KR100812799B1 - System and Method for Mail Agent Service - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention uses the user information storage unit for storing the user's mail authentication information corresponding to one or more ISP mail server, the received mail of the ISP mail server from the one or more ISP mail server by using the user's mail authentication information stored in the user information storage unit Receiving processing unit for receiving the received mail corresponding to the user's mail authentication information among the received mail stored in the unit, Receiving mail storage unit for storing received mail transferred from one or more ISP mail server according to a predetermined user setting environment, a predetermined user Receives outgoing mail and mail address to receive outgoing mail from the terminal, and sends outgoing mail and mail to the server part for sending out the selected ISP mail server among one or more ISP mail servers using the user's mail authentication information stored in the user information storage unit. Escalate the address so that outgoing mail can be sent from the selected ISP mail server to the mail address. And a control unit which is in charge of overall operation control with the user terminal in relation to the transmission processing unit and the transmission and reception of the mail.

According to the present invention, since mail received from a plurality of ISP mail servers can be integrated and managed on the web, and mail control can be prevented, individual access to a plurality of ISP mail servers is avoided, and no matter where a user is located, It can enhance the convenience of user ubiquitous environment that can operate all mail service of.

 Mail integration, integrated management, sending, receiving, mail storage

Description

System and Method for Mail Agent Service

1a to 1b is a block diagram of an entire system for managing an e-mail according to the prior art,

2 is a configuration diagram of an entire system to which a mail agent service system is applied according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a detailed configuration diagram of a mail agent service system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a flowchart illustrating a mail agent service method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

210: ISP mail server 220: user terminal

230: mail agent service system 231: user information storage unit

232: receiving processing unit 233: receiving mail storage unit

234: call processing unit 235: control unit

236: calling information storage unit 240: network

The present invention relates to a system and method for sending and receiving e-mail in an Internet environment, and more particularly, to an e-mail agent that enables a user to integrate and manage e-mail received or sent through a plurality of ISP mail servers subscribed to by the user. A service system and method.

1A shows an overall system for managing email in accordance with one embodiment of the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1A, the entire system for managing email according to an embodiment of the prior art is connected to an ISP webmail server 112 connected to a network 114 such as the Internet using a user terminal 111. Access and send and receive mail through the HTTP protocol, etc., and stores the received mail in the mail storage unit 113 of each ISP web mail server.

An example of such a system is a mail system operated by ordinary individual mail servers such as services such as 'blue mail' or 'hotmail' currently provided by portal sites such as 'Paran' or 'MSN'.

In general, netizens have mail addresses through one or more mail servers according to their purpose and environment.

Such a system must be aware of its own authentication information used by each ISP webmail server, and if multiple ISP webmail servers are used, authentication procedures must be performed on each ISP webmail server in order to check incoming mail. There is a problem that it is not only cumbersome but time-consuming because it must be connected via.

In other words, in order to check the mail received through the mail address that is owned, it is possible to connect to all ISPs corresponding to the mail address of the user. It is inconvenient to follow the policy according to each ISP mail server, not the user's position, because mail should be handled in different user environment.

On the other hand, in order to solve the above inconvenience to some extent, a system related to a user terminal-oriented personal integrated mail is implemented, and another embodiment of the related art is shown in FIG. 1B.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the entire system for managing email according to another embodiment of the prior art is connected to an ISP webmail server 112 connected to a network 124 such as the Internet by using a user terminal 121. It connects and sends and receives mail through protocols such as POP, IMAP, SMTP, HTTP, and stores the received mail in the mail storage unit 122 of the user terminal 121.

Examples of such a system include mail programs such as Outlook, Yudora, and Netscape Messenger.

Since such a system stores the received mail in the mail storage unit 122 of the user terminal 121, the received mail stored in the mail storage unit 122 of the user terminal 121 after being received is another terminal (not shown). Since it can not be confirmed through, there was a problem that the user is subject to space constraints.

In the case of the system shown in FIG. 1B, it is possible to collectively operate the mail used by an individual to some extent to solve the inconvenience, but this is only a user terminal, that is, only considering the physical user environment, so the user The disadvantages of access and restricted access under Ubiquitous environment are retained.

