JP2001111720A - Telephone system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a telephone system that can easily attach melody data to message data in the case of making a call and transmit a mail at a time designated in advance. SOLUTION: The telephone system has a caller side telephone set that is provided with a storage means that stores a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data, a display means, a selection means by which a user can select optional one of a plurality of the mail addresses and of a plurality of the melody data respectively displayed by a display means, a message data entry means that enters message data, an encode means that generates transmission data, and a transmission means that transmits the transmission data, and the telephone system also has a called party side telephone set that is provided with a reception means that receives the transmission data, a decode means that extracts the message data or the like from the received transmission data, a ringing tone ringer means that rings a ring tone on the basis of the extracted melody data and a display means.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a telephone system, and more particularly to a telephone system capable of transmitting and receiving electronic mail (hereinafter referred to as mail).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, to use e-mail,
It was necessary to prepare expensive equipment such as a personal computer and a modem. However, to date, mobile phone devices have been provided, and e-mail services can be easily used. Such e-mail services are roughly classified into two methods for confirming the arrival of mail. That is, the method in which the receiving-side telephone device accesses the mail server and reads and confirms the message data stored in the mail server, and the method in which the mail server receives the message from the calling-side telephone device, A method of transmitting an e-mail to a telephone device on the receiving side in real time, and the latter is frequently used at present because of its convenience.

[0003] In the latter case, mail cannot be transmitted when the telephone device on the receiving side is out of the range of the radio base station (that is, in a range where radio waves cannot reach). Therefore, the message data is temporarily stored in the mail server, and the message data is periodically retransmitted to the called-side mobile phone device within a predetermined time (for example, within 24 hours) thereafter. At this time, the arrival of the mail is notified to the owner by ringing a ring tone at the telephone device on the receiving side. The tone color of the ringtone is fixed for each mobile phone device, and the same ringtone is generally sounded regardless of the mail sent from anyone.

On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-136393 discloses a melody with message data (character string).
There has been disclosed a technology in which data is transmitted and the received melody data is sounded at a receiving side so that the originator can be distinguished. That is,
After inputting melody data and message data from the outside by a user's operation, by inputting a call command for calling another telephone device, the melody data and the message data are encoded into transmission data, The transmission data obtained by encoding is transmitted to the telephone network together with the telephone number of the called party. The melody data is composed of data such as scales, pauses, etc., such as "do, re, mi ...", and their length (time), and is input one note each time mail is transmitted.

As a result, the telephone equipment on the receiving side receives the calling signal in which the melody data and the message data are combined from the telephone line network, decodes the melody data added to the calling signal, and receives the incoming call. By reproducing the sound, the caller can be intuitively known. In addition, a message from the caller can be displayed on the display device to confirm the business requirements and the like.

[0006]

However, as described above, in such a conventional technique, the melody data must be input one by one each time a mail is transmitted, and it takes time and effort to transmit the mail. There was a problem. In addition, there is a problem that even when it is desired to change the melody depending on the destination, it is necessary to remember who used which melody each time. Further, in the prior art, it is not possible to specify the arrival date and time of the message, for example, in order to send the message to arrive on the birthday day as a birthday celebration, it is not possible to send the message in advance, I had to send it on the day of my birthday. The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and a telephone system which can easily add melody data to message data at the time of outgoing and which can transmit mail at a predetermined time. The purpose is to provide.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a telephone system according to the present invention provides a mail server for transmitting and receiving electronic mail between a calling telephone device and a called telephone device. In a telephone system performed via a telephone, a calling-side telephone device stores a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data input in advance by a user, and a storage unit that stores and holds the melody data. Display means for displaying the contents, selection means for allowing the user to select any one of a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data displayed by the display means, and the user And message data input means for inputting desired message data into the storage means, and Messages entered by the melody data and the message data input means,
Encoding means for generating data for transmission by reading and combining data from the storage means, and transmission means for transmitting the transmission data to the mail server; Receiving means for receiving the transmission data via a server;
Decoding means for extracting message data and melody data from the received transmission data, ringtone sounding means for sounding a ringtone based on the extracted melody data, and display for displaying the received message data And at least means.

[0008] Further, the storage means stores the mail of the destination address.
The address and the melody data associated with the mail address may be stored and held. further,
The originating telephone device further includes an arrival date / time designation unit for attaching information for designating an arrival date / time to the transmission data, and the mail server designates the arrival date / time when receiving the transmission data. The transmission data may be stored until the designated incoming date and time, and the transmitted data may be transmitted to the called telephone device when the designated incoming date and time is reached.

