JP2000188689A - Image processing method and its system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To output a sharp, high quality image by changing the condition of sharpness emphasizing processing linked with an input means in a picture processing method executing picture processing including sharpness emphasizing processing once at least to image information inputted from an input means and outputting this image-processed image data. SOLUTION: With respect to image information inputted from an input/output means 80, sharpness emphasizing processing is given once at least by image processing part 70 and this processed image data are outputted to an output means 81. When giving sharpness emphasizing processing to image data, the part 70 varies the condition of sharpness emphasizing processing based on at least one of the inputting condition of image data inputted linked with the input means 80, the image pickup condition of image data, the kind of a film recording image data, the S/N characteristics of image data, the expanding or contracting ratio of magnifying or contracting processing, an image outputting style and an output condition.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image processing method and an image processing system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, in a laboratory called a minilab shop, there is a type of work in which a normal print is created by a manned operation by an operator according to a customer's order, and the created print is immediately handed to the customer. . In recent years, originals have been photoelectrically read and used as image data, and prints have been created based on the image data. There is also known an apparatus that reads image data from a card having a memory in which a plurality of frame image data are stored and creates a print.

[0003]

In an apparatus for printing based on such image data, the image data can be processed by various image processing techniques. In addition, for example, there are large format prints, layout prints to rotate and arrange images, dodging and burning effects on images, sharpness conversion processing, etc. to give special effects Or a modified print. Therefore, input means for inputting various image information, output means for image data, and image processing according to various service menus are required.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and performs image processing in accordance with various conditions such as image characteristics, input conditions, and output conditions, and can always obtain a high-quality image. It is an object to provide a method and an image processing system.

[0005]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems and achieve the object, the present invention has the following constitution.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting data to an output unit, wherein the condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the input unit. ].

According to the first aspect of the invention, the input means such as the type of the scanner, the type of the medium, and the like have different noise mixing states in the image, and the input means can obtain only image information with a low S / N. However, noise is too conspicuous in a certain degree of sharpness emphasizing processing, so that an image with high sharpness cannot be obtained. However, in the case of an input unit capable of obtaining image information with a high S / N, there is no similar restriction. High-enhancement processing is possible, and it is possible to output a higher-sharpness, high-quality image by changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the input means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting data to an output means, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an imaging condition of image information input to the input means. ].

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the state of noise mixing into an image differs depending on the imaging conditions of image information input to input means, such as the type of scanner, the type of media, and the like. If you can only get information,
Since noise is too conspicuous in a certain degree of sharpness enhancement processing, an image with high sharpness cannot be obtained. However, when image information with a high S / N is obtained, there is no similar restriction, and processing with higher enhancement is not possible. It is possible to output a sharper and higher quality image by changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement process in conjunction with the imaging condition of the image information input to the input means.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided the image processing method according to the second aspect, wherein the imaging condition of the image information is a storage time of a captured image. ].

According to the third aspect of the present invention, for example, the longer the accumulation time, the higher the S / N, and the shorter the S / N, the lower the S / N. By changing the value, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, an image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film. An image processing method for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in accordance with a type of the film. ].

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, for example, in the case of a negative film, the transmitted light amount in a portion corresponding to a highlight portion is small, and the S / N is deteriorated. Noise is noticeable visually. ―
In the case of a reversal film, the amount of transmitted light in the portion corresponding to the shadow portion is small and the S / N ratio is deteriorated. However, this is equivalent to the high density portion on the print, and the noise is not so noticeable visually. By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the type, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film; An image processing method for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in accordance with a density of image information recorded on the film. 』
It is.

In the fifth aspect of the invention, for example, the lower the density of the frame image of the film, the higher the S / N, and the higher the density, the lower the S / N. By changing the conditions of the sharpness emphasizing process in conjunction with the density of the image, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher quality.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting data to an output means, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an S / N characteristic of image information input from the input means. ].

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the input image data is analyzed, and in the case of an image having a low S / N or an image having many flat portions, noise is too conspicuous by a certain degree of sharpness enhancement, so that the sharpness is not so high. High image quality cannot be obtained,
In the case of an image having a high S / N or an image having a small flat portion, there is no similar restriction, a higher emphasis process can be performed, and an image with higher sharpness and high image quality can be obtained by changing a condition of sharpness emphasis. Can be output.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing and enlargement / reduction processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting image-processed image data to an output means, wherein a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in conjunction with an enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. ].

According to the present invention, the degree of sharpness enhancement required to obtain the same sharpness differs depending on the enlargement / reduction magnification of image processing, and the sharpness enhancement degree depends on the enlargement / reduction magnification. By changing, an appropriate sharp image can be output regardless of the enlargement / reduction magnification. Also,
Depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction, there is a case where a remarkable obstacle occurs due to the moire phenomenon due to an obstacle such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. It is possible to suppress the occurrence of the moiré failure by suppressing the occurrence.

According to the invention described in claim 8, "the image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement processing and the processing according to the service menu is performed on the image information input from the input means for inputting the image information." An image processing method for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. ].

According to the invention described in claim 8, in a scene in which a person is the center, for example, an ID photograph or a portrait, it is necessary to suppress the roughness of the skin more than other general services, and soft depiction is preferred. It is. Therefore, for example, in the case of the ID photo menu, by changing the sharpness enhancement condition in conjunction with the service menu, for example, by changing the sharpness enhancement characteristics, it is possible to provide an image with the optimum image quality. Further, by changing the sharpness enhancement processing in accordance with the gradation processing such as the photographic tone and the printing tone, it is possible to express more realistic photographic tone expression, printing tone expression, and the like.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the output unit. ].

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the sharpness deterioration characteristics at the time of recording differ depending on the output means, and sharpness enhancement is performed in advance in accordance with the characteristics, and the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are linked to the output means. By changing it, it is possible to provide an image having an optimum image quality regardless of the output unit.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, wherein the sharpness enhancement processing is a spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less. Method. ].

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, the sharpness enhancement processing can be realized at high speed with low-cost hardware resources by performing the spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes the magnitude of a coefficient of a spatial filter. Method. ].

According to the eleventh aspect, by changing the magnitude of the coefficient of the spatial filter, it is possible to change the degree of emphasis of the edge portion and control the sharpness of the image.

According to a twelfth aspect of the invention, there is provided the image processing method according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes a frequency characteristic. ].

According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, by changing the frequency characteristic of the sharpness enhancement processing, the roughness characteristic and the appearance of the image due to noise change, for example, when the degree of enhancement of the low frequency component is relatively large. Is relatively noticeable, but the moire phenomenon associated with the enlargement / reduction process is unlikely to occur.When the degree of high frequency component enhancement is relatively large, the roughness is relatively noticeable. Although it is difficult, the moiré phenomenon accompanying the enlargement / reduction processing is likely to occur.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing on image information input from input means for inputting image information; Wherein the interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. ].

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a remarkable failure may occur due to a moire phenomenon due to a failure such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. However, in the vicinity of such magnification, for example, the bicubic, which does not easily cause the moire phenomenon, is applied.In other cases, the processing time can be reduced by applying bilinear or nearest neighbor, and the average processing capacity per unit time can be reduced. Can be suppressed so much that the failure due to the occurrence of the moire phenomenon can be suppressed.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and processing according to a service menu on image information input from an input means for inputting image information; An image processing method for outputting selected image data to an output unit, wherein an interpolation algorithm for enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. ].

