JP2001186299A - Image processor, image processing method and computer readable recording medium recording program to make computer execute image processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processor which can perform the optimum data transfer control in a whole system. SOLUTION: This image processor executes the image processing via every independent image processing unit, and an image data control part 203 of the image processor includes a command control part 809 which decides the using state of an image data bus by an image processing unit and a variable power unit 810 which applies the image reduction processing to the image data according to the deciding result of the part 809 to decrease the transfer data quantity and also applies the image enlargement processing to the decreased image data.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a computer-readable recording medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute the method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art At present, a so-called MFP (Multi Function) configured as a multifunction machine of an image processing apparatus such as a copier, a facsimile, a printer, and a scanner.
An image processing apparatus called “ionPrinter” is described in JP-A-8-274968. Such an image processing apparatus includes a reading unit that reads an image to create image data, an image processing unit that performs a process of creating an image based on image data, and a writing unit that outputs an image to paper or the like. Some are configured as independent units.

[0003] Once the transfer of image data is started, basically the transfer cannot be interrupted. Therefore, an image processing apparatus having a plurality of independent units requires a memory for adjusting transfer timing. Further, the image data is generally data having a large data amount. For example, 600d
The amount of data for one sheet of pi pixel data A4 size is about 36 megabytes when 8-bit data is used per pixel.

In order to transfer such a large amount of image data between each unit and the memory, the occupation time of the data bus becomes long, and this time has a relatively large effect on the processing time in the image processing apparatus. become. For this reason, it is an important issue for the image processing apparatus configured as an MFP to further reduce the transfer processing of image data.

[0005]

However, the number and width of the data buses provided in the image processing apparatus are limited in terms of cost and hardware scale. For this reason, in the image processing device in the above-mentioned conventional technology,
The data bus was shared by a plurality of image data. For this reason, when the data amount of the input image data exceeds the data transfer amount of the data bus, it waits until some image data is transferred. In such a case, there has been a problem that the transfer time of the image data becomes longer, and the image processing time in the image processing device becomes longer, which impairs the operability of the image processing device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, the present invention adjusts the amount of image data to be transferred in accordance with the status of use of a data bus, and performs image processing capable of performing optimal data transfer control as a whole system. It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus, an image processing method, and a computer-readable recording medium that records a program for causing a computer to execute the method.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems To solve the above-mentioned problems,
In order to achieve the object, an image processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention is an image processing apparatus that processes image data and creates an image. A plurality of image processing units that are executed independently for each image processing unit; and an image data bus management unit that collectively manages image data buses that transmit image data between the image processing units. The means is provided with transfer data amount adjusting means for adjusting the transfer data amount of the image data according to the use state of the image data bus by the image processing unit.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be adjusted in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit. In addition, image data can be transferred while suppressing the data amount. On the other hand, when the image data bus can be sufficiently used, the image data can be transferred in a state of a large amount of data, without lowering the quality of the image created by the image data, and in the image processing apparatus. Time can be reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus for executing processing for creating an image based on image data by independent image processing units for each processing type. An image data bus managing means for collectively managing an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and a use status of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus managing means. Data bus use status determining means for determining whether the transfer data amount is reduced by performing image reduction processing for reducing the image of the image data according to the determination by the image data bus usage status determination means. Image scaling means for performing enlargement processing for enlarging an image on the image data subjected to And it features.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be reduced in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit, so that the usable image data bus is not sufficiently provided. In this case, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount.
Further, since the reduced image data can be expanded, the effect of image reduction can be eliminated in image processing after transfer.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the second aspect, the image scaling means processes the image data so as to scale the image at a fixed magnification. It is characterized by the following.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the image data is always reduced and enlarged at a fixed magnification. This makes it easy to calculate the number of image data buses used by image data,
Processing related to image data transfer can be simplified.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus according to the second or third aspect.
The image scaling means processes the image data so as to scale the image in one of the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction of the image.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, it is possible to simplify the process of changing the size of the image and to suppress a decrease in the amount of information depending on the characteristics of the image data.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus for executing processing for creating an image based on image data by independent image processing units for each type of processing. An image data bus managing means for collectively managing an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and a use status of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus managing means. Image data bus usage determining means for determining whether the image data has been transferred and reducing the amount of transfer data by compressing the image data, while decompressing the compressed image data. Image compression / decompression means for performing the following.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be compressed in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit. Therefore, the usable image data bus is not sufficiently provided. In this case, the data amount can be reduced by compressing the image data, and the image data can be transferred. In addition, since the compressed image data can be expanded, the effect of image compression can be eliminated in image processing after transfer.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the fifth aspect, the image compression / decompression means includes a plurality of compression / decompression units each having a different compression / decompression method. It is characterized by having.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to compress or decompress image data by using an appropriate compression or decompression method according to the use status of the image data bus or the input speed of the image data. it can.

An image processing apparatus according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the image processing apparatus according to the fifth or sixth aspect,
The image compression / decompression means includes a plurality of compression / decompression devices and a fixed compression ratio compression / decompression device for compressing image data at a constant compression ratio.

According to the present invention, the image data is compressed and decompressed at a constant compression rate.
Therefore, the number of image data buses used by the image data can be easily calculated, and the processing related to the image data transfer can be simplified.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus for executing processing for creating an image based on image data by independent image processing units for each type of processing. An image data bus managing means for collectively managing an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and a use status of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus managing means. The image data bus use condition determining means for determining the image data bus use condition, a lossless compression / decompression device for reversibly compressing image data, and an irreversible compression / decompression device for irreversible compression. Means for compressing the image data using either the lossless compression / expansion device or the irreversible compression / expansion device according to the judgment by the means. While reducing the amount of data transferred by, characterized in that it comprises a reversible lossy compression and decompression means for performing a decompression process on the compressed-processed image data.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the image data transferred according to the use condition of the image data bus by the image processing unit can be reversibly or irreversibly compressed. For this reason, when the image data bus which can be used is not sufficiently provided, the image data can be compressed and transferred by any appropriate reversible or irreversible compression method.

The image processing apparatus according to the ninth aspect of the present invention is the image processing apparatus according to the eighth aspect, further comprising:
A visual determination unit that determines a visual characteristic of an image formed by the image data, wherein the reversible irreversible compression / decompression unit changes an image data compression process and a transfer order based on a determination result by the visual determination unit. It is characterized by doing.

