Communication apparatus and communication system

• US 8,879,694 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2010
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Kunii, Tadahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Joseph T
• Application Number:
  US12/886,081
• Publication Number:
  US 20110129074A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,506 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.13
• US Class Current: 379/88.13
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40013 Details regarding a bus controller
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00347 with another still picture apparatus, e.g. hybrid still picture apparatus circuits or arrangements for control or supervision between image input and image output device H04N1/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32704 Establishing a communication with one of a facsimile and another telecommunication apparatus sharing a single line
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32708 Telephone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32747 Controlling the connection of the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/001 Sharing resources, e.g. processing power or memory, with a connected apparatus or enhancing the capability of the still picture apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0015 Control of image communication with the connected apparatus, e.g. signalling capability
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0055 By radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0093 Facsimile machine H04N2201/0094 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0094 Multifunctional device, i.e. a device capable of all of reading, reproducing, copying, facsimile transception, file transception

Abstract

A communication apparatus including: a communication portion which performs a data communication with a sub-communication apparatus; a transmission-data communicating portion which performs a transmission-data communication with a data processing apparatus; a transmission-data receiving section which receives transmission data from the data processing apparatus; a notifying section which transmits a notification to the sub-communication apparatus, the notification being based on that the transmission-data receiving section has received the transmission data; a relaying section which relays a phone conversation between an external communication apparatus and the sub-communication apparatus; and a transmitting section which transmits the transmission data received by the transmission-data receiving section, to an external communication apparatus as a call opposite party of the phone conversation which is being relayed by the relaying section where a transmission-data transmitting command has been received from the sub-communication apparatus performing the phone conversation being relayed by the relaying section.

Claims

1. A communication apparatus comprising:

a first communicating portion configured to allow the communication apparatus to communicate with an external communication apparatus via a telephone line;

a second communicating portion configured to allow the communication apparatus to communicate with at least one sub-communication apparatus;

a third communicating portion configured to allow the communication apparatus to communicate with a data processing apparatus which is configured to process data;

a data receiving section configured to receive the data transmitted from the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion;

a notifying section configured to transmit a notification to the at least one sub-communication apparatus via the second communicating portion in response to receipt of the data transmitted from the data processing apparatus;

a transmitting request receiving section configured to receive a transmitting request from the at least one sub-communication apparatus to which the notification had been transmitted;

a connection control section configured to establish a communication between the communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus in response to a connecting command transmitted from the at least one sub-communication apparatus;

a transmitting section configured to transmit the data received by the data receiving section to the external communication apparatus in response to receipt of the transmitting request from the at least one sub-communication apparatus to which the notification had been transmitted;

a first receiving section configured to receive an identification number from the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion, the identification number being for identifying the external communication apparatus to which the data is to be transmitted;

a dialing-number obtaining section configured to obtain a dialing number transmitted from the at least one sub-communication apparatus, wherein a dialed-external communication apparatus is the external communication apparatus with which the at least one sub-communication apparatus is under communication via the telephone line; and

a first judging section configured to judge whether the dialing number obtained by the dialing-number obtaining section and the identification number received by the first receiving section coincide with each other or not,

wherein the notifying section is configured to transmit the notification, to the at least one sub-communication apparatus, of the identification number received by the first receiving section, and

wherein the transmitting section is configured to transmit the data received by the data receiving section to the external communication apparatus as the dialed-external communication apparatus when the first judging section has judged that the dialing number and the identification number coincide with each other.

2. The communication apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, when the at least one sub-communication apparatus is a plurality of sub-communication apparatuses, the second communicating portion is configured to communicate with each of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises a sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section configured to receive a sub-communication-apparatus information from the data processing apparatus, the sub-communication-apparatus information being for identifying each of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses, and

wherein the notifying section is configured to notify only at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information.

3. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a storage section configured to store the data received by the data receiving section from the data processing apparatus such that the received data is associated with the identification number received by the first receiving section, wherein the storage section is configured to store the sub-communication apparatus information received by the sub-communication apparatus-information receiving section such that the sub-communication-apparatus information is associated with the identification number; and

an extracting section configured to extract, on condition that the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section receives the sub-communication-apparatus information from the data processing apparatus, the identification number which is stored in the storage section and which has been associated with the received the sub-communication-apparatus information,

wherein the notifying section is configured to transmit the notification to the at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses, which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information received by the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section, the notification comprising the identification number extracted by the extracting section.

4. The communication apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:

a second judging section configured to judge whether the identification number coinciding with dialing number obtained by the dialing number obtaining section is stored in the storage section or not; and

a data presence-or-absence notifying section configured to transmit the notification to the at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information received by the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section, the notification comprising a result of the judgment of the second judging section.

5. The communication apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the connection control section is configured to establish the communication between the communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus identified by the received identification number, on condition that the first receiving section receives the identification number.

