JPS6378636A - Facsimile store and forward system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable the transmission of data to be performed successively by using plural lines without waiting the reception of all of the pages of communication data, and to eliminate influence due to the number of sheets of transmission originals, or line quality on a communication time, when the communication of the communication data is performed, by dividing and managing the communication data of one time of communication into a page unit in a store and forward equipment. CONSTITUTION:Facsimile equipments FAX3A, and FAX3B are connected respectively to store and forward equipments S/F1A and S/F1B being connected through the plural lines. At the FAX3A on a transmission side, five sheets of originals 4 are scanned in order from a first page, and a picture signal of respective page is transmitted to the S/F1A. At the S/F1A, the picture signal by every page is received in order as a picture data 5, and a telegram managing data 60 in the page unit is generated at every reception of the picture data 5 of one page, and transmits it to the S/F1B without waiting the reception of the picture data 5 of next page. Furthermore, when the reception of the picture data 5 of the original 4 is completed, a telegram managing data 61 in a communication unit is generated, and is transmitted to the S/F1B. At the S/F1D, the picture data 5 by every page, the managing data 60, and the managing data 61 are received in order, and the diting of the picture data 5 of five pages is performed, and afterwards, the data by every page is transmitted to the FAX3B.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a facsimile storage and forwarding system, and particularly to a facsimile store and forwarding system in which communication time is less affected by the number of transmitted documents and line quality. Regarding the system.

(Prior Art) FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of main parts of a general facsimile storage and forwarding system.
A storage and forwarding device (hereinafter referred to as
A facsimile machine (hereinafter abbreviated as FAX) 3Ij (S/F: 5tore and forward) 1 is connected via an exchange 2.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of a conventional facsimile storage and forwarding system of this type including the configuration shown in FIG. 5 and its communication control operation. FAX 3a and FAX 3b are connected to S/F 1 a and S/F 1 b, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 6, the operation when transmitting, for example, five original documents 4 from the FAX 3a to the FAX 3b will be described.

First, the sending side FAX 3a sequentially reads and scans the original 4 from the first page, and the original 4 that has been read by the reading scan.
image signals are sequentially transmitted to S/F 1a.

On the other hand, the S/F 1 a receives the image signals via the communication control section 10 under the control of the CPU II, and sequentially stores them in the storage section 12 as image data 5 (see FIG. 5).

When all five originals 4, that is, image data 5 for one communication, have been received, one communication unit message management data (hereinafter simply referred to as management data) 6 is created for the image data 5 for one communication. do.

Next, S/F 1a selects one of the multiple lines.
The image data 5 and the management data 6 are transmitted to S/Fib through the captured line.

Then, the S/F 1 b sequentially receives the image data 5 and the management data 6 transmitted from the S/F 1 a, and
After determining that all of the image data 5 has been received based on the management data 6, the image data 5 is sequentially faxed to the FAX 3b.
Send to.

Next, the FAX 3b sequentially receives the image data 5 transmitted from the S/F 1 b, performs recording scanning, and outputs a received original 7 corresponding to the original 4 read and scanned by the sending FAX 3a.

In this way, in the conventional facsimile store-and-forward system,
Image data is managed in units of one communication, and in S/Fla, even if one communication is 1b from the sending FAX 3a, the S/F
After the reception of all the image data 5 for one communication from La is completed, the image data 5 is sent all at once to the FAX 3b.

Therefore, if the line quality between S/Fla and S/F lb is poor and a communication error occurs during communication and the communication is interrupted, for example, the 4 pages of original documents that have been sent It was necessary to cancel image data 5 corresponding to document 4, and it was necessary to retransmit image data 5 corresponding to document 4 on the first page.