According to the ninth aspect, the order of compression and transfer of image data can be changed according to the visual characteristics of the image data bus by the image processing unit. For this reason, image data in which visual characteristics are regarded as important can be compressed and transferred earlier.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the eighth or ninth aspect, the reversible irreversible compression / decompression means performs frequency conversion of the image data and performs the conversion. The compressed image data is subjected to compression processing from low frequency components and transferred.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, since image data having a low frequency component generally includes a relatively large amount of information, the image data includes a large amount of information, that is, an important image. Data can be compressed and transferred earlier.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to any one of the eighth to tenth aspects, the reversible irreversible compression / decompression means converts the image data into an image data. The compression processing and the expansion processing are sequentially and hierarchically performed from a relatively wide area.

According to the eleventh aspect, an overview of an image can be obtained at an early stage of processing, and information on image data can be obtained at an early stage.

An image processing method according to a twelfth aspect of the present invention is an image processing method executed by an image processing apparatus having independent image processing units for each type of image processing based on image data. An image data bus status determining step of determining the usage status of an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and adjusting a transfer data amount of the image data according to the determination result in the image data bus status determining step. And adjusting the transfer data amount.

According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be adjusted according to the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit. In addition, image data can be transferred while suppressing the data amount. On the other hand, when the image data bus can be sufficiently used, the image data can be transferred in a state of a large data amount, and the quality of an image created by the image data is not reduced. Time can be reduced.

An image processing method according to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention is an image processing method executed by an image processing apparatus having independent image processing units for each type of image processing based on image data. An image data bus status determining step of determining a usage status of an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and an image corresponding to the image data according to the determination result in the image data bus status determining step. While reducing the amount of transfer data by performing image reduction processing to reduce the size,
An image scaling step of performing an enlargement process for enlarging an image on the image data on which the reduction process has been performed.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be reduced in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit. Therefore, the usable image data bus is not sufficiently provided. In this case, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount. Further, since the reduced image data can be expanded, the influence of image reduction can be eliminated in image processing after transfer.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing method according to the thirteenth aspect, in the image scaling step, the image data is processed such that the image is scaled at a constant magnification. It is characterized by the following.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the image data is always reduced and enlarged at a constant compression rate. For this reason, the number of image data buses used by the image data can be easily calculated, and processing related to image data transfer can be simplified.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing method according to the thirteenth or fourteenth aspect, the image scaling step is performed in one of a main scanning direction and a sub-scanning direction of the image. It is characterized in that the image data is processed so as to scale the image in one direction.

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to simplify the process of changing the size of the image and to suppress a decrease in the amount of information depending on the characteristics of the image data.

An image processing method according to the present invention is an image processing method executed in an image processing apparatus having an independent image processing unit for each type of image processing based on image data. An image data bus status determining step of determining the usage status of an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; andcompressing the image data in accordance with the determination result in the image data bus status determining step. It is characterized by including an image compression step of reducing the amount of transfer data, and an image decompression step of performing decompression processing on the image data compressed by the image compression step.

According to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be compressed in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit, so that there is not enough available image data bus. In this case, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount. Further, since the compressed image data can be expanded, the effect of image compression can be eliminated in image processing after transfer.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing method according to the sixteenth aspect, the image compression step and / or the image decompression step are performed by a plurality of different compression and decompression methods. Compression of image data
Decompression is performed.

According to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention, the image data is compressed using an appropriate compression and decompression method in accordance with the usage status of the image data bus and the input speed of the image data.
Alternatively, it can be stretched.

In the image processing method according to the eighteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing method according to the sixteenth or seventeenth aspect, the image compressing step can compress image data by a plurality of methods and perform a constant compression. The image data is compressed at a rate.

According to the eighteenth aspect, the image data is compressed and decompressed at a constant compression rate. For this reason, the number of image data buses used by the image data can be easily calculated, and processing related to image data transfer can be simplified.

An image processing method according to the present invention is an image processing method executed in an image processing apparatus having independent image processing units for each type of image processing based on image data. An image data bus status determining step of determining the usage status of an image data bus for transmitting image data between the image processing units; and reversibly converting the image data according to the determination in the image data bus usage status determining step. Apply compression processing,
Alternatively, the method includes a reversible irreversible compression step of performing irreversible compression processing, and a decompression step of performing expansion processing on image data that has been subjected to compression processing in the reversible irreversible compression step.

According to the nineteenth aspect, the amount of data to be transferred can be reversibly or irreversibly compressed in accordance with the use status of the image data bus by the image processing unit. For this reason, when the image data bus which can be used is not sufficiently provided, the image data can be compressed and transferred by any appropriate reversible or irreversible compression method.

An image processing method according to a twentieth aspect of the present invention is the image processing method according to the nineteenth aspect, further comprising a visual determination step of determining a visual characteristic of an image formed by the image data. The reversible and irreversible compression step changes the order of image data compression processing and the transfer order of compressed image data to another image processing unit based on the determination result of the visual determination step.

According to the twentieth aspect, the order of compression and transfer of image data can be changed according to the visual characteristics of the image data bus by the image processing unit. For this reason, image data in which visual characteristics are regarded as important can be compressed and transferred earlier.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, in the image processing method according to the nineteenth or twentieth aspect, the lossless irreversible compression step performs frequency conversion of the image data and converts the converted image data. It is characterized in that data is subjected to compression processing from low frequency components and transferred.

According to the twenty-first aspect of the present invention, since image data having a low frequency component generally contains a relatively large amount of information, the image data contains a large amount of information. Data can be compressed and transferred earlier.

[0049] In the image processing method according to the invention described in claim 22, in the invention described in any one of claims 19 to 21, the reversible irreversible compression step includes comparing image data with an image. It is characterized in that the compression processing is performed hierarchically sequentially from a wide area.

According to the twenty-second aspect of the present invention, an overview of an image can be obtained at an early stage of processing, and information on image data can be obtained at an early stage.

According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium on which a program for causing a computer to execute the method according to any one of the twelfth to twelfth aspects is recorded. It becomes readable, whereby the operations of claims 12 to 22 can be realized by a computer.

[0052]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a computer-readable recording medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute the method will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Modes 1 to 3 will be described in detail. In this specification, first, a configuration common to the first to third embodiments will be described, and then the first, second, and third embodiments will be described in this order.

(Common Configuration of First to Third Embodiments) First,
The principle of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram functionally showing the configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the image processing apparatus has a configuration including the following five units.

The above five units are an image data control unit 100, an image reading unit 101 for reading image data, and an image memory control unit 102 for controlling an image memory for storing images and writing / reading image data. And an image processing unit 103 that performs image processing such as processing and editing on the image data, and an image writing unit 104 that writes the image data on transfer paper or the like.

