IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS, COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM

Abstract

To solve the problem in which: for a FAX device, a system is proposed which registers FAX numbers of nuisance FAX in a management server via a communication network, and when subsequently receiving a FAX number together with image data, inquires of the management server as to whether the received FAX number is the nuisance FAX number; however, since the FAX device registers the nuisance FAX numbers in the management server in advance, when receiving a new FAX number not registered in the management server, the FAX device cannot determine whether the FAX number is a specific type of FAX number such as the nuisance FAX number.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus 3b registers a specific type of FAX numbers such as nuisance FAX numbers in a management server 5 in advance (S22-S24), and when an image processing apparatus 3a receives a new FAX number (S41), the image forming apparatus makes an inquiry to the management server 5 (S44-S46) to increase the possibility of solving the problem.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an image processing device, a communication system, a communication method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a technology for preventing nuisance faxes, known as a "nuisance fax prevention function," has been proposed for devices (fax devices) equipped with a facsimile function (see Patent Document 1). The "nuisance fax prevention function" is a function that allows only faxes to be received from specific recipients registered in advance, or allows only faxes to be received from recipients other than the specific recipients registered in advance. As a result, if a fax number sent together with image data of a document or the like via a public line network matches a nuisance fax number registered in advance in the device (fax device), the fax device can prevent nuisance faxes by discarding the received image data.

[0003] Furthermore, in recent years, FAX machines have become able to connect not only to public line networks but also to communication networks such as the Internet. As a result, a system has been proposed in which a FAX machine registers the FAX numbers of nuisance FAXes in a management server via a communication network, and then, when the FAX number is received together with image data, the FAX machine inquires of the management server whether the received FAX number is a nuisance FAX number or not (see Patent Document 2). Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the conventional method, the nuisance fax number must be registered in the management server in advance, so that when a fax machine receives a fax number that is not registered in the management server, it is unable to determine whether the fax number is a specific type of fax number, such as a nuisance fax number. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The invention of claim 1 is an image processing device that communicates with a management server that manages fax numbers and other image processing devices, and is characterized in that it has a first receiving means for receiving a fax number of the other image processing device sent by the other image processing device, a transmitting means for transmitting the fax number to be received by the management server when the fax number received by the first receiving means satisfies a predetermined condition, a second receiving means for receiving specified information sent by the management server that received the fax number, and a display control means for displaying information indicating that the fax number may be included in a specific type on a display means based on the specified information. Effect of the Invention

[0006] As described above, according to the present invention, the possibility of solving the problem of being unable to determine whether a fax number is of a specific type even when an image processing device receives a new fax number is improved. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of an MFP. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of a management server. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of the communication system. [Diagram 5] 1A is a conceptual diagram of a destination management table, FIG. 1B is a conceptual diagram of a number type management table, and FIG. 1C is a conceptual diagram of a FAX management table, which are tables managed by the MFP. [Figure 6] 1A is a conceptual diagram of a device management table, and FIG. 1B is a conceptual diagram of a registration count management table, which are tables managed by a management server. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a process of registering a specific type of FAX number. [Figure 8]FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a process for displaying a preview screen. [Figure 9] 11 is a flowchart showing a process of registering a FAX number by the MFP. [Figure 10] 13 is a flowchart showing a process of determining the possibility of a specific type of FAX number by the management server. [Figure 11] 11 is a flowchart showing a display process of a preview screen by the MFP. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen displayed by an MFP. [Figure 13] 11 is a flowchart showing a process of registering a FAX number by the MFP. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0009] [Outline of the communication system] The overall configuration of a communication system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of the communication system. The communication system 1 shown in Fig. 1 is constructed by image processing devices 3a and 3b and a management server 5. The image processing devices 3a and 3b transmit and receive FAX data via a public line network 99. The FAX data includes image data of documents, etc., and the FAX number of the sender.

[0010] Further, the image processing devices 3a and 3b can receive a "notification service" provided by the management server 5, which notifies that there is a possibility of a specific type of FAX number. Therefore, the image processing devices 3a and 3b can communicate with the management server 5 via a communication network 100. The communication network 100 is the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or the like. Note that the communication system 1 includes image processing devices (excluding the image processing device 3x) other than the image processing devices 3a and 3b, but these are omitted in FIG. 1. The image processing devices (excluding the image processing device 3x) other than the image processing devices 3a and 3b can also receive the above-mentioned "notification service" and can communicate with the management server 5 via the communication network 100. Furthermore, the image processing devices (excluding the image processing device 3x) other than the image processing devices 3a and 3b can also transmit and receive FAX data via the public line network 99. Furthermore, the multiple image processing devices (excluding the image processing device 3x) other than the image processing devices 3a and 3b may be installed in a different company from the image forming device 3b, or may be installed in the same company.

