Simplified configuration of an internet-enabled device

• US 6,898,623 B1
• Filed: 06/16/2000
• Issued: 05/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Williams, Irene H, Brock, William Sheridan
• Primary Examiner(s): Harvey, Jack B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BLAIR, DOUGLAS B
• Application Number:
  US09/595,501
• Time in Patent Office: 1,803 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/245, 709/227, 709/228, 709/243, 379/93.24
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• 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

Abstract

A system and method for configuring an Internet-enabled device to communicate with an unknown mail server so as to allow the device to send information as e-mail messages over the Internet using the resources of an Internet service provider (ISP). Such devices include scanners, multifunction peripherals, and digital cameras. A configuror program uses predetermined access parameters for the ISP to simplify the configuration of the device. From an e-mail address specified by the user during configuration, the configuror determines the mail server name that the device will use to send e-mail, and downloads the address, along with a portion of the access parameters and a maximum e-mail message size, to the device. After configuration, the device can directly connect to the ISP and send e-mail in a stand-alone manner. If the device is connected to a computer following installation, computer can update the device for any changes in ISP access, and the device can send e-mail messages through the computer rather than directly so as to avoid more than one simultaneous connection to the ISP.

Claims

1. A method of communicating with mail server associated with an on-line provider, comprising:

providing an e-mail address for the on-line provider, the e-mail address including a suffix indicative of a domain identifier;

converting the e-mail address to a machine-selected mail server name by prepending a selected one of a predetermined set of mail server prefixes to the suffix to form the machine-selected mail server name;

linking to a mail port of a computer having the machine-selected mail server name so as to determine whether the machine-selected mail server name corresponds to the mail server; and

communicating with the mail server when the machine-selected mail server name corresponds to the mail server.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein the e-mail address includes a first prefix portion and a first separator portion, and

wherein the converting includes

stripping the first prefix portion and the first separator portion from the e-mail address, and

appending a second separator different from the first separator to the selected one of a predetermined set of mail server prefixes so as to form the mail server name associated with the on-line provider.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the suffix is a domain identifier,

the first prefix is a mailbox identifier,

the first separator is an “

@”

symbol,

the second prefix is a mail server prefix, and

the second separator is a “

.”

symbol.

4. The method of claim 1, further including:

if validity of the mail server name is not verified, repeating the prepending and linking using a different one of the predetermined set of mail server prefixes.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the linking includes:

communicating with a domain name server to determine a mail server IP address corresponding to the mail server name; and

connecting to the mail port of the mail server IP address.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the on-line provider is a user-selected one of a plurality of on-line providers.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the communicating with the mail server includes:

establishing at least one communications link from a group of communication links including an analog telephone line, a broadband link, a local area network, a radio frequency link, and an infrared link.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the suffix includes at least two domain levels and a separator between each of the at least two domain levels, and wherein the converting further includes

stripping a left-most domain level and a left-most separator from the suffix prior to the prepending if the suffix includes more than two domain levels.

9. A system for e-mailing information to a recipient over the Internet, comprising:

an electronic device adapted for periodic connection to an Internet service provider and to a configuration computer, the electronic device having

a parameter memory,

a storage subsystem coupled to the parameter memory and responsive to a command from the configuration computer for storing configuration parameters in the parameter memory, the configuration parameters including a mail server name associated with the Internet service provider, and

an e-mail subsystem coupled to the parameter memory and responsive to a user request to connect to an e-mail server of the Internet service provider using the mail server name and to e-mail the information to the recipient; and

a configuration program executable by the configuration computer to determine the mail server name, the configuration program including a parser to isolate a suffix indicative of a domain identifier from an e-mail address associated with the e-mail server, and a concatenator to prepend one of a predefined set of mail server prefixes to the suffix to form the mail server name.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the electronic device has an interface selected from the group consisting of a dialup modem, a digital subscriber line modem, a cable modem, a network interface, an infrared transceiver, and a radio frequency transceiver, the interface adapted to connect the device to the Internet service provider.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the configuration program further determines a maximum e-mail message size supported by the e-mail servers.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the e-mail subsystem further splits the information into one or more e-mail messages, each e-mail message having a size of not more than the maximum e-mail message size.

13. The system of claim 9, herein the electronic device is a scanner.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the electronic device is a multifunction peripheral including at least two devices selected from the group consisting of a printer, a scanner, a copier, and a fax machine.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the Internet-enabled device is a digital camera.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the configuration program is further configured to query a domain name server so as to obtain an IP address associated with the mail server name.

17. A program storage medium readable by a computing apparatus, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computing apparatus for configuring an electronic device to send e-mail via a mil server of an on-line access provider, the program storage medium comprising:

a first segment of the instructions configured to convert an e-mail address for a user of the on-line access provider to a mail server name by prepending a selected one of a predetermined set of mail server prefixes to a suffix portion of the e-mail address to form the mail server name;

a second segment of the instructions configured to connect to the mail server using the mail server name so as to verify validity of the mail server name; and

a third segment of the instructions configured to download the mail server name to the electronic device.

18. The program storage medium of claim 17, further comprising:

a fourth segment of the instructions configured to

detect a change in access information for the on-line access provider, and reconfigure the electronic device as required based on the change.

19. The program storage medium of claim 17, further comprising:

a fifth segment of the instructions configured to

receive data representing information to be sent to a specified recipient from the electronic device,

connect to the mail server, and

using the mail server, transmit the information to the specified recipient as an e-mail message.