E-mail distribution system

• US 6,226,670 B1
• Filed: 06/15/1998
• Issued: 05/01/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Tsumori, Yoshimi, Ueno, Hideo
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLETT, STEPHAN F
• Application Number:
  US09/094,741
• Time in Patent Office: 1,051 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/201, 709/207, 709/238, 709/240, 340/825.52, 340/825.54
• US Class Current: 709/207
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/226 Delivery according to priorities

Abstract

An E-mail distributing system which is composed of a server and a client including a user, and distributes an E-mail corresponding to a group including a plurality of clients.

The client transmits a mail acquisition demand including a group identifier, and the server includes personal mail spools and group mail spools. The received E-mails are accumulated in the mail spools according to an arrival address. When a mail acquisition demand from the client includes the group identifier, the E-mail with top priority corresponding to the group identifier is extracted from the group mail spools and is then distributed to the client.

Claims

1. A server which distributes an E-mail corresponding to a group including a plurality of clients, comprising:

a mail accumulator which includes personal mail spools for arrival personal mail addresses, and group mail spools for arrival group mail addresses,

a mail receptor which accumulates a received E-mail in the mail spools corresponding to the arrival mail addresses,

a mail acquisition demand receptor which extracts a group identifier included in the mail acquisition demand received from the clients,

a priority mail extractor which extracts an E-mail with top priority from the group mail spools corresponding to the group identifier, and

a mail distribution controller which distributes the extracted E-mail to the clients.

2. The server as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a candidate mail extractor, and when the mail acquisition demander inserts a key word into the mail acquisition demand the mail acquisition demander extracting the group identifier and the key word and the candidate mail extractor retrieving an E-mail accumulated in the group mail spools corresponding to the group identifier based on the extracted key word and extracting the retrieved E-mail as a candidate mail, and the priority mail extractor extracting an E-mail with top priority based on the contents of each E-mail from the candidate E-mails.

3. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein the mail receptor accumulates the received E-mail in the group mail spools corresponding to the group mail address.

4. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein the mail receptor accumulates the received E-mail in all of the personal mail spool associated with the group mail address corresponding to the arrival address.

5. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein the mail receptor accumulates the received E-mail in one of the personal mail spools associated with the group mail address corresponding to the arrival address.

6. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein when the arrival address is a personal mail address, the mail receptor accumulates the E-mail in the personal mail spool corresponding to the personal mail address.

7. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein the priority mail extractor determines a priority in consideration of an emergency degree of the contents of the E-mail, sender address information, and an elapsed time after the E-mail has been accumulated in the mail spool.

8. The server as claimed in claim 2 wherein the priority mail extractor determines a priority in consideration of an emergency degree of the contents of the E-mail, sender address information, and an elapsed time after the E-mail has been accumulated in the main spool.

9. The server as claimed in claim 7 wherein the emergency degree of the contents of the E-mail is a question type.

10. The server as claims in claim 8 wherein the emergency degree of the contents of the E-mail is a question type.

11. The server as claimed in claim 1 wherein the clients comprise a mail acquisition demander which executes a log-in process with a user identifier and a password included in the mail acquisition demand from the clients.

12. The server as claimed in claim 2 wherein the clients comprise a mail acquisition demander which executes a log-in process with a user identifier and a password included in the mail acquisition demand from the clients.

13. The server as claimed in claim 11 wherein the mail acquisition demand receptor extracts an E-mail from the personal mail spools corresponding to the user identifier when the mail acquisition demand from the client does not contain the group identifier.

14. The server as claimed in claim 12 wherein the mail acquisition demand receptor extracts an E-mail from the personal mail spools corresponding to the user identifier when the mail acquisition demand from the client does not contain the group identifier.