[0011] In FIG. 1, the image processing device 3a is operated by a user A1 of company A, and the image processing device 3b is operated by a user B1 of company B.

[0012] In FIG. 1, an image processing device 3x that is not included in the communication system 1 transmits and receives FAX data to and from the image processing devices 3a and 3b via a public line network 99.

[0013] The image processing devices 3a, 3b, and 3x are examples of devices that transmit and receive FAX data. When the image processing devices 3a, 3b, and 3x and image processing devices other than the image processing devices 3a and 3b (excluding the image processing device 3x) are collectively referred to as "image processing device 3", the image processing device 3 is a FAX device or an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral / Product / Printer). The MFP is a multifunction device that realizes multiple functions such as a fax function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a copy function.

[0014] In this embodiment, the image processing device 3x will be described as a device that may transmit unwanted fax data to the image processing device 3a. Examples of unwanted fax data include advertisement data sent unilaterally to the administrator of the image processing device 3a, and fax data sent to the image processing device 3a that is not intended to be sent to because the destination fax number is incorrect.

[0015] The unwanted fax data is an example of the specific type of fax data, which includes fax data sent from another image processing device not intended by the administrator of the image processing device 3a (e.g., not registered in the address book) and fax data with a certain number of images or more (e.g., 50 or more), and other fax data that can be objectively determined.

[0016] The source image processing device 3x designates a FAX number and transmits a FAX to the destination image processing device 3a. The destination image processing device 3a receives the FAX data (image data such as text and the FAX number of the image processing device 3x) from the source image processing device 3x. The image processing device 3a temporarily stores the received image data in a storage unit 3000a described below. The image processing device 3a outputs the received image data in various ways.

[0017] For example, the image processing device 3a prints an image of text image data received by fax using the printer function of its own device (the image processing device 3a) or another device (e.g., a printer) in accordance with user operation. The image processing device 3a also displays the image data received by fax on a panel display unit 340a (described below) in accordance with user operation. The image processing device 3a also transfers the image data received by fax to the management server 5 or another device (e.g., a PC) in accordance with user operation. Note that the printing, display, or transfer of image data received by fax by the image processing device 3a is an example of outputting image data received by fax.

[0018] The image processing device 3a is an example of an information processing device that manages the unread and read states of image data received by FAX from the image processing device 3x that is the sender. The image processing device 3a manages image data that has not been output as unread, and manages image data that has been output as read. Thus, the unread image data is image data that has been received by FAX and has not been output (confirmed) by the user in various ways.

[0019] The management server 5 is a server that manages fax numbers of specific types of faxes such as spam faxes. The management server 5 may be constructed by a single computer or may be constructed by multiple computers.

[0020] [Hardware configuration] Next, the hardware configuration of the image processing device 3 and the management server 5 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0021] <Image processing device> 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the image processing device 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the image processing device 3 includes a controller 310, a short-range communication circuit 320, an engine control unit 330, an operation panel 340, a network I / F 350, and a public line I / F 360.

[0022] Of these, the controller 310 has a CPU 301 which is the main part of the computer, a system memory (MEM-P) 302, a north bridge (NB) 303, a south bridge (SB) 304, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 306, a local memory (MEM-C) 307 which is a storage unit, an HDD controller 308, and a HD 309 which is also a storage unit, and is configured such that the NB 303 and the ASIC 306 are connected by an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus 321.

[0023] Of these, the CPU 301 is a control unit that performs overall control of the image processing device 3. The NB 303 is a bridge for connecting the CPU 301 with the MEM-P 302, the SB 304, and the AGP bus 321, and includes a memory controller that controls reading and writing to the MEM-P 302, a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) master, and an AGP target.

[0024] The MEM-P 302 is composed of a ROM 302a which is a memory for storing programs and data for implementing the various functions of the controller 310, and a RAM 302b which is used for developing the programs and data, and as a drawing memory during memory printing, etc. The programs stored in the RAM 302b may be provided by being recorded in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, CD-R, or DVD in the form of an installable or executable file.

[0025] The SB304 is a bridge for connecting the NB303 to a PCI device and a peripheral device. The ASIC306 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) for image processing purposes having hardware elements for image processing, and plays the role of a bridge connecting the AGP bus 321, the PCI bus 322, the HDD 308, and the MEM-C 307. The ASIC306 is composed of a PCI target and an AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) that is the core of the ASIC306, a memory controller that controls the MEM-C 307, a plurality of DMACs (Direct Memory Access Controllers) that rotate image data using hardware logic, and a PCI unit that transfers data between the scanner unit 331 and the printer unit 332 via the PCI bus 322. A USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface or an IEEE1394 (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 1394) interface may be connected to the ASIC306.

