 of the table FAT (TFN) is “1”. Then, a non-transmission state (flag F
When 3 is "1"), the determination result is "YES", the process proceeds to Step SC12, and the character "r" is displayed at the corresponding line position in the display area E1 (see FIG. 10A). This makes it clear at a glance that the reply mail is being created. On the other hand, if the transmission has been completed (the flag F3 is "0"), the result of the determination in step SC11 is "NO", the process proceeds to step SC13, and the character "R" is displayed at the corresponding line position in the display area E1. (See FIG. 10B). This makes it clear that the reply mail has been sent.

As described above, for received mails displayed in a list, attributes indicating whether the mail is unread / read, whether a reply mail is created, and whether the reply mail is transmitted / unsent are displayed in the display area E1. And the CPU 2a proceeds to step S
After incrementing the pointer register n via C8, FIG.
The process proceeds to Step SC14 shown in FIG. Step SC
At 14, it is determined whether or not there is a table FAT (n) corresponding to the incremented value of the pointer register n, that is, whether or not the list display has been completed for all the received mails stored in the mail area ME. . Here, if the list display of all received mails has not been completed, the determination result is “NO”, and the above-described processing after step SC4 is repeated. When the list display is completed, the determination result is “YE”.
S ", and the process proceeds to Step SC15. In step SC15, the display column LI on the reception screen RMG is displayed.
The display of the mail list icon ML located at the first line in the ST is changed in display such as display dot inversion or brightness change, and the received mail displayed on the first line is set to a designated state. Keep it.

Thereafter, the CPU 2a sets the reception list screen RM
A process corresponding to the touch operation of each of the icons KFI, MEI, END, and ML displayed on G is executed. That is, when any one of the mail list icons ML in the display column LIST is touched, the process proceeds to step SC1.
6 is "YES", and the next step SC1 is performed.
The process proceeds to 7, and the display corresponding to the mail list icon ML set to the ON state is changed according to the touch operation to change the display to the designated state.

Therefore, when the display of the first line in the display column LIST is changed and the line is in the designated state, for example, by touching the mail list icon ML on the second line, the second line is displayed. The display is changed, and the received mail displayed on the line becomes the designated state. Then, if a touch operation is performed on the opening icon KFI in this state, the result of the determination in step SC18 becomes “YES”, and
The process proceeds to step S19, and an opening processing routine described later is executed to open the received mail in the designated state.

When the mail creation icon MEI is touch-operated on the reception screen RMG, the result of the determination in step SC20 becomes "YES", and the flow proceeds to step S20.
A mail creation processing routine to be described later is executed via C21. After the completion of the mail creation processing routine, the display returns to the reception list screen RMG again. If the end icon END has been touched, step SC22
Is determined as "YES", the process proceeds to step SC23, the display of the reception list screen RMG is cleared, and this routine is completed. Then, the screen returns to the above-described menu screen SMG (see FIG. 4).

(4) Operation of Opening Processing Routine Next, the operation of the opening processing routine will be described with reference to FIGS. The above-mentioned reception screen RMG (FIG. 9)
In step SC19, the routine is executed via step SC19, and the process proceeds to step SD1 shown in FIG. In step SD1, the reception screen R
The display of the MG is cleared, and in the subsequent step SD2, the display areas ADE, KDE and HBE and the delete icon DE
L, an opening screen KFG (see FIG. 12) formed from the reply icon RES and the end icon END is displayed on the screen.

When the opening screen frame KFG is displayed, the CPU
2a advances the process to step SD3, where the reception screen RMG
The sender address SAD, subject KM, and body HB are read from the received mail file specified in the display column LIST, and the display areas ADE, KDE, and HBE are respectively displayed.
And open the email. Next, at step SD4, the flag F2 (see FIG. 2) in the table FAT for managing the opened received mail is set to "0" and set as opened. Next, in step SD5, it is determined whether or not the reply icon RES has been touched. here,
When the reply icon RES is touched to create a reply mail for the opened received mail, the judgment result is “Y
ES ", the process proceeds to the next step SD6, and a reply processing routine described later is executed.

On the other hand, if the reply icon RES has not been touched, the result of the determination is "NO", and the flow advances to step SD7 to determine whether or not a touch operation has been performed on the delete icon DEL. Then, when the delete icon DEL is touch-operated to delete the opened received mail from the mail area ME, the determination result here is “YES”, the process proceeds to the next step SD8, and the received mail being opened is deleted. The corresponding file and the table FAT for managing this file are cleared from the mail area ME. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SD9, where the display of the opening screen KFG is cleared, and the present routine is completed. In order to complete this routine without deleting the opened received mail, the end icon END is touched. In this case, the determination result of step SD10 is “YE
S ", the process proceeds to Step SD11, the display of the opening screen KFG is cleared, and this routine is completed.

(5) Operation of Reply Processing Routine Next, the operation of the reply processing routine will be described with reference to FIGS. The opening screen KFG described above (FIG. 12)
), When the reply icon RES is touched, this routine is executed via step SD6,
The process proceeds to step SE1 shown in FIG. In step SE1, the display of the opening screen KFG which has been displayed is cleared, and in step SE2, the mail creation screen MSG is newly displayed on the screen.

