Method for transmitting messages in a network

• US 20070041359A1
• Filed: 08/03/2004
• Published: 02/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unify GmbH & Co. KG (Atos SE)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Uecker, Rainer
• Granted Patent: US 7,747,689 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/234 for tracking messages

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for transmitting messages in a network via data terminals connected thereto. This method comprises the following steps: sending a message to be relayed from a sender data terminal to an assigned first mail processing device assigning a unique identifier to the message which indicates that a message to be relayed is in the sender data terminal or in the first mail processing device; evaluating the identifier by the first mail processing device based on data present therein concerning the entry of a message at an address data terminal from the past, and in response to the evaluation result, transmitting in a triggered or blocked manner the message or parts thereof to the address data terminal. The invention also relates to a data terminal and network that carry out the inventive method using mail processing devices.

Claims

1-15. -15. (canceled)

16. A method for transmitting messages in a network via data terminals connected thereto, comprising:

sending a message to be relayed from a sender data terminal to an assigned first mail processing device;

assigning a unique identifier to the message that indicates that a message to be relayed is on the sender data terminal or in the first mail processing device;

evaluating the identifier by the first mail processing device based on data present therein concerning the entry of messages at an address data terminal from the past; and

triggering or blocking the transmission of the message or parts thereof to the address data terminal in response to the evaluation result.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising the following step after the step of assigning a unique identifier to the message that indicates that a message to be relayed is on the sender data terminal or in the first mail processing device and before the step of evaluating the identifier by the first mail processing device based on data present therein concerning the entry of messages at an address data terminal from the past,

relaying the identifier to a second mail processing device that is assigned to an address data terminal for the message to be forwarded.

18. The Method according to claim 17, wherein the data concerning the entry of messages in the address data terminal is stored in the address data terminal and/or in the first mail-processing device.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein the data concerning the entry of messages in the address data terminal is stored in the second mail-processing device.

20. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first mail-processing device is implemented in the sender-data terminal and/or the second mail-processing device is implemented in the address data terminal.

21. The method according to claim 17, wherein the identifier is evaluated on a mail server in the network.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein the identifier consists of a plurality of subidentifiers, each of which are assigned message elements, with each subidentifier being evaluated in the respective mail processing device based on the data present therein concerning the entry of messages at the address data terminal from the past, and with transmission of the respective message element being triggered or blocked in response to the evaluation result.

23. The method according to claim 17, wherein a notification of the blocked transmission is forwarded to the sender and/or recipient if the transmission is blocked on the basis of the evaluation result.

24. The method according to claim 17, wherein the identifier and/or the relevant subidentifier indicates the date and time of creation of the original message where these differ from the time of transmission, and/or an e-mail address of an original sender if this differs from the e-mail address of the sender, and/or the contents of the message or of the respective message element.

25. The method according to claim 17, wherein there is a data terminal for executing the method and having a mail processing device that is designed such that an identifier for a message based on data present concerning the entry of messages at an address data terminal from the past is evaluated in an evaluation unit, and such that, based on the evaluation result, transmission of a message to the address data terminal is triggered or blocked.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the mail-processing device forms part of a mail server, which is integrated in the data terminal.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein a memory unit for storing data concerning the entry of messages at a different data terminal.

28. A network, comprising:

a method comprising;

sending a message to be relayed from a sender data terminal to an assigned first mail processing device;

assigning a unique identifier to the message that indicates that a message to be relayed is on the sender data terminal or in the first mail processing device;

relaying the identifier to a second mail processing device that is assigned to an address data terminal for the message to be forwarded;

evaluating the identifier by the first mail processing device based on data present therein concerning the entry of messages at an address data terminal from the past;

triggering or blocking the transmission of the message or parts thereof to the address data terminal in response to the evaluation result; and

a mail processing device that is designed such that an identifier for a message is evaluated in an evaluation unit based on data present concerning the entry of messages at an address data terminal from the past, and based on the evaluation result, transmission of a message to the address data terminal is triggered or blocked.

29. The network according to claim 29, wherein the mail-processing device forms part of a mail server.

30. The network according to claim 29, wherein a memory unit for storing data concerning the entry of messages at connected data terminals.