Information transmission system

• US 20080250277A1
• Filed: 06/04/2008
• Published: 10/09/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Ohara, Kiyotaka, Yoshida, Shigetaka, Matsumoto, Hideto, Kojima, Atsushi
• Granted Patent: US 8,161,124 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0784 Routing of error reports, e.g. with a specific transmission path or data flow
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/121 Facilitating exception or error detection and recovery, e.g. fault, media or consumables depleted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1259 Print job monitoring, e.g. job status
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/026 using e-messaging for transporting management information, e.g. email, instant messaging or chat
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/06 Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/28 Restricting access to network management systems or functions, e.g. using authorisation function to access network configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

In a printer connected to a network, email appended with link information is prepared for enabling an administrator to access information about the printer network terminal. The email is transmitted to the administrator terminal at a predetermined timing. Then, the administrator terminal accesses the information based on the link information appended to the email. As such, when a problem occurs in the printer, operations for resolving the problem can be quickly undertaken by the administrator.

Claims

1. A network terminal comprising:

a main unit;

a detection unit that detects a problem occurring in the main unit;

a storage unit that relates the problem to a link information for indicating information related to the problem and stores the problem and the related linking information;

a reading unit that reads out the related link information from the storage unit when the detecting unit detects the problem; and

a transmission unit that transmits the link information read by the reading unit to a predetermined address.

2. The network terminal according to claim 1, further comprising an email preparation unit that prepares email including the link information read by the reading unit, wherein

the transmission unit transmits the email prepared by the email preparation unit.

3. The network terminal according to claim 2, further comprising an address storage unit that stores email address, wherein

the transmission unit transmits the link information to the email address stored in the address storage unit.

4. The network terminal according to claim 3, wherein the address storage unit stores a plurality of email addresses, and the transmission unit transmits the link information to each of the plurality of email addresses.

5. The network terminal according to claim 2, wherein the email preparation unit appends the link information to a body of the email.

6. The network terminal according to claim 5, wherein the email preparation unit appends the detected problem and the related link information to the body of the email.

7. The network terminal according to claim 5, wherein the email preparation unit appends an ID identifying the network terminal, and the link information to the body of the email.

8. The network terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a print unit.