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, depending on an interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a remarkable failure may occur due to a moire phenomenon due to a failure such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. However, for services with a small order ratio, such as ID photo menus, the failure is suppressed by applying a bicubic that does not easily cause the moire phenomenon, otherwise processing time is reduced by applying a bilinear or nearest neighbor. It can be shortened and the average processing capacity per unit time can be increased.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information;
An image processing system for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the input unit. ].

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, the input means such as the model of the scanner and the type of the medium differs in the state of noise mixing in the image, and the input means can obtain only image information with low S / N. However, noise is too conspicuous in a certain degree of sharpness emphasizing processing, so that an image with high sharpness cannot be obtained. However, in the case of an input unit capable of obtaining image information with a high S / N, there is no similar restriction. High-enhancement processing is possible, and it is possible to output a higher-sharpness, high-quality image by changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the input means.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from an input means for inputting image information;
An image processing system for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in conjunction with an imaging condition of image information input to the input unit. system. ].

According to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention, the situation of noise mixing in the image differs depending on the imaging conditions of the image information input to the input means, such as the model of the scanner, the type of the medium, and the like. When only information can be obtained, noise is too conspicuous by a certain degree of sharpness enhancement processing, so that an image with very low sharpness cannot be obtained.
If image information with high
Higher emphasis processing is possible, and by changing the conditions of the sharpness emphasis processing in conjunction with the imaging conditions of the image information input to the input means, it is possible to output a higher sharpness and higher quality image. It becomes possible.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing system according to the sixteenth aspect, the imaging condition of the image information is a storage time of a captured image. ].

According to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention, for example, the longer the accumulation time, the higher the S / N, and the shorter the S / N, the lower the S / N. By changing the value, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality.

According to an eighteenth aspect of the present invention, an image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film. An image processing system for outputting image data subjected to image processing to output means, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in accordance with a type of the film. ].

According to the eighteenth aspect of the present invention, for example, in the case of a negative film, the transmitted light amount in a portion corresponding to a highlight portion is small, and the S / N is deteriorated. Noise is noticeable visually. ―
On the other hand, in the case of a reversal film, the transmitted light amount in a portion corresponding to a shadow portion is small, and the S / N is deteriorated. However, this is equivalent to a high density portion on a print, and the noise is not so noticeable visually. By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the type of the film, it is possible to output a higher sharpness and higher quality image.

According to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film; An image processing system for outputting image data subjected to image processing to an output unit, wherein a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in accordance with a density of image information recorded on the film. ].

According to the nineteenth aspect, for example, the lower the density of the frame image of the film, the higher the S / N, and the higher the density, the lower the S / N, and therefore the image information recorded on the film. By changing the conditions of the sharpness emphasizing process in conjunction with the density of the image, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher quality.

According to a twentieth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information;
In an image processing system for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, a condition of a sharpness enhancement process is changed in conjunction with an S / N characteristic of image information input from the input unit. Image processing system. ].

According to the twentieth aspect, the input image data is analyzed, and in the case of an image having a low S / N or an image having many flat portions, noise is too conspicuous by a certain degree of sharpness enhancement. However, in the case of an image having a high S / N or an image having a small flat portion, there is no similar restriction, higher emphasis processing is possible, and the condition of sharpness emphasis is changed. As a result, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: performing at least one image processing including sharpness enhancement processing and enlargement / reduction processing on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing system for outputting image data subjected to image processing to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. ].

According to the twenty-first aspect, the degree of sharpness enhancement required to obtain the same sharpness differs depending on the enlargement / reduction magnification of image processing, and the sharpness enhancement degree depends on the enlargement / reduction magnification. By changing, an appropriate sharp image can be output regardless of the enlargement / reduction magnification. Also, depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction, there is a case where a remarkable obstacle occurs due to the moire phenomenon due to an obstacle such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. By suppressing the processing, the occurrence of moiré failure can be suppressed.

According to a twenty-second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising: performing image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement processing and a processing according to a service menu on image information input from input means for inputting image information; An image processing system for outputting image-processed image data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. ].

According to the invention of claim 22, in a scene in which a person is the center, such as an ID photograph or a portrait, it is necessary to suppress the roughness of the skin more than other general services, and soft depiction is preferred. It is. Therefore, for example, in the case of the ID photo menu, by changing the sharpness enhancement condition in conjunction with the service menu, for example, by changing the sharpness enhancement characteristics, it is possible to provide an image with the optimum image quality. Further, by changing the sharpness enhancement processing in accordance with the gradation processing such as the photographic tone and the printing tone, it is possible to express more realistic photographic tone expression, printing tone expression, and the like.

According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including sharpness enhancement processing at least once on image information input from input means for inputting image information;
An image processing system for outputting image data subjected to image processing to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the output unit. ].

According to the twenty-third aspect, the sharpness deterioration characteristic at the time of recording differs depending on the output means, and sharpness enhancement is performed in advance according to the characteristic, and the condition of the sharpness enhancement processing is linked to the output means. By changing it, it is possible to provide an image having an optimum image quality regardless of the output unit.

According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus according to any one of the fifteenth to twenty-third aspects, wherein the sharpness enhancement processing is a spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less. system. ].

According to the twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, sharpness enhancement processing can be performed at high speed with low-cost hardware resources by performing spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less.

According to a twenty-fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus according to any one of the fifteenth to twenty-third aspects, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes a magnitude of a coefficient of a spatial filter. system. ].

According to the twenty-fifth aspect, by changing the magnitude of the coefficient of the spatial filter, it is possible to change the degree of emphasis on the edge portion and control the sharpness of the image.

(26) The image processing system according to any one of (15) to (23), wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes a frequency characteristic. ].

According to the twenty-sixth aspect of the present invention, by changing the frequency characteristics of the sharpness enhancement processing, the roughness characteristics and appearance of the image due to noise are changed. For example, when the degree of enhancement of the low frequency component is relatively large. Is relatively noticeable, but the moire phenomenon associated with the enlargement / reduction process is unlikely to occur.When the degree of high frequency component enhancement is relatively large, the roughness is relatively noticeable. Although it is difficult, the moiré phenomenon accompanying the enlargement / reduction processing is likely to occur.

According to a twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing on image information input from input means for inputting image information; Wherein the interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. ].

According to the twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a remarkable failure may occur due to a moire phenomenon due to a failure such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. However, in the vicinity of such magnification, for example, the bicubic, which does not easily cause the moire phenomenon, is applied.In other cases, the processing time can be reduced by applying bilinear or nearest neighbor, and the average processing capacity per unit time can be reduced. Can be suppressed so much that the failure due to the occurrence of the moire phenomenon can be suppressed.

According to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus comprising the steps of: performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and processing according to a service menu on image information input from an input means for inputting image information; An image processing system for outputting the processed image data to an output means, wherein an interpolation algorithm for enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. ].

According to the twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, depending on an interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a remarkable failure may occur due to a moire phenomenon due to a failure such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. However, for services with a small order ratio, such as ID photo menus, the failure is suppressed by applying a bicubic that does not easily cause the moire phenomenon, otherwise processing time is reduced by applying a bilinear or nearest neighbor. It can be shortened and the average processing capacity per unit time can be increased.

