Process Flow Example: Import Documents from Microsoft Outlook Email Folder

Last Updated: Version R2510

Follow these steps to create a task within a process flow that automates the import of document attachments sent to a specified Microsoft Outlook Email inbox.

  1. Start a new process flow from within the New Batch Type screen.

  2. Drag and drop the Task from the Steps to a + symbol location on the Process Flow.

  3. Enter a name for this task.

  4. From the Type list, select New Batch.

  5. Enter a name for the task.

  6. From the Type list, select Import.

  7. From the Destination list, choose a pre-configured Outlook integration.  See Microsoft Outlook for details.

  8. Click Select Folder to choose the specific folder in the email integration that emails must be sent to for this Batch to trigger. Ricoh recommends creating a dedicated email folder that will only be used for RICOH IA purposes.

  9. Set the maximum number of files to process in a single batch. By default, the selection is 1.

  10. Configure a file mask. The mask is useful if you want to import only a certain file type. For example, if you want to only import PDF files, you can create a mask that ignores TIFF and Word documents.

  11. Add conditions that must be met for this import task to trigger. For example, choose Has Attachment - Equals - True, and add a second condition for Subject - Equals - Import to RIA.  With these conditions only email sent to the specified email folder that have the subject "Import to RIA" AND have an attachment will trigger this task.

  12. Click OK to save the Task.

  13. Add a second Task to the Process Flow after the Import task. This task should be a Review task that allows an Operator to verify the documents imported from the email. Set the type to Review, choose the Document Options, and then assign the task to a specific user or group.

  14. Click OK to save the Second Task.

  15. Add a third task to the Process Flow that routes the scanned documents to a destination. The resulting flow will look like the flow shown to the right.

From the end-user viewpoint, this is the workflow: 

  1. An email is received in the specified email folder AND it contains a PDF attachment AND it has the subject "Import to RIA".
    If the email contains other file formats such as TIFF or Word attachments, those are ignored. If the email contains a PDF attachment, but the subject is NOT Import to RIA, the entire email is ignored and this process flow is not triggered.

  1. The Import from Outlook Inbox task is triggered and the attached document is imported to RICOH IA.

  1. The Review import from email task is triggered and appears in the Work Queue. A user assigned to this Batch Type can View and Submit the document after confirming the Document Options.

  2. The Route to destination task is triggered. The document is routed to the configured destination.

  3. The flow is complete.