×

Self-contained fax communications appliance

  • US 5,757,892 A
  • Filed: 10/11/1995
  • Issued: 05/26/1998
  • Est. Priority Date: 10/11/1995
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A self-contained communications appliance comprising:

  • at least one data receiving port accepting first digital signals representing characters, said first digital signals conforming to a known standard for representing characters;

    a microcontroller accepting said first digital signals from said receiving port, said microcontroller adapted to discriminate between modem commands and non-modem commands in said first digital signals, to selectively bypass conversion of said first digital signals and to act as a standard data accumulator until a predetermined event occurs, said predetermined event including an event consisting of the accumulation of a predetermined amount of data, the passage of a predetermined amount of time, the detection of an alarm condition or the detection of the completion of received data through said receiving port;

    buffer memory adapted to selectively receive non-modem commands from said microcontroller;

    program memory providing instructions to said microcontroller to selectively accumulate said non-modem commands in said buffer memory and selectively convert groups of said non-modem commands into second digital signals representing graphical information, said converting of said non-modem commands occurring after said predetermined event occurs;

    configuration memory adapted to hold at least one phone number and document format information, said microcontroller adapted to cause said appliance to place at least one call to one of said at least one phone number after said predetermined event occurs;

    a modulator receiving said second digital signals and converting said second digital signals to modulated signals conforming to a known standard for transmitting fax information over public telephone networks after aid predetermined event occurs; and

    an output port receiving said modulated signals from said modulator and applying said signals to a telephone network;

    said microcontroller providing signals to said data receiving port acknowledging receipt of said modem commands and said non-modem commands with signals mimicking data modem responses indicating that data has been received and dispatched.

View all claims
  • 1 Assignment
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×