FAX-TO-EMAIL AND EMAIL-TO-FAX COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20070168557A1
• Filed: 01/16/2007
• Published: 07/19/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: j2 Cloud Services, LLC (Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Mongonet
• Inventors: Henry, Matthew
• Granted Patent: US 7,716,296 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• 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 1/0036 Alphanumeric symbols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00366 Marks in boxes or the like, e.g. crosses or blacking out H04N1/0036 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00371 on a separate sheet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00374 on the same page as at least a part of the image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32026 Changing the receiver mode of operation, e.g. paper reception to memory reception or vice versa H04N1/32673 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32042 with reading of job-marks on a page
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32048 Auto-dialling or Auto-calling H04N1/32053 - H04N1/32074 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32064 Multi-address calling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32112 in a separate computer file, document page or paper sheet, e.g. a fax cover sheet H04N1/32122 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32128 attached to the image data, e.g. file header, transmitted message header, information on the same page or in the same computer file as the image for information embedded in the image H04N1/32144
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32496 Changing the task performed, e.g. reading and transmitting, receiving and reproducing, copying facsimile mode changing H04N1/333
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0017 Notifying a communication result
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0068 Converting from still picture data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0086 Image transceiver H04N2201/0093 and H04N2201/0094 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0093 Facsimile machine H04N2201/0094 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3218 : of a confirmation, acknowledgement or receipt
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3261 : of multimedia information, e.g. a sound signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3278 : Transmission

Abstract

A facsimile/email communication system and method providing a user the ability to send emails from any standalone facsimile machine and providing a user the ability to logon to a centralized web server and send facsimiles to any standalone fax machine.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. A method for sending an e-mail message comprises:

receiving a transmission instruction page;

entering a plurality of text entries from a user on the transmission instruction page to form a filled-in transmission instruction page, wherein the plurality of text entries includes an e-mail address;

sending a facsimile to a facsimile server, wherein the facsimile includes the filled-in transmission instruction page;

wherein the facsimile server converts the facsimile into an e-mail attachment;

wherein the facsimile server sends the e-mail message including additional service provider data and the e-mail attachment to the e-mail address;

wherein the facsimile server optically derives the e-mail address from the transmission instruction page of the facsimile; and

wherein facsimile server need not know the e-mail address prior to receiving the facsimile.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein receiving the transmission instruction page is via a telecommunications network.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

prior to entering the plurality of text entries, printing-out the transmission instruction page; and

wherein entering the plurality of text entries comprises hand-printing the plurality of text entries on the transmission instruction page.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the plurality of text entries are in a machine readable format.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the e-mail attachment is viewable on more than one computing platform.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the additional service provider data is selected from a group consisting of:

service provider indicator, third-party indicator.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the more than one instance of the e-mail address comprises a bar code.

9. The method of claim 2 wherein sending the facsimile comprises:

placing the filled-in transmission instruction page into a facsimile machine; and

entering a telephone number associated with the facsimile server.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the telephone number is also associated with the user.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the telephone number is not associated with the user.

12. A method for sending an electronic communication to an electronic destination comprises:

receiving a transmission instruction page comprising a plurality of data fields;

manually entering a plurality of text entries from a user to the plurality of data fields on the transmission instruction page to form a filled-in transmission instruction page, wherein the plurality of text entries comprises an electronic address associated with the electronic destination;

manually sending a digitized representation of the filled-in transmission instruction page encoded in a first transmission format to a transmission server;

wherein the transmission server converts the digitized representation of the filled-in transmission instruction page to a second transmission format;

wherein the transmission server sends the electronic communication including additional service provider data and the filled-in transmission instruction page in the second transmission format to the electronic destination;

wherein the transmission server optically derives the electronic address from the filled-in transmission instruction page; and

wherein transmission server need not know the electronic address prior to receiving the digitized representation of the filled-in transmission instruction page.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein receiving the transmission instruction page comprises receiving the transmission instruction page via a telecommunications network.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

prior to manually entering the plurality of text entries, printing-out the transmission instruction page; and

wherein entering the plurality of text entries comprises hand-printing the plurality of text entries on the transmission instruction page.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the plurality of text entries are in a machine readable format.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein the second transmission format comprises an e-mail attachment format that is viewable on more than one computing platform.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the additional service provider data is selected from a group consisting of:

service provider indicator, third-party indicator.

18. The method of claim 12 wherein manually sending the digitized representation of the filled-in transmission instruction page comprises:

placing the filled-in transmission instruction page into a facsimile machine; and

entering a telephone number associated with the transmission server.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the telephone number is also associated with the user.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the telephone number is not associated with the user.

21. The method of claim 12 wherein the electronic address comprises an e-mail address.

22. The method of claim 13 wherein the first transmission format comprises a facsimile transmission format.