JPH04314240A - Communication system and method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify the correspondence between a facsimile transmission command and a transmission document data and to surely exclude the facsimile transmission mode. CONSTITUTION:Communication terminal equipments (WS) 101,102 output a transmission command to a common printer controller 104 as print data and then output a transmission data. Thus, the printer controller 104 stores the print data in the order of request corresponding to the WS publicating the print data and discriminates whether the data is an output data to a facsimile equipment 106 or an output to a printer 5 based on a command code included in the print data. Then in response to the result of discrimination, the transmission data is outputted to the facsimile equipment 106 or the printer 105. Moreover, after the transmission data is outputted from the printer controller 104 to the facsimile equipment 106, the output destination of the transmission data is changed to the printer.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication system and a communication method that are connected to a communication line such as a local area network (LAN) and perform communication control.

0002

[Background Art] Local area network (hereinafter referred to as LA)
document data created on a terminal device such as a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as WS) connected to
A system is known in which facsimile transmission is performed directly to a wide area communication network such as a public telephone network via facsimile communication devices connected to the same LAN. In such a system, facsimile transmission commands output by a WS connected to the LAN are directly transferred to the facsimile communication device, whereas document data for facsimile transmission created on the WS is transmitted directly to the facsimile communication device. , and is transferred to a shared printer control device that controls a shared printer shared by each of the WSs. When the document data is transferred to the shared printer control device in this way, the control device
After developing the document data into image data, the image data is transferred from the control device to the facsimile communication device, and the facsimile device connected to the LAN transmits it via the wide area communication network. Ta.

0003

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above conventional example, it is necessary to clarify which transmission document data the facsimile transmission command output from the WS to the facsimile communication device corresponds to. This has the disadvantage that control between the device and the shared printer control device becomes complicated.

[0004] For example, in such a system, a LAN
The above shared printer control device determines whether a print output request from a WS is addressed to a facsimile communication device according to the following procedure.

First, when a facsimile output setting request command is received from a WS, the print output destination from that WS is
Set to facsimile output side (facsimile transmission mode). Then, the print data from the WS is developed into image data and then transferred to the facsimile communication device. Next, when a facsimile output cancellation request command is input from that WS, the print output destination from that WS is set to the printer (hereinafter referred to as a local printer) connected to the shared printer control device, and the print data from the WS is Output to a local printer and print.

However, in the above conventional example, if the WS forgets to issue a facsimile output cancellation request command, then the WS
If an operator using a fax machine prints out to a local printer, there is a risk that the document will be processed as a facsimile transmission document without being printed on the printer, and then sent from the facsimile communication device, against the operator's wishes. was there.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional example, and an object of the present invention is to provide a communication system and a communication method that simplify the association between facsimile transmission commands and transmission document data.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a communication system and a communication method that can reliably cancel facsimile transmission mode.

[0009]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the communication system of the present invention has the following configuration. That is, the communication system executes communication processing by connecting a facsimile communication device, a communication terminal, and a printer control device to a communication line, and the communication terminal prints a transmission command to the facsimile communication device to the printer control device. a storage means for storing the print data in the order of request and in association with the communication device that issued the print data;
determining means for determining whether the data is output to the facsimile communication device or the printer based on a command code included in the print data; and print data from the communication terminal according to the determination result of the determination means. and control means for outputting the information to the facsimile communication terminal or the printer.

[0010] In order to achieve the above object, the communication method of the present invention has the following configuration. That is, it is a communication method executed by connecting a facsimile communication device, a communication terminal, and a printer control device to a communication line, in which the communication terminal outputs a transmission command to the printer control device as print data, and then transmits it. a step of outputting transmission data, and storing the print data in the order of request by the printer control device in association with the communication device that issued the print data, and transmitting the facsimile communication based on a command code included in the print data. a step of determining whether the data is to be transmitted to a device or a printer; a step of outputting the transmitted data from the communication terminal to the facsimile communication terminal or the printer according to the determination result; after outputting the transmission data to the transmitter, unconditionally changing the output destination of the transmission data.

[0011]

[Operation] In the above configuration, the communication terminal outputs the transmission command to the printer control device as print data, and then outputs the transmission data to be transmitted. As a result, the printer control device stores the print data in the order of requests in association with the communication device that issued the print data, and outputs the output data to the facsimile communication device based on the command code included in the print data. , determine whether the data is output to a printer. Then, depending on the determination result, the data transmitted from the communication terminal is output to a facsimile communication terminal or a printer.