Therefore, according to the present invention, since the mail address and the melody data are preset in the storage means, it is not necessary to input them every time the mail is transmitted, and the desired mail address and melody data can be obtained from the displayed mail address or the like. All you have to do is choose one. Also, by associating the melody data with the mail address, the melody data can be automatically attached simply by selecting the mail address, and if you want to change the melody data for each destination It is convenient. Further, by designating the arrival date and time in the transmission data, the mail can be transmitted at the designated date and time, which is convenient when a birthday celebration message is sent.

[0010]

Next, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone device 1 enables sending / receiving of mail and communication with a telephone of the other party via the nearest wireless base station 2. The wireless base station 2 is provided with a mail server 2a for storing received message data and transmitting the stored message data to the mobile phone device 1 or the like at the destination, and the mail transmission / reception function is Mail server 2
a. The wireless base station 2 is connected to a mobile phone network 3, and the mobile phone network 3 is connected to the Internet 5 via an Internet service provider network 4.
The mobile phone device 1 is also capable of sending and receiving Internet mail.

On the other hand, telephones and key telephones used in ordinary homes and offices (hereinafter referred to as fixed telephones 6) are connected to an Internet connection business network 4a via a subscriber telephone network 7. The fixed telephone device 6 can use an e-mail service by using the mail server 4a provided on the Internet connection carrier network 4, and receives mail from the mobile phone device 1 and the fixed telephone device 6. In addition, transmission of mail to the mobile phone device 1 and the fixed phone device 6 is enabled.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing details of the portable telephone device 1 according to FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone device 1 includes an operation unit 1a, a display unit 1b, a speaker 1c, a microphone 1d, a speaker 1e, a sound source unit 1f, and a control unit 1.
g, an antenna 1j, a transmission / reception unit 1k, a storage unit 11 and an interface unit 1m.

As described above, the control of each unit is performed by the control unit 1g, and the control unit 1g incorporates the encoder 1h and the decoder 1i and encodes and decodes transmission data. The radio wave received from the outside is received by the transmission / reception unit 1k via the antenna 1j, and decoding and the like input to the control unit 1g are performed. The storage unit 11 stores the data such as the codes described above, the mail address, the dial number, the message data, and the melody data input via the operation unit 1a.
The display unit 1b displays message data and the like under the control of the control unit 1g, and displays the speaker 1c and the microphone 1
d is used at the time of a telephone call to change a signal from the control unit 1g into a voice or convert a voice input from the outside into an electric signal and input the electrical signal to the control unit 1g. The speaker 1e is a speaker for calling and converts an electric ring tone generated by the sound source unit 1f into an audio signal and outputs the audio signal.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. First, a method of setting a ringing melody in a preset address book will be described. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an address book and an incoming melody preset by the operation unit 1a. As shown in FIG. 9A, when the address book screen is displayed on the display unit 1b by the control unit 1g, the name of the called party registered in advance and the mail address thereof are displayed. By operating the operation unit 1a, the position of the cursor 8 can be adjusted to select the mail address of the destination. In addition, a mail number for which an incoming melody has already been set displays a song number next to the mail address. If no tune has been set yet, the melody is selected on the incoming melody selection screen (FIG. 9B). be able to. It should be noted that the message data may be preset and similarly selected and input.

[Message Transmission Process] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a message transmission process in the telephone apparatus on the transmitting side, which is realized by the control unit 1g. First, the user selects or inputs a mail address of a destination from preset ones as shown in FIG. 3 or inputs characters one by one (step 101). Then, the control unit 1g determines whether or not the melody data is associated with the input destination (step 102), and if not, prompts the input of the melody data (step 1).
03), when the melody data is input by the user, the user is prompted to input the message data and the incoming date and time (steps 104 to 107). The melody data and message data are input as shown in FIG.
As shown in the above, the input may be selected from preset ones, or may be input one character at a time. In addition, the setting of the incoming call date and time may be performed as needed. If not set, the transmitted message is transmitted to the destination in real time.

Next, the control unit 1g determines whether or not the transmission is to be made (step 108). If the transmission is a transmission, the control unit 1g performs desired encoding after combining the message data and the melody data, and converts the transmission data. It is created (step 110) and transmitted to the mail server 2a (step 111). If the call is not a call, the mail address input in step 101 is associated with the melody data input in step 103, and then stored in the storage unit 11 to register only the incoming melody (step 109). Therefore, from the next time, the melody data associated with the above-mentioned melody data is selected only by selecting the mail address, and the trouble of inputting the melody data can be omitted.

[Process in Mail Server] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a process in the mail server 2a that has received the data for transmission. First, the mobile phone device 1 on the calling side
Is transmitted to the mail server 2a of the wireless base station 2. The mail server 2a determines whether or not the received transmission data has a designated arrival date and time (step 201). If the incoming call date and time is specified, the received transmission data is transmitted to the called telephone device at that date and time (steps 202 and 203), and if not specified, it is transmitted immediately. The destination telephone device may be the mobile telephone device 1 or the fixed telephone device 6.

