Telephonic communications – Telephone line or system combined with diverse electrical... – Having transmission of a digital message signal over a...
Patent
1990-05-02
1992-08-11
Dwyer, James L.
Telephonic communications
Telephone line or system combined with diverse electrical...
Having transmission of a digital message signal over a...
379 89, 379375, H04M 1100
Patent
active
051386534
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART
An electronic mail system such as the IBM DISOSS system (Distributed Office Support System) performs the automatic storage and automatic distribution of messages and documents within a company or an organization. Such a system comprises a central computer with attendant electronic mail software, a screen monitor connected to the computer and several terminals connected to the screen monitor. The arrival of messages or documents in the central computer is signalled by the appearance of a data item in a list of messages and documents received (queueing file). The queueing file is transmitted on a permanent basis to the various terminals and to the screens of the latter, the users can consult the queueing file and request the receipt of a message or consult an identified document. An electronic mail system of this kind renders important services in that it leads in particular to improving the efficiency of the administrative work, improving communication between decision-makers and reducing the space required for the archives. However, such a system does not allow the addressees of messages or documents to be notified of the arrival of these messages and these documents. This is universally recognized to be a disadvantage. The presentation of a message or document necessitates, in fact, the regular if not permanent consultation of the queueing file of the messages received, which can involve delays in the receipt of the messages or the communication of the documents and requires the users to be on virtually permanent stand-by.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is an automatic electronic system which remedies the disadvantage mentioned above and ensures that the addressees of messages or documents are automatically notified of the arrival of these messages or documents. The characteristic features of the system according to the invention are set out in the attached claims.
A microprocessor is connected to the electronic mail system in order to receive the data items which identify the queueing messages, and a random access memory is organized to form a file containing codes which identify predetermined addressees of messages and data items representing the telephone numbers of these addressees. A modem connected to a telephone line is organized to extract the telephone number data items from the file and dial automatically the telephone numbers of the addressees in order to transmit call signals to them on the telephone line. The microprocessor is organized to read the queueing file of the messages received in the electronic mail system, to detect the presence there of the identification codes residing in the file, to extract from the file the telephone number data item corresponding to each identification code detected, and to instruct the modem to dial automatically the corresponding call numbers in order to trigger a call signal on the telephone line during a predetermined time interval.
The advantages of the system according to the invention are that the addressees of messages or documents received are notified immediately by telephone of the receipt of a message or document intended for them and that the messages and documents can be received more quickly by their addressees without the need for special stand-by. In addition, the addressees can be notified not only locally through an internal telephone network but also long distance through an external telephone network. This system according to the invention can also with advantage replace the use of telex in urgent cases within a group using an electronic mail system. Finally, the hardware and software costs of the system according to the invention are low.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 represents diagrammatically an electronic mail system which incorporates an automatic notification system according to the invention.
FIG. 2 represents diagrammatically the general architecture of the automatic notification system according to the invention.
FIG. 3 is a flow-chart of the telephone notification proce
REFERENCES:
patent: 4506111 (1985-03-01), Takenouchi et al.
patent: 4837798 (1989-06-01), Cohen et al.
patent: 4853952 (1989-08-01), Jachmann et al.
J. R. Lineback, "Personal Computers Are Putting the Squeeze on Digital PABX Voice Mail", Electronics Week, Jun. 10, 1985, pp. 28, 29.
Chan Wing F.
Dwyer James L.
Lipsitz Barry R.
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