Data communication method, data communication apparatus, data communication system and storage medium

• US 20040148378A1
• Filed: 09/16/2003
• Published: 07/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Suzuki, Akira, Koide, Masami
• Granted Patent: US 7,328,258 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A data communication method is used to exchange data among a plurality of computers which are mutually coupled via a network. Each of the computers has a program which causes the computer to have a communicating function to transmit and receive data to and from one or more other computers, a data processing function to process data which are transmitted and received, and an output function to output data to an output section depending on a process of the data processing function. The data communication method includes a storing step to store data received by the communicating function by the data processing function in one computer when receiving data from one or more other computers by the communicating function, and a mode judging step to judge whether or not to output the received data to the output function of the one computer depending on a mode attribute of the received data and a communication mode of the one computer.

Claims

1. A data communication method for exchanging data among a plurality of computers which are mutually coupled via a network,

each of the computers comprising a program which causes the computer to have a communicating function to transmit and receive data to and from one or more other computers, a data processing function to process data which are transmitted and received, and an output function to output data to an output section depending on a process of the data processing function,

said data communication method comprising:

a storing step to store data received by the communicating function by the data processing function in one computer when receiving data from one or more other computers by the communicating function; and

a mode judging step to judge whether or not to output the received data to the output function of said one computer depending on a mode attribute of the received data and a communication mode of said one computer.

2. The data communication method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a public mode receiving step to immediately output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging step judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates a public mode and said one computer is in the public mode; and

a local mode receiving step which does not output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging step judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said one computer is in a local mode.

3. The data communication method as claimed in claim 2, wherein each of the computers has a private mode in which data is exchanged between specific computers coupled to the network, said data communication method further comprising:

a private mode receiving step which does not output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging step judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said one computer is in the private mode.

4. The data communication method as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the computers exchanges data related to content information using an encapsulated document, said encapsulated document comprising a program code file related to the communicating function, the data processing function and the output function which are analyzed and executed by each of the computers and a content information file related to substance data of a document, which files are encapsulated as a single document.

5. The data communication method as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the computers comprises a program which causes the computer to have an operation information acquiring function to acquire operation information related to a user operation, and the data transmitted and received by the communicating function includes the operation information acquired by the operation information acquiring function.

6. The data communication method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising:

a public mode transmitting step to continuously transmit the operation information to the communicating function as public information in response to acquisition of the operation information by the operation information acquiring function of said one computer in a public mode, when said one computer transmits data to another computer by the communicating function.

7. The data communication method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a local mode transmitting step to prohibit transmission of data from said one computer in a local mode.

8. The data communication method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

a private mode switching step to automatically switch the communication mode of said one computer to the private mode when the communicating function of said one computer receives data unicasted from another computer.

9. The data communication method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

a private mode switching step to automatically switch the communication mode of said one computer to the private mode when the communicating function of said one computer transmits data to a specific computer.

10. The data communication method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising:

a data transmission waiting step to wait transmission of data in a private mode until the operation information acquiring function of said one computer acquires the operation information for transmitting the data to a specific computer.

11. The data communication method as claimed in claim 5, wherein each of the computers comprises a program which causes the computer to have a mode selecting function to switch the communication mode to a selected communication mode by accepting a user operation, and said mode judging step judges the communication mode of said one computer based on the selected communication mode accepted by the mode selecting function of said one computer.

12. The data communication method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

a mode switching step to switch the communication mode of said one computer to the selected communication mode after storing the data output to the output section at a time when the user operation is made, if the operation information acquiring function of said one computer acquires the operation information related to switching of the communication mode by the mode selecting function.

13. The data communication method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

a switching time output control step to refer to newest data stored for the selected communication mode and to output the newest data to the output section by the output function of said one computer, when switching the communication mode to the selected communication mode by the mode selecting function of said one computer after the operation information acquiring function of said one computer acquires the operation information related to the switching of the communication mode to the selected communication mode.

14. The data communication method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

an information request command transmitting step to transmit, using the communicating function of said one computer, an information request command which requests newest data for a public mode with respect to a program running on another computer, if the operation information acquiring function of said one computer acquires operation information related to the switching of the communication mode to the public mode by the mode selecting function of said one computer.

15. The data communication method as claimed in claim 14, wherein said information request command transmitting step determines the computer at a transmitting destination where the information request command is to be transmitted, by selecting the computer from a list of communicatable computers held by said one computer.

16. The data communication method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a first substituting step to refer to newest data for the public mode held in said one computer and to output the newest data to the output section by the output function of said one computer, if the list includes no computer to which the information request command is to be transmitted.