Each of the above-described units includes an image reading unit 101, an image memory control unit 102, and an image processing unit 103, with the image data control unit 100 at the center.
And the image writing unit 104 are connected to the image data control unit 100, respectively.

(Image Data Control Unit 100) The processing performed by the image data control unit 100 is as follows.

For example, (1) data compression processing (primary compression) for improving data bus transfer efficiency, (2)
Transfer processing of primary compressed data to image data, (3) image synthesis processing (image data from a plurality of units can be synthesized, and also includes synthesis on a data bus), (4) image Shift processing (shifting of the image in the main scanning and sub-scanning directions), (5) image area expansion processing (the image area can be enlarged by an arbitrary amount to the periphery), and (6) image scaling processing (for example, 50% Or fixed magnification of 200%), (7) parallel bus interface processing,
(8) Serial bus interface processing (interface with process controller 211 described later), (9) format conversion processing of parallel data and serial data, (10) interface processing with image reading unit 101, (11) image processing Unit 10
3 and the like.

(Image Reading Unit 101) The processing performed by the image reading unit 101 is as follows.

For example, (1) reading processing of reflected light of an original by an optical system, (2) CCD (Charge Cou)
(3) digitization processing with an A / D converter, (4) shading correction processing (processing for correcting unevenness in illuminance distribution of a light source), (5) ) Scanner γ correction processing (processing for correcting the density characteristics of the reading system), and the like.

(Image Memory Control Unit 102) The processing performed by the image memory control unit 102 is as follows.

For example, (1) interface control processing with a system controller, (2) parallel bus control processing (interface control processing with a parallel bus), (3) network control processing, (4) serial bus control processing (a plurality of processes) External serial port control processing),
(5) Internal bus interface control processing (command control processing with the operation unit), (6) Local bus control processing (ROM and R for starting the system controller)
AM, font data access control processing), (7) memory module operation control processing (memory module write / read control processing, etc.), and (8) memory module access control processing (from a plurality of units). Arbitration of memory access requests), (9) data compression / expansion processing (processing to reduce the amount of data for effective use of memory), (10)
Image editing processing (clearing data in a memory area, rotating image data, synthesizing an image on a memory, and the like).

(Image Processing Unit 103) The processing performed by the image processing unit 103 is as follows.

For example, (1) shading correction processing (processing for correcting illuminance distribution unevenness of a light source), (2) scanner γ correction processing (processing for correcting the density characteristic of a reading process), (3) MTF correction processing, 4) smoothing, (5)
Arbitrary magnification processing in the main scanning direction, (6) density conversion (γ conversion processing: corresponding to density notch), (7) simple multi-value processing,
(8) Simple binarization processing, (9) Error diffusion processing, (10)
Dither processing, (11) dot arrangement phase control processing (rightward dot, leftward dot), (12) isolated point removal processing,
(13) Image area separation processing (color determination, attribute determination, adaptive processing), (14) density conversion processing, and the like.

(Image Writing Unit 104) The processing performed by the image writing unit 104 includes the following.

For example, (1) edge smoothing processing (jaggy correction processing), (2) correction processing for dot rearrangement,
(3) image signal pulse control processing, (4) parallel data and serial data format conversion processing, and the like.

(Hardware Configuration of Digital MFP)
Next, a hardware configuration when the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment forms a digital multifunction peripheral will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an image processing apparatus in which processing performed for creating an image based on image data is executed by independent image processing units for each type of processing.
In the block diagram of FIG. 1, the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a reading unit 201, a sensor board unit 202, an image data control unit 203, an image processing processor 204, and a video data control unit 205.
And an image forming unit (engine) 206. Further, the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a process controller 211 via a serial bus 210.
, A RAM 212, and a ROM 213.

The image processing apparatus according to this embodiment includes an image memory access control unit 221 and a facsimile control unit 224 via a parallel bus 220, and further includes an image memory access control unit 221.
Module 222, a system controller 231, a RAM 232, and a ROM 2
33 and an operation panel 234.

Here, the relationship between each of the above components and each of the units 100 to 104 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. That is, the reading unit 201 and the sensor board
The function of the image reading unit 101 shown in FIG. 1 is realized by the unit 202. Similarly, the function of the image data control unit 100 is realized by the image data control unit 203. Similarly, the image processor 204
Realizes the function of the image processing unit 103.

Similarly, the video data control unit 205
The image writing unit 104 is realized by the image forming unit (engine) 206. Similarly, the image memory access control unit 221 and the memory module 2
The image memory control unit 102 is realized by 22.

Next, the contents of each component will be described. The reading unit 201 that optically reads a document includes a lamp, a mirror, and a lens, and condenses the reflected light of the lamp irradiation on the document to a light receiving element by the mirror and the lens.

A light receiving element, for example, a CCD is a sensor
The image data that is mounted on the board unit 202 and converted into an electric signal by the CCD is converted into a digital signal and then output (transmitted) from the sensor board unit 202.

The image data output (transmitted) from the sensor board unit 202 is transmitted to the image data control unit 203.
Is input (received). Functional device (processing unit)
The transmission of image data between the data buses is entirely controlled by the image data control unit 203. Therefore, it can be said that the image data control unit 203 is an image data bus management unit that collectively manages image data buses for transmitting image data between image processing units.

The image data control unit 203 transfers data between the sensor board unit 202, the parallel bus 220, and the image processor 204, and processes the image data,
1 and a system controller 231 that controls the entire image processing apparatus. RAM2
Reference numeral 12 is used as a work area of the process controller 211, and the ROM 213 stores a boot program and the like of the process controller 211.

The image data output (transmitted) from the sensor board unit 202 is transmitted to the image data control unit 203.
(Transmit) to the image processor 204 via
Then, the signal deterioration due to the quantization into the optical system and the digital signal (referred to as the signal deterioration of the scanner system) is corrected and output (transmitted) to the image data control unit 203 again.

The image memory access control unit 221 comprises:
It controls writing / reading of image data to / from the memory module 222. In addition, the parallel bus 220
Controls the operation of each component connected to. Also, RAM
232 is used as a work area of the system controller 231, and the ROM 233 stores a boot program and the like of the system controller 231.

The operation panel 234 inputs a process to be performed by the image processing apparatus. For example, the type of process (copying, facsimile transmission, image reading, printing, etc.), the number of processes, and the like are input. Thereby, the input of the image data control information can be performed. The contents of the facsimile control unit 224 will be described later.

Next, a job to be stored in the memory module 222 and reused in the read image data,
There are jobs that are not stored in the memory module 222, and each case will be described. As an example of storing in the memory module 222, when copying a plurality of sheets of one document, the reading unit 201 is operated only once, and the image data read by the reading unit 201 is stored in the memory module 222. There is a method of reading stored image data a plurality of times.

