JPH08204966A - Facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To effectively compress the characters of documents, etc., for improvement of the transmission efficiency and also to regenerate the characters with high and sharp picture quality by converting the input characters into the character codes through a character recognition means and then modulating and transmitting those compressed character codes. CONSTITUTION: The document characters inputted to an input means 2 are converted into the character codes by a character recognition means 4 and compressed by a character compression means 5b of a compression means 5. These compressed character codes are sent to a compression/selection means 12a and a modulation/transmission means 6 and transmitted via a telephone network 7. The reception/demodulation, expansion and print operations, etc., are carried out in the same way. In such a constitution of a facsimile equipment where the document characters are processed in the character codes, the characters of documents, etc., can be compressed with high efficiency for transmission and reception of them and also the characters can be regenerated with high and sharp picture quality.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, transmission by a facsimile machine is
ON / OFF of dots for designs and characters drawn on paper
It was converted into an image code represented by and transmitted to the other party. Further, the reception by the facsimile apparatus is to print the image code again as a dot image to reproduce the design or character.

Therefore, in the above-mentioned conventional technique, even if only character data is used, the characters in the document format are treated as image data once and transmitted.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned conventional configuration, even if the original is only characters, the characters are regarded as patterns and replaced with image data as image data, so that there is a problem that efficient transmission cannot be performed. there were.

That is, since the character data that should be represented by the ASCII code is purposely converted into a huge amount of image data, even if image compression is performed, the amount of compressed data is large and transmission time is required. There was a drawback that

[0006] In addition, in the FAX such as document materials,
Degradation of image quality is unavoidable due to factors such as light and shade of characters, inclination of paper, and replacement with dots, and there is a problem in transferring clear characters.

[0007] Therefore, in today's information society where there are many exchanges of characters such as word processing documents, there has been a demand for a fax machine that processes only characters as a character code.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a facsimile device which transmits characters of a document or the like as a character code, improves the transmission efficiency by efficient compression, and reproduces the characters with clear image quality. To do.

[0009]

In order to solve the problems of the conventional example, the facsimile apparatus of the present invention recognizes an input means for transmitting transmission data and a document character input to the input means. A character recognizing means for replacing the character code with a character code, a character compressing means for compressing the character code, an image compressing means for compressing the image data input to the input means as an image code, a character compressing means or an image compressing means. Compression selection means for selecting whether or not, modulation and transmission means for modulating the code obtained by the compression means and transmitting it as a transmission signal, reception demodulation means for receiving and demodulating the transmission signal, and the demodulated character code A character decompression means for decompressing, and an image decompression means for decompressing the demodulated image code,
It is characterized in that it is provided with an expansion selection means for selecting either the character expansion means or the image expansion means and an output means for outputting the code obtained by the expansion means as received data.

It is also preferable that the image decompression means automatically identifies a character image from the decompressed image code and converts it into a character code.

Further, the compression selecting means transmits the character code to the receiver having the character code transmitting function, and temporarily converts the character code into the image code for the receiver not having the above function. Since it is transmitted as a file, compatibility with a conventional FAX machine can be maintained, and a text file or the like can be easily transferred.

[0012]

The present invention having the above-described structure can perform the following operations. That is, by providing a character recognition means for recognizing a document character input to the input means and replacing it with a character code, and a character compression means for compressing the character code, a character original is converted from image data by the character recognition means. Can be recognized and transmitted as a character code.

At this time, on the receiver side, a receiving / demodulating means for receiving and demodulating a transmission signal from a line of a public telephone network, a character expanding means for expanding the demodulated character code, and a code obtained by the expanding means. By including the output means for outputting as a received data, the character code can be received and reproduced as a character, and thus clear print output can be performed.

Further, since the character code can be compressed and transmitted as a character code by the compression of the character code by the character compression means performed at the time of transmission and the expansion of the character code by the character decompression means performed at the time of reception, the transmission time is shortened. It is possible to perform efficient transmission.

Further, if the image expansion means automatically identifies a character image from the image code after the expansion processing and converts it into a character code, an image transmitted from a conventional FAX machine in which a character original is replaced with a dot image. Even a code can be once converted into a character code and reproduced as a character, so that a clear print output can be performed as in the above case.