Here, the mail creation screen MSG will be described with reference to FIG. In this figure, AIE
Is a destination input area in which a destination address AAD as a mail transmission destination is input. When a reply mail is created, the sender address SAD of the opened received mail is automatically set as the destination address AAD. KIE is a subject input area in which a subject KM serving as a mail title is input. When a reply mail is created, a reply symbol "Re:" is added to the subject KM of the opened received mail and automatically set. The HIE is an area in which the body HB of the mail is input, and is automatically set by adding a quotation mark (eg, “>”) to the beginning of each line of the body HB of the opened received mail when creating a reply mail. . Note that these input areas AIE, KIE, and HIE also function as icons, and the areas are set as input targets in response to a touch operation. CAN is a cancel icon that is touch-operated when canceling data keyed in the input areas AIE, KIE, HIE, EN
D is an end icon that is touch-operated when the data keyed in the input areas AIE, KIE, and HIE is registered as an outgoing mail in the mail area ME to complete this routine.

When the mail creation frame screen MSG is displayed on the screen, the CPU 2a advances the process to step SE3, and sets the sender address SAD of the received mail opened in the above-described opening processing routine as the destination address AAD in the destination input area AIE. Data set. Then, in step SE4, the subject K of the received mail
Subject Entry Area KI with reply symbol "Re:" added to M
Set to E. Next, in step SE5, a quotation mark (for example, “>”) is added to the beginning of each line of the body HB of the received mail that has been opened, and the mail is set in the body input area HIB. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SE6, in which a character cursor is set at a predetermined position in the text input area HIB and blinked. Then, when a key is input while the character cursor is set at a predetermined position in the text input area HIB, the determination result in step SE7 becomes "YES", the process proceeds to the next step SE8, and the character data is input in accordance with the key input. Are sequentially displayed in the text input area HIB.

If the cancel icon CAN is touched to stop the creation of the reply mail, the result of determination in step SE9 is "YES", and
The process proceeds to E10, where each of the above-described input areas AIE, K
After clearing all data set in IE and HIE and clearing the display of the mail creation screen MSG to complete this routine, the process returns to the above-described opening screen KFG (see FIG. 4).

On the other hand, if the end icon END is touched after the reply mail has been created, step SE
The determination result in Step 11 becomes "YES", and Step SE12 is performed.
Processing proceeds to In step SE12, the input area A
The data keyed in the IE, KIE, HIE is stored in the file area as outgoing mail, and the subsequent step SE
At 13, a table FAT corresponding to the transmitted mail is registered. When registering table FAT, status S
The flag F1 forming T is "1" indicating a transmission mail.
And the flag F3 is set to "1" indicating an untransmitted state. Further, in the corresponding FAT number TFN, a number of a table FAT for managing the received mail is set to indicate that the mail is a reply mail corresponding to the opened received mail. Thereafter, all data set in each of the input areas AIE, KIE, and HIE are cleared via the step SE10, and the mail creation frame screen MSG is cleared.
Is completed and this routine is completed, and then the screen returns to the aforementioned opening screen KFG (see FIG. 4).

(6) Operation of Mail Creation Processing Routine Next, the operation of the mail creation processing routine will be described with reference to FIG. When the mail creation icon MEI is touch-operated on the above-mentioned reception screen RMG (see FIG. 9), this routine is executed via step SC21, and the process proceeds to step SF1 shown in FIG. The received reception screen RMG is cleared. Then, the process proceeds to step SF2, where the above-described mail creation screen MSG (see FIG. 14) is displayed on the screen, and in the subsequent step SF3, a character cursor is displayed in the destination input area AIE.

Next, in step SF4, it is determined whether or not any of the input areas AIE, KIE and HIE has been touched. If there is a touch-operated input area, the determination result is "YES", the process proceeds to the next step SF5, and after moving the character cursor to the touch-operated input area, the process proceeds to step SF4. Back. On the other hand, when the touch operation is not performed, the determination result of step SF4 is “NO”, and the
The process proceeds to F6. In step SF6, a character cursor is displayed, and it is determined whether or not data input (character input) has been performed for the input area to be input. And
If data is input, the determination result is "YES", the process proceeds to step SF7, and displays data input to the input area where the character cursor is located, and then returns to step SF4.

When steps SF4 to SF7 are repeated and input to each of the input areas AIE, KIE, HIE is completed, the result of determination at step SF6 is "NO".
Then, the CPU 2a advances the process to step SF8 and thereafter, and executes a process according to the touch operation of the cancel icon CAN and the end icon END. That is, when the cancel icon CAN is touch-operated, step SF
The determination result at step 8 becomes "YES", the process proceeds to step SF9 to clear the display of the mail creation screen MSG, and then completes this routine. Therefore, when the cancel icon CAN is touch-operated, each input area AI
The data input to E, KIE, and HIE are not stored, but are uniquely discarded, and this routine is completed.

