JP5015094B2 - Image display apparatus, image forming apparatus, and image display method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image display apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and an image display method.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a display device that displays thumbnails and other reduced images, as a technique for making it easy to distinguish each page of a reduced document image, each page of a plurality of document images includes characters, photos, graphics, and other areas. There has been proposed a method of dividing each image and displaying only a portion having a large difference between the divided images as an image (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-331299 A

  By the way, in the above prior art, it is necessary to take out only an area where the difference of each page of the document image is large and display it as an image of the difference part. Therefore, the number of thumbnail images to be displayed is increased, which makes it difficult for the user to see the screen.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an image display device that can easily determine thumbnail images without increasing the number of thumbnail images to be displayed.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image display apparatus of the present invention includes an image generation unit that generates a standard thumbnail image and an enlarged thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the standard thumbnail image by reducing the original image, and the standard Image display means for displaying the thumbnail image and the enlarged thumbnail image, operation means for accepting an instruction by an operation from the user, and reduction of the first standard thumbnail image and the second original image obtained by reducing the first original image Similarity degree deriving means for deriving the degree of similarity with the second standard thumbnail image, and when the degree of similarity is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the image display means includes the first standard thumbnail image and the second standard thumbnail image. In accordance with an instruction from the user received by the operation means, And a display control means for performing control to display the second enlarge a thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the first enlarged thumbnail image or the second standard thumbnail image is enlarged a standard thumbnail image.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to easily determine thumbnail images without increasing the number of thumbnail images to be displayed.

  Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, as an image display apparatus according to the present invention, a touch panel provided in a multifunction machine having both a copying function, a printing function, and a FAX transmission / reception function will be described as an example.

  FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a multifunction peripheral A according to the present embodiment. The multi-function device A includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 1, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 2, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 3, various sensor groups 4, a paper transport unit 5, an image reading unit 6, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). 7, an image forming unit 8, a transmission / reception unit 9, and an operation display unit 10.

  The CPU 1 is based on a control program stored in the ROM 2, document image data stored in the HDD 7, various instructions input from an external device via the transmission / reception unit 9, and operation instructions input from the operation display unit 10. Controls the overall operation of the multifunction machine A. The CPU 1 also functions as an image forming unit 11, a similarity deriving unit 12, a display control unit 13, and a threshold setting unit 14 described later. The details of the control process of the CPU 1 will be described below as the operation of the multifunction device A.

  The ROM 2 is a non-volatile memory that stores a control program executed by the CPU 1 and other data.

  The RAM 3 is a volatile memory used as a working area as a temporary storage destination of data when the CPU 1 executes a control program and performs various operations.

  The various sensor groups 4 are various sensors necessary for an image forming operation such as a paper out detection sensor, a paper jam detection sensor, a paper position detection sensor, a temperature sensor, and the like, and various kinds of information detected by each sensor are detected signals. To the CPU 1.

  The paper transport unit 5 includes a transport roller for transporting the print paper stored in the paper tray to the image forming unit 8, a motor for driving the transport roller, and a print paper after the image forming process to a discharge tray (not shown). It is composed of a conveying roller for conveying, a motor for driving the conveying roller, and the like.

  The image reading unit 6 includes an ADF (automatic document feeder), a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) sensor, and the like, and causes the CCD sensor to read images of documents sequentially fed by the ADF so that document image data based on the document image is obtained. Output. The image reading unit 6 outputs the document image data to the CPU 1, while the CPU 1 stores the document image data in an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 7.

  The HDD 7 stores the document image data in response to a request from the CPU 1 and outputs the document image data to the CPU 1.

  Under the control of the CPU 1, the image forming unit 8 transfers a print image formed by toner based on the document image data stored in the HDD 7 onto a print sheet conveyed from the sheet conveyance unit 5, and the print image Fixing process is performed.

  The transmission / reception unit 9 is connected to an external device such as a personal computer (not shown) via a local area network (not shown), and transmits / receives various signals to / from the external device.