[0062]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the image processing method and the image processing system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the image processing method and the image processing system of the present invention are not limited to this embodiment,
As an output device, a print creation device for creating a print, a device for storing image data in an image storage device, a transfer device for transferring image data via a LAN, and the like can be used. Is applied to a print creation apparatus and a print creation system having a print creation device as an output device.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a print making apparatus and a print making system. Here, as a print creation device, a device that exposes and develops a photosensitive material to create a print is exemplified, but the invention is not limited thereto, and any device that can create a print based on image data may be used. , An ink-jet type or an electrophotographic type print producing apparatus may be used, but a type using a photosensitive material is particularly preferable in the present invention.

The print creation device 1 of this embodiment
A magazine loading section 3 is provided on the left side surface of the apparatus main body 2, and an exposure processing section 4 for exposing a photosensitive material as a recording medium to the apparatus main body 2 is developed. A print creating unit 5 for creating is provided, and the created print is discharged to a tray 6 provided on the right side of the apparatus main body 2. Further, a control unit 7 is provided inside the apparatus main body 2 at a position above the exposure processing unit 4.

A CRT 8 is arranged on the upper part of the apparatus main body 2. The CRT 8 constitutes display means for displaying an image of image data to be printed on a screen. On the left side of the CRT 8, a film scanner 9 which is a transparent original reading device is arranged, and on the right side, a reflective original input device 10 is arranged.

The film scanner 9 and the reflection original input device 1
There is a photographic light-sensitive material as an original read from 0. Examples of the photographic light-sensitive material include a color negative film and a color reversal film, and frame image information captured by an analog camera is recorded. Film scanner 9
Can be converted into digital information by a film scanner of this type and used as frame image information. When the photographic material is color paper, frame image information can be obtained by the flatbed scanner of the reflection document input device 10.

In the position of the control unit 7 of the apparatus main body 2,
An image transfer unit 14 is provided. The image transfer section 14 is provided with a PC card adapter 14a and a floppy disk adapter 14b, so that the PC card 13a and the floppy disk 13b can be inserted. The PC card 13a has a memory in which a plurality of frame image information captured by a digital camera is stored. The floppy disk 13b stores a plurality of pieces of frame image information captured by, for example, a digital camera.

An operation unit 11 is disposed in front of the CRT 8.
The operation unit 11 is provided with an information input unit 12, and the information input unit 12 is configured by, for example, a touch panel or the like.

The apparatus main body 2 is provided with a recording medium writing section 15 for storing a photographic photosensitive material N or a PC card 13.
a) When outputting all the frame image information from a recording medium having a plurality of frame image information such as the floppy disk 13b and creating a print, all the frame image information in the recording medium is written to a magnetic recording medium or an optical recording medium. Writing means K
Having.

Other recording media having the frame image information according to the present invention include multimedia cards, memory sticks, MD data, and OROMs.

The operation unit 11, the CRT 8, the film scanner 9, the reflection document input device 10, the image transfer unit 14, and the recording medium writing unit 15 are provided integrally with the apparatus main body 2. The above may be provided separately. In this case, the print creation device 1 is treated as a print creation system.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a print creation apparatus and a print creation system.

The control unit 7 of the print creating apparatus 1 reads the document information from the film scanner unit 9 and the reflection document input device 10 based on the command information from the information input unit 12, obtains the image data, and outputs the image data to the CRT 8. indicate.

Further, the print creating apparatus 1 includes a data storage means 71. The data storage means 71 stores image data and corresponding order information (information on how many prints are to be made from which frame image, print size information, etc.). ) Is stored and sequentially accumulated. From the film scanner 9, a frame image from the developed negative film N obtained by developing the negative film captured by the analog camera is input, and from the reflection document input device 10, the frame image is printed on photographic paper and developed. The frame image from the printed print P is input.

The control section 7 has an image processing section 70. The image processing section 70 processes the image data to form image data for exposure, and sends the image data to the exposure processing section 4. In the exposure processing section 4, an image is exposed on the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material is sent to the print creating section 5, and the photosensitive material exposed in the print creating section 5 is developed and dried to create a print.

The print creating apparatus 1 is provided with an image transfer section 14 for reading and transferring frame image information of a PC card 13a or a floppy disk 13b which is captured and stored by a digital camera. This image transfer unit 1
4 is provided with a PC card adapter, a floppy disk adapter and the like as the image transfer means 30. The PC card 13a is inserted into the PC card adapter 14a, or the floppy disk adapter 14b is inserted.
Insert the floppy disk 13b into the PC card 1
3a and the frame image information recorded on the floppy disk 13b are read and transferred to the control unit 7 composed of a microcomputer. As the PC card adapter 14a,
For example, a PC card reader or a PC card slot is used.

In the print producing apparatus 1, normal print P1, file print P2 and index print P3 are performed. The normal print P1 is created by recording one frame image data on one recording medium. In the normal print P1, for example, a square composite area is set on a background image having a predetermined pattern, and one frame image is composited and recorded in the composite area, and a normal print size decorated with a photo frame is recorded. May be created. By recording one piece of frame image data on the print P1 of one recording medium in this manner,
For example, it is possible to create a favorite special print that can be put in a wallet, a regular period, or the like according to a customer's order.

The file print P2 is formed by recording a plurality of frame images on a single large-format file recording medium. For example, a print format in which a plurality of images are arranged and printed on one recording medium and can be directly spelled out in an album file, etc.
This is a format in which a comment column and the like can be recorded on a recording medium designed in advance. Also in the file print P2, for example, a combination area (a place where an output image is arranged in a recording medium for file printing) is set in, for example, three to ten places on a background image having a predetermined pattern, and the three places are combined. One frame image may be combined and recorded in each area. Also, file print P2
In, the cut line may be recorded in the background, and the cut line can be used to create a favorite special print that can be easily and neatly cut and put into a wallet or a regular period. .

The index print P3 is for printing all of the frame image information on a recording medium of a predetermined size so as to be convenient for ordering the print again.

The print creation apparatus 1 outputs all the frame image information in the recording medium from a recording medium having a plurality of pieces of frame image information to create a print. A recording medium writing unit 15 for writing to a magnetic recording medium or an optical recording medium is provided. The writing unit K provided in the recording medium writing unit 15 writes all the frame image information in the recording medium stored in the data storage unit 71 to the magnetic recording medium 16 or the optical recording medium 17. At this time, the image data stored in the data storage unit 71 written to the time recording medium 16 or the optical recording medium 17 by the writing unit K is the image data that has been subjected to the image processing by the image processing unit 70 described later, The image data may be input by the input unit 80.

The recording medium having a plurality of pieces of frame image information is a developed negative film or a developed reversal film as described above. Further, the developed negative film or the developed reversal film is scanned by a film scanner of the film scanner 9, converted into digital information, and sent to the control unit 7.

The recording medium having a plurality of pieces of frame image information is a PC card 13a or a floppy disk 13b. The PC card 13a is a smart media or a compact flash. The data is transferred to the control unit 7 composed of a computer.

The magnetic recording medium 16 is selected from a floppy disk, MO, or Zip. By storing digital image information converted from these, storage becomes easy. Also, if the optical recording medium 17 is a CD-R
Or, it is a DVD, and storing the digital image information converted from them facilitates storage.