[0026] The MEM-C307 is a local memory used as an image buffer for copying and a code buffer. The HD309 is a storage for storing image data, font data used during printing, and forms. The HD309 controls the reading and writing of data from and to the HD309 under the control of the CPU301. The AGP bus 321 is a bus interface for a graphics accelerator card proposed to speed up graphic processing, and by directly accessing the MEM-P302 at high throughput, the graphics accelerator card can be made faster.

[0027] Further, the short-distance communication circuit 320 includes a short-distance communication circuit 320a. The short-distance communication circuit 320 is a communication circuit such as NFC or Bluetooth.

[0028] Furthermore, the engine control unit 330 is composed of a scanner unit 331 and a printer unit 332. The operation panel 340 has a panel display unit 340a such as a touch panel that displays current setting values ​​and a selection screen, etc., and receives input from an operator, and input keys 340b consisting of a numeric keypad that receives setting values ​​for image formation conditions such as density setting conditions, and a start key that receives a copy start instruction. The controller 310 controls the entire image processing device 3, and controls, for example, drawing, communication, and input from the operation panel 340. The scanner unit 331 or the printer unit 332 includes an image processing unit such as error diffusion and gamma conversion.

[0029] The image processing device 3 can sequentially switch among the document box function, copy function, printer function, and facsimile function using the application switching key on the operation panel 340. When the document box function is selected, the document box mode is selected, when the copy function is selected, the copy mode is selected, when the printer function is selected, the printer mode is selected, and when the facsimile function is selected, the facsimile mode is selected.

[0030] Furthermore, the network I / F 350 is an interface for performing data communication using the communication network 100. The public line I / F 360 is an interface for transmitting and receiving image data by FAX via the public line network 99. The short-distance communication circuit 320, the network I / F 350, and the public line I / F 360 are electrically connected to the ASIC 306 via a PCI bus 322.

[0031] <Administration Server> FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the management server.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 5, the management server 5 is constructed by a computer, and as shown in FIG. 5, it has a CPU 501, a ROM 502, a RAM 503, an HD 504, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 505, a display 506, an external device connection I / F (Interface) 508, a network I / F 509, a data bus 510, a keyboard 511, a pointing device 512, a DVD-RW (Digital Versatile Disk Rewritable) drive 514, and a media I / F 516.

[0033] Among these, the CPU 501 controls the operation of the entire management server 5. The ROM 502 stores programs such as IPL used to drive the CPU 501. The RAM 503 is used as a work area for the CPU 501. The HD 504 stores various data such as programs. The HDD controller 505 controls reading or writing of various data from the HD 504 according to the control of the CPU 501. The display 506 displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, a character, or an image. The external device connection I / F 508 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, the external device is, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a printer. The network I / F 509 is an interface for data communication using the communication network 100. The bus line 510 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like for electrically connecting each component such as the CPU 501 shown in FIG. 5.

[0034] Moreover, the keyboard 511 is a type of input means having a plurality of keys for inputting characters, numbers, various instructions, etc. The pointing device 512 is a type of input means for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, etc. The DVD-RW drive 514 controls reading and writing of various data from a DVD-RW 513 as an example of a removable recording medium. Note that the medium is not limited to a DVD-RW, and may be a DVD-R or a Blu-ray Disc, etc. The media I / F 516 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from a recording medium 515 such as a flash memory.

[0035] [Functional configuration of the embodiment] Next, the functional configuration of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2 to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the communication system 1.

[0036] <Image processing device 3a> First, the functional configuration of the image processing device 3a will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0037] As shown in Fig. 4, the image processing device 3a has a transmission / reception unit 31a, a reception unit 32a, a display control unit 34a, a determination unit 35a, and a storage / readout processing unit 39a. Each of these units is a function or means realized by any of the components shown in Fig. 2 operating in response to an instruction from the CPU 301 in accordance with an image formation program loaded from the HD 309 onto the RAM 302b. The image processing device 3a also has a storage unit 3000a constructed by the ROM 302a, RAM 302b, and HD 309 shown in Fig. 2.

[0038] (Destination management table) Fig. 5(a) is a conceptual diagram showing a destination management table. A destination management DB (Data Base) 3001a constituted by the destination management table is constructed in the storage unit 3000a. In this destination management table, destination names and fax numbers are stored and managed in association with each other. Of these, the destination name is the name of the company or the like in which the image processing device is installed. The fax number is the fax number of this image processing device. The destination management table serves as an address book of destinations.