  The operation display unit 10 includes a start key, a stop key, a power key, a numeric keypad (numerical value input key), a touch panel 10a, a clear key, and other various operation keys, and outputs an operation instruction for each key to the CPU 1. Under the control of the CPU 1, various screens are displayed on the touch panel 10a.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a display state of the touch panel 10a of the operation display unit 10 of the multifunction peripheral A. In FIG. 2, standard thumbnail images Thum1 to Thum5 having a standard size and used for normal display are shown.

  As shown in FIG. 2, among the standard thumbnail images Thum1 to Thum5, the standard thumbnail images Thum3 and Thum5 have a high degree of similarity (matching rate) with each other, so that it is difficult to distinguish them visually. In the multi-function device A according to the present embodiment, by displaying a border line on each of the standard thumbnail images Thum3 and Thum5, it is possible for the user to see that they are similar and to enlarge them by operation. Notifying that there is.

  FIG. 3 shows an enlarged thumbnail image Thum3a obtained by magnifying the standard thumbnail image Thum3 in FIG. 2 instead of the standard thumbnail image Thum3 (or even if the standard thumbnail image Thum5 is enlarged to double size). Good). By displaying the enlarged thumbnail image Thum3a and the like, the user can detect the difference between the enlarged thumbnail images Thum3a and Thum5a, that is, the difference between the standard thumbnail images Thum3 and Thum5. 3 is displayed by the display control means 13 when the user touches the standard thumbnail image Thum3 in FIG. 2 on the touch panel 10a.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the multifunction peripheral A according to this embodiment.

  In step S <b> 101, the image reading unit 6 generates document image data by reading an image of the document, and stores it in the HDD 7. Then, the process proceeds to step S102.

  In step S102, the image generation unit 11 generates a standard thumbnail image and an enlarged thumbnail image based on the document image data generated in step S101, and stores them in the RAM 3. Then, the process proceeds to step S103.

  In step S <b> 103, the CPU 1 determines whether another standard thumbnail image is stored in the HDD 7. If another standard thumbnail image is stored in the HDD 7, it is necessary to compare. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S104, and if another standard thumbnail image is not stored in the HDD 7, it is necessary to compare. Since there is not, it progresses to step S107.

  In step S104, the similarity deriving unit 12 compares these standard thumbnail images generated in step S101 with other standard thumbnail images stored in the HDD 7 by using a well-known technique. Degrees are derived and stored in the HDD 7 as table information. When a plurality of other standard thumbnail images are stored in the HDD 7, a plurality of similarities corresponding to the standard thumbnail images are derived and stored as table information. Then, it is determined whether each derived degree of similarity is equal to or more than a threshold value set in advance in the HDD 7 by the user. If there is no similarity that is equal to or greater than the threshold value, it is not necessary to store the enlarged thumbnail image. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S105, and if there is even one similarity that is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the enlarged thumbnail image is selected. Since it is necessary to save, the process proceeds to step S106. Hereinafter, a case where the threshold is set to 90% will be described as an example.

  In step S105, the CPU 1 deletes the enlarged thumbnail image stored in the RAM 3 in step S102 from the RAM 3 without saving it in the HDD 7. Then, the process proceeds to step S107.

  In step S106, the CPU 1 deletes the enlarged thumbnail image stored in the RAM 3 in step S102 from the RAM 3 after saving it in the HDD 7. Then, the process proceeds to step S107.

  In step S107, the CPU 1 deletes the standard thumbnail image stored in the RAM 3 in step S102 from the RAM 3 after saving it in the HDD 7.

  Through the series of steps described above, one original is read, and the thumbnail image of the original and the similarity between the thumbnail image and each of the other thumbnail images are stored.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing table information related to the similarity of thumbnail images stored in step S104 of FIG.

