GB2348073A - Facsimile machine with facsimile identification means - Google Patents

Abstract

A facsimile machine comprises means 10-14, 16-18 for the identification of a facsimile, the means superimposing, on the same facsimile, a document and a graphic data identification image and means 14 for lightening the identification image to avoid concealment of the document. The lightening means 14 may be arranged in order to interlace pixels of the document and the identification image, and insert a logo at the edge of the facsimile. The identification means may further be arranged to restore, after reduction 12, an identification image previously acquired by input means 4 (Figure 1).

Description

2348073 When a facsimile machine transmits a facsimile page, it replaces

an image band at the top of the page by a line of alphanumeric text for identification of the caller, known as CIL, specifying his telephone number and the transmission time. The receiving facsimile machine may add its own telephone number thereto. This enables users to manage facsimile documents received more easily.

The information supplied by the CIL is however of limited scope.

EP-596 706 Al indeed teaches superimposing the facsimile image and a logotype image, but there is a danger that these two images will conceal each other and thus be non-exploitable.

The present invention intends to obviate this drawback.

To this end, the invention relates to a facsimile machine comprising facsimile identification means arranged to superimpose, on the same facsimile, a document and a graphic data identification image, characterised by the fact that it comprises means for lightening the identification image.

Thus, the graphic data identification image constitutes a background forming a type of water-mark authenticating the facsimile, whilst preventing obscuring the useful image too much.

The notion of identification of facsimiles should in this case be understood in its widest sense, since, apart from the recognition of a facsimile machine and of its user, it also covers the recognition of characteristics attributed to the document, such as for example its degree of urgency, its confidentiality and others.

The invention will be better understood by means of the Description of a preferred embodiment of the facsimile machine of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure I is a functional block diagram of the facsimile machine, Figure 2 is a more detailed block diagram of a central unit of 2 the facsimile machine, and Figures 3, 4 and 5 illustrate various facsimile formats according to the invention.

The facsimile machine illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 1 comprises a central unit 1 having a microprocessor, the operation of which is controlled by a time base 2. A line interface circuit 3, ensuring the exchanges of sound signals and signalling, connects the central unit 1 to a line 9 of the switched telephone network STN. Also connected to the central unit 1 are an optical analyser 4 of documents, or scanner, a printer 5, a keyboard 6 and a screen 7.

The central unit 1 comprises an arrangement 10 to 18 of calculation circuits (microprocessor) and memories, illustrated in functional form in Figure 2. This arrangement comprises two paths for processing image signals, 10-14 for identification images, or annotation, of facsimile documents and 15-17 for images of facsimile documents, leading to a circuit 18 for the composition of the two types of images as a facsimile image of conventional size ready to be transmitted on the STN or ready to be edited locally.

The first path comprises a memory 10 containing a plurality of facsimile identification image data, identifying the facsimile machine illustrated or its user, such as logotypes or even document annotation symbols indicating for example urgency in processing a facsimile received or specifying a confidential nature. These images are initially supplied by the scanner 4 or another unit reserved for this purpose, or even by a local PC via a connection (not shown) or equally by a remote equivalent apparatus, by way of the STN line 9.

The memory 10 is addressed by an image selection circuit 11 controlled from the keyboard 6 and followed by a circuit 12 for changing size or scale, in this case for the reduction of the image. The circuit 12 periodically adds pixels by interpolation 3 in order to enlarge the image, or eliminates them, according to a fixed step, in order to reduce the image.

An image truncation circuit 13, downstream of the circuit 12, supplies images to an image lightening circuit 14, connected at its output to the circuit 18 for the composition of facsimile images ready to be transmitted or edited. The truncation consists of replacing signals representing pixels of one image zone by other signals representing "white" pixels, that is to say, more generally, an absence of printing control. The lightening consists for example of reducing the diameter of pixels to be printed, by reducing the heating time of heating elements in a thermal printer for example, or of eliminating pixels according to a predetermined step.

The second path comprises a memory 15 containing images of documents to be transmitted, written from the scanner 4 or the like, as mentioned for the memory 10. At, the time of reading, the memory 15 is connected to a scale-altering circuit 16, followed by a truncation circuit 17 leading to the composition circuit 18.

The operation of the facsimile machine will now be explained in more detail, first of all for a transmission, then for receiving facsimiles.

The memory 10 constitutes a library of graphic data making it possible to annotate graphically the images 15 of the documents to be transmitted and/or of documents received, to be edited.

In the case of a transmission, a user effects an optical input of the document, the image signals being memorised in the memory 15. It then selects, via the keyboard 6 and depending on a menu presented on the screen 7 by the central unit 1, an identification image in the memory 10, in order to associate it with the image 15 of the document and to transmit the composite image thus constituted. This association of two images, of 4 different natures, on the same electronic facsimile page may take various forms, illustrated by the three following examples of Figures 3 to 5.

In the first example, illustrated in Figure 3, a logotype 121 coming from the memory 1C, with at the side the CIL 122, and the document image 120 coming from the memory 15 are mutually superimposed in the circuit 18. The circuits 12 and 13 are in this case transparent to the data. The circuit 14 for lightening the logotype is activated to prevent darkening the image 120 too much.