Further, the compression selecting means transmits the character code to the receiver having the character code transmitting function, and once converts the character code into the image code for the receiver not having the above function. If the data is transmitted as a fax, characters can be faxed as image codes to conventional fax machines.
It is possible to maintain compatibility with conventional machines. Further, data composed of character codes such as a text file can be easily transmitted without considering the function of the FAX machine.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the first embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1, an input means 2 for transmitting transmission data to a line of a public telephone network 7 and a document character input to the input means 2 are subjected to an optical character recognition process. A character recognition means 4 for replacing with a character code and a character compression means 5b for compressing the character code.
An image compression means 5a for compressing the image data input to the input means 2 as an image code, and a character compression means 5
b, a compression selection means 12a for selecting either the image compression means 5a, and a transmission function part having a modulation transmission means 6 for modulating the code obtained by the compression means 5 and transmitting it as a transmission signal; Reception demodulation means 8 for receiving and demodulating the modulated transmission signal from the public telephone network 7, and character expansion means 9b for expanding the demodulated character code.
Image expansion means 9a for expanding the demodulated image code,
The reception function unit includes a decompression selection unit 12b for selecting either the character decompression unit 9b or the image decompression unit 9a, and an output unit 3 for outputting the code obtained by the decompression unit 9 as reception data. , A facsimile machine 1 (hereinafter referred to as a FAX machine) for transmitting data composed of only characters as a character code.

First, the transmission function of the FAX machine 1 having the above configuration will be described. The FAX machine 1 receives the input document 10 and the like by the input means 2. Here, as the input means 2, an image reading device 2a and a personal computer 2b connected via an RS232C port 13 are provided.

Next, the user confirms the destination terminal code (FAX).
Enter the number) to call the destination fax machine. If busy, a retry is automatically made after a predetermined time.

When the connection with the partner is confirmed, the receiving capability of the receiver of the partner is confirmed before transmitting the data. This is to confirm whether or not the receiver supports the character code receiving function according to the transmission protocol, and the compression selecting means 12a selects either the character compression path or the image compression path according to the result. To do.

Here, the character code receiving function is a function capable of receiving a character with a code represented by an ASCII code or the like without converting it into an image code.

Generally, the character compression has a smaller amount of data per unit page than the image compression, and the compression of the character code rather than the compression of the image code generally reduces the transmission data amount, resulting in a transmission efficiency. Can be improved.

Therefore, when the receiver of the other party supports the character code receiving function, the character can be treated as a character code for transmission. Further, these selections are performed by the input selection unit 2 '(switching of switches and the like).

Therefore, if the input data is a text file (word processing document file) transferred from the personal computer 2b or the like, the characters are character-coded.
It is input from the input means 2 to the character compression means 5b as it is. If the input data is the text original 10, the input means 2 reads the text image by the image reading device 2a,
Then, the character recognition means 4 replaces the character image with the character code and inputs it to the character compression means.

Here, the character recognizing means 4 is an OCR device for optically recognizing a character and converts an image representing a character into a character code.

On the other hand, when the receiver does not support the character receiving function, if the input data is a text file, the data is once converted into the image code of the character image by the personal computer 2b and then the image compression means 5a. Is entered.
If the input data is a text original, the image reading device 2a
Is read in and input as it is to the image compression means 5a as an image code.

If the input data is an ordinary drawing or picture, the data is converted into an image code by the image reading device 2a and input to the image compression means 5a.

The image code and the character code input to the compression means 5 as described above are based on the route defined by the compression selection means 12a, and the image compression means 5a and the character compression means 5b.
Compression processing is performed by any one of the above, and then sent to the modulation transmission means 6.

In the compression means 5, the control information of the character flag is added to the compressed data together with the header indicating the compression method when the transmission data is only the character code.

The modulation transmission means 6 modulates the compressed image code or the compressed code of the character code, and the modulated transmission signal is sent to the public telephone network 7 through the modular jack 14 at a predetermined baud rate. .

Next, the receiving function of the FAX machine 1 will be described with the configuration shown in FIG.

The transmission signal of the public telephone network 7 is transmitted to the receiver connected to the line through the modular jack 14 and input to the reception demodulation means 8.

The reception demodulation means 8 reads the transmission signal at a predetermined baud rate and demodulates it to obtain a compressed code. These compressed codes are sent to the decompression means 9.

The decompression means 9 first reads the header indicating the compression method added before the data, and then the decompression selection means 12b discriminates from the character flag of the control information whether it is a character code or an image code. Select either the expansion path or the character expansion path.

Therefore, when the received compression code is a compressed image code, the image decompression means 9a performs decompression processing, and the decompressed image code is input to the output means 3. On the other hand, when the received compressed code is a compressed character code, the decompressing means 9b decompresses it and the decompressed character code is input to the output means 3.

The image code and the character code sent from the expansion means 9 to the output means 3 as described above are output by the output means 3. Here, the output means 3 is provided with the printer 3a and the personal computer 3b connected through the RS232C port 13 in the above embodiment. In addition,
The selection of these output devices 3 is performed by the output selection unit 3 ′ (switching of switches and the like).