The present invention was devised to solve the above problems, and provides a mail agent system and method that integrates and manages received mails to reduce time consumption, enhance user convenience, and prevent users from being restricted by space. The purpose is.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be described below and will be appreciated by the embodiments of the invention. In addition, the objects and advantages of the present invention can be realized by means and combinations indicated in the claims.

Mail agent service system of the present invention for achieving the above object, the user information storage unit for storing mail authentication information of the user corresponding to one or more ISP mail server; Using the user's mail authentication information stored in the user information storage unit, the received mail corresponding to the user's mail authentication information is transferred from the at least one ISP mail server to the received mail stored in the receiving mail unit of the ISP mail server. Receiving receiving processing unit; A received mail storage unit for storing received mail transferred from the at least one ISP mail server according to a predetermined user setting environment; Receives an outgoing mail and a mail address to which the outgoing mail is to be received from a predetermined user terminal, and sends the outgoing mail to a selected ISP mail server among the one or more ISP mail servers using mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storage unit. And an outgoing processor for transferring the mail address. And when the signal for requesting mail reception is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the receiving processor controls the received mail to be transferred, and controls the receiving mail storage unit to store the transferred received mail, and sends the mail from the predetermined user terminal. And a control unit for controlling the transmission processing unit to transfer the outgoing mail and the mail address to the selected ISP mail server when a signal for requesting transmission is transmitted.

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On the other hand, when the mail read request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the control unit transmits the received mail corresponding to the mail read request signal among the received mails stored in the received mail storage unit to the predetermined user terminal. It can also be configured.

In addition to the above configuration, and further comprising a caller information storage unit for storing the caller information including the sender's mail address, the control unit, the caller information stored in the caller information storage unit when the request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal; It is preferable to configure to transmit to the predetermined user terminal.

Further, the predetermined user preferences are configured to be set by the storage period of the received mail or the folder information serving as the storage classification criteria of the received mail.

A mail agent service method for realizing another object according to the present invention comprises: a user information storing step of storing mail authentication information of a user corresponding to at least one ISP mail server; When a mail receiving request signal is transmitted from a predetermined user terminal, among the received mails stored in the receiving mail unit of the ISP mail server from the one or more ISP mail servers using the mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storing step. A reception processing step of transferring the received mail corresponding to the mail authentication information of the user; A received mail storing step of storing received mail transferred from the at least one ISP mail server in the receiving processing step according to a predetermined user setting environment; And when the mail transmission request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, receiving the outgoing mail and the mail address from which the outgoing mail is to be received from the predetermined user terminal and using the user's mail authentication information stored in the user information storing step. And an origination processing step of transferring the originating mail and the mail address to a selected ISP mail server among the one or more ISP mail servers.

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Furthermore, when a mail read request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, a received mail transmission step of transmitting a received mail corresponding to the mail read request signal among the received mails stored in the received mail storage step to the predetermined user terminal. It may further include.

In addition, the method further includes a calling information storing step of storing sender information including a sender's mail address, wherein the calling processing step includes caller information stored in the calling information storing unit when a request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal. It may be configured to transmit to the predetermined user terminal.

In addition, it is preferable to configure so as to be set by the storage period of the received mail or folder information which is the storage classification criteria of the received mail.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms or words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to the common or dictionary meanings, and the inventors should properly explain the concept of terms in order to explain their invention in the best way. Based on the principle that can be defined, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the specification and the drawings shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, various modifications that can be replaced at the time of the present application It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

2 is a block diagram of the entire system to which the mail agent service system 200 is applied according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the mail agent service system 200 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes at least one ISP mail server 210, a predetermined user terminal 220, a mail agent service system 230, and Network 240.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the received mail received through the one or more ISP mail server 210 is transferred to the mail agent service system 230 at the request of the user terminal 220 is stored (移 管), In addition, a user sends a mail through one or more ISP mail servers 210 using the mail agent service system 230.

ISP mail server 210 receives the e-mail received from the Internet service provider (ISP), and serves to deliver the mail to be sent, the mail server is sometimes called a message transfer agent (MTA) It could be a computer dedicated to running some sort of application, such as sendmail, qmail, Exim, or Microsoft's Exchange.

The predetermined user terminal 220 may allow a user to request the transmission or reception of an e-mail, and not only a general PC but also a mobile device such as a PDA may be used.

