Reception of faxes and routing to an intranet web site
Applications
and hardware are now generally available which allow faxes to be
received and distributed across local- and wide-area networks. Placing
fax images on an intranet web site makes them easily available to
users - Exactly the same technology can be used to publish them
to an internet site, so long as security is properly implemented.
Using
SuperFax - which comes free with US Robotics modems - and a suitable
TIFF generator - PeerNET TIFF is available on the web for about
£55, for instance - faxes can be received to a server without
human intervention.There are plenty of viewers available to look
at TIFF images - The Wang Image executable comes with Windows and
makes a good default viewer with adequate print options.
An
overview of how these applications can be integrated is shown in
the diagram below:
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If
there is only one 'phone line then the application can be very simple:
all faxes will be placed in a communal in box - much like a physical
fax machine.
This
is a typical implementation:
The
typical applications provide a virtual fax machine for a user group,
with everyone's faxes stored together in a common network repository
- the in box.
Incoming
faxes are directed to a published exchange line or DDI number, to
which is connected a FaxModem. Fax reception is managed by SuperFax
v6.
No
Windows dial-in is configured and SuperFax is set to allow only
incoming fax connections. This will prevent dial-up data connections
being made to the server.
SuperFax
is configured to automatically print all incoming faxes - The output
is printed to a TIFF image driver called PeerNet ETIFF which itself
is configured to save .TIF images of the received faxes into a named
directory.
Microsoft
Internet Information Server (IIS), also running on the server, maps
a virtual web directory to the fax images. A web application using
active server pages (ASP) coded in VBScript lists out the received
faxes and provides hyperlinks to view the fax images. This can be
found, say, on the intranet web site at http://servername/fax.
Viewing
can be achieved with any suitable application - The Wang Image application
is bundled with Windows (TIF files should be associated with, typically,
C:\Program Files\Windows NT\ImageVue\wangimg.exe.)
A management
option to delete viewed faxes should also be available to allow
users to manage their housekeeping.
Below
I have rounded up the practical options, together with some guidelines
on UK pricing, that you might consider when implementing on-line
fax processing.
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Options
for routing received faxes
An important
aspect of a network fax solution will ultimately be its maintenance of
privacy.
Routing faxes
to their intended recipient requires the identification of the addressee.
There are six basic options available, listed here from probably the best
option through to the worst:
1 ISDN/DDI routing
2 OCR routing
3 Line routing
4 DTMF routing
5 CSID routing
6 Manual routing
The requirements
for, and merits of, each are covered below, together with an indication
of the costs involved in their implementation.
ISDN/DDI
routing
Both ISDN
and DDI (Direct Dialling Inwards, sometimes also called
DID) both allow and require each fax user to have their own incoming fax
number. This is the only option where routing can be guaranteed to be
100% infallible: It is also the best option for integration with email
since each user has their own fax number and their own email address.
This is the
option used in most network-enabled fax solutions (RightFax, for example),
especially those which integrate with mail servers.
ISDN
The
incoming fax is sent to a user's individual number and the receiving
number is passed from the ISDN card to the fax server. The server
application looks up the user's identity using the ISDN number as
a key.
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The
fax image is then either forwarded as a mail attachment using SMTP
or written to the user's personal folder on a web site.RequirementsISDN
line with multi-subscriber numbers (MSN)
ISDN
CAPI 2.0 card
Costs
ISDN
MSN £1000
BRI CAPI 2.0 Server £500 |
DDI
The
incoming fax is sent to a user's individual number which is likely
to be a DDI number on the existing group.
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The
DDI number (effectively, the switchboard extension being used) is
passed from the DID card in the switchboard to the fax server. In
exactly the same way as in the ISDN example, the server application
looks up the user's identity using the DDI number as a key.
The
fax image is then either forwarded as a mail attachment using SMTP
or written to the user's personal folder on a web site.