For example, when outputting to the printer 3a, it is printed on the output document 11 as a figure or a clear character. Also,
It can also be transferred to the personal computer 3b via the RS232C port 13 and saved as a file. in this case,
Image data can be saved as a binary file, and character data can be saved as a text file.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, even if the data is composed of character codes such as a text format file, it is possible to easily perform FAX without being aware of the function of the FAX machine of the other party.

Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

The second embodiment is the image expansion means 9 of the first embodiment.
a is the image expansion unit 15 and the identification unit 1 indicated by 9a ′ in FIG.
It is characterized in that it is composed of 6 and the character image is character coded by the character recognition means 4. That is, in FIG. 2, the image expansion means 9a of FIG. 1 is changed to 9a ', and the character recognition means 4 is changed to send data to the output means 3.

Therefore, the other structure of the second embodiment is common to that of the first embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The decompression means 9 shown in FIG.
The compressed image code and character code input from are input to the image expansion means 9a 'and the character expansion means 9b, respectively.

In this operation, as in the first embodiment, first, the header indicating the compression method added before the data is read, and then it is determined by the character flag of the control information whether or not it is a character code. It is a thing.

Here, when the character flag is added, it is input to the character expanding means 9b as in the first embodiment.

On the other hand, when the character flag is not added,
As for the compressed image code input to the image expansion means 9a ', first, the image code decompressed by the image expansion section 15 is obtained. Subsequently, the image code is identified by the identifying unit 16 as to whether it is a character image. If the image code is an image code such as a figure or a picture, it is input to the output means 3 as in the first embodiment. On the other hand, when the image code is composed only of ASCII code, the identifying unit 16 automatically determines that it is a character image, the character image is once converted into the character code by the character recognition means 4, and is indicated by the dotted line in the figure. Output means 3 with 17 lines shown
Is input to

As described above, in the second embodiment, since the character image sent from the conventional FAX machine can be processed as a character code, clear print output can be performed.

In the above embodiment, the data is connected from the character recognition means 4 to the output means 3 through the output selection section 3'in the line 17 shown by the dotted line in FIG. 1 so that, for example, a copy of a book or a word processor. If an input document 10 such as a document is read by the image reading device 2a of the input means 2 to obtain an image character and the image character is changed to a character code by the character recognition means 4, a clear hard copy is made from the printing device 3a of the output means 3. If the output document 11 is obtained and the character code is written into the personal computer 3b through the RS232C port 13 and is made into a file, the character document can be easily converted into a word processor.

Although the input means 2 is the image reading device 2a and the personal computer 2b in this embodiment, it may be another storage device or an external interface device. Further, the output means 3 includes a printer 3a and a personal computer 3b.
However, it may be another storage device or an interface device with the outside. Further, in the above embodiment,
Although the input means 2 and the output means 3 are shown as external devices in FIG. 1 for convenience, the functions may be built in the unit. That is, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made based on the spirit of the present invention, and these modifications are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

[0049]

According to the present invention, there is provided a facsimile apparatus for transmitting characters such as a document as a character code, improving the transmission efficiency by efficient compression, and reproducing characters with clear image quality. be able to.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an image expansion unit showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Facsimile apparatus 2 Input means 2a Image reading apparatus 2b Personal computer 2'Input selection section 3 Output means 3a Printing apparatus 3b Personal computer 3'Output selection section 4 Character recognition means 5 Compression means 5a Image compression means 5b Character compression means 6 Modulation transmission means 7 Public telephone network 8 Reception / demodulation means 9 Decompression means 9a Image decompression means 9b Character decompression means 10 Input original 11 Output original 12a Compression selection means 12b Expansion selection means 13 RS232C port 14 Modular jack 15 Image expansion section 16 Identification section

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. Input means for transmitting transmission data, character recognition means for recognizing a document character input to the input means and replacing it with a character code, character compression means for compressing the character code, and An image compression means for compressing the image data input to the input means as an image code, a compression selection means for selecting either the character compression means or the image compression means, and the code obtained by the compression means is modulated and transmitted. Modulation transmission means for transmitting as a signal, reception demodulation means for receiving and demodulating a transmission signal, character expansion means for expanding the demodulated character code, image expansion means for expanding the demodulated image code, and character A decompression selecting means for selecting either decompression means or image decompression means, and output means for outputting the code obtained by the decompression means as received data. A facsimile machine characterized by the following. 2. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image decompression means automatically identifies a character image from the decompressed image code and converts it into a character code. 3. The compression selecting means transmits the character code to a receiver having a character code transmitting function, and once converts the character code into an image code for a receiver not having the above function. The facsimile machine according to claim 1 or 2, which transmits by transmitting.