As an example in which the memory module 222 is not used, when only one document is copied, the read image data may be reproduced as it is, so that the memory module 222 by the image memory access control unit 221 is used. You do not need to access to.

When the memory module 222 is not used, the data transferred from the image processor 204 to the image data control unit 203 is transmitted again to the image data control unit 2.
03 to the image processor 204. The image processor 204 performs image quality processing for converting luminance data by the CCD in the sensor board unit 202 into area gradation.

The image data after the image quality processing is transferred from the image processing processor 204 to the video data control unit 205. The post-processing relating to the dot arrangement and the pulse control for reproducing the dots are performed on the signal changed to the area gradation, and then the reproduced image is formed on the transfer paper in the image forming unit 206.

Next, a description will be given of the flow of image data in the case where additional processing such as rotation in the image direction, image synthesis, and the like are performed when the image is stored in the memory module 222 and the image is read out. The image data transferred from the image processor 204 to the image data control unit 203 is sent from the image data control unit 203 to the image memory access control unit 221 via the parallel bus 220.

Here, the system controller 23
1, control of access to image data and the memory module 222, expansion of print data of the external PC (personal computer) 223, and compression / expansion of image data for effective use of the memory module 222. .

The image data sent to the image memory access control unit 221 is stored in the memory module 222 after data compression, and the stored image data is read as needed. The read image data is decompressed, restored to the original image data, and returned from the image memory access control unit 221 to the image data control unit 203 via the parallel bus 220.

After the image data is transferred from the image data control unit 203 to the image processor 204, image quality processing and video / video processing are performed.
The data control unit 205 performs pulse control, and the image forming unit 206 forms a reproduced image on transfer paper.

In the flow of image data, the functions of the digital multi-function peripheral are realized by the bus control by the parallel bus 220 and the image data control unit 203. The facsimile transmission function performs image processing on the read image data by the image processor 204, and executes the image data control unit 2.
03 and the facsimile control unit 224 via the parallel bus 220. The facsimile control unit 224 performs data conversion to a communication network, and transmits the data to a public line (PN) 225 as facsimile data.

On the other hand, the received facsimile data is
Line data from the public line (PN) 225 is converted into image data by the facsimile control unit 224 and transferred to the image processor 204 via the parallel bus 220 and the image data control unit 203. In this case, no special image quality processing is performed, the dot rearrangement and the pulse control are performed in the video data control unit 205, and the reproduced image is formed on the transfer paper in the image forming unit 206.

In a situation where a plurality of jobs, for example, a copy function, a facsimile transmission / reception function, and a printer output function operate in parallel, the assignment of the right to use the reading unit 201, the imaging unit 206, and the parallel bus 220 to the job is performed by the system controller. 231 and the process controller 211.

The process controller 211 controls the flow of image data, and the system controller 231
Controls the entire system and manages the activation of each resource. In addition, the function selection of the digital multi-function peripheral is selectively inputted on the operation panel (operation unit) 234, and the processing contents such as the copy function and the facsimile function are set.

The system controller 231 and the process controller 211 communicate with each other via the parallel bus 220, the image data control unit 203, and the serial bus 210. Specifically, communication between the system controller 231 and the process controller 211 is performed by performing data format conversion for the data interface between the parallel bus 220 and the serial bus 210 in the image data control unit 203.

(Hardware Configuration of Single Scanner) Next, a hardware configuration when the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment configures a single scanner will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. In addition,
In the block diagram of the hardware configuration shown in FIG.
The same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

In the hardware system configuration, FIG.
2 is greatly different from the digital multifunction peripheral shown in FIG. 2 in that the image forming unit 206 is not provided. Video / data control unit 2 because no imaging unit is required
05 is not attached.

The image data read by the reading unit 201 is digitally converted by the sensor board unit 202 and transferred to the image processor 204 via the image data control unit 203. Perform the image processing required as

The main image processing required for a single scanner is deterioration correction of a read image. However, gradation processing suitable for a display device using a screen can also be performed. Therefore, there are many processes different from the image quality process for transfer paper.

Here, by configuring the image processing processor 204 with a programmable arithmetic processing unit, only the necessary processing procedures concerning the image quality processing on the transfer paper and the gradation processing on the screen need to be set. It is not necessary to always have both the procedure and the procedure of gradation processing.

(Image memory control unit 102 / image memory access control unit 221) Next, the image memory
The outline of the processing in the access control unit 221 will be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an outline of processing of the image memory access control unit 221 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

In the block diagram of FIG. 4, an image memory access control unit 221 manages an interface of image data with the parallel bus 220, and accesses image data to the memory module 222, that is, stores (writes). / Readout control, and mainly controls expansion of code data input from the external PC 223 into image data.

For this purpose, the image memory access control section 221 includes a parallel data I / F 401, a system controller I / F 402, a memory access control section 403, a line buffer 404, a video control section 405, a data Compression unit 406 and data decompression unit 4
07 and a data conversion unit 408.

Here, the parallel data I / F 401 is
The interface of the image data with the parallel bus 220 is managed. Also, the memory access control unit 403
Controls access of image data to the memory module 222, that is, storage (writing) / reading.

The input code data is stored in the local area in the line buffer 404. The code data stored in the line buffer 404 is transmitted to the system controller I / F 40
2 entered through the system controller 231
The video control unit 405 develops the image data based on the development processing command from the CPU.

The expanded image data or the image data input from the parallel bus 220 via the parallel data I / F 401 is stored in the memory module 222. In this case, the image data to be stored is selected by the data conversion unit 408, the data compression is performed by the data compression unit 406 to increase the memory use efficiency, and the address of the memory module 222 is changed by the memory access control unit 403. The image data is stored (written) in the memory module 222 while being managed.

To read image data stored (stored) in the memory module 222, the memory access control unit 403 controls the read destination address,
The read image data is expanded by the data expansion unit 407. The decompressed image data is transferred to the parallel bus 220
When the data is transferred to the host, the data is transferred via the parallel data I / F 401.

(Image Processing Unit 103 / Image Processing Processor 204) Next, the outline of the processing in the image processing processor 204 constituting the image processing unit 103 will be described. FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of processing of the image processor 204 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

In the block diagram of FIG. 5, the image processor 204 includes a first input I / F 501, a scanner image processing unit 502, a first output I / F 503, and a second output I / F 503.
An input I / F 504, an image quality processing unit 505, and a second output I / F
/ F506.