The mail agent service system 230 receives the received mail from the ISP mail server 210 according to a request of a predetermined user terminal 220, or selects the outgoing mail transmitted from the predetermined user terminal 220 by the user. The transfer to the server 210 transfer processing, and the selected ISP mail server will send it to the recipient.

Since the present invention integrates and manages mails transferred from a plurality of ISP mail servers using the mail agent service system 230, it is possible to reduce time consumption and improve user convenience as well as exceed the capacity limit of the PC. Because it can be stored, it can be used for the same purpose as web hard.

In addition, if the mail agent service system can be accessed, the mail can be checked from anywhere, so that the user is not limited in space to check the mail, and can further protect the user's terminal from invading viruses or spyware.

That is, through the above configuration, it is possible to integrate and manage one or more mail dress used by the individual on the web, so as to ensure the identity of the user, regardless of the user's user terminal environment, Regardless of the location, all of their e-mails can be integrated and managed to effectively overcome the conventional problems.

In addition, all mail environments that individuals want to operate, such as spam mail processing, virus infected mail, mail sending cycle, sending information, receiving information, and address book, can be managed on the web in an integrated manner. It is possible to effectively overcome the problems of the existing integrated mailing service and operate an integrated mailing system that is more suitable for the ubiquitous user environment.

The network 240 is a network connecting the ISP mail server 210, the predetermined user terminal 220, and the mail agent service system 230 to exchange data with each other. The network 240 or the Internet uses an TCP / IP standard. It should be interpreted as a collective term for the environment in which a general online environment is built.

Hereinafter, a detailed configuration of a mail agent service system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 3. In the description, the same reference numerals as in FIG. 2 refer to the same member performing the same function.

3 is a detailed configuration diagram of a mail agent service system 230 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the mail agent service system 230 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a user information storage unit 231, a reception processing unit 232, a reception mail storage unit 233, and a transmission processing unit ( 234, a controller 235, and a caller ID storage unit 236.

The user information storage unit 231 authenticates the user by each ISP mail server such as user's mail authentication information corresponding to one or more ISP mail servers, that is, address information of the ISP mail server and / or user ID and secret information. Store information that can be

In addition, the user information storage unit 231 further stores the authentication information for the user to obtain the authority to use the mail agent service system 230, the authentication value not shown in the authentication unit input from the predetermined user terminal 220 By comparing the authentication information with the authentication information, the user may be authorized to use the mail agent service system 230 only for a specific user.

The reception processing unit 232 receives the ISP mail server from one or more ISP mail servers 210 through a protocol such as POP, IMAP, HTTP, and the like by using mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storage unit 231. The received mail corresponding to the mail authentication information of the user is transferred among the received mails stored in the mail unit (not shown).

The received mail storage unit 233 stores the received mail transferred by the reception processor 232 according to a predetermined user environment setting.

Here, the predetermined user preference is set based on the storage period of the received mail or the folder information serving as the storage classification criteria of the received mail, and the storage capacity is deleted when the transferred mail exceeds a predetermined period according to the user's setting. It is desirable to reduce waste.

In addition, it is preferable to store them in different folders according to the sender address or recipient address of the transferred mail so that users can easily recognize at a glance even if a large amount of mail is received. It is better to consider them as spam and store them in a separate folder.

The sending processing unit 234 receives the sending mail and the mail address to which the sending mail is received from a predetermined user terminal 220, and then uses one or more ISP mails using the mail authentication information stored in the user information storage unit 231. The outgoing mail and the outgoing mail address are transferred to the selected ISP mail server of the server 210.

The above and the process will be described with specific examples.

If the mail address where the outgoing mail is to be received is 'guest@abc.com', and the ISP selected by the user and the ISP to be used for outgoing mail is 'Paran server', the outgoing processing unit 234 is a 'Paran server'. @ abc.com 'address is mutually linked to transfer and transfer. The' Paran server 'sends the outgoing mail to the address' guest@abc.com' according to the received information.

Of course, assuming that the user is using the 'MSN server' with the 'Paran server' among a number of ISP mail servers used by the user, and the user is referred to 'honggildong@chol.com' through the 'MSN server'. If you want to send the mail of the contents, the sending agent 234 of the mail agent service system 230 according to the present invention is the 'MSN server' mail message about the wedding invitation and 'honggildong@chol.com' mail address As described above, the 'MSN server' transfers the mail message to the corresponding address.

