Facsimile machine having recording/reproducing apparatus

A facsimile machine includes a telephone set, a facsimile information processor for processing facsimile information which is to be transmitted to a party device via a communication line and facsimile information which is received via the communication line, and a first switch for selectively coupling the facsimile information processor and the communication line. The facsimile machine also includes a direct-current source for supplying a direct current to the telephone set, and a voice message recording apparatus for recording a voice message input via the telephone set. Further, the facsimile machine includes a second switch for coupling the telephone set to the direct-current source when the voice message input via the telephone set is recorded on the voice message recording apparatus and for alternatively coupling the telephone set to the communication line in a state where the telephone set is disconnected from the direct-current source.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a facsimile machine, and more particularly 
to a facsimile machine which has a recording/reproducing apparatus for 
recording and reproducing a sound message and a telephone set. 
For example, in a conventional facsimile machine of the above-mentioned 
type, when a call receiver receives a signal from a call sender, it 
transmits to the call sender a sound message "Wait for a moment if you 
want to make a telephone conversation". Then, the call receiver transmits 
a facsimile signal to the call sender. Thereafter, if the call receiver 
does not receive from the call sender a response to the transmitted 
facsimile signal, the call receiver controls the facsimile machine to ring 
the bell of the telephone set provided therein. When the telephone set on 
the call receiver's side is off-hooked, the facsimile machine of the call 
receiver's side switches the line from a facsimile line to a telephone 
line provided therein. This function enables the receiver to communicate 
with the call sender either via a facsimile line or via a telephone line, 
depending on the call sender's choice. 
In addition to the functions of a facsimile machine as mentioned above, in 
some facsimile machines an operator can optionally record the sound 
message and/or reproduce the message for confirmation purpose. Further, a 
recording microphone or a loudspeaker may be provided on a facsimile 
machine. In this case, the microphone or loudspeaker is not for common use 
with the other parts or accessories. It is either provided in a machine 
respectively, or a handset for a telephone conversation is used. 
Accordingly, the respective arrangement of the microphone and loudspeaker 
in the machine results in a problem that such an arrangement increases the 
cost because these parts and accessories require additional amplifier 
circuits and control devices. 
Further, in the case of the facsimile machine using a handset for a 
telephone conversation, the handset is not directly connected to the 
telephone line but is connected thereto via a signaling circuit within the 
facsimile machine. Therefore, a problem occurs when the power is broken 
down in the facsimile machine, because the handset cannot be used for a 
telephone conversation in that case. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a 
novel and useful facsimile machine in which the problems described in 
connection with the prior arts are eliminated. 
Another and more specific object of the present invention is to provide a 
facsimile machine in which a message recording/reproducing function can 
utilize the other parts and circuits provided in the facsimile machine, 
thereby reducing the cost for the facsimile machine, and in which a 
conversation can be made anytime regardless of the power supply to the 
facsimile machine and a telephone set can be used independently of the 
facsimile machine. 
The above-mentioned objects of the present invention are achieved by a 
facsimile machine which comprises a telephone set and facsimile 
information processing means for processing facsimile information which is 
to be transmitted to a party device via a communication line and facsimile 
information which is received via the communication line. A first switch 
means selectively couples the facsimile information processing means and 
the communication line and a direct-current source supplies a direct 
current to the telephone set. A voice message recording means, coupled to 
the telephone set, records a voice message input via the telephone set and 
a second switch couples the telephone set to the direct-current source in 
order to record the voice message input via the telephone set on the voice 
message recording means and alternatively couples the telephone set to the 
communication line in a state where the telephone set is disconnected from 
the direct-current source. 
The aforementioned objects of the present invention are also achieved by a 
facsimile machine which comprises a telephone set and facsimile 
information processing means for processing facsimile information which is 
to be transmitted to a party device via a communication line and facsimile 
information which is received via the communication line. A first switch 
means selectively couples the facsimile information processing means and 
the communication line and a direct-current source supplies a direct 
current to the telephone set. A voice message reproducing means, coupled 
to the telephone set and coupled between the first switch means and the 
facsimile information processing means, outputs a recorded voice message 
via the telephone set and outputs the recorded voice message to the 
communication line via the first switch means. A second switch means 
couples the telephone set to the direct-current source in order to 
reproduce the recorded voice message output by the voice message 
reproducing means via the telephone set and alternatively couples the 
telephone set to the communication line in a state where the telephone set 
is disconnected from the direct-current source. 