In the above configuration, the read image data is sent to the first processor of the image processor 204 via the sensor board unit 202 and the image data controller 203.
The data is transmitted from an input interface (I / F) 501 to a scanner image processing unit 502.

The scanner image processing unit 502 has the purpose of correcting the deterioration of the read image data, and specifically includes shading correction, scanner γ correction, MTF
Make corrections, etc. Although not a correction process, a scaling process for enlargement / reduction can also be performed. When the correction processing of the read image data is completed, the image data is transferred to the image data control unit 203 via the first output interface (I / F) 503.

When outputting to transfer paper, the image data from the image data control unit 203 is received from the second input I / F 504, and the image quality processing unit 505 performs area gradation processing. The image data after the image quality processing is output to the video data control unit 205 or the image data control unit 203 via the second output I / F 506.

The area gradation processing in the image quality processing unit 505 includes density conversion processing, dither processing, error diffusion processing and the like, and the main processing is area approximation of gradation information. Once,
If the image data processed by the scanner image processing unit 502 is stored in the memory module 222, various reproduced images can be confirmed by changing the image quality processing by the image quality processing unit 505.

For example, by changing (changing) the density of the reproduced image or changing the number of lines of the dither matrix, the atmosphere of the reproduced image can be easily changed. At this time, it is not necessary to read the image again from the reading unit 201 every time the processing is changed, and by reading the stored image data from the memory module 222, the same image data can be read.
Different processes can be quickly performed many times.

In the case of a single scanner, scanner image processing and gradation processing are performed together and output to the image data control unit 203. The processing content can be changed programmably. Switching of processing, change of processing procedure, and the like are managed by the command control unit 507 via the serial I / F 508.

(Image Writing Unit 104 / Video Data Control Unit 205) Next, an outline of the processing in the video data control unit 205 forming a part of the image writing unit 104 will be described. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of processing of the video data control unit 205 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

In the block diagram of FIG. 6, the video data control unit 205 performs an additional process on the input image data according to the characteristics of the image forming unit 206. That is, the edge smoothing processing unit 601 performs the dot rearrangement processing by the edge smoothing processing, the pulse control unit 602 performs the pulse control of the image signal for dot formation, and forms the image data on which the above processing has been performed. Output to the unit 206.

In addition to the conversion of image data, the video data control unit 205 is provided with a format conversion function of parallel data and serial data, and can cope with communication between the system controller 231 and the process controller 211 even with the video data control unit 205 alone. That is, a parallel data I / F 603 for transmitting / receiving parallel data, a serial data I / F 604 for transmitting / receiving serial data, a parallel data I / F 603 and a serial data I / F 6
And a data conversion unit 605 for mutually converting the data received by the data conversion unit 04.

(Configuration of Facsimile Control Unit 224) Next, a functional configuration of the facsimile control unit 224 will be described. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the facsimile control unit 224 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

In the block diagram of FIG. 7, the facsimile control unit 224 includes a facsimile transmission / reception unit 701 and an external I / F 702. Here, the facsimile transmission / reception unit 701 converts the image data into a communication format and transmits it to an external line, and converts external data into image data to convert the image data into the external I / F 702 and the parallel bus 22.
0, and is recorded and output in the image forming unit 206.

The external I / F 702 includes a facsimile image processing unit 703, an image memory 704, and a memory control unit 70.
5, a data control unit 706, an image compression / decompression unit 707, a modem 708, and a network control unit 709.

Of these, regarding facsimile image processing,
The binary smoothing processing on the received image is performed by the edge smoothing processing unit 6 in the video data control unit 205 shown in FIG.
01. As for the image memory 704, the image buffer
Access control unit 221 and memory module 22
Part 2 of this function is transferred.

In the facsimile transmission / reception unit 701 thus configured, when starting transmission of image data, the data control unit 706 instructs the memory control unit 705 to sequentially read the stored image data from the image memory 704. Let out. The read image data is restored to the original signal by the facsimile image processing unit 703, is subjected to density conversion processing and scaling processing, and is applied to the data control unit 706.

The image data added to the data control unit 706 is code-compressed by the image compression / decompression unit 707,
After being modulated by the modem 708, the network controller 709
And sent to the destination. Then, the image information whose transmission has been completed is deleted from the image memory 704.

At the time of reception, the received image is temporarily stored in the image memory 704, and if the received image can be recorded and output at that time, it is recorded and output when the reception of one image is completed. When a call is made during the copying operation and reception is started, the image data is stored in the image memory 704 until the usage rate of the image memory 704 reaches a predetermined value, for example, 80%, and the usage rate of the image memory 704 is reduced to 80%. If it has reached, the writing operation being executed at that time is forcibly interrupted, and the received image is read from the image memory 704 and recorded and output.

At this time, the received image read from the image memory 704 is deleted from the image memory 704, and when the usage rate of the image memory 704 decreases to a predetermined value, for example, 10%, the writing operation which has been interrupted is resumed. When all the writing operations are completed, the remaining received image is recorded and output. Further, after the write operation is interrupted, various parameters for the write operation at the time of the interruption are internally saved so that the write operation can be resumed, and the parameters are internally restored when the write operation is restarted.

(Embodiment 1) Hereinafter, Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described. In describing Embodiment 1 of the present invention, first, an outline of processing in the image data control unit 203 included in the image data control unit 100 will be described.

(Image Data Control Unit 100 / Image Data Control Unit 203) FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an outline of the processing of the image data control unit 203 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. 8, an image data input / output control unit 801 inputs (receives) image data from the sensor board unit 202 and outputs (transmits) image data to the image processing processor 204. That is, the image data input / output control unit 801 is a component for connecting the image reading unit 101 and the image processing unit 103 (image processing processor 204).
It can be said that it is a dedicated input / output unit only for transmitting the image data read by the image reading unit 101 to the image processing unit 103.

The image data input control unit 802 inputs (receives) the image data corrected for the scanner image by the image processor 204. The input image data is subjected to data compression processing in the data compression unit 803 in order to increase the transfer efficiency in the parallel bus 220. After that, the data is transmitted to the parallel bus 220 via the data conversion unit 804 and the parallel data I / F 805.

The parallel data I from the parallel bus 220
Since the image data input via the / F 805 is compressed for bus transfer, it is sent to the data decompression unit 806 via the data conversion unit 804, where the data is decompressed. The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 in the image data output control unit 813.

The image data control section 203 has a function of converting between parallel data and serial data. The system controller 231 transfers data to the parallel bus 220, and the process controller 211 transfers data to the serial bus 210. The image data control unit 203 performs data conversion for communication between the two controllers.