  As shown in the table information, the similarity between the standard thumbnail images Thum1 to Thum5 is 90% or more (95%) in the combination of the standard thumbnail images Thum3 and Thum5, and smaller than 90% in the other combinations. Therefore, as described above, in FIG. 2, border lines are displayed only on the standard thumbnail images Thum3 and Thum5. By storing the derived similarity as table information, the previously derived similarity can be used the next time. Therefore, since the number of image comparison processes can be reduced, resources such as the CPU 1 can be allocated to other processes.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a threshold setting screen displayed on the touch panel 10 a of the operation display unit 10. As shown in FIG. 6, the user operates the numeric keypad in response to the threshold setting screen displayed on the touch panel 10a on the operation display unit 10 under the control of the threshold setting means 14, thereby setting a desired threshold. Can be set.

  As described above, the multifunction peripheral A according to the present embodiment reduces the original image, thereby reducing the original thumbnail image and the enlarged thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the standard thumbnail image, and the standard generation image 11. An operation display unit 10 that displays a thumbnail image and the enlarged thumbnail image and receives an instruction by a user operation, and a reduced first original thumbnail image and a second original image obtained by reducing the first original image. Similarity deriving means 12 for deriving the similarity with the second standard thumbnail image, and when the similarity is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the operation display unit 10 displays the first standard thumbnail image and the second standard thumbnail image. In response to an instruction from the user received by the operation display unit 10, it is displayed that the standard thumbnail image is similar. And a display control unit 13 for performing control to display the second enlarge a thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the first enlarged thumbnail image or the second standard thumbnail image standard thumbnail image is enlarged for. Therefore, it is possible to easily determine the thumbnail image without increasing the number of thumbnail images to be displayed.

  In the above description, as shown in FIG. 4, in step S102, an enlarged thumbnail image is first generated in addition to the standard thumbnail image, and in step S104, it is found that the enlarged thumbnail image is not necessary. In step S105, the example in which the enlarged thumbnail image is deleted without being saved has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the enlarged thumbnail image may be generated only after it is found necessary. However, the processing time can be shortened by generating the enlarged thumbnail image together with the standard thumbnail image.

  In the above description, the case where the operation unit and the display unit are integrated as the operation display unit 10 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the operation unit and the display unit may be provided separately.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a multifunction peripheral A according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the display state (standard thumbnail image) of the touch panel 10a of the operation display part 10 of the multifunction peripheral A which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the display state (enlarged thumbnail image) of the touch panel 10a of the operation display part 10 of the multifunction peripheral A which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the multifunction peripheral A according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the table information regarding the similarity degree of the thumbnail image which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the threshold value setting screen displayed on the touchscreen 10a of the operation display part 10 of the multi-function device A which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 CPU, 2 ROM, 3 RAM, 4 Various sensor groups, 5 Paper conveyance part, 6 Image reading part, 7 HDD, 8 Image formation part, 9 Transmission / reception part, 10 Operation display part, 10a Touch panel, 11 Image formation means, 12 Similarity derivation means, 13 display control means, 14 threshold setting means, A multifunction peripheral.

Claims (5)

Image generation means for generating a standard thumbnail image and an enlarged thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the standard thumbnail image by reducing the original image;
Image display means for displaying the standard thumbnail image or the enlarged thumbnail image corresponding to a plurality of the original images ;
An operation means for receiving an instruction by an operation from a user;
Similarity derivation means for deriving the similarity between the first standard thumbnail image obtained by reducing the first original image and the second standard thumbnail image obtained by reducing the second original image;
If the similarity is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, in the image display means, and said first standard thumbnail image and the second standard thumbnail image, distinguishably display the be similar, the operation In response to an instruction from the user accepted by the means, the first standard thumbnail image or the second standard thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the first standard thumbnail image instead of the first standard thumbnail image is used. Display control means for performing control to display a second enlarged thumbnail image obtained by enlarging the second standard thumbnail image . The image display apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a setting unit that sets the predetermined value based on an instruction from a user received by the operation unit. The image display device according to claim 1, further comprising storage means for storing the similarity derived by the similarity deriving means. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein the image display unit and the operation unit are integrated. An image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
Image forming means for forming the original image on a recording medium,
An image forming apparatus in which the original image is a document image .

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