Electronic mail converting apparatus for facsimile

• US 6,211,972 B1
• Filed: 10/14/1997
• Issued: 04/03/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Communications Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Graphic Communication Systems, Inc. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Okutomi, Hiroshi, Toyoda, Kiyoshi, Sawada, Toshihisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Au, Amelia
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dastouri, Mehrdad
• Application Number:
  US08/930,610
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 358/402, 358/403, 358/442, 358/468, 379/93.15, 379/100.09, 379/100.13, 379/100.15
• US Class Current: 358/402
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00209 Transmitting or receiving image data, e.g. facsimile data, via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network, the internet, I-fax
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32416 Storage of instructions or retrieval of prestored instructions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/002 Selecting or switching between an image communication channel and a non-image communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0024 Converting image communication control signals, e.g. group 3 facsimile protocol signals, to non-image communication control signals or vice versa
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0067 Converting to still picture data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0068 Converting from still picture data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0086 Image transceiver H04N2201/0093 and H04N2201/0094 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3204 of data relating to a user, sender, addressee, machine or electronic recording medium H04N2201/3256 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3274 Storage or retrieval of prestored additional information

Abstract

An electronic mail converting apparatus for facsimile that includes connections connecting to a facsimile, a public network, and a LAN. The connections may be internally changed according to the type of data or an instruction received. A converting device exists for converting data to e-mail data or vice versa, as required, wherein the converted data is transmitted to an instructed designation.

Claims

1. An electronic mail converting apparatus for a facsimile, the apparatus comprising:

a receiving device that receives data transmitted by one of a facsimile, a public network, and a LAN;

a recognizing device that recognizes the data received by the receiving device;

a converting device that converts the data into a predetermined format; and

a transmitting device that transfers the data to any one of the facsimile, the public network, and the LAN, wherein when the data is electronic mail data received through the LAN, if the number of sheets of the electronic mail is equal to or less than a predetermined maximum output number of sheets, the electronic mail is transferred to the facsimile, and if the number of sheets of the electronic mail is larger than the maximum output number of sheets, transmission of the electronic mail data is temporarily suspended until an operator inputs a predetermined instruction, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail is read from the electronic mail data.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail is read from a content of a tag in TIFF in the electronic mail data.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the maximum output number of sheets is stored in a storage device.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein if the number of sheets of the electronic mail data is larger than the maximum output number of sheets, the transmission of the electronic mail data is temporally suspended until a predetermined key is pressed by the operator.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the transmission of the electronic mail data is canceled when a key other than the predetermined key is pressed by the operator.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus is connected to the facsimile through a locally attached telephone line.

7. An electronic mail converting apparatus for facsimile, the apparatus comprising:

a receiving device that receives data transmitted by one of a facsimile, a public network, and a LAN;

a recognizing device that recognizes the data received by the receiving device;

a converting device that converts the data into a predetermined format; and

a transferring device that transfers the data to any one of the facsimile, the public network, and the LAN,

wherein, when the data is electronic mail data received through the LAN, if the number of sheets of the electronic mail is equal to or less than a predetermined output number of sheets, the electronic mail data is transferred to the facsimile, and if the number of sheets of the electronic mail is larger than the predetermined output number, the electronic mail data is transferred to a predetermined electronic mail address through the LAN without being transferred to the facsimile.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail is read from the electronic mail data.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail is read from a content of a tag in TIFF in the electronic mail data.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the maximum output number of sheets is stored in a storage device.

11. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined electronic mail address is stored in a storage device.

12. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the apparatus is connected to the facsimile through a locally attached telephone line.

13. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined electronic mail address is that of a personal computer having a display.

14. A method for converting an electronic mail to facsimile data, the method comprising:

receiving data transmitted by one of a facsimile, a public network, and a LAN;

recognizing whether the received data is an electronic mail data through the LAN;

reading the number of sheets of the electronic mail from the electronic mail data;

comparing a number of sheets of the recognized electronic mail data with a predetermined maximum output number of sheets;

converting the electronic mail data into a predetermined format and transferring the converted data to the facsimile when the number of sheets of the recognized electronic mail data is equal to or less than the predetermined maximum output number; and

suspending transmission of the electronic mail data to the facsimile until an operator inputs a predetermined instruction when the number of sheets of the electronic mail data is larger than the maximum output number.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail data is read from TIFF of the electronic mail data.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the maximum output number of sheets is stored in a storage device.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein the transmission of the electronic mail data is suspended until the operator presses a predetermined key.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the transmission of the electronic mail data is canceled when a key other than the predetermined key is pressed by the operator.

19. The method according to claim 14, wherein the converted data is transferred to the facsimile by connection to a locally attached telephone line.

20. A method for converting an electronic mail to facsimile data, the method comprising:

receiving data transmitted by one of a facsimile, a public network and a LAN;

recognizing whether the received data is an electronic mail data through the LAN;

comparing a number of sheets of the recognized electronic mail data with a predetermined maximum output number of sheets;

converting the electronic mail data into a predetermined format and transferring the converted data to the facsimile when the number of sheet of the recognized electronic mail data is equal to or less than the predetermined maximum output number; and

transferring the electronic mail data to a predetermined mail address through the LAN without being transferred to the facsimile when the number of sheets of the electronic mail data is larger than the maximum output number.

21. The method according to claim 20 further comprising:

reading the number of sheets of the electronic mail data from the electronic mail data.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the number of sheets of the electronic mail data is read from TIFF of the electronic mail data.

23. The method according to claim 20, wherein the maximum output number of sheets is stored in a storage device.

24. The method according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined electronic mail address is stored in a storage device.

25. The method according to claim 20, wherein the converted data is transferred to the facsimile by connection to a locally attached telephone line.

26. The method according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined electronic mail address is that of a personal computer having a display.