A serial data I / F is a first serial data I / F 807 for exchanging data with a process controller via a serial bus 210.
And a second serial data I / F 808 used for exchanging data with the image processor 204. By providing one system independently of the image processor 204, the interface with the image processor 204 can be smoothed. The command control unit 809 controls the operation of each component and each interface in the above-described image data control unit 203 according to the input command.

Further, the image data control unit 203 according to the first embodiment performs an image reduction process for reducing an image with respect to image data in accordance with the determination of the command control unit 809 which determines the use status of the image data bus by each unit. , The image data which has been subjected to the reduction processing is provided, and the image data which has been subjected to the reduction processing is provided with an image scaling means for performing enlargement processing for enlarging the image. The magnification changer 810 includes a data reduction section 811 and a data expansion section 81.
And 2.

Next, three configuration examples of a first configuration example, a second configuration example, and a third configuration example of the first embodiment will be sequentially described.

(First Configuration Example) As a first configuration example, FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram for explaining a power transformer 810 of the first configuration example of the first embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the image data control unit 203 to further transfer the input image data to memories such as the RAMs 212 and 232 and the ROMs 213 and 233.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of transferring image data transferred from a memory to an image processor 204 or the like.

As described above, the image data control unit 203
Is input from the sensor board unit 202,
Image data (scanner image data) once output to the image processing processor 204 and corrected for the scanner image is input. At this time, for example, the command control unit 809 detects the use status of the data bus exchanged between the functional devices (each processing unit).

When the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured for transferring the transferred image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is to be reduced. Then, the image data is input to the magnification changer 810 from the path a1. The scaling unit 810 performs a reduction process on input image data so as to reduce an image created based on the image data. The reduced image data is transferred to the memory from the path a3 as memory input / output image data.

The reduction magnification of this reduction processing is obtained, for example, from the allowable transfer time and the number of data buses (including the bus width) available for transfer. Embodiment 1
Then, the reduction ratio according to the number of buses is thus obtained in advance. Then, the command control unit 809 detects the number of usable buses from the usage status of the data bus, and instructs the scaling unit 810 of a reduction ratio corresponding to the detected number of buses.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the transferred image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be reduced. Then, the image data is transferred from the path a3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without performing the reduction processing by the scaling unit 810 (represented by the path a2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 203, the command control unit 80
No. 9 determines whether this image data has been reduced. Then, when the image data has been subjected to the reduction processing, the image data is input to the scaling unit 810 via the path a4.

The scaling unit 810 performs enlargement processing on the input image data so as to enlarge an image created based on the image data. The enlarged image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 220 as image processing image data via the path a6.

The enlargement magnification of this enlargement processing is set so that the image data reduced by the scaling unit 810 is returned to the state before the reduction processing. For this magnification setting,
For example, at the time of image data reduction processing, information on the reduction ratio may be added to the image data. Alternatively, the command control unit 809 may store information on the reduction ratio of each image data, and input this information to the scaling unit 810 at the time of enlargement.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not reduced, the command control unit 809 transfers the image data without performing the enlargement processing by the magnification unit 810 (represented by a path a5). From a6, the image data is transferred to the image processor 204, the serial bus 210, and the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing.

A processing method performed by the image processing apparatus according to the first configuration example of the first embodiment will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. Command control unit 809
First, it is determined whether scanner image data has been input (step S1001). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S1001), the memory input / output image data is stored in the image data control unit 2 at Step S1006.
03 (Step S100)
6).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1001 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S1001), the usage status of the data bus for image data is determined (step S1002). Then, based on this usage situation, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be reduced in transferring the transferred image data to the memory (step S1003).

If the result of determination in step S1003 is that reduction processing is necessary (Yes in step S1003), reduction processing is performed on the image data (step S1003).
4) The image data is transferred to the memory (step S1005). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1003 that the reduction processing is not necessary (step S1003, No), the image data is transferred to the memory without executing the reduction processing (step S1005).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 2.
03 (Step S100)
6). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at Step S1006), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been reduced.
That is, it is determined whether or not enlargement processing is necessary (step S1).
007).

If the result of determination in step S1007 is that enlargement processing is necessary (step S1007: YES), enlargement processing is performed on the image data (step S100).
8) The image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image data for image processing (step S1009). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1007 that the enlargement process is not required (No in step S1007), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing the enlargement process (step S1009). After the above processing, this flowchart is:
It returns to step S1001.

According to such a magnification unit 810, at the time of image data transfer, the image data can be compressed in accordance with the use status of the data bus in the image processing apparatus to reduce the amount of transfer data. Therefore, even when the data transfer amount of the usable data bus is less than the data amount of the image data, the image data can be transferred. Therefore, the scaling unit 810 can increase the data transfer capability of the image processing apparatus without changing the hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus, and can increase the processing speed of the image processing apparatus.

The scaling unit 810 enlarges the reduced image data to return to the state before the reduction.
For this reason, in the processing stage of the image data, the effect of the image reduction on the image data is canceled, and the effect of the reduction processing on the formed image can be suppressed.

(Second Configuration Example) Next, a second configuration example of the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram for explaining a second configuration example of the first embodiment. FIG. 11 illustrates an operation of transferring the input image data to the memory and an operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processing processor 204 in the image data control unit 203.

In the second configuration example shown in FIG. 11 of the first embodiment, the magnification unit is configured as a fixed magnification magnification unit 1110 for processing image data so as to scale an image at a constant magnification. It is.

In the second configuration example of the first embodiment, when scanner image data is input to the image data control unit 203, the command control unit 809, for example,
The usage status of the data bus transferred between the units is detected. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines that the image data is to be reduced. Then, from the path b1, a fixed magnification changer 1
Image data is input to 110. Fixed magnification multiplier 111
0 performs a reduction process on the input image data.

It should be noted that the reduction magnification of this reduction processing is fixed to a fixed magnification by the fixed magnification magnification unit 1110. The image data subjected to the reduction processing is transferred to the memory as memory input / output image data from the path b3.
In the first embodiment, the reduction ratio is fixed to a value such as 50% or 25%.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be reduced. Then, the image data is transferred from the path b3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without performing the reduction processing by the fixed magnification scaling unit 1110 (represented by the path b2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 203, the command control unit 80
No. 9 determines whether this image data has been reduced. If the image data has been subjected to the reduction processing, the image data is transferred to the fixed-magnification
Enter 10 The fixed magnification multiplier 1110 performs enlargement processing on the input image data.