The aforementioned objects of the present invention are also achieved by a 
facsimile machine which comprises a telephone set and facsimile 
information processing means for processing facsimile information which is 
to be transmitted to a party device via a communication line and facsimile 
information which is received via the communication line. A first switch 
means selectively couples the facsimile information processing means and 
the communication line and a direct-current source means supplies a direct 
current to the telephone set. A voice message recording/reproducing means, 
coupled to the telephone set and coupled between the first switch means 
and the facsimile information processing means, records a voice message 
input via the telephone set and outputs the voice message via the 
telephone set and the communication line via the first switch means. A 
second switch means couples the telephone set to the direct-current source 
when the voice message recording/reproducing means records or reproduces 
the voice message and alternatively couples the telephone set to the 
communication line in a state where the telephone set is disconnected from 
the direct-current source.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
A description will now be given of a facsimile machine according to a first 
preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. 1. 
Referring to FIG. 1, a facsimile machine 1 is connected to a telephone line 
composed of a pair of wires 27 and 28. A telephone set 2 is provided 
outside of a main frame (body) of the facsimile machine 1. The wire 27 is 
connected to a call signal detecting circuit 11, which detects a call 
signal having a frequency of 16 Hz in a telephone network. A coupling 
transformer 12 has a first coil and a second coil magnetically coupled to 
each other. The wire 27 is connected to one end of the first coil of the 
coupling transformer 12. The wire 28 is connected to the other end of the 
first coil of the coupling transformer 12 via a switch S1. 
A hybrid circuit 13 has an interface between a two-wire line and a 
four-wire line. The two-wire line of the hybrid circuit 13 is connected to 
the second coil of the coupling transformer. The four-wire line is 
bidirectional, and coupled to a facsimile signal processor 14. That is, 
two wires of the four-wire line (only one wire is illustrated for the sake 
of simplicity) are connected to an input of the facsimile signal processor 
14, and the remaining two wires thereof (only one wire is illustrated for 
the sake of simplicity) are connected to an output of the facsimile signal 
processor 14. An amplifier 15 coupled to a speaker 16 is connected to the 
two wires of the four-wire line connected to the input of the facsimile 
signal processor 14. 
The facsimile signal processor 14 optically reads out an original and 
generates a corresponding electrical signal (facsimile information) which 
is to be transmitted. The facsimile signal processor 14 records an image 
defined by a facsimile signal received via the telephone line on a 
recording media, such as paper. The amplifier 15 amplifies a line signal 
received via the telephone line and outputs it through a speaker 16 as an 
acoustic sound. 
Two lines of the telephone set 2 are connected to common terminals c.sub.1 
and c.sub.2 respectively of a switch S2. A contact point a.sub.1 of the 
switch S2 is connected to the wire 27 of the telephone lines via an 
off-hook detecting circuit 17. A contact point a.sub.2 of the switch S2 is 
connected to the other wire 28 of the telephone line. The off-hook 
detecting circuit 17 detects an off-hook of the telephone set 2. Contact 
points b.sub.1 and b.sub.2 of the switch S2 are connected to a 
direct-current source 18. The direct current source 18 supplies a 
predetermined direct-current necessary to drive the telephone set 2 in the 
event that the telephone set 2 is separated from the two-wire telephone 
line. 
The two-wire line extending from the telephone set 2 has wires 31 and 32. 
The wire 31 is connected to the common terminal c.sub.1 and is also 
connected to one end of a first coil of a coupling transformer 20 via a 
capacitor 19 for blocking the direct current. The other wire 32 is 
connected to the common terminal c.sub.2 and is also connected to the 
other end of the first coil of the coupling transformer 20. The coupling 
transformer 20 has a second coil. One end of the coupling transformer 20 
is grounded, and the other end thereof is connected to a two-wire line 
input of a hybrid circuit 21. The hybrid circuit 21 also has a two-wire 
input and a two-wire output. The two-wire output of the hybrid circuit 21 
is connected to an input of a call signal detecting circuit 22, which 
detects a call signal of 1300 Hz when this machine receives a facsimile 
signal via the switch S2, the coupling transformer 20 and the hybrid 
circuit 21. The two-wire output of the hybrid circuit 21 is also connected 
to an input of a voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23. 
The sound recording/reproducing apparatus 23 records and reproduces a sound 
or voice message. A voice message generated by the telephone set 2 is 
recorded on the voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23 via the 
coupling transformer 2 and the hybrid circuit 21, as will be described 
later. The voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23 has a two-wire 
output, which is connected to a two-wire input of the hybrid circuit 21 
and the two-wire input terminal of the hybrid circuit 13. The recorded 
message is output to the telephone set 2 via the hybrid circuit 21 and the 
coupling transformer 20, and output to the telephone line via the hybrid 
circuit 13 and the coupling transformer 12. 
