USER INTERFACES AND METHODS TO PROVISION ELECTRONIC FACSIMILES

• US 20090080029A1
• Filed: 09/19/2008
• Published: 03/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RingCentral Incorporated
• Original Assignee: RingCentral Incorporated
• Inventors: Vendrow, Vlad, Young, Bruce
• Granted Patent: US 8,792,118 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/402
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00212 Attaching image data to computer messages, e.g. to e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00214 details of transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0022 involving facsimile protocols or a combination of facsimile protocols and computer data transmission protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00312 with a digital transmission apparatus, e.g. a switched network of teleprinters for the distribution of text-based information, SMS or ISDN device transmitting or receiving via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network or the internet H04N1/00214; transmission of digital information H04L
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0065 Converting image data to a format usable by the connected apparatus or vice versa

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to computing devices and systems, as well as software, computer programs, applications, and user interfaces, and more particularly, to provisioning electronic fax messages in a communication network including packetized and/or synchronous communications. According to one embodiment, a messaging can receive data representing an electronic document in a file format into a messaging system, convert fax components to a fax compatible format including the electronic document in the file format to form converted fax components, determine whether to generate an electronic facsimile to include the fax components as a pre-rendered electronic facsimile, and transmit the electronic facsimile as the pre-rendered electronic facsimile.

Claims

1. A method of generating electronic facsimiles comprising:

receiving data representing an electronic document in a file format into a messaging system;

converting a plurality of fax components to a fax compatible format including the electronic document in the file format to form converted fax components;

determining whether to generate an electronic facsimile to include the fax components as a pre-rendered electronic facsimile;

generating the pre-rendered electronic facsimile; and

transmitting the electronic facsimile as the pre-rendered electronic facsimile.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein transmitting the pre-rendered electronic facsimile occurs according to a user'"'"'s scheduling preference input.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

displaying an email application interface comprising input fields for inputting data representing an electronic document in a file format into a messaging system.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing a first subset of the fax components prior to generating the electronic facsimile; and

retrieving the first subset of the fax components to form the electronic facsimile.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the first subset of the fax components comprise:

data representing at least a portion of a cover sheet.

6. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

storing the first subset of the fax components and a second subset of the fax components prior to generating the electronic facsimile; and

generating the electronic facsimile as the pre-rendered electronic facsimile.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the second subset of the fax components comprise:

the data representing the electronic document.

8. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

appending a time and date stamp prior to transmitting the electronic facsimile as the pre-rendered electronic facsimile.

9. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

converting either the first subset of the fax components or the second subset of the fax components, or both, prior to storing the first subset of the fax components and the second subset of the fax components.

10. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

storing the pre-rendered electronic facsimile,

wherein the first subset of the fax components or the second subset of the fax components, or both, are stored as separable fax components.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting data to present an interface configured to accept a first user input; and

receiving the electronic document as the first user input.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting data to accept at least one of dual-tone multi-frequency input and audio selections as audio input;

receiving the audio input into the messaging system; and

converting the audio input into alpha-numeric text to form at least a subset of the fax components.

13. A system for supporting message delivery over a communications network, the system comprising:

a messaging system further comprising;

a plurality of processing servers, at least one of which is configured to receive a user input to create an electronic facsimile over a first communications network from a sending communications device;

at least one repository, wherein the messaging system is configured to;

format the user input into at least one pre-rendered electronic document in a fax format,

store the at least one pre-rendered electronic document in the repository, wherein the pre-rendered electronic document is pushed for transmission by a fax resource selected by the repository, and

transmit the at least one pre-rendered electronic document,

wherein the messaging system is coupled to a communications network for transmitting the at least one pre-rendered electronic document as an electronic facsimile.

14. The system as in claim 13 wherein the messaging system is further configured to:

transmit the at least one pre-rendered electronic document as a function of either a schedule based on the user input, or upon availability of the fax resource, or both.

15. The systems as in claim 14 wherein the messaging system is configured to accept a schedule from a user of the transmission of the pre-rendered electronic document as an electronic facsimile according to at least one of a least cost route, least cost time, and least cost day.

16. The system as in claim 14 further comprising:

at least one of the plurality of processing servers including;

a rendering server coupled with the at least one repository and configured to pre-render the user input into the at least one pre-rendered electronic document in a common fax format.

17. The system as in claim 14 wherein:

the repository is coupled with a rendering server and with at least one of a web server, a synchronization server, and a fax polling server, each of which can be configured to upload a request for an electronic facsimile to the repository; and

the repository also is coupled with a fax router so that the repository can request that the fax router select a preferred delivery route and corresponding deliver resource for transmitting the electronic facsimile.

18. The system as in claim 14 wherein the sending communications device is a computing device configured to accept the user input.

19. The system as in claim 14 wherein the communications network is a switched network or a packet network.

20. The system as in claim 14 wherein the message system is configured to affix a time and date stamp to the at least one pre-rendered electronic document.

21. A system for supporting a message delivery service comprising:

at least one receiving communications device configured to receive an audio input to create electronic messages over a communications network from a sending communications device,

a receiving media server configured to communicate with an interface of the sending communications device,

a prompt-and-collect logic coupled with the receiving media server further configured to provide automated speech recognition technology to generate an electronic document by accepting the audio input;

a rendering server configured to format the electronic document into a pre-rendered electronic document in a common fax format, wherein the pre-rendered document can become an electronic facsimile or a component of an electronic facsimile;

at least one repository for storing pre-rendered electronic messages; and

at least one fax application server, wherein the at least one fax application server responds to a request from the repository for transmission of the pre-rendered electronic message as an electronic facsimile.