Furthermore, according to another invention, after the printer control device outputs the transmission data to the facsimile communication terminal, the output destination of the transmission data is changed unconditionally.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. <Description of LAN system (Figure 1)> Figure 1 shows the local area network (LAN system) to which the communication terminals of this embodiment are connected.
1 is a configuration diagram of a LAN system.

In the figure, 101 and 102 are a plurality of communication terminals (WS) connected to the LAN 100, and in this embodiment, two communication terminals are shown. 103 is WS10
1,102 is a file device shared on the LAN,
For example, it is a hard disk device. A shared printer control device 104 controls the printer 105 in this embodiment, and sends and receives data to and from the WSs 101 and 102 via the LAN 100. 105 is a printer connected to the shared printer control device 104 (hereinafter referred to as a local printer); 106 is a printer connected to the LAN 100 by the WSs 101 and 102;
With the facsimile communication equipment shared above, each WS:
public telephone network 1 via this facsimile communication device 106.
You can send facsimile images to 07. 10
7 is a public telephone network, to which a large number of facsimile machines (not shown) are connected. <Description of shared printer control device 104 (FIGS. 2 to 5)
)> In FIG. 2, 10 is a CPU that controls the entire device according to a control procedure built in a program ROM 11, and 11 is a program ROM that stores various data and programs showing the control procedure shown in FIG. 6, for example. It is. 12 is a print waiting management table; WS101, 10
The information is stored in the order in which the print requests from No. 2 are received. A print output destination management table 13 is a table for managing whether the print data output destination is the local printer 105 or the facsimile communication device 106 for each WS. An emulation program memory 14 stores an emulation program that analyzes a print data sequence and generates a dot image image file. This memory 14 also has built-in font data corresponding to character codes.
Document data consisting of character codes can be developed into image data by referring to this font data.

Reference numeral 15 denotes an image development memory which stores image data obtained by pattern development of character codes as a result of executing an emulation program. 16 is an external storage device (hereinafter referred to as HD) for storing print data and dot image image files from the WSs 101 and 102; 17 is a printer control unit that controls the flow of the print data stream stored in the HD 16; At the same time, the document data is output to the local printer 105 and a hard copy of the document data is printed. 18 is a LAN communication control unit that controls data transmission and reception between the WSs 101 and 102 on the LAN 100, the shared file device 104, and the facsimile communication device 106, and 100 is a transmission medium that constitutes the LAN.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the print queue management table 12 provided in the shared printer control device 104.

In FIG. 3, 31 is the WS 101, 102.
It shows a job number area allocated in response to a print output request from a job number area, in which the print requests are numbered and stored in the order in which they are received. 32 is a WS management number area for identifying the WS that issued the print output request, and 33 is the HD
The CPU 10 controls the input/output of files to the HD 16 based on the management information stored in the print data file 16 .

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the format of the print output destination control command issued from the WSs 101 and 102 to the shared printer device 104.

In FIG. 4, 41 is the WS 101, 102.
This is a unique identification code for identifying whether the data string sent from the local printer 105 is actual print data to be output to the local printer 105 or a command. , that data string is considered a command. 42 is a command code, and in this embodiment, a facsimile output setting code that instructs facsimile transmission processing is set for the data string from the WS that outputs this command. 43 is a destination telephone number indicating the destination of the facsimile signal;
is the destination name. Reference numeral 45 indicates a paper size that is referenced when the data string from the WS that outputs this command is reproduced on print paper by the printer 105, and this paper size is set on the WS when this document data is created. It is the same size as the original document paper.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of the print output destination management table 13 of the shared printer control device 104.

In FIG. 5, 51 is a WS management number for identifying the WS that has issued the print output request, and 52 is a facsimile output flag indicating whether or not the print data string from the WS is to be transmitted by facsimile. 43 is the destination phone number, 45 is the paper size, and these destination phone numbers 4
3. Paper size 45 is information extracted from the command information shown in FIG. 4, and is stored in this table 13 as management data.