The storage cases 20 and 21 in which the magnetic recording medium 16 or the optical recording medium 17 is stored are set, and the storage cases 20 and 21 have all the frame image information recorded on the recording medium. It has a structure for storing the index print P3.

Storage cases 20 and 21 of this embodiment
The front cover 20a, 21a and the back cover 20b, 21b can be opened and closed, and the magnetic recording medium 16 or the optical recording medium 17 is housed inside. Transparent covers 20c, 2 for storing index prints P3 in front covers 20a, 21a
1c is provided.

Thus, the storage cases 20 and 21 in which the magnetic recording medium 16 or the optical recording medium 17 is stored are set, and the storage cases 20 and 21 store all the frame image information recorded on the recording medium. Since the recorded index print P3 is stored, storage becomes easy.

The print creating apparatus 1 performs image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process on the image information input from the input means 80 for inputting the image information. The image data subjected to the image processing is output to the output unit 81. As the input means 80,
There are a film scanner 9, a reflection document input device 10, an image transfer unit 14, and the like. An output means 81 includes a CRT 8, an exposure processing unit 4, a recording medium writing unit 15, and the like. Hard copy output or monitor screen display or image recording Outputs image data to a medium.

The sharpness emphasizing process is a process for removing "blur" which is one of the causes of image quality deterioration, and performing image sharpening as a method for sharpening the image. Image blurring is caused by the weakening of high spatial frequency components compared to low spatial frequency components. The effect appears at the boundary (edge) of a region having a uniform density. Therefore, in order to remove blur, a process of enhancing a high spatial frequency component is performed, and a high-frequency enhancement filter in the image space is used.

FIG. 3 shows an example of this image sharpening.
FIG. 3A shows an ideal edge cross section without blur.
FIG. 3 (b) shows a cross section of the blurred edge, and FIG. 3 (c) shows the Laplacian of the blurred edge in FIG. 3 (b). Figure
FIG. 3E shows a spatial filter (weight matrix) for sharpness enhancement processing (spatial filtering) performed on 3 (b).

When the Laplacian is subtracted from the original image in this manner, as shown in FIG. 3D, an undershoot occurs at the lower end of the blurred edge and an overshoot occurs at the upper end, and the gradient of the density becomes steep. The edge contrast is enhanced. That is, this filter can obtain an output similar to the Mach effect of the human visual system.

To sharpen the image in the spatial frequency domain, the image f (i, j) is Fourier-transformed, and the Fourier-transformed image F (u, v) is subjected to a high-frequency enhancement filter. , And inverse Fourier transform. As the high-frequency emphasis filter, a function monotonically increasing with respect to the absolute value | u + v | of the spatial frequency may be used.

In this embodiment, when sharpness enhancement processing is performed on image data, the input conditions of the image data input by the input means (the type of input means and the input Conditions, etc.)), imaging conditions of the first image data, the type of film on which the first image data was recorded, and the first image data on the film on which the first image data was recorded. Corresponding to the density, the S / N characteristic of the first image data, the enlargement or reduction rate of the enlargement or reduction processing performed on the first image data, the image output mode by the output device, and the output by the output device The image processing unit 70 changes the condition of the sharpness enhancement process based on at least one of the conditions. The conditions for the sharpness enhancement processing include, for example, processing conditions for enhancing high spatial frequency components. For example, depending on the input means 80 such as the model of the scanner and the type of the medium, the mixing state of the noise into the image is different. Is too conspicuous, so that an image with high sharpness cannot be obtained. However, in the case of the input unit 80 that can obtain image information with high S / N, there is no similar restriction, and processing with higher emphasis can be performed. By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the input means, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image. When changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement process in conjunction with the input means, for example,
As shown in FIG. 1, the processing condition of the sharpness enhancement processing is changed based on the type of input means and the input method (input condition) of image data. In the following, the "radius parameter"
The distance between the farthest pixel to be smoothed and the pixel of interest,
"Extreme neighborhood processing" refers to performing processing with a smaller radius parameter.

[0093]

[Table 1]

When the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed in conjunction with the imaging conditions of the image information input to the input means 80, the processing conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed as shown in Table 2, for example. Can be done. For example, depending on the imaging conditions of the image information input to the input unit 80 such as the model of the scanner and the type of the medium, the situation of noise mixing in the image differs, and only image information with a low S / N can be obtained.
Since noise is too conspicuous in a certain degree of sharpness enhancement processing, an image with high sharpness cannot be obtained. However, when image information with a high S / N is obtained, there is no similar restriction, and processing with higher enhancement is not possible. It is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality by changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement process in conjunction with the imaging condition of the image information input to the input means 80.

[0095]

[Table 2]

For example, C provided in the film scanner 9
In a CD, the longer the storage time (shutter speed), the higher the S / N, and the shorter the S / N, the lower the S / N. Therefore, by changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the storage time of the captured image. It is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality.

When the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed in accordance with the type of the film on which the image data input by the input means is recorded, for example, as shown in Table 3, Conditions can be changed. For example, in the case of a negative film, the amount of transmitted light in a portion corresponding to a highlight portion is small and the S / N ratio is deteriorated, but this corresponds to a low density portion on a print, and noise is visually noticeable. On the other hand, in the case of a reversal film, the transmitted light amount in a portion corresponding to a shadow portion is small, and the S / N
However, this is equivalent to a high density part on the print, and the noise is not so noticeable visually, so by changing the conditions of sharpness enhancement processing according to the type of film, higher sharpness can be achieved. High quality images can be output.

[0098]

[Table 3]

When the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed based on the density corresponding to the image data on the film on which the image data input by the input means is recorded, for example, as shown in Table 4 In addition, the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing can be changed. For example, the lower the density of the frame image of the film, the higher the S / N, and the higher the density, the lower the S / N. Therefore, the sharpness enhancement processing is performed in conjunction with the density of the image information recorded on the film. By changing the conditions, it is possible to output an image with higher sharpness and higher image quality.

[0100]

[Table 4]

When the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed in accordance with the S / N characteristics of the image data input by the input means, for example, as shown in Table 5, the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed. Can be changed. The input image data is analyzed, and in the case of an image having a low S / N or an image having many flat portions, noise is too conspicuous by a certain degree of sharpness enhancement, so that image quality with a very high sharpness cannot be obtained.
In the case of an image having a high / N ratio or an image having a small number of flat portions, there is no similar restriction, a higher emphasis process can be performed, and a higher sharpness and a higher image quality can be obtained by changing the sharpness emphasis condition. It is possible to output.

[0102]

[Table 5]

When the image processing section 70 performs image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and sharpness processing on the image data, the image processing section 70 sets the sharpness according to the enlargement / reduction rate in the enlargement / reduction processing. When changing the conditions of the enhancement processing, for example, as shown in Table 6, the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing can be changed.

[0104]

[Table 6]

As the image enlargement / reduction processing, in the case of enlarging an image, digital processing requires a process called interpolation. FIG. 4 shows the interpolation process using an example in which the original image is enlarged twice. In order to perform image processing such as enlargement / reduction, first, a mesh having an interval of a reciprocal of the magnification is overlaid on the original image, and its grid point is set as one pixel on the converted image. In the example of FIG. 4, the pixel Q on the converted image is a point P on the original image.
Corresponding to Since the point P is between pixels on the original image, its pixel data needs to be calculated from surrounding pixel information. By making the calculation result the pixel data of the conversion pixel Q, a conversion image (enlarged image) is created. This process is called interpolation. The same is true for reduction.