The destination transmitted in the above is configured as a 'Paran server' or a 'MSN server', but if it is mentioned in more detail, a mail server may be generally classified into a server that handles mail reception and a server that processes mail transmission. .

Since the above-mentioned outgoing mail describes a process of sending mail to an e-mail address, the outgoing processing unit 234 of the agent service system 230 according to the present invention processes the outgoing mail for outgoing processing among the 'Paran servers'. Transfer to the transfer.

In this way, users can distinguish and distribute mail for each ISP mail server they want, so they can select and use various mail servers using only one agent system, depending on the usage environment or the specificity of the mail.

The ISP mail server may be selected by selecting an ISP mail server corresponding to the input address when inputting a sender address in the step of composing a mail, and storing mail authentication information stored through a predetermined user interface window of the agent system. ISP mail server may also be selected through the selection path, and it is apparent that various applications are possible among those skilled in the art regarding the selection of the ISP mail server.

Here, the protocol used by the sending processor 234 to send the outgoing mail may be SMTP or HTTP.

The sender information storage unit 236 stores the sender's mail address, and is stored in association with the sender's name, address, title, and the like as well as a simple mail address, so that the user can distinguish each sender more easily. It is desirable to.

The control unit 235 causes the reception processing unit 232 to transfer the received mail when the signal for requesting mail reception is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal 220 and the received mail storage unit 233 receives the transferred mail. The control unit stores the message, and when a signal for requesting a mail transmission is transmitted from a predetermined user terminal 220, the originating processor 234 controls to transfer the originating mail and the mail address to the selected ISP mail server.

In addition, the controller 235 may control the reception processor 232 to periodically transfer the received mail even if the mail reception request signal is not transmitted from the user terminal 220 by the user setting.

In addition, when the mail read request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal 220, the received mail corresponding to the mail read request signal among the received mails stored in the received mail storage unit 233 to the predetermined user terminal 220. When the request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal 220, the sender information stored in the calling information storage unit 236 is transmitted to the predetermined user terminal 220 so that the user can easily input the sender's mail address. can do.

Here, the sender information transmitted to the user terminal 220 is preferably in the form of an address book arranged by a certain rule, such as 'to go' or 'ABC'.

Hereinafter, a mail agent service method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4. In the description, the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 2 to 3 refer to the same members performing the same functions.

First, in the mail agent service system 230, mail authentication information of a user corresponding to one or more ISP mail servers is stored (S400), and then, the user through the predetermined user terminal 220, the mail agent service system 230 When the mail reception request signal is transmitted to (S402), the mail agent service system 230 corresponds to the mail reception request signal from at least one ISP mail server 210 using the mail authentication information stored in step S400. The received mail is transferred to the (S406).

Then, the mail agent service system 230 stores the received mail transferred in step S406 according to a preset user's environment (S408).

On the other hand, the mail agent service system 230 stores the sender information including the sender's mail address (S412), when the user transmits a request signal to the mail agent service system 230 through a predetermined user terminal 220 In operation S414, the mail agent service system 230 transmits the caller information stored in operation S412 to a predetermined user terminal 220 (S416), and the user transmits the caller information through the predetermined user terminal 220 (S416). When the outgoing mail and the destination address which is the mail address to which the outgoing mail is received are transmitted using the outgoing information transmitted in step S416 '(S418), the mail agent service system 230 stores the mail stored in step' S400 '. Using the authentication information to the selected one or more ISP mail server transfers the outgoing mail and the destination address received in step 'S418' (S420).

Finally, when the mail agent service system 230 receives a read request signal from a predetermined user terminal 220 (S422), the mail agent service system 230 receives the received mail corresponding to the read request signal among the received mails stored in step S408. It transmits to a predetermined user terminal 220 (S424).

The preferred embodiment of the mail agent service method according to the present invention described above is merely one embodiment employed to explain the technical idea of the present invention, and user information and sender information according to the use environment of the mail. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various information storage steps, etc. may be possible.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated by the limited embodiment and drawing, this invention is not limited by this, The person of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs, Of course, various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of equivalents of the claims to be described.