The operations of the communication terminals (WS) 101, 102 and the shared printer control device 104 in the network system of this embodiment having the above configuration will be explained in detail below with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 6 and 7. . <Explanation of operation of communication device (Figure 6)> Figure 6 shows WS101
(102) is a flowchart showing the operation.

While already logged into the LAN 100, the facsimile transmission software is activated in step S1. Then, in step S2, the destination telephone number is input, and in step S3, the paper size is input. Based on the information, a facsimile transmission command to be output to the shared printer control device 104 is generated in step S4. The structure of this command is as shown in FIG. 4, and an identification code 41 and facsimile output setting code 42 are added to the beginning of the destination telephone number and paper size information input in steps S2 and S03. There is. This command is then transferred to the shared printer control device 104 as print data in step S5. In this way, by transferring the print output control command as print data to the shared printer control device 104, this command is managed as a print job within the shared printer control device 104, and step S described later is performed.
The order of reception of the document data transferred in step 9 can be clarified.

After the facsimile transmission software is terminated in step S6, the document creation software is started in step S7. Next, the process proceeds to step S8, where document data for facsimile transmission is created, and the document data is directly printed out to the shared printer control device 104 (step S9). Then, the process advances to step S10, and the document creation process ends. <Explanation of operation of shared printer (FIG. 7)> Next, referring to the flowchart of FIG.
Explain the operation.

First, in step S11, WS101 or W
When a print request is received from S102, the WS that outputs the print request is identified from the LAN communication protocol data (Step S12). The process then proceeds to step S13, where a job number is assigned to the print request and the sent print data is stored in the HD 16 (step S14).
. Then, the process advances to step S15, and the job number, WS management number, and file management address are registered in the print queue management table 12. This registration is registered at the end of the order of already registered jobs. As a result, job numbers, WS management numbers, and file management addresses are registered in the print queue management table 12 in the order in which the print commands are received. Then, the process returns to step S11 and waits for the next print request to be input.

On the other hand, if no print request is input in step S11, the process advances to step S16, and it is checked whether there is a job registered in the print queue management table 12. If there is not, the process returns to step S11, but if there is, the process proceeds to step S17 and subsequent steps to start processing the job.

First, in step S17, the earliest registered job is selected from among the jobs registered in the print queue management table 22. Then, in step S18,
By referring to the file management address 33 of the job, a predetermined amount of print data is read from the HD 16 from the beginning of the print data of the job. The predetermined amount of print data here refers to the amount of data that constitutes the command format shown in FIG.

In step S19, it is checked whether the identification code 41 located at the beginning of the print control command data matches a code indicating a command (is it a command code)? This identification code 41 is a code uniquely defined in the facsimile communication system of this embodiment. If the identification codes 41 match and it is determined that the command is a command, the process advances to step S20, and it is determined whether the command is the facsimile output setting code 42. If the facsimile output setting code is 42, the process advances to step S21, and the print output destination management table 13
WS management number 51 corresponding to the job is selected from , and the facsimile output flag 52 of that WS is turned on. Then, in step S22, the destination telephone number 43 and paper size 45, which are information added to the command, are written into the print output management table 13.

On the other hand, if the command is different in step S20, the process advances to step S23, and after analyzing the command,
Corresponding processing will be performed.

Through this series of processing, a print output control command is output to the shared printer control device 104, and
The facsimile output flag 52 of the print output destination management table 13 corresponding to the WS that has notified the facsimile output setting code 42 is set to on. This results in
In the next step S25, this facsimile output flag 5
2 is checked, and if it is on, the print data stored in the HD 16 is sent to the facsimile communication device 106 for transmission. This operation will be explained in detail below.

If the identification code checked in step S19 does not match a code meaning a command, it is determined that it is print data and the process advances to step S24. Step S
24, from the facsimile output destination management table 13,
Select the WS management number 51 that corresponds to the job, and
It is checked whether the facsimile output flag 52 of S is on. If it is not on, the print data is for local printer output, so the process goes to step S29, refers to the file management address 33 of the print queue management table 12, and prints the data to the HD1.
Find the address of the print data stored in the HD
16 and transfers the print data to the local printer 105.