On the other hand, if the end icon END has been touched, the result of the determination in step SF10 is “YE
S ", the process proceeds to Step SF11, and the data keyed in the input areas AIE, KIE, HIE is stored in the file area as a transmission mail, and in the subsequent Step SF12, the table FAT corresponding to the transmission mail is stored.
Register When registering the table FAT, the flag F1 for forming the status ST is set to "1" indicating a transmission mail, and the flag F3 is set to "1" indicating a non-transmission state. Then, after that, all data set in each of the input areas AIE, KIE, HIE via the step SF9 are cleared, and the mail creation screen M
After the display of SG is cleared and this routine is completed, the display returns to the above-mentioned reception screen RMG (see FIG. 9).

As described above, according to this embodiment,
For each file allocation table FAT that individually manages each received mail, flags F2, F3, and F3 are provided as attribute information indicating whether the mail is unread / read, whether a reply mail is created, and whether the reply mail is sent / unsent. Supported FAT
Number TFN is provided, and flags F2 and F3 and corresponding F
The reply status of each received mail can be displayed in a list by referring to the AT number TFN.
It is possible to avoid such problems as forgetting to send a reply mail and sending the same reply mail redundantly, or forgetting to send the created reply mail and leaving it unsent, etc. An efficient reply process can be realized.

In the above-described embodiment, the flags F2 and F3 and the corresponding FAT number TFN indicating whether the mail is unread / read, whether a reply mail is created, and whether the reply mail is sent / unsent are stored in the file allocation file. Table FA
Although the form provided in T is not limited to this, for example,
Of course, it is also possible to store the file header information in a file. Further, in this embodiment, when displaying the reception list, the attribute indicating the reply status of each received mail is displayed in the display area E1 (see FIG. 9). , Whether a reply email is created,
It is also possible to make the display color different for the transmission / non-transmission of the reply mail, or to change the font shape for identification display.

Further, in this embodiment, the reply status of each received mail is displayed in a list in the reception list. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, whether a reply mail is created, whether the reply mail is transmitted or not transmitted The received mails that meet the specified conditions may be collected and displayed in a list form, whereby more efficient reply processing can be realized.

In addition, in this embodiment, the flags F2 and F3 and the corresponding FA
Attribute information including a T number TFN is provided. For this reason, the junk mail whose origin is unknown is also displayed as a reply status. Therefore, for example, it is also possible to adopt a mode in which a new flag is provided to prevent the reply status from being displayed for e-mails whose sender is unknown or mails other than the specified sender, and are excluded from the targets for displaying the reply status. By doing so, it is possible to avoid the inconvenience of accidentally opening junk mail of unknown origin.

[0059]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, for each received mail stored in the storage means, an attribute representing at least whether a reply mail is created and whether the reply mail is transmitted or not transmitted is assigned. In addition, since the response status of each received mail is displayed by referring to this attribute, it is clear at a glance whether or not a reply mail is created and whether the reply mail is sent or not sent, so that an efficient reply process can be performed. . Claim 2
According to the invention described in (1), the attribute assigning unit responds to a case where the received mail stored in the storage unit is opened and the reply mail is completed and a case where the created reply mail is transmitted. Since the content of the attribute is updated, the latest reply status can always be displayed. According to the third aspect of the present invention, for each received mail stored in the storage means, at least an attribute indicating whether a reply mail is created and whether the reply mail is transmitted / unsent is provided. One of the attributes
Since the received mail in the reply status matching the designated attribute is extracted from the storage means and displayed, the received mails in the desired reply status can be listed up, and therefore, efficient reply processing can be performed. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mail system to which an electronic mail device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a memory map for explaining a main memory configuration of a RAM 2c configuring the PDA 2.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of a main routine.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a menu screen SMG.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a transmission / reception processing routine.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation of a transmission / reception processing routine.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation of a reception list display processing routine.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an operation of a reception list display processing routine.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a reception screen RMG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a display example of a reply status.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an opening processing routine.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of an opening screen KFG.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of a reply processing routine.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a mail creation screen MSG.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an operation of a mail creation processing routine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Server computer 2 Personal digital assistant (PDA) 2a CPU 2b ROM 2c RAM 2d Display part 2e Key switch 2f Input device 2g Communication control part

Claims (3)

[Claims] An e-mail receiving unit for receiving an e-mail and storing the e-mail in a storage unit; and for each of the received e-mails stored in the storage unit, at least the presence / absence of creation of a return e-mail and whether the return e-mail is transmitted or not transmitted. Attribute providing means for providing an attribute to be represented, and status display means for displaying a reply status of each received mail stored in the storage means with reference to the attribute provided by the attribute providing means. Email device. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the received mail stored in the storage unit is opened and the reply mail is created and when the created reply mail is transmitted, The e-mail device according to claim 1, wherein is updated. 3. A mail receiving means for receiving a mail and storing the same in a storage means, and for each of the received mails stored in the storage means, at least whether or not a reply mail has been created and whether the reply mail has been transmitted or not transmitted. Attribute assigning means for assigning an attribute to be represented, attribute designating means for designating one of the attributes assigned by the attribute assigning means, and storing the received mail in a reply status matching the attribute designated by the attribute assigning means. An electronic mail apparatus comprising: a status display unit that extracts and displays the status from a unit.