Information providing device, image forming device, and transmission system for providing image data to a transmission terminal that performs video communication

An image forming device capable of communicating with an information providing device and a data managing device, the image forming device comprising:

• a scanning unit that reads a paper document;
• a communication unit that receives, from the information providing device, a forming instruction to instruct image forming;
• an image forming unit that performs image forming of the paper document read by the scanning unit to generate image data according to the forming instruction;
• and
• a storage location information managing unit that generates storage location information indicating the data managing device that stores the data and a storage location set in advance in the data managing device, wherein
• the communication unit transmits the data to the data managing device, and further transmits the storage location information to the information providing device which receives the image data from the data managing device based on the storage location information and which further transmits the image data to a transmission terminal as data to be distributed to the one or more counterpart transmission terminals during video communication, such that the transmission terminal is already performing the video communication with the one or more counterpart transmission terminals prior to the information providing terminal transmitting the image data to the transmission terminal, and when the information providing terminal transmits the image data to the transmission terminal the transmission terminal is caused to display the image data as part of the ongoing video communication with the one or more counterpart transmission terminals.

A transmission system comprising an image forming device, an information providing device, a data managing device and a transmission terminal, wherein

• the image forming device includes:
• a first communication unit that receives, from the information providing unit, a forming instruction to instruct image forming;
• and
• an image forming unit that performs image forming according to the forming instruction,
• the first communication unit transmits the data to the data managing device, the data being data for which image formation is performed by the image forming unit,
• the information providing device includes:
• a second communication unit that transmits a forming instruction to instruct the image forming device to perform image forming, the formed image data being transmitted to the data managing device by the first communication unit;
• a storage unit that stores the image data received from the data managing device, wherein
• the second communication unit transmits the image data stored in the storage unit to the transmission terminal which performs video communication with one or more counterpart transmission terminals, and
• the transmission terminal, performs video communication with one or more counterpart transmission terminals, receives the image data from the information providing device, and shares the received image data as data to be distributed to the one or more counterpart transmission terminals during the video communication, such that the transmission terminal is already performing the video communication with the one or more counterpart transmission terminals prior to the second communication unit transmitting the image data to the transmission terminal, and when the second communication unit transmits the image data to the transmission terminal the transmission terminal is caused to display the image data as part of the ongoing video communication with the one or more counterpart transmission terminals.