Furthermore, because the image data 5 is managed in units of one communication minute, the number of lines that can be used for communication between S/Fla and S/F 1b is limited to one line per communication. Ta.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As described above, in the conventional facsimile storage and forwarding system described above, communication data is managed in units of one communication, so only one line can be used for each communication, and When communication is interrupted due to a communication error due to quality deterioration, it is necessary to resend the original from the first page, which results in long communication times when there are many originals to be sent, and in addition, the line There is a problem in that the communication time becomes even longer when conditions that cause quality deterioration overlap.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and the influence on the communication time due to the number of transmitted documents and line quality is small, and it can be used as much as possible even when the number of transmitted documents is large or the line quality is poor. An object of the present invention is to provide a facsimile storage and exchange system that can shorten communication time.

[Configuration of the Invention (Means for Solving Problems) The facsimile storage and forwarding system of the present invention is configured using a storage and forwarding device equipped with means for dividing and managing communication data for one communication in page units, The storage and forwarding device on the sending side sends the communication data for one communication received from the facsimile device on the sending side in page units to the storage and forwarding device on the receiving side.
The storage and forwarding device on the receiving side edits the communication data in units of pages received from the storage and forwarding device on the transmitting side into the communication data for one communication, and then transmits the communication data to the facsimile device on the receiving side. There is.

(Function) In the facsimile storage and forwarding system of the present invention, each storage and forwarding device divides and manages communication data for one communication page by page, so multiple lines are used to communicate the communication data between the storage and forwarding devices. Furthermore, if communication is interrupted due to a communication error or the like due to deterioration of line quality, communication can be continued by simply retransmitting only the part where the error occurred.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of a facsimile storage and forwarding system according to the present invention and its communication control operation.
FAX 3A and FAX 3B are connected to each FIB.

Referring to FIG. 1, the operation when transmitting, for example, five original documents 4 from FAX 3A to FAX 3B will be described.

First, the FAX 3A on the sending side sequentially reads and scans the five originals 4 starting from the first page, and transmits image signals of the originals 4 read by the scanning to the S/F IA page by page.

On the other hand, the S/F I A sequentially receives image signals for each page transmitted from the FAX 3A as image data 5, and each time image data 5 for one page is received, a page unit message for the image data 5 is sent. Management data 60 is created.

FIG. 2 conceptually shows the contents of page-by-page message management data 60, and shows the page catalog number, system serial number, page number, and image data block of that page so that you can know which page of which communication. Consists of numbers.

Next, the S/FIA sends the received image data 5 for one page and the page-based message management data 60 created based on the image data 5 to the S/FIA without waiting for the reception of the image data 5 for the next page.
Send to IB.

Such communication control is repeated in order from the first page of the original 4, and when the reception of the image data 5 of the final page, that is, the fifth page of the original 4, is completed, the S/FIA performs one communication that has been received so far, that is, One piece of communication unit message management data 61 for the image data 5 of the original document 4 for five pages is created and sent to the S/FIB in the same way as the page unit message management data 60.

FIG. 3 conceptually shows the contents of the communication unit message management data 61, which is composed of a communication catalog number, a system serial number, and a page catalog number for one communication.

In addition, in the conventional communication unit message management data 6, an image data block number is provided at the page catalog number in the communication unit message management data 6e, and based on one management data given for one communication. It was configured to edit image data.

In addition, the S/FI B sequentially receives image data 5 for each page, page-based message management data 60, and communication-based message management data 61 transmitted from the S/FIA, and communicates with these page-based message management data 60. The image data 5 of all five pages of the manuscript 4 are edited based on the unit message management data 61, and then the edited image data 5 is transmitted page by page to the FAX 3B.

Then, the FAX 3B sequentially receives the image data 5 transmitted from the S/FI B, performs recording scanning, and outputs a received original 7 corresponding to the five pages of original 4 read and scanned by the sending FAX 3A. do.

In such communication control, if the communication speed α of the line between FAX3A and S/FIA is higher than the communication speed β of the line between S/FIA and S/FIB, then
/F I 8 using only one line, the image data 5 received from the FAX 3A is stored one after another in the S/F I A, and the image data 5 is transferred to the S/F I A.
There will be a waiting time for transmitting to B.