[Message Reception Process] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a message reception process in the telephone device that has received the transmission data, which is realized by the control unit 1g. First, the telephone device which has received the transmission data from the mail server 2a (step 301), decodes the transmission data by the control unit 1g, and extracts message data and melody data (step 302).
When the melody data is added, the tone generator 1f is driven according to the melody data to sound a ringtone (steps 303 and 304). If no melody data is added, a ring tone is sounded based on the melody data registered in advance in the telephone device on the receiving side (step 306). After that, the display unit 1b displays the mail address of the transmission destination, the date and time of reception, and the like, and displays the message data according to the operation of the user (step 305).

In the above, the electronic mail service using the portable telephone device has been described, but the present invention is not limited to the above. That is, the present invention can be applied to a home stationary telephone, a key telephone device, and the like. A public telephone can also be used as the telephone device on the calling side. Further, instead of the mobile phone device 1 having a call function, a terminal dedicated to sending and receiving e-mails may be used.

[0020]

As described above, according to the present invention, a storage means for storing and holding a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data inputted in advance by a user, and contents stored and held in the storage means are provided. Display means for displaying, a selection means for allowing a user to select any one of a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data displayed by the display means, and a request by the user Message data input means for inputting the message data into the storage means, and the melody data selected by the selection means and the message data input by the message data input means are read from the storage means. Encoding means for generating data for transmission by combining Originating telephone device having transmission means for transmitting data for transmission to the mail server, reception means for receiving the transmission data via the mail server, and message data from the received transmission data. And a decoding means for extracting melody data, a ring tone sounding means for sounding a ring tone based on the extracted melody data, and a display means for displaying received message data. Device. Therefore, according to the present invention, since the mail address and the melody data are preset in the storage means, it is not necessary to input them every time the mail is transmitted, and a desired one can be selected from the displayed mail address and the like. Just select. Also, by associating the melody data with the mail address, the melody data can be automatically attached simply by selecting the mail address, and if you want to change the melody data for each destination It is convenient. Further, by designating the arrival date and time in the transmission data, the mail can be transmitted at the designated date and time, which is convenient when a birthday celebration message is sent.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the mobile phone device according to FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a preset address book and a ring tone.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a message transmission process.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing processing in the mail server.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a message receiving process.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Mobile telephone device, 1a ... Operation part, 1b ... Display part, 1c
... Speaker, 1d ... Microphone, 1e ... Speaker,
1g: sound source unit, 1g: control unit, 1h: encoder, 1i
... Decoder, 1j ... Antenna, 1k ... Transceiver, 11 ...
Storage unit, 1 m interface unit, 2 wireless base station, 3
… Mobile connection network, 4… Internet connection network, 5…
Internet, 6 ... fixed telephone device.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04L 12/58 H04L 11/20 101B 5K101 H04M 1/00 F term (Reference) 5B089 GA25 HA13 JA31 JB01 JB05 KB06 KB11 KC22 KC53 KH14 LA01 LA13 LB13 LB15 5D108 CA04 CA07 CA29 5D378 MM12 MM24 MM52 MM78 QQ06 TT08 5K027 AA11 BB01 CC08 FF03 FF25 HH00 MM13 5K030 HA07 JL01 JT01 JT09 LD14 5K101 NN12 NN18 NN18 NN18 NN02 NN01 NN02 NN02 NN02 NN01

Claims (3)

[Claims] In a telephone system for transmitting and receiving e-mail between telephone devices via a mail server, a telephone device on a calling side transmits a plurality of mail addresses and a plurality of melody data previously input by a user. Storage means for storing and holding; display means for displaying the contents stored and held in the storage means; and arbitrary one of the plurality of mail addresses and the plurality of melody data displayed by the display means. Selection means for allowing the user to select one of them, message data input means for inputting desired message data by the user into the storage means, melody data selected by the selection means, and Reading message data input by the message data input means from the storage means; And encoding means for generating data for transmission by combining the data, and transmitting means for transmitting the data for transmission to the mail server. Receiving means for receiving the data for transmission, and a message / message from the received data for transmission.
Decoding means for extracting data and melody data; ringtone sounding means for sounding a ringtone based on the extracted melody data; and display means for displaying received message data. Characteristic telephone system. 2. The telephone system according to claim 1, wherein said storage means stores and retains a destination mail address and melody data associated with the mail address. 3. The transmission-side telephone device according to claim 1, further comprising: an arrival date / time designation unit for attaching information for designating an arrival date / time to the transmission data. When the credit data is received, the information for designating the incoming call date and time is read out, and the transmission data is stored until the designated incoming call date and time. A telephone system for transmitting to a device.