6. The communication apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the second communicating portion and the third communicating portion are configured to transmit and receive the data by wireless communication,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises a disconnecting section configured to disconnect a connection of a communication between the communication apparatus and the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion after the data receiving section has received the data, and

wherein the connection control section is configured to start to establish the communication between the at least one sub-communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus via the first communicating portion and the second communicating portion after the disconnecting section has disconnected the connection between the communication apparatus and the data processing apparatus.

7. A communication system comprising a data processing apparatus, a communication apparatus and at least one sub-communication apparatus, the communication apparatus comprising:

a first communicating portion configured to allow a communication apparatus to communicate with an external communication apparatus via a telephone line;

a second communicating portion configured to allow the communication apparatus to communicate with at least one sub-communication apparatus;

a third communicating portion configured to allow the communication apparatus to communicate with a data processing apparatus which is configured to process data;

a data receiving section configured to receive the data transmitted from the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion;

a notifying section configured to transmit a notification to the at least one sub-communication apparatus via the second communicating portion in response to receipt of the data transmitted from the data processing apparatus;

a transmitting request receiving section configured to receive a transmitting request from the at least one sub-communication apparatus to which the notification had been transmitted;

a connection control section configured to establish a communication between the communication apparatus the external communication apparatus in response to a connecting command transmitted from the at least one sub-communication apparatus;

a transmitting section configured to transmit the data received by the data receiving section to the external communication apparatus in response to receipt of the transmitting request from the at least one sub-communication apparatus to which the notification had been transmitted;

a first receiving section configured to receive an identification number from the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion, the identification number being for identifying the external communication apparatus to which the data is to be transmitted;

a dialing-number obtaining section configured to obtain a dialing number transmitted from the at least one sub-communication apparatus, wherein a dialed-external communication apparatus is the external communication apparatus with which the at least one sub-communication apparatus is under communication via the telephone line; and

a first judging section configured to judge whether the dialing number obtained by the dialing-number obtaining section and the identification number received by the first receiving section coincide with each other or not,

wherein the notifying section is configured to transmit the notification, to the at least one sub-communication apparatus, of the identification number received by the first receiving section,

wherein the transmitting section is configured to transmit the data received by the data receiving section to the external communication apparatus as the dialed-external communication apparatus when the first judging section has judged that the dialing number and the identification number coincide with each other, and

wherein each of the at least one sub-communication apparatus comprises;

a display portion configured to display thereon an identification number transmitted from the notifying section; and

a call commanding section configured to transmit a connecting command to the communication apparatus via the second communicating portion, when a selection of the identification number displayed on the display portion is received,

wherein the connection control section is configured to establish the communication between the communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus identified by the selected identification number.

8. The communication system according to claim 7,

wherein, when the at least one sub-communication apparatus is a plurality of sub-communication apparatuses, the second communicating portion is configured to communicate with each of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises a sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section configured to receive a sub-communication-apparatus information from the data processing apparatus, the sub-communication-apparatus information being for identifying each of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses, and

wherein the notifying section is configured to notify only at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information.

9. The communication system according to claim 8,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises:

a storage section configured to store the data received by the data receiving section from the data processing apparatus such that the received data is associated with the identification number received by the first receiving section, wherein the storage section is configured to store the sub-communication-apparatus information received by the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section such that the sub-communication-apparatus information is associated with the identification number; and

an extracting section configured to extract, on condition that the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section receives the sub-communication-apparatus information from the data processing apparatus, the identification number which is stored in the storage section and which has been associated with the received the sub-communication-apparatus information, and

wherein the notifying section is configured to transmit the notification to the at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information received by the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section, the notification comprising the identification number extracted by the extracting section.

10. The communication system according to claim 9,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises:

a second judging section configured to judge whether the identification number coinciding with the dialing number obtained by the dialing-number obtaining section is stored in the storage section or not; and

a data presence-or-absence notifying section configured to transmit the notification to the at least one of the plurality of sub-communication apparatuses which is identified by the sub-communication-apparatus information received by the sub-communication-apparatus-information receiving section, the notification comprising a result of the judgment of the second judging section.

11. The communication system according to claim 7,

wherein the connection control selection is configured to establish the communication between the communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus identified by the received identification number, on condition that the first receiving section receives the identification number.

12. The communication system according to claim 7,

wherein the second communicating portion and the third communicating portion are configured to transmit and receive the data by wireless communication,

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises a disconnecting section configured to disconnect a connection of a communication between the communication apparatus and the data processing apparatus via the third communicating portion after the data receiving section has received the data, and

wherein the connection control section is configured to start to establish the communication between the at least one sub-communication apparatus and the external communication apparatus via the first communicating portion and the second communicating portion after the disconnecting section has disconnected the connection between the communication apparatus and the data processing apparatus.