The enlargement magnification of the enlargement processing is fixed to a value for returning the image data reduced by a fixed magnification ratio by the fixed magnification changer 1110 to the state before the reduction.
That is, if the reduction ratio is 50%, it is fixed to 200%, and if the reduction ratio is 25%, it is fixed to 400%. The enlarged image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing via the path b6.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory has not been reduced, the command control unit 809 does not perform the enlargement processing by the fixed magnification scaling unit 1110 (represented by the path b5). Is transferred as memory input / output image data from the path b6 to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 or the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing.

A processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the second configuration example described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether or not scanner image data has been input (Step S).
1201) If the result of this determination is that scanner image data has not been input (step S1201 negative),
It is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 203 (step S1206).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1201 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S1201), the use status of the image data data bus is determined (step S1202). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be reduced in transferring the transferred image data to the memory (step S1203).

If the result of determination in step S1203 is that reduction processing is required (Yes in step S1203), image data is subjected to reduction processing at a fixed reduction ratio (step S1204), and this image data is transferred to memory. (Step S1205). On the other hand, step S1203
If it is determined that the reduction processing is not necessary (No at Step S1203), the image data is transferred to the memory without executing the reduction processing (Step S120).
5).

Next, the command control section 809 determines whether or not the memory input / output image data has been transferred from the memory to the image data control section (step S1206). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at step S1206), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been reduced.
It is determined whether or not enlargement processing is necessary (step S120)
7).

If the result of determination in step S1207 is that enlargement processing is necessary (Yes in step S1207), enlargement processing is performed on the image data at a fixed enlargement magnification (step S1208), and this image data is subjected to image processing. The image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image data for use (step S1209). On the other hand, step S
If it is determined in 1207 that the enlargement processing is not necessary (No in step S1207), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing the enlargement processing (step S1209). After the above processing, the flowchart proceeds to step S1201.

According to such a fixed magnification magnification unit 1110, the magnification ratio of an image created based on image data is always fixed. For this reason, it is possible to omit the process of determining the reduction ratio when the image is reduced, and to omit the process of determining the enlargement ratio when the image is enlarged. For this reason, in the example of the image processing apparatus using the fixed magnification scaling unit 1110, in addition to the effect obtained by the image processing apparatus using the scaling unit 810, image processing can be performed easily and at high speed. become.

(Third Configuration Example) Next, a third configuration example of the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram for explaining the third configuration example. FIG. 13 shows an operation of transferring the input image data to the memory in the image data control unit 203, and transfers the image data transferred from the memory to the image processing processor 204, similarly to FIGS. The operation will be described.

The configuration shown in FIG. 13 is provided with a scaling unit for processing image data so as to scale the image in one of the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction of the image.
In the example shown in FIG. 13 of the first embodiment, this magnification is configured as a sub-scanning magnification unit 1310 that processes image data so as to enlarge an image only in the sub-scanning direction.

In the third configuration example of the first embodiment, when scanner image data is input to the image data control unit 203, the command control unit 809, for example,
The usage status of the data bus transferred between the units is detected. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines that the image data is to be reduced. Then, from the path c1 to the sub-scanning
The image data is input to 10. Sub-scanning magnification 1310
Performs reduction processing on input image data.

This reduction process is performed only in the sub-scanning direction of the image. The image data subjected to the reduction processing is transferred from the path c3 to the memory as memory input / output image data.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus is available to transfer the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be reduced. Then, the image data is transferred from the path c3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without performing the reduction processing by the sub-scanning magnification unit 1310 (represented by the path c2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 203, the command control unit 80
No. 9 determines whether this image data has been reduced. If the image data has been reduced, the image data is transferred to the sub-scanning
Enter 0. The sub-scanning magnification unit 1310 enlarges the input image data only in the sub-scanning direction.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not reduced, the command control unit 809 does not perform the enlargement processing by the sub-scanning magnification unit 1310 (represented by the path c5). Is transferred as memory input / output image data from the path c6 to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 or the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the third configuration example of the first embodiment described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. First, the command control unit 809 determines whether scanner image data has been input (step S1401). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S1401), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 203 (Step S1406).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1401 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S1401), the use state of the image data data bus is determined (step S1402). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be reduced in transferring the transferred image data to the memory (step S1403).

If the result of determination in step S1403 is that reduction processing is required (Yes in step S1403), reduction processing is performed on the image data only in the sub-scanning direction of the image (step S1404). The data is transferred to the memory (step S1405). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1403 that no reduction processing is necessary (step S1403: No), the image data is transferred to the memory without executing the reduction processing (step S1405).

Next, the command control section 809 determines whether or not the memory input / output image data has been transferred from the memory to the image data control section (step S1406). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at step S1406), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been reduced.
It is determined whether enlargement processing is necessary (step S140)
7).

If the result of determination in step S1407 is that enlargement processing is necessary (step S1407: affirmative), enlargement processing is performed on the image data only in the sub-scanning direction of the image (step S1408). Is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image processing image data (step S1409). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1407 that the enlargement processing is not necessary (No in step S1407), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing the enlargement processing (step S1409). After the above processing, this flowchart moves to step S1401.

According to such a sub-scanning magnification unit 1310, image data scaling processing is performed only in the sub-scanning direction. For this reason, it is possible to omit the process of obtaining the scaling factor in one direction from the scaling factor required when scaling the image, that is, the process of calculating the required scaling factor to the half power. Further, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the amount of information of the image data due to the reduction processing. For this reason, in the example of the image processing apparatus using the sub-scanning magnification unit 1310, in addition to the effects obtained by the image processing apparatus using the magnification unit 810, the image processing can be performed easily and at high speed, and the image data In some cases, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the amount of information.

(Embodiment 2) Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described below. In the second embodiment, three configuration examples of a first configuration example, a second configuration example, and a third configuration example will be sequentially described.

(First Configuration Example) FIG. 15 shows a second embodiment.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an image data control unit 1500 of a first configuration example in the image processing apparatus of FIG. The image data control unit 1500 is different from the image data control unit 20 except that a data compression / decompression unit 1501 is provided instead of the scaling unit 810.
3 has the same configuration as that of FIG. Therefore, the same components as those included in the image data control unit 203 described with reference to FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be partially omitted.

The data compression / decompression unit 1501 includes a data compression / decompression unit 1503 and a data decompression unit 1506.
It has an expander 1510. In the second embodiment, the data compression / decompression unit 1501
At 00, the amount of transfer data is reduced by compressing the image data, and the compressed image data is decompressed, according to the determination of the command control unit 809 which determines the usage status of the image data bus by each unit.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram for explaining a data compression / expansion unit 1501 including a compression / expansion unit 1510. In FIG. 16, the image data control unit 150
0, the data compression / decompression unit 1501 stores the input image data in the RAMs 212 and 232 and the ROMs 213 and 23.
An operation of transferring data to a memory such as No. 3 will be described.
An operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processor 204 or the like will be described.

