Data transmission and reception system with accurate time information

• US 9,667,444 B2
• Filed: 01/07/2009
• Issued: 05/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Katoh, Yohichi, Sumito, Yohichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Desrosiers, Evans
• Application Number:
  US12/349,904
• Publication Number:
  US 20090106435A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,065 Days
• Field of Search: 709238, 713168
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/234 for tracking messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]

Abstract

A data transmission and reception system for sending and receiving data between a sender and a receiver via a network. The system includes an authorizing server maintaining time information and authorizing a sender server after subjecting the sender server to examination and after the sender server is licensed by the authorizing server to issue electronic postmarks. The sender server is connected to a network to send data via the network, wherein the sender server is authorized by the authorizing server to issue the electronic postmarks. A receiver server is connected to the network to receive the data from the sender server via the network. The sender server issues the time information and attaches the time information to the data to be sent from the sender server.

Claims

1. A data transmission and reception system for sending and receiving data between a sender and a receiver via a network having a CPU and a computer readable memory, comprising:

an authorizing server maintaining time information and authorizing a sender server after subjecting the sender server to examination and after the sender server is licensed by the authorizing server to issue electronic postmarks;

the sender server being connected to the network to send data via the network, wherein the sender server is authorized by the authorizing server to issue the electronic postmarks; and

a receiver server connected to the network to receive the data from the sender server via the network;

wherein the sender server issues the time information, attaches the time information to the data to be sent from the sender server, and informs a sender'"'"'s personal computer (PC) of the time information, and

wherein;

the time information identifies a time at which the sender server sends the data to the receiver server;

the receiver server verifies whether an electronic postmark, received from the sender server, was issued by an authorized sender server based on information in the electronic postmark, the information including at least one of a name of the sender server that issued the electronic postmark, a location of the sender server, and an Internet Protocol (IP) address of the sender server;

the sender server applies to the authorizing server for a license to issue the electronic postmarks;

the authorizing server examines the sender server for an ability to issue the electronic postmarks including the time information;

in response to the sender server passing the examining, the authorizing server informs the sender server that the sender server is licensed to issue the electronic postmarks and sends to the sender server an electronic postmark issue program for issuing the electronic postmarks in the sender server, and the sender server incorporates the electronic postmark issue program; and

the receiver server sorts the data based on the attached time information and reorders the data based on the attached time information.

2. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 1, wherein after the receiver server accepts the data with the attached time information, the sender server, the sender'"'"'s PC, or a licensed Internet Service Provider'"'"'s (ISP) server is automatically informed that the receiver server has accepted the received data and then classifies or reorders the received data based on the attached time information, whereby a time that the received data is accepted is before a time that the received data is classified or reordered.

3. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 1, wherein the authorizing server is authorized by an authorizing office.

4. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 3, wherein the authorization of the authorizing server by the authorizing office comprises:

an examination of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) which owns the authorizing server for an ability to issue electronic postmarks including the accurate time information; and

informing the ISP that the ISP is licensed to issue electronic postmarks.

5. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 4, wherein the authorizing server comprises:

a transmission and reception section for external data communication;

an e-mail accumulation section for accumulating e-mail being transmitted or received;

an internal clock section which includes a timer and is installed internally to the authorizing server to incorporate time maintained in the internal clock section in the electronic postmark;

a Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) obtaining section for obtaining GMT time; and

a time synchronization section for synchronizing the time information maintained in the internal clock section with the GMT time obtained in the GMT obtaining section to obtain the time information.

6. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 5, wherein the GMT obtaining section is connected to a radio wave clock section installed with respect to the authorizing office server.

7. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 6, wherein the radio wave clock section receives an emission from a radio wave clock broadcast station to obtain the GMT time.

8. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 7, wherein synchronization in the time synchronization section is executed every second.

9. The data transmission and reception system according to claim 8, wherein the authorizing office is a predetermined public organization.

10. An electronic mail distribution system for receiving electronic mail data sent from a sender system and for sending the electronic mail data to a receiver system over a network having a CPU and a computer readable memory, comprising:

an arrangement for maintaining time information having a certain accuracy;

the arrangement for maintaining the time information authorizing and monitoring a sender server to ensure, after subjecting the sender server to examination, that the sender server issues accurate time stamps; and

the sender server comprising;

time stamp attaching means for attaching a time stamp including the time information maintained in the arrangement for maintaining the time information to electronic mail data received from the sender system;

data transmitting means for sending the electronic mail data with the time stamp to the receiver system; and

time information informing means for informing the sender system of the time information in the time stamp,

wherein the receiver system sorts the electronic mail data based on the time information included in the time stamp with the electronic mail data and reorders the electronic mail data based on the time information, and

wherein;

the time information identifies a time at which the sender server sends the electronic mail data to the receiver system;

the receiver system verifies whether the time stamp was issued by an authorized sender server based on information in the time stamp, the information including at least one of a name of the sender server that issued the time stamp, a location of the sender server, and an Internet Protocol (IP) address of the sender server;

the sender server applies to the arrangement for maintaining the time information for a license to issue the time stamps;

the arrangement for maintaining the time information examines the sender server for an ability to issue the time stamps including the time information; and

in response to the sender server passing the examining, the arrangement for maintaining the time information informs the sender server that the sender server is licensed to issue the time stamps and sends to the sender server a time stamp issue program for issuing the time stamps in the sender server, and the sender server incorporates the time stamp issue program.

11. A method of using the data transmission and reception system according to claim 10, wherein the method comprises:

maintaining time information having a certain accuracy;

authorizing and monitoring the sender server to ensure, after subjecting the sender server to examination, that the sender server issues accurate time stamps;

attaching a time stamp; and

sending electronic mail data with the time stamp to a receiver system.