Under the control of a controller 26, a tone ringer 24 outputs a tone for 
calling an operator in case the other party is found to use a telephone 
set at the reception of a call. An operation indicator 25 indicates the 
operating state of the facsimile machine 1 so that the operator can 
manipulate the machine while seeing the indicator 25. 
To the controller 26, a call detecting signal from the call signal 
detecting circuit 11 and an off-hook detecting signal from the off-hook 
detecting circuit 17 are inputted. The controller 26 controls the 
facsimile signal processor 14, switches S1 and S2, voice message 
recording/reproducing apparatus 23, tone ringer 24 and so on, thereby 
carrying out the specific operations of the facsimile machine 1. 
According t the above-described construction, in the facsimile machine 1 of 
the present invention, the switch S1 is in off state when it is in a 
waiting state without performing any operation. At this time, the movable 
contact point c.sub.1 of the switch S2 is connected to the contact point 
a.sub.1 and the movable contact point c.sub.2 is connected to the contact 
point a.sub.2. In this situation, the telephone set 2 is connected to the 
telephone lines and the operator can use it as a normal telephone set. 
Now in order to carry out a facsimile communication, it is necessary to 
record in advance a voice message to be transmitted at the reception of a 
call. In this case, the operator first pushes a recording button (not 
shown for the sake of simplicity) provided on the operation indicator 25 
and then inputs a desired voice message via a handset by off-hooking the 
telephone set 2. This voice message is to be sent when the other party is 
found to attempt a telephone conversation instead of a facsimile 
communication at the reception of a call. Therefore it is, for example, 
"Please wait for a moment. The line is being switched to a telephone 
line." 
Then, a case where an operator records a voice message is described. FIG. 2 
shows a flow chart of the operation when the facsimile machine 1 is 
recording a voice message. When a recording button (not shown) of the 
operation indicator 2 of the facsimile machine 1 is pushed down in step 
101, the off-hook detecting circuit 17 monitors an off-hook of the 
telephone set 2 in step 102. When it is determined, in step 102, that the 
telephone set 2 is off-hooked, a call detecting signal outputted from the 
off-hook detecting circuit 17 is delivered to the controller 26, which 
then switches the movable contacts c.sub.1 and c.sub.2 to the side of b 
(step 103). 
This causes a power from the direct current source 18 to be supplied to the 
telephone set 2. A voice signal from the operator is inputted from the 
telephone set 2 to the voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23 
via the coupling transformer 20 and hybrid circuit 21. The voice message 
recording/reproducing apparatus 23 records a voice signal inputted for a 
certain period of time (step 104). 
A case where the operator reproduces for confirmation purpose the voice 
message which has been recorded in the above-described steps is further 
described below. FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of an operation when 
reproducing the voice message. In the facsimile machine 1, a reproducing 
button (not shown) on the operational indicator 25 is pushed down (step 
201), the off-hook detecting circuit 17 monitors an off-hook of the 
telephone set 2 (the N loop in step 202). Then if off-hooked (Y in step 
202), a call detecting signal outputted from the off-hook detecting 
circuit 17 is fed to the controller 26, which then switches the movable 
contacts of the switch S2 to the side of b (step 203). The voice message 
recording/reproducing apparatus 23 then outputs a voice message signal of 
the recording message (step 204). The voice message signal is inputted to 
the telephone set 2 via the hybrid circuit 21 and coupling transformer 20. 
This enables the operator to listen to the voice message through the 
handset of the telephone set 2. 
Further, the description of the receiving operation of the facsimile 
machine is given in FIG. 4. During its waiting time, the facsimile machine 
1 monitors a call signal from the lines by way of the call detecting 
circuit 22. When it detects a call detecting signal at the call detecting 
circuit 22, the signal is delivered to the controller 26 (Y of step 301), 
which then makes the switch S1 in an on state (step 302). Thereafter, the 
voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23 outputs a voice message 
signal of the recorded message. At this time, the voice message signal is 
outputted to the telephone lines via the hybrid circuit 13 and coupling 
transformer 12 (step 303). 
Then the facsimile machine 1 transmits to the sender's side "Called Station 
Identification (CSI) Signal, Digital Identification Signal (DIS)" which is 
a sequence signal of a transmission control sequence for a facsimile 
communication (step 304). Thereafter, the facsimile machine 1 at the 
receiver's side monitors the reception of "Digital Command Signal (DCS)" 
or the like which is a kind of a response signal for a certain period of 
time (step 305). 
At this stage, if the facsimile machine 1 receives from the other end the 
Digital Command Signal which is a response signal, the transmission is 
made through a facsimile line. And if a response signal is not received, 
it is a transmission through a telephone set 2. 