The degree of sharpness enhancement required to obtain the same sharpness differs depending on the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing.
By changing the degree of sharpness enhancement according to the enlargement / reduction magnification, it is possible to output an appropriate sharpness image regardless of the enlargement / reduction magnification. Also, depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction, there is a case where a remarkable obstacle occurs due to the moire phenomenon due to an obstacle such as noise near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification. By suppressing the processing, the occurrence of moiré failure can be suppressed. In the case where the noise removal processing and the sharpness enhancement processing are performed after the enlargement processing, the effect becomes more localized under the same condition processing as the enlargement magnification is higher, and the effect is difficult to recognize. Therefore,
In the noise elimination, the processing radius is increased, the pitch of neighboring pixels to be smoothed is increased, and the threshold parameter is increased. Also, in the sharpness enhancement processing, a coefficient shifted to the enhancement of the low frequency component and a coefficient with a large enhancement degree are applied. On the other hand, when the reduction ratio is large, the operation becomes broad under the same condition processing, and the effect becomes excessive. Therefore, in noise removal, measures such as reducing the radius of the arithmetic processing, decreasing the pitch of neighboring pixels to be smoothed, and decreasing the threshold parameter are taken. Also, for the sharpness enhancement processing, a coefficient limited to high frequency component enhancement and a coefficient with a small enhancement degree are applied.

The image information input from the input means 80 for inputting image information is subjected to at least one image processing including a sharpness enhancement process and a process according to a service menu, and the image processing is performed. When the image data is output to the output unit 81 and the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed in conjunction with the service menu (output style), the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing are changed as shown in Table 7, for example. be able to. For example, in a scene where a person is the center, such as an ID photograph or a portrait, it is necessary to suppress skin roughness more than other general services, and soft depiction is preferred. Therefore, for example, in the case of the ID photograph menu, the image of the optimum image quality can be provided by changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the service menu (output style), such as changing the characteristics of sharpness enhancement. Further, by changing the sharpness enhancement processing in accordance with the gradation processing such as the photographic tone and the printing tone, it is possible to express more realistic photographic tone expression, printing tone expression, and the like.

[0108]

[Table 7]

Further, the image information input from the input means 80 for inputting the image information is subjected to at least one image processing including sharpness enhancement processing, and the image data subjected to the image processing is output to the output means 81. Output, and when the condition of the sharpness enhancement process is changed in conjunction with the output unit 81,
For example, as shown in Table 8, the sharpness deterioration characteristics at the time of recording differ depending on the output means 81 such as the CRT 8, the exposure processing unit 4, the recording medium writing unit 15, and the like, and the sharpness enhancement according to the characteristics is performed in advance. By changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement processing in accordance with the output unit 81 (based on the type of the output unit 81 and the output method (output condition) of the image data), an image having an optimum image quality can be obtained regardless of the output unit 81. Can be provided. Output means that can be assumed include print output by the exposure unit, file (image data file) output to various media (including cases via a network, etc.), CR
Display output to the T-monitor. In particular,
The optimum image processing conditions are switched according to the characteristics of the output device, and output is performed. In the case of file output, the user himself performs photo retouching and processing after that. Therefore, in order to suppress the processing of the input image as much as possible, sharpness enhancement and noise removal are suppressed to low-level operations.

[0110]

[Table 8]

As the method of the interpolation processing, for example, the nearest neighbor, bilinear, bicubic and the like can be mentioned.

The nearest neighbor is the nearest zero-order interpolation, and gives data of a pixel of a grid closest to the distance among four pixels P1 to P4 around a point P whose brightness is unknown. This method is fast because the algorithm is simple.

The bilinear is a four-point linear interpolation, which is obtained by linearly interpolating four neighboring pixels P1 to P4 surrounding P.

[0114]

(Equation 1)

Here, f1 and f2 indicate the internal division ratio based on the distance between P1 and P4, and are given by the following equations.

[0116]

(Equation 2)

In this method, a smoother processed image can be obtained than in the nearest neighbor method.

The bicubic is a cubic convolution interpolation. What is 3D convolution interpolation?
Unlike bilinear, interpolation is not performed by referring to only four neighboring pixels, but is performed by referring to 16 pixels to perform more accurate calculation.

For simplicity, considering one dimension, P1, P2, P3, P4 and P1 to P4
Consider a smooth curve passing through four points, but combine four separate curves passing through four points into a single smooth curve passing through four points. Consider the following curve as a base curve.

[0120]

(Equation 3)

This function becomes a curve as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 7, the target curve is obtained by translating the central peak of the curve in FIG. 6 so as to come to P1 to P4, multiplying the magnitudes of P1 to P4 by four curves. Are obtained by synthesizing

Therefore, the interpolation calculation at the point P is

[0124]

(Equation 4)

When this is extended and interpolation of a secondary plane is considered,

[0126]

(Equation 5)

Equation 5 is obtained. However, x1 to x4
Is the x coordinate obtained using the x coordinate of the point to be interpolated as the origin, and y1 to y4 are the y coordinates obtained in the same manner.

By using this method, a processed image having a smoother edge portion can be obtained more smoothly than a processed image obtained by nearest neighbor and bilinear interpolation.

It is preferable that the sharpness enhancement processing is performed by using a spatial filter having a size of 5 × 5 or less. A particularly preferred spatial filter size is 3
× 3 or more and 5 × 5 or less. The spatial filter processing includes, for example, that shown in FIG. FIG. 5 shows a calculation method of spatial filtering. The operation of filtering the input image f (m, n) with the weight matrix W (k, l) is performed as follows. (I) First, the center of the load matrix W (k, l) is f
W is set to match a point (i, j) on (m, n).
Overlay (k, l) on f (m, n). (Ii) In a partial image of W (k, l) and f (m, n) overlapping with it, a product for each element at each corresponding position is obtained, and the sum of them is output image g (m, n)
Let it be the value at point (i, j) in the middle. (Iii) The operation (ii) is performed at each position while shifting the position of the load matrix by one pixel.

By performing such spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less, sharpness enhancement processing can be realized at high speed with low-cost hardware resources.

To change the sharpness enhancement processing,
It is preferable to realize this by changing the magnitude of the coefficient of the spatial filter. Specifically, the sharpness of the image is changed by changing the magnitude of the coefficient of the spatial filter so as to satisfy the processing conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing as shown in Tables 1 to 8. Can be controlled. here,
“Changing the magnitude of the coefficients of the spatial filter” means to multiply all the coefficients of the spatial filter by a certain number without substantially changing the frequency transfer characteristics of the spatial filter, and the frequency transfer characteristics are substantially the same. The magnitude of the filter coefficient between the two can be determined by the magnitude of the absolute value of any corresponding coefficient. In addition, the fact that the frequency transfer characteristics are substantially the same means that the coefficient arrangement patterns are similar, and all the coefficients (in the case of a 3 × 3 filter, all 9 coefficients, 5 × 5 filter In the case of, it is assumed that the correlation coefficient between all 25 coefficients is 0.9 or more.

