Image forming apparatus and method of controlling fax thereof

Abstract

A method of controlling a fax of an image forming apparatus which transmits/receives a fax using a plurality of telephone lines, includes detecting a size of a fax data to be transmitted; checking communication settings of the plurality of telephone lines according to the detection result; detecting whether the plurality of telephone lines are in use; and selecting one of the plurality of telephone lines to transmit the fax data using the communication settings of the telephone lines and whether the telephone lines are in use. An image forming apparatus with a multi-line faxing function capable of transmitting a fax by automatically selecting a telephone line with a favorable communication setting among a plurality of telephone lines, thereby reducing time involved in fax transmission and waste of communication charges.

1 . A method of controlling a fax of an image forming apparatus which transmits/receives a fax using a first telephone line and a second telephone line, the method comprising:
 checking communication settings of the first telephone line and the second telephone line, the second telephone line being set to have a priority order in fax transmission;   detecting whether the first telephone line and the second telephone line are in use;   selecting the first telephone line to transmit the image data according to checking result of the communication settings of the first telephone line and the second telephone line;   waiting for fax transmission if the first telephone line is in use; and   transmitting the image data by the first telephone line when the first telephone line is available.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising displaying the selected telephone line. 
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 2 , wherein the displayed telephone line is changeable to another telephone line by a user. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein if the selected telephone line is in use, the telephone line is changeable before the use of the telephone line is completed. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising detecting a size of an image data to be transmitted by fax transmission; and
 selecting the second telephone line to transmit the image data without checking the communication settings if the size of the image data is less than a predetermined value.   
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 5 , wherein the predetermined value is changeable by a user or an administrator. 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the communication settings comprises at least one of communication speeds of the respective telephone lines, whether an error correction mode is applied, and information about history of the communication speeds of the respective telephone lines. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the image data comprises at least one of an image data previously stored in the image forming apparatus, an image data scanned for fax transmission, and an image data received from an external device connectable to the image forming apparatus. 
     
     
         9 . A method of controlling a fax of an image forming apparatus which comprises a first telephone line and the second telephone line, the method comprising:
 setting up an auto line select mode in the image forming apparatus;   loading an image data to be faxed;   detecting communication settings of the first telephone line and the second telephone line to transmit the image data to be faxed according to the auto line select mode; and   transmitting the image data to be faxed by the first telephone line according to the detected communication settings, the second telephone line being set to have a priority order in fax transmission,   wherein the transmitting the image data comprises waiting for fax transmission if the first telephone line is in use and transmitting the image data by the first telephone line when the first telephone line is available.   
     
     
         10 . An image forming apparatus which transmits a copy to be faxed using a plurality of telephone lines, the image forming apparatus comprising:
 an image reading part to read out the copy to be faxed and generate an image data;   a storage part to store the image data for fax transmission and communication settings of the respective telephone lines;   a display to display an auto line select mode to be touchable for transmission of the image data;   a user operating part to receive an instruction of a user via touching the display or an input button;   a faxing part to transmit the image data, the faxing part comprising a first faxing part corresponding to a first telephone line and a second faxing part corresponding to a second telephone line, the second telephone line being set to have a priority order in fax transmission; and   a controller to control the fax part to transmit the image data by selecting the first faxing part using the communication settings according to the auto line select mode,   wherein the controller controls the fax part to wait for fax transmission if the first telephone line is in use and to transmit the image data by the first telephone line when the first telephone line is available.   
     
     
         11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein the display displays the selected telephone line. 
     
     
         13 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 12 , wherein the display comprises a first display provided in the image forming apparatus or a second display provided in a host device connected to the image forming apparatus. 
     
     
         14 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 12 , wherein the displayed telephone line is changeable to another telephone line among the plurality of telephone lines by a user. 
     
     
         15 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 14 , wherein if the selected telephone line is in use, the telephone line is changeable before use of the telephone line is completed. 
     
     
         16 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the communication settings comprises at least one of communication speeds of the respective telephone lines, whether an error correction mode is applied, and information about history of the communication speeds of the respective telephone lines. 
     
     
         17 . The image forming apparatus according to  claim 10 , further comprising a communication part connectable with an external device,
 wherein the image data comprises at least one of an image data previously stored in the storage part, an image data generated in the image reading part, and an image data received from the external device connectable via the communication part.   
     
     
         18 - 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising detecting a size of an image data to be transmitted by fax transmission, and
 wherein the checking communication settings comprises checking communication settings of the first telephone line and the second telephone line if the image data has a size of a predetermined reference value or more.   
     
     
         22 . The method according to  claim 9 , wherein the auto line select mode is applied in the case the image data has a size which is a predetermined value or more. 
     
     
         23 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein the auto line select mode is applied in the case the image data has a size which is a predetermined value or more. 
     
     
         24 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein the controller controls the fax part to transmit the image data by selecting the second telephone line to transmit the image data without checking the communication settings if the size of the image data is less than a predetermined value.