Patent ID: 8681389

Claim:
An image processing apparatus connected to a plurality of transmitters with a facsimile communication function via a network, the image processing apparatus comprising: a first acquiring unit that acquires information on respective communication capacities of the transmitters and information on communication capacity of a partner device to be in facsimile communication with a transmitter; a selecting unit that selects a transmitter having communication capacity that is the same as or closest to the communication capacity of the partner device from the plurality of transmitters; an accepting unit that accepts an instruction for facsimile transmission; a reading unit that reads image data subjected to the facsimile transmission; a facsimile-transmission-request transmitting unit that transmits a request to fax the read image data to the partner device to the selected transmitter; a determining unit that determines whether the partner-device identifying information that is the same as the accepted partner-device identifying information is stored in the storage unit, and, if it is determined that the partner-device identifying information is stored in the storage unit, determines whether the information on the communication capacity stored in the storage unit is identical to the acquired information on the communication capacity of the partner device; and an updating unit that updates the information on the communication capacity of the partner device stored in the storage unit to the acquired information on the communication capacity of the partner device if it is determined that the information on the communication capacity stored in the storage unit is not identical to the acquired information on the communication capacity of the partner device, wherein: the first acquiring unit acquires the information on the communication capacity of the partner device from the transmitter, the accepting unit further accepts input of partner-device identifying information identifying the partner device, the image processing apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores therein the acquired information on the communication capacity of the partner device and the accepted partner-device identifying information in an associated manner, and the first acquiring unit acquires the information on the communication capacity of the partner device associated with the accepted partner-device identifying information from the storage unit.