[0039] (Number type management table) 5(b) is a conceptual diagram showing a number type management table. A number type management DB 3002a consisting of a number type management table is constructed in the storage unit 3000a. In this number type management table, FAX numbers and the presence or absence of specific types of FAX numbers are stored and managed in association with each other. If a FAX number is registered as a specific type, it is managed as "1", and if a FAX number is not registered as a specific type, it is managed as "0".

[0040] (FAX management table) 5(c) is a conceptual diagram showing a FAX management table. In the storage unit 3000a, a destination management DB 3001c that is configured by the FAX management table is constructed. In this FAX management table, a data ID (Identification) for identifying FAX data, a FAX number of a sender, and a file name of image data in the FAX data are stored and managed in association with each other. The actual image data file is stored in the storage unit 3000a.

[0041] (Functional configuration of image processing device 3a) Next, each functional configuration of the image processing device 3a will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG.

[0042] The transmission / reception unit 31a of the image processing device 3a is realized by processing of the CPU 301 for the public line I / F 360, and transmits and receives FAX data (or information) with other devices (e.g., image processing devices 3b, 3x) via the public line network 99.

[0043] The reception unit 32a is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 301 on the operation panel 340, and receives various selections or inputs from the user.

[0044] The display control unit 34a is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 301 on the panel display unit 340a, and causes various images to be displayed on the panel display unit 340a.

[0045] The determination unit 35a is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 301, and performs various determinations.

[0046] The transmission / reception unit 31a of the image processing device 3a is realized by processing of the CPU 301 for the network I / F 350, and transmits and receives various data (or information) to and from other devices (eg, the management server 5) via the communication network 100.

[0047] The storage / reading processing unit 39a is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 301, and stores various data (or information) in the storage unit 3000a and reads various data (or information) from the storage unit 3000a.

[0048] When the transceiver 31a is the first transceiver, the transceiver 38a is the second transceiver.

[0049] <Image processing device 3b> The image processing device 3b has the same functional configuration and DB as the image processing device 3a. In FIG. 4, the only difference is that the suffix of the reference numerals has changed from "a" to "b", and the content of each function is the same. Therefore, the explanation of each functional configuration and each DB of the image processing device 3b will be omitted.

[0050] <Administration Server 5> Next, the functional configuration of the management server 5 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0051] As shown in Fig. 4, the management server 5 has a transmission / reception unit 51, an authentication unit 53, a judgment unit 55, and a storage / readout processing unit 59. Each of these units is a function or means realized by any of the components shown in Fig. 3 operating in response to an instruction from the CPU 501 in accordance with the management program loaded from the HD 504 onto the RAM 503. The image processing device 3a also has a storage unit 5000 constructed by the ROM 502, RAM 503, and HD 504 shown in Fig. 2.

[0052] (Device Management Table) 6(a) is a conceptual diagram showing a device management table. A device management DB 5001 consisting of a device management table is constructed in the storage unit 5000. In this device management table, a device ID for identifying an image processing device and the name of a company (user company name) that uses the image processing device indicated by this device ID are stored and managed in association with each other.

[0053] (Registration number management table) 6(b) is a conceptual diagram showing a registration number management table. A registration number management DB 5002 configured by the registration number management table is constructed in the storage unit 5000. In this registration number management table, the number of registrations of FAX numbers and specific types of FAX numbers are stored and managed in association with each other. The number of registrations of specific types of FAX numbers is a number that is counted by the management server 5 for each image processing device when the management server 5 receives a registration request for a specific type of FAX number from the image processing device 3a, 3b, etc. that is provided with the above-mentioned "notification service."

[0054] (Functional configuration of management server 5) Next, each functional configuration of the management server 5 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG.

[0055] The transmission / reception unit 51 of the management server 5 is realized by processing of the CPU 301 for the network I / F 509, and transmits and receives various data (or information) with other devices (e.g., image processing devices 3a, 3b) via the communication network 100.

[0056] The authentication unit 53 is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 501, and performs authentication of the image processing device.

[0057] The determination unit 55 is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 501, and performs various determinations.

[0058] The storage / readout processing unit 59 is realized mainly by the processing of the CPU 501 , and stores various data (or information) in the storage unit 5000 and reads various data (or information) from the storage unit 5000 .

[0059] [Processing or Operation of the Embodiment] Next, the processing or operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0060] <Registration process for specific types of fax numbers> First, the process of registering a specific type of FAX number will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the process of registering a specific type of FAX number.