Requirements
DDI
group - An addition to current switchboard capacity, if necessary
DID card
Costs
DID card
- Brooktrout TR114 is typical, at about £2500 |
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OCR
routing
Faxes
can be routed by software which reads the recipient's name from
the fax image. Optical character recognition (OCR) can identify
users by first name, family name, job title or other parameter.
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Some
OCR suppliers claim a 70% reliability for identifying recipients
of incoming faxes: This generally assumes that the documents are
computer-generated or typed. There is an obvious impact in cases
where the document's structure is unusual.
Despatch
notes, invoices, proofs of delivery are all good candidates for
OCR processing where the documents are standard and the eventual
routing should be transparent to the originator.
Where
document presentation is uncontrolled, OCR routing cannot, realistically,
be recommended.
Incoming faxes can be received on a single line (multiple lines
may be used) and rendered as TIFF images. OCR software processes
the image file generating a parameters file and moving the TIFF
image to either a processed documents folder or a failed documents
area.
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Requirements
OCR
software
Typed or printed documents with standard format(s)
Costs
OCR
software - Hands and Eyes Lite from ROCC is £7000
Modem - £100
Exchange line - £100
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Line
routing
Line
routing is implemented by giving each user their own virtual system
serviced by their own physical telephone line.
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Each
user has a dedicated exchange line, a modem and a fax application
running on a server.
This
option is ideal - and highly cost-effective - for small workgroups
of two, three or four to perhaps six users.
Routing
is 100% reliable.
Each users' faxes are sent to their own number, answered by their
own modem.
Fax reception software dedicated to that modem port renders the
fax image file, forwarding it as a mail attachment or posting it
to the user's web folder.
It is possible, and often convenient, to run a fax client on the
user's PC with the modem configured as a shared resource on the
server. This allows users to both send and receive faxes on their
dedicated line.
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Requirements
One
exchange line per user
One modem per user
One fax application per user
Costs
Exchange
line - £100
Modem - £100
Application - SuperFax is free
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DTMF
routing
DTMF
uses the multi-frequency signals available in tone dialling: Dial-tone
multi-frequency.
Typically
the modem used must be a combined voice/fax type.
The
originator must input the routing key. This is the major disadvantage
of using DTMF routing: The originator must know
That
the DTMF routing key must be sent
How to send the routing key
What the intended recipient's routing key is
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Also,
if a private branch exchange is involved, the switch must be configured
to allow the DTMF key to be passed through the exchange to the extension
to which the modem is connected.
Incoming
faxes are sent to the private branch exchange and routed to an extension
on the exchange, either by auto-answer and extension selection,
by manual transfer or by DDI.
Once
connected to the fax modem the originating fax station sends the
recipient's routing key: This will usually be manually keyed by
the originator.
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Requirements
Voice/fax
modem
Suitable PBX programming and configuration
Properly briefed originators
Costs
Voice/fax
modem - £100
PBX programming - £1000 if not programmed by internal personnel
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CSID
routing
CSID
- caller identity or CLI (caller line identity) - routing is based
on recipient's getting faxes from defined originating numbers.
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This
technique is sometimes implemented as a routing backup in network
fax implementations, making a second, best-guess when another routing
technique has failed.
If
two recipients are likely to receive documents from the same originating
number (highly likely) then this technique is not recommended.
The
originating fax station connects to the modem without withholding
the caller's number.
The
caller's number is passed to the server and matched to a recipient.
The fax is rendered as an image file and either posted to the relevant
web folder or forwarded as an email attachment.
Requirement
Originator
must use a service which supports CLI
Originator must not suppress own number on calling
Costs
CLI
option on exchange line - £10
Modem - £100
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Manual
routing
There
must be a manual routing option in any network fax solution, allowing
faxes which fail automated routing to be processed.
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Also,
where confidentiality is not an issue, all faxes may be saved to
a communal in tray and individual users can locate and manage their
own faxes while, perhaps, forwarding documents to colleagues on
an ad hoc basis.
Requirements
Modem
Exchange line or DDI line
Costs
Modem
- £100
Exchange line - £100
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