17. The data communication method as claimed in claim 16, further comprising:

a second substituting step to refer to newest data for a local mode held in said one computer and to output the newest data to the output section by the output function of said one computer, if the list includes no computer to which the information request command is to be transmitted and the newest data for the public mode is not held in said one computer.

18. The data communication method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

an information request command responding step to transmit the newest data for the public mode stored in said one computer using the communicating function of said one computer, with respect to another computer at a transmitting source of the information request command, if the communicating function of said one computer receives the information request command.

23. The data communication apparatus as claimed in claim 18, further comprising:

a list displaying section to display a list of operation records for each communication mode.

19. A data communication apparatus for exchanging data with a plurality of apparatuses via a network, comprising:

a computer comprising a program which causes the computer to have a communicating function to transmit and receive data to and from the apparatuses, a data processing function to process data which are transmitted and received, and an output function to output data to an output section depending on a process of the data processing function;

a storing section to store data received by the communicating function by the data processing function when receiving data from one of the apparatuses by the communicating function; and

a mode judging section to judge whether or not to output the received data to the output function depending on a mode attribute of the received data and a communication mode of said data communication apparatus.

20. The data communication apparatus as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

a public mode receiving section to immediately output the received data to the output function when is said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates a public mode and said data communication apparatus is in the public mode; and

a local mode receiving section which does not output the received data to the output function when said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said data communication apparatus is in a local mode.

21. The data communication apparatus as claimed in claim 20, which has a private mode in which data is exchanged with a specific apparatus coupled to the network, said data communication apparatus further comprising:

a private mode receiving section which does not output the received data to the output function when said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said data communication apparatus is in the private mode.

22. The data communication apparatus as claimed in claim 19, which exchange with the apparatuses data related to content information using an encapsulated document, said encapsulated document comprising a program code file related to the communicating function, the data processing function and the output function which are analyzed and executed by said data communication apparatus and the apparatuses and a content information file related to substance data of a document, which files are encapsulated as a single document.

24. The data communication apparatus as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

a past data inspecting section to enable looking back at operation information related to the data communication apparatus, transmitted and received data in a public mode, and transmitted and received data in a private mode, based on the stored data, at any time during the local mode.

25. A data communication system for exchanging data among a plurality of computers which are mutually coupled via a network,

each of the computers comprising a program which causes the computer to have a communicating function to transmit and receive data to and from one or more other computers, a data processing function to process data which are transmitted and received, and an output function to output data to an output section depending on a process of the data processing function,

each one of the computers receiving data by the communicating function comprising:

a storing section to store data received by the communicating function by the data processing function; and

a mode judging section to judge whether or not to output the received data to the output function of said one computer depending on a mode attribute of the received data and a communication mode of said one computer.

26. The data communication system as claimed in claim 25, further comprising:

a public mode receiving section to immediately output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates a public mode and said one computer is in the public mode; and

a local mode receiving section which does not output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said one computer is in a local mode.

27. The data communication system as claimed in claim 26, wherein each of the computers has a private mode in which data is exchanged between specific computers coupled to the network, said one computer further comprising:

a private mode receiving section which does not output the received data to the output function of said one computer when said mode judging section judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but said one computer is in the private mode.

28. The data communication system as claimed in claim 25, wherein each of the computers exchanges data related to content information using an encapsulated document, said encapsulated document comprising a program code file related to the communicating function, the data processing function and the output function which are analyzed and executed by each of the computers and a content information file related to substance data of a document, which files are encapsulated as a single document.

29. A computer-readable storage medium which stores a program for causing a computer to exchange data with a plurality of other computers which are mutually coupled via a network, said program causing the computer to comprise:

a communicating function to transmit and receive data to and from one or more other computers;

a data processing function to process data which are transmitted and received;

an output function to output data to an output section depending on a process of the data processing function;

a storing function to store data received by the communicating function by the data processing function when receiving data from one or more other computers by the communicating function; and

a mode judging function to judge whether or not to output the received data to the output function depending on a mode attribute of the received data and a communication mode of the computer.

30. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 29, wherein said program further causes the computer to comprise:

a public mode receiving function to immediately output the received data to the output function when said mode judging function judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates a public mode and the computer is in the public mode; and

a local mode receiving function which does not output the received data to the output function when said mode judging function judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but the computer is in a local mode.

31. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 30, wherein each of the computers has a private mode in which data is exchanged between specific computers coupled to the network, said program further causing the computer to comprise:

a private mode receiving function which does not output the received data to the output function when said mode judging function judges that the mode attribute of the received data indicates the public mode but the computer is in the private mode.