[0061] As shown in Fig. 7, user B operates image processing device 3b, causing storage / read processing unit 59b to register the FAX number received by transmission / reception unit 18b in the number type management DB 3002b of its own device (image processing device 3b) as one to be included in a specific type of FAX number such as a nuisance FAX number (S21). In this case, as shown in Fig. 5(b), the FAX number received by transmission / reception unit 18b is registered as a new record, and the "specific type of FAX number" item is registered as "1". "1" indicates the case where the FAX number is to be registered as a specific type of FAX number, and "0" indicates the case where the FAX number is not to be registered as a specific type of FAX number.

[0062] Next, the transmitting / receiving unit 38b transmits a registration request for the specific type of FAX number to the management server 5 via the communication network 100 (S22). The registration request includes a device ID for identifying the image processing device 3b and the FAX number of the image processing device 3b that is the sender. As a result, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 of the management server 5 receives the registration request for the specific type of FAX number.

[0063] Next, in the management server 5, the authentication unit 53 uses the device ID received in step S22 to authenticate whether the image processing device 3b that is the sender is a device that receives the above-mentioned "notification service" from the management server 5 (S23). Specifically, the storage / readout processing unit 59 searches the device management DB 5001 using the device ID received by the transmission / reception means 51 as a search key, and if a pair of the same device ID and the corresponding user company name is managed, the authentication unit 53 determines that the image processing device 3b is a legitimate device that receives the notification service. However, if a pair of the same device ID and the corresponding user company name is not managed in the device management DB 5001, the authentication unit 53 determines that the image processing device 3b is not a legitimate device that receives the notification service.

[0064] Here, the case where authentication unit 53 judges that the device is a valid device to receive the notification service will be described.

[0065] The storage / read processing unit 59 increments by one the number in the field of "number of specific type of FAX number registrations" associated with the same FAX number as the FAX number received in step S22 in the registration number management DB 5002 (S24). If the same FAX number as the FAX number received in step S22 is not managed in the registration number management DB 5002, the storage / read processing unit 59 creates a new record for the same FAX number as the received FAX number, and manages the "number of specific type of FAX number registrations" as "1".

[0066] Then, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 of the management server 5 transmits information of a response to step S22 to the image processing device 3b via the communication network 100 (S25). This response includes information to the effect that registration is complete or registration is not possible. As a result, the transmitting / receiving unit 38b of the image processing device 3b receives the response.

[0067] Next, in the image processing device 3b, the display control unit 34b displays the response result (S26).

[0068] In this way, the user B1 can know whether or not the FAX number of the other image processing device received from the other image processing device has been registered as a specific type of FAX number.

[0069] <Process to display preview screen> Next, a process of displaying a preview screen indicating that the FAX number may be included in the specific type will be described with reference to Fig. 8 to Fig. 13. Fig. 8 is a sequence diagram showing the process of displaying the preview screen.

[0070] First, the transmitting / receiving unit 31a of the image processing device 3a receives FAX data transmitted by the image processing device 3x via the public line network 99 (S41). This FAX data includes image data such as a document and the FAX number of the image processing device 3x that is the sender.

[0071] Next, in the image processing device 3a, the storage / read processing unit 39a temporarily stores the FAX data in the FAX management DB 3003a (S42). In this case, the storage / read processing unit 39a generates a unique data ID as shown in Fig. 5(c). The storage / read processing unit 39a then manages the generated data ID in association with the FAX number of the sender received in step S41 and the file name of the image data.

[0072] Next, the image processing device 3a performs a process for confirming the registration of the FAX number (S43).

[0073] (Fax number registration confirmation process) Here, the FAX number registration confirmation process will be described with reference to Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing the FAX number registration process performed by the image processing device.

[0074] First, the storage / read processing unit 39a searches the destination management DB 3001a using the sender FAX number received in step S41 as a search key (S101).

[0075] Next, the judgment unit 35a judges whether the sender's FAX number is registered in the destination management DB 3001a (S102). If the sender's FAX number is registered, the transmission / reception unit 38a starts calling (S103). After that, the process proceeds to step S43, and the process of step S42 ends.

[0076] On the other hand, if the fax number has not been registered (S102; NO), the storage / read processing unit 39a searches for the same fax number in the number type management DB 3002a using the sender fax number as a search key (S104).

[0077] Next, the judgment unit 35a judges whether or not the same FAX number as the sender's FAX number is registered in the number type management DB 3002a (S105). If the same FAX number as the sender's FAX number is not registered (S105; NO), the transmission / reception unit 38a starts calling (S106). After that, the process proceeds to steps S43 and S44, and the process of step S42 ends.