To change the sharpness enhancement processing,
It is preferable to change the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing so that the spatial frequency characteristics of the image data after the sharpness enhancement processing are different. The spatial frequency characteristic of the image data after the sharpness enhancement processing is affected by the product of the spatial frequency transfer characteristic of the spatial filter itself (which is obtained by performing a Fourier transform on the spatial filter). Therefore, in order to change the spatial frequency characteristic of the image data after the sharpness enhancement processing, the coefficient of the spatial filter may be changed. In addition, anisotropic or asymmetric types can be set according to characteristics such as the type of input means, the type of input condition or output means, and the output conditions. In the low-order filter, the content of the sharpness enhancement processing is limited to the control of the high-frequency component. However, the higher-order filter has a greater degree of freedom in coefficient setting and can control the low-frequency component. As described above, by changing the processing conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing, the characteristics and appearance of the image roughness due to noise change. For example, when the enhancement degree of the low frequency component is relatively large,
Roughness that is relatively noticeable is likely to appear,
When the degree of emphasis of the high frequency component is relatively large, the moire phenomenon due to the reduction processing is less likely to occur. Become.

In the present embodiment, when performing noise removal processing on image data, the image data input conditions (input type and input Conditions), imaging conditions for image data, type of film on which the image data was recorded, density corresponding to the image data on the film on which the image data was recorded, S / N characteristics of the image data, image data The image processing unit 70 changes the condition of the noise removal processing based on at least one of the enlargement or reduction ratio of the enlargement or reduction processing performed on the image, the image output mode by the output device, and the output condition by the output device.

An example of a specific algorithm of the noise removal processing will be described below.

In this image processing (noise removal processing), the image data of the target pixel and the image data of the peripheral pixels are sequentially compared from the vicinity, and the calculation result obtained based on the image data whose difference does not exceed the threshold value is processed. Used as image data.

Example 1 of Noise Removal Processing The image to be calculated in the image processing is indicated by a black circle in FIG. 8, and the calculation processing is performed from the upper stage from left to right (raster direction). Each image data on the left side of the same line is calculated.

First, the absolute value of the difference between each image data of the mark and the image data of the black circle is compared with a predetermined threshold value (the threshold value itself may be constant or may be changed by the image data of the black circle), and all threshold values are compared. Is larger, all the pixels of the mark are to be smoothed. If not, the image data indicated by the black circle is used as the processing result.

If the mark is to be smoothed, then the absolute value of the difference between each image data of the mark and the image data of the black circle is compared with a predetermined threshold value. Are set as smoothing targets. Otherwise, the processing result is the average of the black circled image data and the image data that has been subjected to smoothing.

When the mark is to be smoothed, the absolute value of the difference between each image data of the mark and the image data of the black circle is compared with a predetermined threshold value. If all the threshold values are larger, the pixel of the mark is determined. All are to be smoothed. Otherwise, the average of the image data indicated by the black circle and the image data that has been subjected to smoothing is determined as the processing result.

When the mark is to be smoothed, the difference between each image data of the mark and the image data of the black circle is compared with a predetermined threshold value. If all the threshold values are larger, all the pixels of the mark are smoothed. Processing. Otherwise, the average of the image data indicated by the black circle and the image data that has been subjected to smoothing is determined as the processing result.

When a mark is to be smoothed, the processing result is the average of the image data of the black circle including the mark and the image data which has been smoothed so far.

When calculating the average, the difference between the image data to be smoothed and the image data with black circles is integrated, and the result is divided by the number of pixels to be smoothed + 1 (for black circles). The result may be added to the image data, and the image data can be processed easily and at high speed.

In this case, if a previously prepared division table shown in Table 9 (which can subtract the quotient from the dividend and the divisor) is used, high-speed processing can be performed even in a processing system having a slow division processing speed. The image data can be processed at a high speed by referring to a preset table instead of performing the sequential division.

[0144]

[Table 9]

The integrated value of the difference indicates the adjustment amount in the integration step. When the integrated value of the difference is positive, the processing result adds the adjustment amount to the original data. When the integrated value of the difference is negative, the processing result is obtained by subtracting the adjustment amount from the original data.

When the processing result was applied to an image in which a feeling of roughness was worrisome, it was possible to remove the roughness without deteriorating sharpness at an extremely high speed, and to obtain a satisfactory high-quality image. .

In the first embodiment, the distance of the comparison pixel from the target pixel in the direction B perpendicular to the raster direction is limited rather than the raster direction A of the comparison target. High-speed processing can be performed by shortening the processing time for obtaining.

Further, by using a part of the image data of the peripheral pixels using the image data which has already been subjected to the arithmetic processing, the effect of improving the image quality is high, and the processing time for obtaining the necessary effect is shortened, and the high-speed processing is realized. it can.

The image data of the pixel of interest and the image data of the peripheral pixels are sequentially compared from the vicinity, and the image data whose difference does not exceed a predetermined value is limited to a specific number. The improvement effect is high, and the processing time for obtaining the required effect can be shortened to perform high-speed processing.

By using different values for the predetermined value in the first embodiment depending on the image data of the target pixel and / or the distance of the comparison pixel from the target pixel, it is possible to perform image processing with a high image quality improving effect.

When the target image is a color image composed of image data of a plurality of colors, the predetermined value uses a different value depending on the combination condition of the image data of the target pixel. In addition, even before the difference between the image data exceeds the predetermined value, the arithmetic processing is terminated with a predetermined amount of image data,
The effect of improving image quality is high, and high-speed processing can be performed by shortening the processing time for obtaining the required effect.

Embodiment 2 of Noise Removal Processing The image to be calculated in the image processing is indicated by a black circle in FIG.
In the same manner as in, the calculation process proceeds from left to right (raster direction) from the top, and it is assumed that each image data on the left side of the same line as the line above the black circle has been processed. The second embodiment has the same processing procedure as the first embodiment, and the division table is omitted.

The image processing of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. However, since the image data of the peripheral pixels are sequentially used at intervals, the effect of improving the image quality is high and the processing for obtaining the necessary effects is achieved. High-speed processing can be performed by shortening the time.

In the second embodiment, the effect of improving the image quality is remarkably higher than that of the first embodiment for an image read at a high resolution or an image in which low frequency component noise is conspicuous.

Tables 1 to 8 show specific ways of changing the conditions of the noise removal processing.

Further, in this embodiment, in conjunction with the input means 80 (input conditions of the image data input by the input means (type of input means, conditions at the time of input, etc.)), the imaging conditions of the image data, The type of film on which the image data was recorded, the density corresponding to the image data on the film on which the image data was recorded, the S / N characteristics of the image data,
Image processing performed by the image processing unit 70 on image data based on at least one of an enlargement or reduction ratio of an enlargement or reduction process performed on image data, an image output mode by the output device, and an output condition by the output device. And the number of times of image processing are changed. Table 10 shows specific examples.
Shown in Specifically, by combining the conditions of each item,
Determine the processing procedure. In principle, the processing conditions of the corresponding conditions of each item are combined, but when the order and the like are different, it is preferable to determine the priority order between the items and respect the items with higher priority.

