JPS6279552A - Personal computer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily monitor the communication state, etc., of a facsimile by providing a display and control means that displays the communication state or the printing state of an equipment as the facsimile. CONSTITUTION:A personal computer generates a document, etc. and stores a document data, etc., at an external storage device 3 and reads the documents data,d etc., on a main memory 12 from the external storage device 3 and converts the data to a MH code that is one of the facsimile transmission data systems. The computer controls a modem and a NCU in a communication board 20 and sends a call signal to a switched line 30 and sends the telephone number of an opposite facsimile. And the computer waits a response signal from the opposite facsimile equipment and when no response signal arrives within a prescribed time, it controls the modem and the NCU, sending a cut-off signal to the switched line 30 and cutting off a circuit. Thereby, the communication state of the facsimile, etc., can easily be monitored.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to personal computers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Conventional personal computers have used facsimile machines to quickly transmit data created thereon to remote locations.

That is, first, the above-mentioned data is printed once using a printer or the like, and the printed paper is set in a facsimile machine and transmitted to the other party's facsimile machine.

In this case, in addition to the personal computer, a facsimile machine is required, so there is a problem in that a considerable amount of cost is required to install the facsimile machine. Furthermore, there is a problem in that the received data cannot be stored as is in a storage device such as a floppy disk at the other station.

In order to solve this problem, it is conceivable to connect a modem, an NCU (network control unit), their interfaces, etc. to the personal computer main body.

Additionally, in this case, in order to be able to send and receive facsimiles while operating the personal computer, it is a good idea to send and receive facsimiles using interrupt processing or a background task in multitasking. It will be done.

On the other hand, although sending and receiving facsimile requires a large amount of data and paper, the external storage device or main memory of a personal computer has a limited capacity. Therefore, while sending or receiving a facsimile,
There is a problem that the system may go down.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and provides a personal computer that can easily monitor the communication status of facsimile when the personal computer transmits and receives facsimile. The purpose is to

[Embodiment of the invention] FIG. 1 is an external view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
The figure is a block diagram showing the main parts of the above embodiment.

The CRTI is one type of display device that simultaneously displays the display of a general personal computer and the communication status or printing status of a facsimile, and uses this display to monitor the facsimile status.

Further, the external storage device 3 stores general personal computer business data, facsimile transmission/reception data, etc. after inputting them using the keyboard 2 or the like.

The printer 4 prints general personal computer work or facsimile images under the control of the CPU II, and the image scanner 5 is one of data input means and is used to input image information.

The personal computer main body IO has a CPU 11, a main memory 12, and a communication board 20.

The CPU II controls the entire personal computer, and the main memory 12 stores facsimile programs and the like.

The communication board 20 includes a modem, an NCU (network control unit), and an interface circuit for these. The modem and NCU enable communication with a facsimile machine.

Further, the CPU II controls facsimile transmission and reception in parallel with general personal computer operations according to reception interrupts or preset programs.

Furthermore, the CPU II has the function of display control means for displaying the communication status as a facsimile or the printing status on the CRTI.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the above embodiment.

First, a document or the like is created using a personal computer, this document data or the like is stored in the external storage device 3, and the document data or the like is read from the external storage device 3 into the main memory 12 (Sl). Then, the data is converted into MH code, which is one of the facsimile transmission data methods (S2
). Next, the modem and NCU of the communication board 20 are controlled to send a calling signal to the public line 30 and the facsimile telephone number of the other party (S3).

Then, it waits for a response signal from the other party's facsimile machine, and if the response signal does not arrive within the time (34), it controls the modem and NCU, sends a disconnection signal to the public line 30, and disconnects the line. (S8).

In S4, if a response signal is received, the line is connected and a connection is made to the other party's facsimile according to the CCITT T-30 facsimile communication protocol (S5).

If the other party's facsimile machine is not connected (S
6) The line is disconnected (S8). Once connected to the other party's facsimile machine, communication begins.

That is, the MH code data that has already been converted is transmitted to the other party's facsimile machine (S7).

When this transmission is completed, the line is disconnected (S8), and the transmission operation ends.

As described in 1-, data created on a personal computer is directly transmitted to the other party's facsimile machine without being printed, so the data can be clearly transmitted.

In the embodiment described in Section 1, certain data stored in the external storage device 3 is transmitted to the other party's facsimile machine, but in addition to this, other data such as data read by the image scanner 5 is transmitted. The data from the means may be transmitted to the other party's facsimile machine.

In addition to transmitting data to the other party's facsimile machine, data may also be received from the other party's facsimile machine under the control of the modem and NCU. therefore,
Data sent from the other party's facsimile device can be managed immediately in the external storage device 3. In addition,
In this case, after the received data is stored in the external storage device 3, the data may be printed by the printer 4.

Furthermore, instead of the MH code, other codes such as an MR code may be used to convert the data.

FIG. 4(A) is a flowchart showing other operations in the above embodiment, and FIG. 4(B) is a diagram showing an example of screen display at each step of the flowchart.

First, line connection processing is performed (S11), and the message "Receiving in progress. 10 more sheets can be received" is displayed as a reception start no 2 message (S12). This message is displayed in facsimile status display area 1 in CRTI.
b. Here, in the CRTI, the facsimile-related status display area 1b is set below the general display area 1a that displays the contents of a general personal computer.

Next, data is received from the other party's facsimile machine, the received data is stored in the external storage device 3 (313), and the line 30 is disconnected (S14). in this case,
The remaining capacity of the external storage device 3 is displayed as ``Reception has finished. 8 more images can be received.'' (s
l5).

If simultaneous printing is required (316), the received data is read out, the read MH code is converted into printer image data, and the data is printed (S17). At this time, a message such as "Printing in progress" is displayed in area 1b of the CRTI. If there is no printing error (318), a message such as "Waiting for reception. Eight more pages can be received" is displayed as a message waiting to be received (321).

If there is a printing error, "
Please check the printer. It should be displayed like ``S 1
9) Wait for printer inspection (S20)
.

As described in , if you perform facsimile transmission and reception at the same time as performing normal personal computer operations, the facsimile communication status or printing status will be displayed, allowing you to take appropriate measures. Therefore, even if the external storage device or main memory of the personal computer has a capacity limit, the system is unlikely to go down during facsimile transmission or reception.

Note that a display other than the display example shown in FIG. 4 CB) may be performed.

In addition to the above display, other messages may be displayed in the facsimile related status display area 1b, such as a message regarding time-specified transmission or a message indicating that a broadcast transmission is in progress. .

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, when a personal computer transmits and receives a facsimile, the communication status of the facsimile can be easily monitored.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the above embodiment. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the above embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another operation of the above-mentioned embodiment; FIG. 4(A) is a flowchart, and FIG. 4(CB) is a diagram showing an example of screen display. l...CRT. lb...Facsimile related status display area, 3...External storage device, 10...Personal computer main body, 11...C
P.U. 20...Communication board, 30...Public line.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A personal computer that has a modem and an NCU that can communicate with a facsimile device, and is characterized by having display control means for displaying the communication status or printing status of the facsimile. (2) The personal computer according to claim 1, wherein the facsimile communication is performed in parallel with the original personal computer operation. (3) The personal computer according to claim 1, wherein the display of the facsimile communication status or the printing status is performed in parallel with the display of a general personal computer.