[0078] If the same FAX number as the sender's FAX number is registered (S105; YES), the judgment unit 35a further judges whether the same FAX number as the sender's FAX number is already registered as a "specific type of FAX number" (S107). In FIG. 5(b), "1" indicates a registered state, and "0" indicates a non-registered state (unregistered). If the number is not registered (S107; NO), the transmission / reception unit 38a starts calling (S108). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S43, and the process of step S42 ends. On the other hand, if the number is registered (S107; YES), the transmission / reception unit 38a disconnects the public line (S109). This ends the process of step S42.

[0079] This completes the FAX number registration confirmation process.

[0080] Next, a case where the same FAX number as the sender's FAX number is registered in step 105 (S105; NO) will be described.

[0081] Returning to Fig. 8, the transmitting / receiving unit 38a of the image processing device 3a transmits a request for the feasibility result of the specific type of FAX number to the management server 5 via the communication network 100 (S44). The sender FAX number received in step S41 is added to this request. As a result, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 of the management server 5 receives the request for the feasibility result of the specific type of FAX number.

[0082] Next, the management server 5 performs a process to determine the possibility of the FAX number being of a specific type (S45).

[0083] (Processing of feasibility determination for specific types of fax numbers) Here, the process of determining the possibility of a specific type of FAX number will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a flow chart showing the process of determining the possibility of a specific type of FAX number by the management server.

[0084] As shown in FIG. 10, the storage / readout processing unit 59 of the management server 5 searches the registration number management DB 5002 using the FAX number of the image processing device 3x, which is the sender, received in step S44 as a search key, to read out the corresponding "number of registered FAX numbers of a specific type" (S201). Next, the judgment unit 55 judges whether the number of registered FAX numbers of a specific type is a predetermined value or more (for example, 10 or more) (S202). If the number of registered FAX numbers of a specific type is not the predetermined value or more (S202; NO), the judgment unit 55 judges that the FAX number of the image processing device 3x, which is the sender, is not included in the specific type such as a nuisance FAX number (S203). On the other hand, if the number of registered FAX numbers of a specific type is the predetermined value or more (S202; YES), the judgment unit 55 judges that the FAX number of the image processing device 3x, which is the sender, may be included in the specific type such as a nuisance FAX number (S204).

[0085] This completes the process of determining whether the fax number is of a specific type.

[0086] 8, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 of the management server 5 transmits a response to step S44 to the image processing device 3a via the communication network 100 (S46). This response includes information indicating that registration is complete or that registration is not possible, as an example of the predetermined information. As a result, the transmitting / receiving unit 38b of the image processing device 3b receives the response. This response includes information indicating that the possibility is high or low. As a result, the transmitting / receiving unit 38a of the image processing device 3a receives the response.

[0087] Next, the image processing device 3a performs a process of displaying a preview screen (S47).

[0088] (Preview screen display process) Here, the display processing of the preview screen by the image processing device will be described with reference to Fig. 11. Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing the display processing of the preview screen by the image processing device.

[0089] 11, the judgment unit 35a of the image processing device 3a judges whether or not the FAX number of the image processing device 3x, which is the sender, is likely to be included in a specific type such as a nuisance FAX number, based on the response content received in step S46 (S121). If there is a possibility that it is included in the specific type (S121; YES), the display control unit 34a displays a preview screen 3101 as shown in FIG. 12 on the panel display unit 340a of the image processing device 3a (S122).

[0090] 12, a preview image 3102 relating to image data transmitted by the image processing device 3x, which is the transmission source, is displayed on the left side of a preview screen 3101. Also, on the right side of the preview screen 3101, a FAX number display area 3103, a message display area 3104, a "Register as specific type of FAX number" button 3105, a "Register as non-specific type of FAX number" button 3106, a "Register in address book" button 3107, and a "Hold" button 3108 are displayed.

[0091] Among these, the FAX number display area 3103 displays the FAX number of the image processing device 3x that is the sender, received in step S41.

[0092] The message display area 3104 displays the contents determined by the determination unit 35a in step S121. In other words, the response contents received in step S46 are displayed in the message display area 3104. Here, as an example of a display in the case where there is a possibility that the number is included in a specific type (S121; YES), "The FAX number may be included in a specific type" is displayed. Also, as shown in Fig. 12, the display control unit 34a may display "Registered as a nuisance FAX number by a certain number or more of image processing devices", thereby indicating that the number has been registered as a nuisance FAX number by a certain number or more of other image processing devices, such as the image processing device 3b, in the management server 5.