On the other hand, if the facsimile output flag 52 is on in step S24, the image data stored in the HD 16 is data for which facsimile output processing has been instructed, so the process advances to step S25. Step S25
Now turn off that facsimile output flag. With this process, the next print output data from the same WS will be output to the local printer 105, and the facsimile transmission process will not be executed again for this job. This provides an operational specification in which document data is transmitted as a facsimile signal only once in response to one print output destination control command, and it is possible to prevent unintended document data from being transmitted by facsimile.

Next, the process advances to step S26, and the printer emulation program 14 is activated. This program is a program that interprets print output data made up of data strings that can be interpreted by the local printer 105 and develops it into image data expressed as a print image. Then, in step S27, printer emulation is executed. For the paper size information necessary at this time, the paper size 45 written in the print output destination management table 13 is referred to. In this way, printer emulation is performed while sequentially reading print data from the HD 16 with reference to the file management address 33 of the print queue management table 12.
The obtained dot data is stored in the image development memory 15.

When all the emulations are completed in this way, the process advances to step S28, and the facsimile communication device 106
Transfer the information necessary for facsimile transmission to the recipient and request facsimile transmission. The data to be transferred here are the dot data on the image development memory 15, the destination telephone number 43 and the paper size 44 written in the print output destination management table 13.

[0035] Upon receiving the above information, facsimile communication device 106 executes facsimile transmission according to the facsimile communication procedure.

As explained above, according to this embodiment, the document data sent by facsimile from the communication terminal is limited to only one document. Therefore, when the communication terminal sends a facsimile, the command must be sent first. The operating procedure is to issue the . The above operations can prevent erroneous facsimile transmission processing.

The present invention may be applied to a system consisting of a plurality of devices, or may be applied to a device consisting of one device, or by supplying a program to the system or device. Needless to say, it can also be applied to cases where the goal is achieved.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily associate facsimile transmission commands with document data for transmission.

Further, according to the present invention, there is an effect that the facsimile transmission mode can be reliably canceled.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a local area network system according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a shared printer control device connected to a LAN according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of a print queue management table of the shared printer control device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a data format diagram of a print output destination control command output from the communication terminal (WS) of the present embodiment to the shared printer control device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of a print output destination management table of the shared printer control device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the communication terminal (WS) of this embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the shared printer control device of this embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 CPU 11 Program ROM 12 Print queue management table 13 Print output management table 14 Emulation program 15 Image expansion memory 16 External storage device (HD) 17 Printer control section 18 LAN communication control section 100 LAN transmission medium 101, 102 Communication terminal (WS ) 103 Shared file device 104 Shared printer control device 105 Printer 106 Facsimile communication device 107 Public telephone network

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A communication system in which a facsimile communication device, a communication terminal, and a printer control device are connected to a communication line to execute communication processing, wherein the communication terminal sends a message to the printer control device to send a message to the facsimile communication device. The printer control device includes an output means for outputting commands as print data, and the printer control device includes a storage means for storing the print data in the order of requests in association with the communication device that issued the print data, and a storage means for storing the print data in association with the communication device that issued the print data; a determining means for determining whether the data is to be output to the facsimile communication device or the printer based on a command code; A communication system comprising: control means for controlling output to the printer. 2. A communication system in which a facsimile communication device, a communication terminal, and a printer control device are connected to a communication line to execute communication processing, wherein the communication terminal sends a message to the printer control device to send a message to the facsimile communication device. The printer control device includes an output means for outputting commands as print data, and the printer control device includes a storage means for storing the print data in the order of requests in association with the communication device that issued the print data, and a storage means for storing the print data in association with the communication device that issued the print data; a determining means for determining whether the data is to be output to the facsimile communication device or the printer based on a command code; Communication characterized by comprising: print data output means for outputting to the printer; and changing means for unconditionally changing the output destination of the print data after the print data output means outputs it to the facsimile communication terminal. system. 3. A communication method executed by connecting a facsimile communication device, a communication terminal, and a printer control device to a communication line, the communication terminal outputting a transmission command to the printer control device as print data, and then ,
a step of outputting transmission data to be transmitted; storing the print data in the order of request by the printer control device in association with the communication device that issued the print data; a step of determining whether the data is to be sent to a facsimile communication device or a printer; a step of outputting the data to be sent from the communication terminal to the facsimile communication terminal or the printer according to the determination result; A communication method comprising the step of, after outputting the transmission data to a communication terminal, unconditionally changing the output destination of the transmission data.