The logotype 121 constitutes a background forming a type of water-mark authenticating the facsimile by identification of the transmitting facsimile machine or of a family of such facsimile machines, belonging for example to the same company.

This superimposition of two images may consist of adding, for each pixel, the levels of intensity of two homologous pixels, in the same position, in each of the two images to be composed. As a variation, the restored composite image may simply be obtained by a reading sampling of levels of intensity, alternating from one image to the other, when one passes from one pixel position to the next. For example, even number pixels of a line will be read in the electronic image (120) of the document and odd number pixels will be read in the electronic image (121) of the logotype. The two images 120, 121 will thus be finely interlaced and each lightened by half, by disregarding half its pixels. A "form factor" of 1/4 for taking into account the logotype, taking into account one pixel in four, makes it possible to allocate 3/4 of the number of pixels to the image of the document 120, and thus to restore it well whilst presenting the logotype 121 in a dim but still clearly visible manner. The circuit 14 may preferably be integrated in the image composition circuit 18, in order, at the same time, to lighten and compose the image.

The scale-adjusting circuit 12 of the logotype may be activated, in order to possibly reduce the latter, in order that, as in Figure 5, it is superimposed solely on a portion of the image 120, instead of involving substantially all the image 120.

Figures 4 and 5 illustrate examples complementing that of Figure 3.

In Figures 4 and 5, the logotype 121 superimposed on the facsimile image has not been shown, for the sake of clarity.

In the second example (Figure 4), an additional logotype in the memory 10, selected by the circuit 11 controlled by the keyboard 6, is brought to a reduced scale by passing through the circuit 12. The truncation circuit 13 and lightening circuit 14 may be transparent to the image data. Similarly, the document image in the memory 15 is brought to a reduced scale, passes without modification through the truncation circuit 17 and reaches the image composition circuit 18. The two images, coming from the two paths, are juxtaposed there in order to form a facsimile image with identification. The framework in dotted line completes the images drawn in order to indicate the normal size of an image of a facsimile page.

The image comprises the identification logotype, bearing the reference numeral 101, as well as an alphanumeric CIL line 102 of identification information, indicating the telephone number of the transmitting facsimile machine, to which are added the date and time at the moment of transmission on the line 9. The image 100 of the document, coming from the memory 15 and which is reduced, is separate from the images 101 and 102 and substantially adjacent thereto, in order to occupy the available surface in the best way.

The additional logotype 101 is in this case situated at the edge of the total image, close to the upper left-hand corner, the alphanumeric CIL 102 being at the level of the upper edge of the image. In place of or in addition to a logotype, notes such as 6 flurgent", "confidential", may be provided, or even the name of the person originating the facsimile and/or the name of the recipient, a person or company.

The receiving facsimile machine edits the facsimile page by possibly adding its own telephone number in the CIL 102. It may thus be a question of a conventional facsimile machine, to the extent that it is the sender which has formed the composite image with a logotype or the like, and which is perceived on reception as being a conventional image.

In the third example, illustrated in Figure 5, the image 110 of the document in the memory 15 has been simply truncated in the circuit 17 in order to provide therein an area reserved for the additional logotype 111 and the CIL 112, which are thus adjacent to the truncated image 110. The circuit 12 for adjusting the scale of the logotype may be activated in order to reduce a logotype image (10) of excessive size. -- In the examples of Figures 4 and 5, the logotypes 102 and 112 may be printed without being lightened, since they do not cover the useful image 100, 110.

In a general manner, the circuits 12-14, 16 and 17 may be activated independently of each other. Furthermore, it will be noted that the alphanumeric part 102, 112, 122 of the facsimiles is optional. The various operations described, for the association of a 25 document image and of an identification or annotation image, are also valid for a receiving facsimile machine. In a similar case, a conventional facsimile received, memorised in the memory 15, would automatically be composed with an identification image coming from the memory 10, in the circuit 30 18, before being printed on the printer 5. Thus, the restored facsimile would carry an image (101, 111, 121) in this case 7 identifying the receiving facsimile machine and/or its user, who may possibly read it first of all on the screen 7 and add thereto an annotation, taken from the memory 15. It will be understood that the transmitting and receiving facsimile machines may each add a graphic motif for the identification of the same facsimile, independently of each other and thus, in particular, both make this addition.

Claims (5)

8 Claims

1 Facsimile machine comprising means (10-14, 16-18) for the identification of a facsimile, arranged in order to superimpose, on the same facsimile, a document (120) and a graphic data identification image (121), characterised by the fact that it comprises means (14) for lightening the identification image,

2. Facsimile machine according to Claim 1, in which the means (14) for lightening the identification image are arranged in order to interlace pixels of the document (120) and of the identification image (121).

3. Facsimile machine according to one of Claims 1 and 2, in which the identification means (10-14, 16-18) are arranged in order to insert a predetermined logotype (101, 111) at the edge of the facsimile.

4. Facsimile machine according to one of Claims 1 to 3, in which the identification means (10-14, 16-81) are arranged to restore, after reduction (12), a graphic data identification image (101, 111, 121) previously acquired by input means (4).

5. Facsimile machine substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.