Communication device

• US 20080218810A1
• Filed: 03/05/2008
• Published: 09/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Itoh, Shingo
• Granted Patent: US 8,112,442 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/440
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• 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 1/32058 Abbreviated dialing, e.g. one-touch dialing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0039 Connection via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0093 Facsimile machine H04N2201/0094 takes precedence

Abstract

The present invention provides a communication device, wherein only specific individual information in a database that the communication device stores is viewable from a terminal connected to a network to promote information protection.

A facsimile machine (100) (the communication device) can communicate with a terminal (150) through the network. A storage (120) stores the database (126) being a mass of a plurality of records, each of which describes individual information. A receiver (110) receives a readout-request, from the terminal (150), of a specific record in the database. A file creating module (110) creates a terminal-viewable file on a record basis, from the specific individual information in the record. A transmitter (110) transmits, to the terminal, the file created based on the record designated by a received readout-request.

Claims

1. A communication device capable of communicating with a terminal through a network comprising:

a storage that stores a database being a mass of a plurality of records, each of which describes individual information;

a receiver that receives a readout-request, from the terminal, of a specific record in the database;

a file creating module that creates a terminal-viewable file on a record basis from the individual information described in each of the records; and

a transmitter that transmits the terminal-viewable file, to the terminal, created by the file creating module based on the record designated by the received readout-request.

2. The communication device as in claim 1 further comprises an identifier creating module that creates record identifiers for the records being different from each other, wherein:

the receiver receives a list-request of the plurality of records included in the database from the terminal; and

the transmitter transmits the record identifiers created by the identifier creating module to the terminal.

3. The communication device as in claim 2, wherein:

the receiver receives a specific record identifier among the transmitted record identifiers with the readout-request of the specific record; and

the transmitter transmits the terminal-viewable file created based on the specific record designated by the received record identifier.

4. The communication device as in claim 2, wherein the transmitter transmits file names of the terminal-viewable files created by the file creating module as the record identifiers.

5. The communication device as in claim 2, wherein:

a flag to determine whether or not to allow the terminal to view the record is set to each of the records; and

the transmitter transmits record identifier only for the records on which the flag of allowing viewing are set when the receiver receives the list-request.

6. The communication device as in claim 2, wherein:

the individual information includes address information specifying an other communication device to which the communication device transmits data; and

the communication device further comprises an operating key corresponding to the address information, wherein the address information corresponding to the operating key is read out in response to a user operation of the operating key.

7. The communication device as in claim 6, wherein:

a readout information is linked to the operating key; and

the identifier creating module uses the readout information as the record identifier of the record corresponded to the operating key linked to the readout information.

8. The communication device as in claim 1, wherein:

a flag to determine whether or not to allow the terminal to view the record is set to each of the records; and

the communication device further comprises a prohibiting module that prohibits the transmitter from transmitting the terminal-viewable file when the flag of prohibiting viewing is set on the specific record designated by the received readout-request.

9. The communication device as in claim 1, wherein the file creating module creates the terminal-viewable file subject to receiving the readout-request of the specific record by the receiver.

10. The communication device as in claim 1, wherein an identifying information for identifying each of the records in the storage is added, and the communication device further comprises:

a file receiver that receives a file, from the terminal, including the identifying information and new individual information; and

an updating module that updates the individual information of the record, among the records in the database, identified by the identifying information included in the received file to the new individual information included in the received file.

11. The communication device as in claim 1 wherein the storage stores the database with a format by which a volume of the database is smaller than a total volume of files converted from all of the records respectively.