Under these circumstances, the S/FIA shall
Capture an empty line from among the multiple lines with B,
The image data 5 accumulated as described above is sequentially transmitted page by page to the S/FIB through the captured free line.

In other words, in the facsimile storage and exchange system of the present invention,
Communication is performed between the FAX 3A and S/FIA using only one line, and communication is performed using multiple lines between S/FIA and S/FIB.

Such communication control can be realized by managing the image data 5 on a page-by-page basis, and the communication time can be shortened even under normal line quality conditions.

Similarly, by managing the image data 5 on a page-by-page basis, for example, communication errors may occur due to deterioration of line quality between S/FIA and S/FIB, and communication may be interrupted. In this case, normal communication control can be restored by simply retransmitting only the image data 5 of the page that could not be transmitted due to the communication error, and the conventional system retransmits the image data 5 from the first page. Compared to the above, communication time can be significantly reduced when line quality deteriorates.

Therefore, in the facsimile storage and forwarding system of the present invention,
For example, the minimum time to send all five originals 4 is 5α+5β+57 (where γ is the line l between S/FI B and AFAX3B).
communication speed) can be made shorter.

In this case, the communication speed α is faster than the communication speed β, and S
The greater the number of /FIA and S/FI B lines, the greater the effect of reducing communication time.

The communication control operation described above will be explained in more detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, in FIG. 4(a), the S/FIA reception operation (step 100) is started after waiting for an incoming call from the FAX 3A.

That is, when the S/FIA receives an incoming call from the FAX 3A (step 101), the S/FIA sends the incoming call request to the S/FIA and the S/F.
It is determined whether the communication is for communication between I8 or not (step 102), and if it is determined that it is for communication between S/FIA and S/FIB, reception is immediately started ( Step 103).

Next, the S/FIA determines whether one page of image data 5 has been received normally from the FAX 3A (step 104).
), if it is determined that the data has been received normally, the communication operation with the S/FI B is immediately started (step 105), and the S/FI
Start sending to FIB. ' Furthermore, S/FIA repeatedly performs the operations from step 103 to step 106 while determining whether or not the reception of the all-page bone image data 5 from the FAX 3A has been completed (step 10δ). As soon as the reception of data 5 is completed, the state returns to the state of waiting for an incoming call from FAX 3A (
Step 107).

Incidentally, in step 104, if one page of image data 5 is not received normally, the S/F IA sends the FAX 3A
Then, so-called error processing is executed to prompt retransmission of the image data 5 of that page (step 108).

In addition, in the judgment at step 102, the S/FIA
When it is determined that communication between /FIA and S/FI 8 is not required, normal reception operation is immediately executed (step 109).

This normal receiving operation is shown in FIG. 4(b), in which the S/F IA and S/F
Based on the determination result that there is no communication request between I8 and I8, normal reception is started (step 1090).

Next, the S/FIA determines whether one page of image data 5 has been received normally (step 1091), and if it has been received normally, it determines whether or not all pages of bone image data 5 have been received. While making that judgment (Stella Bu 1092),
The operations from step 1090 to step 1092 are repeated, and at the same time as the reception of image data 5 for all pages is completed, the state returns to the state before the start of reception (step 1093).

Incidentally, in step 1091, if one page of image data 5 is not received normally, the S/FIA receives the image data 5 as shown in FIG. 4(a).
The same error handling as in step 108 is performed (step 1094).

Further, the state of the S/F communication operation in step 105 in FIG. 4(a) is shown in FIG. 4(c).

That is, after determining that one page of image data 5 has been successfully received from the FAX 3A (step 104), the S/FIA makes a call to the S/FIB (step 1050) and sends a call to the S/FIB. Transmission is started after waiting for a response from FIB (step 1051).

Next, the S/FIA determines whether one page of image data 5 has been transmitted normally (step 1052), and if it has been transmitted normally, it determines whether or not the entire page of image data 5 has also been transmitted. While making this determination (step 1053), the operations from step 1050 to step 1053 are repeated, and at the same time that the entire page image data 5 is transmitted, the state returns to the state before the transmission operation was started (step 1054).