If the call signal detecting circuit 22 of the facsimile machine 1 receives 
from the other end Digital Command Signal which is a response signal (Y of 
step 305), it performs a facsimile communication by way of the specific 
transmission control sequence (step 306). At this time the transmission 
signal is amplified in the amplifier 15 and a signal is outputted from the 
monitor speaker 16 as a tone to monitor the transmission condition. The 
call signal detecting circuit 22 of the facsimile machine at the 
receiver's end receives a termination signal, and when the transmission is 
completed, the termination signal is delivered from the call signal 
detecting circuit 22 to the controller 26. Then the controller 22 puts the 
switch S1 in an on state (step 307). 
On the other hand, if a sender transmits from the telephone 2, a response 
signal of the above-described Digital Command Signal is not received at 
the facsimile machine 1. In this case (N of step 305), the tone ringer 24 
of the facsimile machine 1 outputs a ringing tone informing a reception to 
call the operator (step 308), and further monitors an off-hook of the 
telephone set 2 (step 309, 308). The tone ringer 24 outputs the ringing 
tone until an off-hook takes place. If the telephone set 2 is off-hooked 
by the operator (Y of step 309), the off-hook detecting circuit 17 detects 
the off-hook and delivers it to the controller 26. The controller 26 puts 
the switch S1 in an off state (step 307). In this state the operator can 
carry out a conversation with the other end. 
As described above, in this embodiment the telephone set 2 is directly 
connected to the telephone lines when the facsimile machine 1 is not 
operated. This enables the telephone set 2 to be used for a conversation 
as usual even if the facsimile machine 1 cannot be used because of, for 
example, a power failure. 
The coupling transformer 20, hybrid circuit 21, call signal detecting 
circuit 22 etc. are the circuits of those kinds which have conventionally 
been provided to detect a call signal in a facsimile network. In this 
embodiment, the coupling transformer 20 and the hybrid circuit 21 are 
chosen from the conventional type circuits to connect the telephone set 2 
to the voice message recording/reproducing apparatus 23 so that voice 
messages can be recorded and reproduced. These arrangements eliminate the 
need of a dedicated microphone or loudspeaker for the facsimile machine 1 
and also reduce the number of the circuits to be newly provided, thereby 
reducing the costs required for the arrangement. 
Further, in this embodiment the switch S1 is in an off state when the 
facsimile machine 1 is not in operation, and is in an on state when the 
call signal detecting circuit 11 detects a call signal from the lines. In 
addition, the switch S1 is in an on state during a facsimile 
communication, and becomes in an off state when the communication is 
ended. The switch S2 separates the telephone set 2 from the lines and then 
the direct current source 18 supplies power to the telephone set 2. This 
switching can make the construction of the circuit simple. 
Then a second embodiment according to the present invention is described. 
FIG. 5 shows a construction of the second embodiment. This drawing 
illustrates those parts which have a different construction from FIG. 1. 
In the first embodiment, the monitoring speaker 16 was used for outputting 
a transmission signal when a response signal was received from the other 
end. However, in the present embodiment, to use each circuit in the 
facsimile machine 1 more effectively and advantageously, a switch 30 is 
provided which switches between the state where the input signal of the 
amplifier 15 is responded and where a voice message is outputted. 
This switch 30 switches between a transmission signal of a facsimile 
communication and a sound signal from the voice message 
recording/reproducing apparatus 23. When the switch 30 is switched to the 
side of 30a, a voice message signal is inputted to the amplifier 15, and 
the recorded voice message is outputted from the monitoring speaker 16. 
If the switch 30 is switched to the side of 30b, a transmission signal is 
inputted to the amplifier 15, and it is outputted from the monitoring 
speaker 16 as a tone. 
Because of this, the voice message recorded using the telephone set 2 can 
be reproduced and outputted through the amplifier 15 and speaker 16 
without off-hooking the telephone set 2. 
As described above, because the facsimile machine 1 according to the 
present invention directly connects the telephone set 2 to the telephone 
lines when the machine is not in operation, a conversation can be made 
anytime regardless of the power coming to the machine. In addition, the 
facsimile machine 1 according to the present invention can use the 
telephone set 2 provided on the facsimile machine 1 as a microphone and 
loudspeaker for recording and reproducing. 
Further, the telephone set 2 and the recording/reproducing apparatus 23 are 
connected to each other utilizing the hybrid circuit 21 which is used in 
the call signal detecting circuit 22 for a facsimile network. This results 
in a reduced number of signaling circuits which should be newly provided. 
The present invention is not limited to these embodiments, but various 
variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope 
of the present invention.