[0157]

[Table 10]

The coefficients of the spatial processing filter for sharpness enhancement processing, the parameters for noise removal processing, the interpolation algorithm for enlargement / reduction processing, the number of times of image processing, and the order of image processing are shown in the table.
Tables of specific filter coefficients, parameters for noise removal processing, interpolation algorithms for enlargement / reduction processing, number of times of image processing, and order of image processing are prepared in accordance with Tables 1 to 8, and stored in the data storage unit 71. To memorize it. As examples of this table, Table 11 shows a table of coefficients of a spatial processing filter for sharpness enhancement processing, and Table 12 shows a table of parameters for noise removal processing.

The input conditions of the image data input by the input means (the type of the input means and the conditions at the time of input), the imaging conditions of the image data, the type of the film on which the image data is recorded, the image data The density corresponding to the image data on the film on which was recorded, the S / N characteristics of the image data, the enlargement or reduction rate of the enlargement or reduction processing performed on the image data, the image output format by the output device, and the output device According to the output conditions,
In order for the image processing means 70 to be able to select the most optimal processing parameters, the control unit 7 previously provides input conditions (such as the type of input means and conditions for inputting) of image data input by the input means, Imaging conditions of the image data, the type of the film on which the image data was recorded, the density corresponding to the image data on the film on which the image data was recorded,
S / N characteristics of the image data, the enlargement or reduction rate of the enlargement or reduction processing performed on the image data, the image output format by the output device, and the output condition by the output device, the table that associates the parameters of the image processing. Remember. This example is shown in Table 13. Table 13 shows the enlargement / reduction when applying image processing including enlargement / reduction processing to the image data obtained by reading the negative with the film scanner 9.
This is an example of a table used for selecting a processing parameter according to a reduction ratio. The table stores input conditions for image data (such as the type of input means and conditions for inputting), imaging conditions for image data, and image data. Similarly, a table for changing processing parameters according to the density corresponding to the image data on the film, the S / N characteristics of the image data, the image output mode by the output device, and the output condition by the output device is also a control unit. Just remember it in 7.

The image processing means 70 includes input conditions (such as types of input means and input conditions) of image data input by the input means, which are input in association with the image data.
Image data imaging conditions, type of film on which the image data was recorded, density corresponding to the image data on the film on which the image data was recorded, S / N of the image data
Characteristics, enlargement or reduction ratio of enlargement or reduction processing performed on image data, image output style by the output device,
The filter number, the processing order designation, the noise removal mask number, the enlargement / reduction algorithm number, the number of image processing, and the like are selected from Table 13 according to the output conditions of the output device. Then, based on the selected filter number, processing order designation, noise removal mask number, enlargement / reduction algorithm number, number of times of image processing, etc.
Specific parameters of image processing such as 1 and Table 12 are selected. The image processing means 70 performs image processing on the image data based on the selected image processing parameters.

[0161]

[Table 11]

[0162]

[Table 12]

[0163]

[Table 13]

Further, in this embodiment, image processing including enlargement / reduction processing is performed on image information input from the input means 80 for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to the output means 81. And the interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. Depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a trouble such as noise may be caused near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification due to a moiré phenomenon. By applying a bicubic that is unlikely to cause phenomena, otherwise applying a bilinear or nearest neighbor, etc., the processing time can be shortened, and the average processing capacity per unit time does not decrease so much. Failure caused by occurrence can be suppressed. Specifically, the effect of smoothness is particularly large when the magnification is high, and moiré becomes a problem when the magnification is close to 1 ×, 1 ×, or 1 / integer. Therefore, control may be performed to avoid the problematic interpolation method according to the magnification. For example, a method is conceivable in which, in principle, linear interpolation is employed in terms of processing speed, and uniform smoothing interpolation is employed at a magnification at which moire is a problem.
Table 14 below shows the effects obtained when these interpolation methods are employed in the present embodiment. The range of the enlargement magnification at which uniform smoothing should be adopted is registered in advance, and the contents may be referred to when the enlargement is pasted, and the interpolation algorithm may be selected. Since the sharpness is slightly affected by the interpolation algorithm, the control may be reflected in the sharpness emphasizing condition.

[0165]

[Table 14]

Here, two specific methods for uniform averaging (No. 1 and No. 2) will be described.

The smoothing method equal interpolation method (1) will be described.

The sampling point closest to the interpolation point T is S22, and the surrounding sampling points are determined as shown in FIG. A coordinate system with S22 as the origin is determined, and the horizontal coordinate values of each sampling point Sji (i = 1 to 3, j = 1 to 3) are xji (xji = -1, xj2 = 0, xj3 = + 1), The vertical coordinate values are represented by yji (yji = -1, yj2 = 0, yj3 = +
1), and each sampling value is represented by zji. The horizontal coordinate of the interpolation point is represented by x, and the interpolation value is represented by z. here,

[0169]

(Equation 6)

Then, the complementary expression is

[0171]

(Equation 7)

It is assumed that In the above formula, for any x, y

[0173]

(Equation 8)

The following holds. Next, the smoothing operation equal interpolation method (2) will be described.

The sampling point closest to the interpolation point T is S22, and the surrounding sampling points are determined as shown in FIG. A coordinate system with S22 as the origin is determined, and the horizontal coordinate values of each sampling point Sji (i = 1 to 3, j = 1 to 3) are xji (xji = -1, xj2 = 0, xj3 = + 1), The vertical coordinate values are represented by yji (yji = -1, yj2 = 0, yj3 = +
1), and each sampling value is represented by zji. The horizontal coordinate of the interpolation point is represented by x, and the interpolation value is represented by z. here,

[0176]

(Equation 9)

Then, the complement expression is

[0178]

(Equation 10)

It is assumed that In the above formula, for any x, y

[0180]

[Equation 11]

The following holds.

The evaluation results of the print at an enlargement magnification of 1.05 are shown. As a comparative example, in the linear interpolation method, although the processing time is short, the occurrence of moiré is remarkable, and the lattice pattern in an image with a high noise level can be visually recognized. It is. In the smoothing method equal interpolation method (part 1) according to the embodiment of the present invention, although the processing time is slightly longer, the occurrence of moire is reduced, and the lattice pattern in an image with a high noise level has almost disappeared. Also,
In the smoothing method equal interpolation method (part 2) according to the embodiment of the present invention, although the processing time is slightly longer, the occurrence of moire almost disappeared, and the lattice pattern in an image with a high noise level also almost disappeared.

Further, in this embodiment, image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and processing according to a service menu is performed on image information input from the input means 80 for inputting image information. The output image data is output to the output unit 81, and the interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. Depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, there is a case where remarkable failure occurs due to the moire phenomenon near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification due to obstacles such as noise. For services with a small ratio, apply bicubic, which is less likely to cause moiré, to suppress failures.Otherwise, use bilinear or near-less tray bars to reduce processing time and reduce the average processing time per unit time. Can be raised. Moire may become a serious problem due to circumstances such as a high noise level and halftone dots in the image structure. Therefore, when the negative density is abnormally high (over-exposure) or abnormally low (under-exposure) in the “Negative Print Copy Service”, in the case of a high-sensitivity negative, and when the original is a printed matter in the “Print Copy Service”, Perform control to adopt uniform smoothing. The condition to be applied may be determined by creating a condition setting table for each service and adopting uniform smoothing as a countermeasure against moiré when the condition is satisfied.