According to the present invention, since mails received from a plurality of ISP mail servers can be integrated and managed on the web so that they can be used irrespective of an individual's physical environment, all mail services can be managed anywhere according to a user ubiquitous environment. The user convenience is further enhanced by being available.

In addition, it is possible to reduce the consumption of time, such as connection and management, and to enhance the user's convenience by utilizing all the mails to be used so that they do not need to be connected to each ISP mail server in order to check and receive.

In addition, since the user uses the storage space on the web according to the user's environment, it is possible to store his own mail, etc. beyond the capacity limit of the PC, and management options that are given differently according to individual ISPs, for example, spam, virus You can apply all the mails you use in the integrated way such as blocking of spyware, etc., which can create the advantage of improving the user experience.

Claims (10)

A user information storage unit for storing mail authentication information of a user corresponding to at least one ISP mail server; Using the user's mail authentication information stored in the user information storage unit, the received mail corresponding to the user's mail authentication information is transferred from the at least one ISP mail server to the received mail stored in the receiving mail unit of the ISP mail server. Receiving receiving processing unit; A received mail storage unit for storing received mail transferred from the at least one ISP mail server according to a predetermined user setting environment; Receives an outgoing mail and a mail address to which the outgoing mail is to be received from a predetermined user terminal, and sends the outgoing mail to a selected ISP mail server among the one or more ISP mail servers using mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storage unit. And an origination processing unit for transferring the mail address to transmit the outgoing mail to the mail address on the selected ISP mail server. And Even if a signal for requesting mail reception is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the reception processing unit may transfer the received mail or even if the signal for requesting mail reception from the predetermined user terminal is not transmitted, In this case, the reception processing unit periodically transfers the received mail, and controls the reception mail storage unit to store the transferred received mail, and when the signal for requesting a mail transmission is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the transmission processing. And a control unit for controlling the transfer of the outgoing mail and the mail address to the selected ISP mail server. delete The method of claim 1, wherein the control unit, When the mail read request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the mail agent service, the received mail corresponding to the mail read request signal among the received mail stored in the received mail storage unit is transmitted to the predetermined user terminal. system. The method of claim 1, Further comprising a caller information storage unit for storing the caller information including the sender's mail address, The control unit, when the request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the mail agent service system, characterized in that for transmitting the caller information stored in the transmission information storage unit to the predetermined user terminal. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined user preferences, A mail agent service system, characterized in that it is set by the storage period of a received mail or the folder information used as the storage classification criteria of a received mail. A user information storing step of storing mail authentication information of a user corresponding to at least one ISP mail server; When a mail receiving request signal is transmitted from a predetermined user terminal, among the received mails stored in the receiving mail unit of the ISP mail server from the one or more ISP mail servers using the mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storing step. A reception processing step of transferring the received mail corresponding to the mail authentication information of the user; A received mail storing step of storing received mail transferred from the at least one ISP mail server in the receiving processing step according to a predetermined user setting environment; And When the mail transmission request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the outgoing mail and the mail address where the outgoing mail is to be received are received from the predetermined user terminal, and the mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storing step is used. An outgoing processing step of transferring the outgoing mail and the mail address to a selected ISP mail server of at least one ISP mail server to transmit the outgoing mail to the mail address on the selected ISP mail server; The receiving processing step, Even if a mail reception request signal is not transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, if there is a setting of the user, the ISP mail server may be connected to the ISP mail server using the mail authentication information of the user stored in the user information storage step. The mail agent service method, characterized in that the received mail corresponding to the user's mail authentication information of the received mail stored in the receiving mail section is periodically transferred. delete The method of claim 6, When a mail read request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, a received mail transmission step of transmitting a received mail corresponding to the mail read request signal among the received mails stored in the received mail storage step to the predetermined user terminal is further included. How to service the containing agent. The method of claim 6, Further comprising a caller information storage step for storing the caller information including the sender's mail address, In the outgoing processing step, when the request signal is transmitted from the predetermined user terminal, the sender information stored in the originating information storage unit is transmitted to the predetermined user terminal. The method of claim 6, wherein the predetermined user preferences, A mail agent service method, characterized in that it is set by the storage period of a received mail or the folder information used as the storage classification criteria of a received mail.

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