[0093] "Register as specific type of FAX number" button 3105 is pressed when registering the FAX number displayed in FAX number display area 3103 in number type management DB 3002a. When user A1 presses this button 3105, reception unit 32a accepts the registration of the FAX number, and storage and read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in display area 3103 as a new record in number type management DB 3002a. In this case, storage and read processing unit 39a registers "1" in the "specific type of FAX number" field in association with the FAX number in this new record.

[0094] "Register as non-specific type of FAX number" button 3106 is pressed when registering the FAX number displayed in FAX number display area 3103 in number type management DB 3002a. When user A1 presses this button 3106, reception unit 32a accepts the registration of the FAX number, and storage and read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in display area 3103 as a new record in number type management DB 3002a. In this case, storage and read processing unit 39a registers "0" in the "specific type of FAX number" field in association with the FAX number in this new record.

[0095] The "Register in Address Book" button 3107 is a button that is pressed when registering the FAX number displayed in the FAX number display area 3103 in the FAX number address book. When user A1 presses this button 3105, the reception unit 32a accepts the registration of the FAX number, and the storage and read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in the display area 3103 as a new record in the destination management DB 3001a. In this case, when user A1 inputs a destination name on the operation panel 340, the reception unit 32a accepts the input of the destination name, and the storage and read processing unit 39a registers the destination name in association with the FAX number in this new record.

[0096] The "Hold" button 3106 is pressed when any of the above buttons 3105, 3106, and 3107 are not pressed to perform any of the registrations. For example, when user A1 is unsure whether or not to register the FAX number displayed in the display area 3103 as a specific type of FAX number, and wants to leave it unregistered for the time being, the "Hold" button 3106 is pressed by user A1.

[0097] In addition, in the above step S121, if there is no possibility that it is included in the specific type (S121; NO), the display control unit 34a displays a screen on the panel display unit 340a of the image processing device 3a, in which nothing is displayed in the message display area 3104 of the preview screen 3101 as shown in FIG. 12 (S123).

[0098] This completes the preview screen display process.

[0099] Returning to FIG. 8, the image processing device 3a then performs a FAX number registration process (S48).

[0100] (Fax number registration process) Here, the FAX number registration process will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing the FAX number registration process performed by the image processing device.

[0101] First, when the user A1 presses any one of the buttons 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 in FIG. 12, the reception unit 32a receives the pressing of any one of the buttons 3105, 3106, 3107, and 3108 (S141).

[0102] Next, the judgment unit 35a judges whether the "Register in Address Book" button 3107 has been pressed (S142). If the "Register in Address Book" button 3107 has been pressed (S142; YES), the storage / read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in the display area 3103 as a new record in the destination management DB 3001a (S143). In this case, when the user A1 inputs a destination name on the operation panel 340, the reception unit 32a receives the input of the destination name, and the storage / read processing unit 39a registers the destination name in association with the FAX number in this new record. This ends the process shown in FIG. 13.

[0103] On the other hand, in step S142, if the "Register in Address Book" button 3107 has not been pressed (S142; NO), the judgment unit 35a further judges whether the "Suspend" button 3108 has been pressed (S144). If the "Suspend" button 3108 has been pressed (S144; YES), the process shown in Fig. 13 ends.

[0104] On the other hand, in step S144, if the "Hold" button 3108 is not pressed (S144; NO), the judgment unit 35a further judges that the "Register as a specific type of FAX number" button 3105 or the "Register as a non-specific type of FAX number" button 3106 is pressed (S144). If the "Register as a specific type of FAX number" button 3105 is pressed (S145; specific type), the storage / read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in the display area 3103 as a new record in the number type management DB 3002a (S146). In this case, the storage / read processing unit 39a registers the FAX number of the image processing device 3x, which is the sender, as one included in the specific type by registering "1" in the "specific type of FAX number" field in association with the FAX number in this new record. This ends the process shown in FIG. 13.

[0105] Furthermore, in this case, the image processing device 3a executes the same processes (S21, S22, S25, S26) as the image processing device 3b shown in Fig. 7, and the management server 5 also executes the same processes (S22, S23, S24, S25). In other words, the image processing device 3b shown in Fig. 7 executes the same processes (S41, S42, S43, S44, S46, S47, S48) as the image processing device 3a shown in Fig. 8 before executing the processes (S21, S22, S25, S26).

[0106] On the other hand, when the "Register as specific type of FAX number" button 3105 is pressed (S145; not specific type), the storage and retrieval processing unit 39a registers the FAX number displayed in the display area 3103 as a new record in the number type management DB 3002a (S147). In this case, the storage and retrieval processing unit 39a registers the FAX number of the sender image processing device 3x as not being included in the specific type by registering "0" in the "specific type of FAX number" field in association with the FAX number in this new record. This ends the process shown in FIG. 13.

