Device, method and program product for data transmission management

• US 20030046352A1
• Filed: 03/13/2002
• Published: 03/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Minolta Co., Ltd. (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Minolta Co., Ltd. (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Yamazaki, Tsutomu, Katsuda, Takeo
• Granted Patent: US 7,752,267 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00209 Transmitting or receiving image data, e.g. facsimile data, via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network, the internet, I-fax
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00241 using an image reading device as a local input to a computer input via network, e.g. network scanners H04N1/00225
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/33346 adapting to a particular standardised protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/33353 according to the available bandwidth used for a single communication, e.g. the number of ISDN channels used
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/33376 according to characteristics or state of one of the communicating parties, e.g. available memory capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0027 Adapting to communicate with plural different types of apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/33342 of transmission mode

Abstract

The scanner 10 capable of functioning as a data transmission management device makes a judgment whether data should be allowed to be reused at a file transmission destination based on the nature of the particular destination, produces a reusable file, and transmits it to the destination, if it judges that the reuse of the data is allowed because the destination is within the area of the first network N1 to which the scanner is connected; it produces a difficult-to-reuse file and transmits it to the destination, if it judges that the reuse of the data is disallowed because the destination is outside of the area of the first network

Claims

1. A data transmission management device for managing data transmission process via a network comprising:

an input device for inputting data to be transmitted;

a judgment means for judging whether reuse of data at a transmission destination should be approved in accordance with the nature of the particular destination of said data; and

a data adjusting means for adjusting the data to be transmitted to said destination based on the result of said judgment either to be reusable or to be difficult-to-reused.

2. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said judgment means judges that the reuse of the data at said transmission destination is approved if the domain name of e-mail address of the transmission source matches with that of the transmission destination of the data.

3. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said judgment means judges that the reuse of the data at said transmission destination is approved if a specified part of the IP address of the transmission source matches with that of the transmission destination of the data.

4. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said input device is an image reading device for obtaining image data where images are expressed as an assembly of pixels by scanning a document.

5. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 4, further comprising:

a character code data producing means for producing character code data where characters are expressed as codes based on character images in said image data, wherein

said data adjusting means produces a file that has data containing said character code data if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is approved, while it produces a file that has data consisting only of said image data if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is disapproved.

6. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 5, further comprising:

a vector data producing means for producing vector data where graphics are expressed as coordinates of graphic components based on graphic images in said image data, wherein

said data adjustment means produces a file that has data containing said character code data and said vector data if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is approved, while it produces a file that has data consisting only of said image data if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is disapproved.

7. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said data is a file having a character code data where characters are expressed as codes, and an image data where images are expressed in an assembly of pixels, each as objects that can be handled independently, wherein

said data adjusting means is capable of deleting said character code data from said file if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is disapproved.

8. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said data is a file having a vector data where graphics are expressed as coordinates of graphic components, and an image data where images are expressed in an assembly of pixels, each as objects that can be handled independently, wherein

said data adjusting means is capable of deleting said vector data from said file if it is judged by said judgment means that the reuse of the data at the transmission destination is disapproved.

9. A data transmission management device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said input device is a network interface for obtaining image data via a network.

10. A data transmission management method for managing data transmission process via a network comprising the steps of:

obtaining data to be transmitted;

judging whether reuse of data at a transmission destination should be approved in accordance with the nature of the particular destination of said data; and

adjusting the data to be transmitted to said destination based on the result of said judgment either to be reusable or to be difficult-to-reused.

11. A program product for managing data transmission process via a network, wherein said program product causes a computer to execute a process comprising the steps of:

obtaining data to be transmitted;

judging whether reuse of data at a transmission destination should be approved in accordance with the nature of the particular destination of said data; and

adjusting the data to be transmitted to said destination based on the result of said judgment either to be reusable or to be difficult-to-reused.

12. A program product as claimed in claim 11, wherein

said program product is a computer program.

13. A program product as claimed in claim 11, wherein

said program product is a computer readable recording medium on which the computer program is stored.

14. A data transmission management method for managing data transmission process via a network comprising the steps of:

obtaining data to be transmitted;

judging whether said data'"'"'s transmission destination exists within a specified range of a network to which the destination belongs; and

producing data to be transmitted to said destination either data consisting of multiple kinds of codes or data consisting of a single kind of code based on said judgment result.

15. A data transmission management device for managing data transmission process via a network comprising:

an input device for inputting data to be transmitted; and

a controller for judging whether reuse of data at a transmission destination should be approved in accordance with the nature of the particular destination of said data, and for adjusting the data to be transmitted to said destination based on the result of said judgment either to be reusable or to be difficult-to-reused.