By the way, in the judgment at step 1052, if one page of image data 5 has not been transmitted normally, the transmission is performed after a certain period of time (step 1055 ), the operation of transmitting the image data 5 of that page is performed again.

In the inter-S/F communication operation (step 105), in addition to the image data 5, page unit message management data 60° and communication unit message management data 61 are also transmitted, and moreover, a plurality of vacant lines are used. As mentioned above.

Furthermore, the image data 5 received by the S/FIB through the inter-S/F communication operation described above is sent by FAX from the S/FIB.
The operation (step 200) when sending to 3B is as follows.
This is shown in FIG. 4(d).

That is, the S/F I B converts the image data 5 of each page received from the S/F I A into page-based message management data 60,
After editing based on communication unit message management data 61, F
A call is made to the AX3B (step 201), and transmission is started after waiting for a response from the AX3B (step 202).

Next, the S/FI B determines whether or not one page of image data 5 has been transmitted normally (step 203).
If the transmission is normal, it is further determined whether the transmission of the entire page image data 5 has been completed (step 204).

In this judgment, as long as the transmission is not completed, the processes from step 202 to step 204 are repeated, and as soon as the transmission is completed, the state before the transmission is started is returned (step 205).

Incidentally, in step 203, if the image data 5 for one page is not transmitted normally, error processing is executed to resend only the image data 5 for this page (step 20).
6).

In addition, when transmitting the image data 5 from the S/FI B to the FAX 3B, as described above, after receiving the entire page image data 5 at the S/FI B, edit the image data 5 and send it in one communication. In addition to sending it to FAX 3B, S/
Every time one page of image data 5 is received from the FIA to the S/FI B, the image data 5 is transmitted from the S/FI B to the FAX 3B without waiting for the next image data 5 to arrive. You may also do so.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the facsimile storage and forwarding system of the present invention, the storage and forwarding device manages the communication data by dividing it into pages, so when communicating the communication data between the storage and forwarding devices, a plurality of It is possible to send all pages of communication data sequentially without waiting for reception using a line, and when communication is interrupted due to a communication error due to deterioration of line quality, only the part where the error occurred is retransmitted. This has the excellent advantage that the communication time is less affected by the number of originals to be transmitted and the line quality, and the communication time can be significantly shortened.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of the facsimile storage and forwarding system according to the present invention and its communication operation control, and FIGS. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the communication operation of the facsimile storage and forwarding system shown in FIG. 1, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of main parts of a general facsimile storage and forwarding system. FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of a conventional facsimile storage and forwarding system and its communication control operation. 1.1a, lb, IA, IB...Storage and forwarding device (S/
F), 2-... exchange, 3, 3a, 3b, 3A.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In a facsimile storage and forwarding system in which communication data for one communication transmitted from a sending facsimile device is received by a receiving facsimile device through communication between storage and forwarding devices, the storage and forwarding device The storage and exchange device on the sending side stores the communication data for one communication received from the facsimile machine on the sending side in page units on the receiving side. The storage and forwarding device on the receiving side edits the communication data in units of pages received from the storage and forwarding device on the sending side into the communication data for one communication, and then sends the communication data to the facsimile on the receiving side. A facsimile store-and-forward system characterized by transmitting to a device. (2) Before the storage and forwarding device on the sending side has received the communication data for one communication from the facsimile device on the sending side, the storage and forwarding device on the receiving side stores the communication data in units of pages received so far. The facsimile storage and forwarding system according to claim 1, wherein the facsimile storage and forwarding system starts transmission to the facsimile storage and forwarding system. (3) Before the storing and forwarding device on the receiving side has received one communication worth of communication data from the storing and forwarding device on the transmitting side, the facsimile device on the receiving side transmits the communication data in units of pages that have been received so far. The facsimile storage and forwarding system according to claim 1, wherein the facsimile storage and forwarding system starts transmission to the facsimile storage and forwarding system.