[0107] With the above, the FAX number registration process is completed, and the process or operation of this embodiment is also completed.

[0108] [Main Effects of the Embodiments] As described above, according to the present invention, the image forming device 3b etc. is registered in advance with the management server 5 as a specific type of fax number such as a nuisance fax number (S22-S24), and when the image processing device 3a receives a new fax number (S41), it queries the management server 5 (S44-S46), thereby improving the possibility of solving the problem of it being impossible to determine whether the new fax number is a specific type of fax number.

[0109] 〔supplement〕 In the above embodiment, the image processing device 3a, the management server 5, and the image processing device 3b communicate with each other via the communication network 100, but other devices may be interposed between these devices (servers) to relay the communication. Similarly, in the above embodiment, the image processing device 3a, the image processing device 3b, and the image processing device 3x communicate with each other via the public line network 99, but other devices may be interposed between these devices to relay the communication.

[0110] Moreover, the management server 5 may simply be called a "server."

[0111] Furthermore, each of the above programs may be distributed by being recorded on a recording medium such as a DVD.

[0112] Furthermore, each of the CPUs described in the above embodiment may be provided in multiple units in one device.

[0113] Furthermore, each function of the above-mentioned embodiment can be realized by one or more processing circuits. Here, the term "processing circuit" in this specification includes a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, and a device such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a DSP (digital signal processor), an FPGA (field programmable gate array), a SOC (System on a chip), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or a conventional circuit module designed to execute each function described above. [Explanation of symbols]

[0114] 1. Communication Systems 3a Image processing device (an example of the device itself) 3b Image processing device (an example of another image processing device) 3x Image Processing Unit 5 Management Server 31a Transmitter / receiver unit (an example of a first receiving means) 32 Reception unit (an example of a reception means) 34 Display control unit (an example of a display control means) 35 Judgment Department 38 Transmitter / receiver unit (an example of a transmitting means, an example of a second receiving means) 39a Storage / read processing unit (an example of a discarding means) 340a Panel display unit (an example of a display means) 3000a Memory unit (an example of a memory means) [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0115] [Patent Document 1] JP 2000-022850 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2004-274160 A

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus that communicates with a management server that manages FAX numbers and other image processing apparatuses, a first receiving means for receiving a FAX number of the other image processing device transmitted from the other image processing device; a transmitting means for transmitting the FAX number received by the first receiving means to be received by the management server when the FAX number satisfies a predetermined condition; a second receiving means for receiving predetermined information transmitted by the management server that has received the FAX number; a display control means for displaying, on a display means, information indicating that the FAX number may be included in a specific type based on the predetermined information; 13. An image processing device comprising:

2. The image processing device according to claim 1, When the FAX number satisfies a predetermined condition, the first receiving means receives the image data, The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control means displays information indicating that the FAX number may be included in a specific type on a preview screen that displays an image related to the image data.

3. 3. The image processing device according to claim 1, A receiving means for receiving the fax number to be included in a specific category; a storage means for storing the FAX number as a number to be included in the specific type when the reception means receives the FAX number as a number to be included in the specific type; 13. An image processing device comprising:

4. An image processing device according to claim 3, The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control means displays reception information for executing the reception means on a preview screen that displays an image related to the image data received by the first receiving means.

5. An image processing device according to claim 4, The image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the reception information is a reception button.

6. 6. The image processing device according to claim 3, When the first receiving means receives the FAX number transmitted by the other image processing device after the storage means stores the FAX number as one included in the specific type, the first receiving means does not receive new image data from the other image processing device that transmitted the FAX number. An image processing device comprising:

7. An image processing device as described in any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that when the receiving means receives the fax number to include it in a specific type, the transmitting means transmits the fax number so that the management server receives it and counts up the fax number as a specific type by one.

8. An image processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7; The management server; A communication system comprising:

9. A communication method executed by an image processing device that communicates with a management server that manages FAX numbers and other image processing devices, comprising: a first receiving step of receiving image data transmitted by the other image processing device and a FAX number of the other image processing device; a transmitting step of transmitting the FAX number received by the first receiving step so that the management server receives the FAX number; a second receiving step of receiving predetermined information transmitted by the management server having received the FAX number; a display control step of displaying, on a display means, information indicating that the FAX number may be included in a specific type based on the predetermined information; A communication method comprising:

10. A program causing a computer to execute the method according to claim 9.

Images