[0184]

As described above, claims 1 and 1 have been described.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image by changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the input means.

According to the inventions of claims 2 and 16,
By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the imaging conditions of the image information input to the input means, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image.

According to the third and seventeenth aspects of the present invention,
By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the accumulation time of the captured image, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image.

According to the fourth and eighteenth aspects of the present invention,
By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the type of the film, it is possible to output a higher sharpness and higher quality image.

According to the fifth and nineteenth aspects of the present invention,
By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement process in conjunction with the density of the image information recorded on the film, it is possible to output a higher-sharpness and higher-quality image.

In the sixth and twentieth aspects of the present invention,
By changing the condition of the sharpness enhancement, it is possible to output a high-sharpness and high-quality image.

According to the seventh and twenty-first aspects of the present invention,
By changing the conditions of the sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing, it is possible to output an appropriate sharpness image regardless of the enlargement / reduction magnification, and depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction, Further, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the moiré failure by suppressing the sharpness enhancement processing.

According to the eighth and twenty-second aspects of the present invention,
By changing the conditions of sharpness enhancement processing in conjunction with the service menu, it is possible to provide images of optimal quality, and by changing the sharpness enhancement processing according to gradation processing such as photo tone and print tone, for example, Expressions such as more realistic photographic expressions and print-like expressions are possible.

According to the ninth and twenty-third aspects of the present invention,
The sharpness deterioration characteristics during recording differ depending on the output means, and sharpness enhancement according to the characteristics is performed in advance, and the conditions of sharpness enhancement processing are changed in conjunction with the output means, so that it is optimal regardless of the output means It is possible to provide high quality images.

According to the tenth and twenty-fourth aspects of the present invention, the sharpness enhancement processing can be realized at high speed with low-cost hardware resources by performing the spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less.

According to the eleventh and twenty-fifth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to control the sharpness of an image by changing the magnitude of the coefficient of the spatial filter, thereby changing the degree of emphasis of the edge portion.

According to the twelfth and twenty-sixth aspects of the present invention, by changing the frequency characteristics of the sharpness enhancement processing, the roughness and appearance of the image due to noise are changed. When it is large,
Roughness that is relatively noticeable is likely to appear,
When the degree of emphasis of the high frequency component is relatively large, the moire phenomenon is not easily noticeable, but the moire phenomenon due to the enlargement / reduction processing is likely to occur. Become.

According to the thirteenth and twenty-seventh aspects of the present invention, depending on the interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a failure such as noise occurs near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification, and a significant failure due to the moire phenomenon occurs. Although it may occur, near such magnification, for example, apply a bicubic that is less likely to cause moiré phenomenon, otherwise, apply a bilinear or nearest neighbor, etc.
The processing time can be shortened, and the average processing performance per unit time is not significantly reduced, and the trouble due to the occurrence of the moire phenomenon can be suppressed.

According to the fourteenth and twenty-eighth aspects of the present invention, depending on an interpolation algorithm at the time of enlargement / reduction of image processing, a failure such as noise occurs near a specific enlargement / reduction magnification, and a significant failure due to a moire phenomenon occurs. Although it may occur, for example, in services with a small order ratio such as an ID photo menu, apply a bicubic that is unlikely to cause moiré phenomenon to suppress obstacles, otherwise, apply a bilinear or nearest neighbor etc. The processing time can be reduced, and the average processing capacity per unit time can be increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a print creating apparatus and a print creating system.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a print creation device and a print creation system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating sharpening of an image.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an image enlargement process.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation of spatial filtering.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a bicubic curve f.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the synthesis of four bicubic curves.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a noise removal process.

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram of an example of a noise removal process.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram of an example of uniform averaging.

FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram of an example of uniform averaging.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 print creation device 4 exposure processing unit 5 print creation unit 7 control unit 8 CRT 9 film scanner 10 reflective original input device 11 operation unit 12 information input unit 70 image processing unit 80 input unit 81 output unit

Claims (28)

[Claims] An image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from an input unit for inputting image information, and the image processed image data is output to an output unit. In the image processing method, a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the input unit. 2. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to output means. In the image processing method, the condition of the sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the imaging condition of the image information input to the input means. 3. The image processing method according to claim 2, wherein the imaging condition of the image information is a storage time of a captured image. 4. Image processing including sharpness enhancement processing is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film, and the processed image data is processed. An image processing method for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in accordance with a type of the film. 5. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film. An image processing method for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in accordance with a density of image information recorded on the film. 6. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the image processed image data is output to output means. In the image processing method, the condition of the sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the S / N characteristic of the image information input from the input unit. 7. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement processing and enlargement / reduction processing is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information. An image processing method for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. 8. An image process including at least one sharpness enhancement process and a process according to a service menu is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information. An image processing method for outputting data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. 9. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to output means. In the image processing method, a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the output unit. 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sharpness enhancement processing is a spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less.
The image processing method according to claim 9. 11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes the magnitude of a coefficient of a spatial filter.
The image processing method according to claim 9. 12. The image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes a frequency characteristic. 13. An image processing method for performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and outputting the image-processed image data to output means. , Enlargement of the image processing
An image processing method characterized by changing an interpolation algorithm for enlargement / reduction processing in conjunction with a reduction ratio. 14. Image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and processing according to a service menu is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the image processed image data is output. Wherein the interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. 15. Image processing including sharpness enhancement processing is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to output means. In an image processing system,
An image processing system, wherein the condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the input means. 16. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to output means. In an image processing system,
An image processing system, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an imaging condition of image information input to the input means. 17. The image processing system according to claim 16, wherein the imaging condition of the image information is a storage time of a captured image. 18. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film. An image processing system for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in accordance with a type of the film. 19. Image processing including sharpness enhancement processing is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information recorded on a film, and the processed image data is An image processing system for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in accordance with a density of image information recorded on the film. 20. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the image-processed image data is output to output means. In an image processing system,
An image processing system, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an S / N characteristic of image information input from the input unit. 21. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement processing and enlargement / reduction processing is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is processed. An image processing system for outputting to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with an enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. 22. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement processing and processing according to a service menu is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the image processed image is processed. An image processing system for outputting data to an output unit, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the service menu. 23. Image processing including at least one sharpness enhancement process is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the processed image data is output to output means. In an image processing system,
An image processing system, wherein a condition of sharpness enhancement processing is changed in conjunction with the output unit. 24. A method according to claim 1, wherein said sharpness enhancement processing is a spatial filter processing of 5 × 5 size or less.
The image processing system according to any one of claims 5 to 23. 25. The method according to claim 1, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes the magnitude of a coefficient of a spatial filter.
The image processing system according to any one of claims 5 to 23. 26. The method according to claim 15, wherein the change in the sharpness enhancement process changes a frequency characteristic.
The image processing system according to any one of the above. 27. An image processing system for performing image processing including enlargement / reduction processing on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and outputting the image-processed image data to output means. An image processing system which changes an interpolation algorithm of the enlargement / reduction processing in conjunction with the enlargement / reduction magnification of the image processing. 28. Image processing including enlargement / reduction processing and processing according to a service menu is performed on image information input from input means for inputting image information, and the image processed image data is output. In the image processing system that outputs to the
An image processing system characterized by changing an interpolation algorithm of a reduction process.