[0177] Scanner image data is transferred to the image data control unit 1500. At this time, for example, the command control unit 809 detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the processing units. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

In such a case, the command control unit 809
Inputs image data to the compression / decompression device 1510 from the path d1. The compression / expansion unit 1510 compresses the input image data into image data. The compressed image data is transferred from the path d3 to the memory as memory input / output image data.

The compression ratio of this compression is obtained, for example, from the allowable transfer time and the number of data buses (including the bus width) available for transfer. In the second embodiment, the compression ratio according to the number of buses is thus obtained in advance. Then, the command control unit 809 detects the number of usable buses from the usage status of the data bus, and instructs the compression / decompression unit 1510 of a compression ratio corresponding to the detected number of buses.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be compressed. Then, the image data is transferred from the path d3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the compression / expansion unit 1510 (represented by the path d2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control section 1500, the command control section 8
In step 09, it is determined whether the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is input to the compression / expansion unit 1510 via the path d4.

The compression / decompression device 1510 decompresses input image data. The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing via the path d6.

The expansion rate of this expansion is set so that the image data compressed by the compression / expansion unit 1510 is returned to the state before compression. For setting the expansion rate, for example, information on the compression rate may be added to the image data when the image data is compressed. Alternatively, the command control unit 809 may store information on the compression ratio of each image data, and input this information to the compression / decompression unit 1510 at the time of decompression.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the image data is stored in the memory without being expanded by the compression / expansion unit 1510 (represented by the path d5). The image processor 204 or the serial bus 21 as image data for image processing from the path d6 as output image data.
0, transfer to the parallel bus 220.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the first configuration example of the second embodiment described above will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether scanner image data has been input (step S1701). If the result of this determination is that scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S1701), it is determined whether memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S1706).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1701 that the scanner image data has been input (YES in step S1701), the use status of the data bus for the image data is determined (step S1702). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S1703).

If the result of determination in step S1703 indicates that compression is necessary (step S1703: YES), image data is compressed (step S1704), and this image data is transferred to memory (step S170).
5). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1703 that compression is not required (No in step S1703), the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S1705).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S170).
6). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at Step S1706), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (Step S170).
7).

As a result of the determination in step S1707,
If expansion is necessary (Yes at step S1707),
The image data is expanded (step S170).
8) The image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image processing image data (step S1709). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1707 that decompression is not necessary (No in step S1707)
Transfers the image data to the image processor 204 or the like without performing decompression (step S170)
9). After the above process, the flowchart proceeds to Step S1701.

The compression / expansion device 1 of the first configuration example as described above.
According to 510, at the time of image data transfer, the amount of transfer data can be reduced by compressing the image data according to the use status of the data bus in the image processing apparatus. Therefore, even when the data transfer amount of the usable data bus is less than the data amount of the image data, the image data can be transferred. Therefore, the compressor / decompressor 1510 can increase the data transfer capability of the image processing apparatus without changing the hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus, and can increase the processing speed of the image processing apparatus.

The compression / expansion unit 1510 expands the reduced image data to return to the state before compression. For this reason, in the processing stage of the image data, the influence of the compression on the image data is canceled, and the influence of the compression on the image data on the formed image can be suppressed.

(Second Configuration Example) Next, a second configuration example of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram for explaining a second configuration example of the second embodiment. In the image data control unit 1500, an operation of transferring input image data to a memory, and an operation of transferring image data from a memory. An operation of transferring image data to the image processor 204 will be described.

The data compression / expansion unit of the second configuration example of the second embodiment uses different compression / expansion methods.
It is configured as a data compression / decompression unit 1801 provided with a decompression device A1810 and a compression / decompression device B1811.
In the second embodiment, as the compression / expansion device A1810, a compression / expansion device that compresses image data at a relatively high speed and performs a compression process using a method with a relatively low compression ratio is used. On the other hand, as the compression / expansion device B1811, a compression / expansion device that performs a compression process with a lower compression speed than the compression / expansion device A1810 and a relatively high compression ratio is used.

In the second configuration example of the second embodiment, when scanner image data is input to the image data control unit 1500, for example, the command control unit 809
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the functional devices. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the transferred image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

At this time, the command control unit 809 determines which of the compression / expansion unit A 1810 and the compression / expansion unit B 1811 is used to compress the image data. This determination is made, for example, when the scanner image data is input at a higher speed than the compression speed of the compression / expansion device B1811, the compression / expansion device A1810 is selected. In other cases, the compression / expansion unit B1811 is selected.

The data compression / expansion unit 1801 compresses image data input using either the compression / expansion unit A 1810 or the compression / expansion unit B 1811 selected by the command control unit.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be compressed. Then, the image data is transferred from the path e3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the data compression / decompression unit 1801 (represented by the path e2).

On the other hand, when image data is input from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 80
Step 9 determines whether or not the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is transferred to the compressor / decompressor A1810 via the path e4.
Alternatively, the image data is input to the compression / decompression device of the compression / decompression device B 1811 on the side where image data is compressed. The compressor / decompressor A 1810 or the compressor / decompressor B 1811 to which the image data has been input expands the input image data so as to return to the state before the compression.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the command control unit 809 does not expand the data in either the compression / expansion unit A1810 or the compression / expansion unit B1811 ( Path e5), image data as memory input / output image data from path e6 to image processor 204 or serial bus 2 as image processing image data.
10. Transfer to parallel bus 220.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the second configuration example of the second embodiment described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether scanner image data has been input (step S1901). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S1901), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S1908).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1901 that the scanner image data has been input (YES in step S1901), the use status of the image data data bus is determined (step S1902).
Then, based on this usage situation, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S1903).

If the result of determination in step S1903 is that compression is necessary (step S1903: affirmative), the command control unit 809 further compresses this image data by the compression / expansion unit A1810 in consideration of the input speed of image data and the like. It is determined whether or not to perform (step S1904). As a result of this determination, when the image data is compressed by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (Yes at step S1904), the image data is compressed by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (step S190).
5). Then, the image data is transferred to the memory (step S1907).

If it is determined in step S1904 that the compression / expansion unit A1810 does not compress the image data (No in step S1904), the compression / expansion unit B1811 compresses the image data (step S190).
6). Then, the image data is transferred to the memory (step S1907).

If the command control unit 809 determines in step S1903 that compression is not necessary (No in step S1903), the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S19).
07).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S190).
8). If the memory input / output image data has not been transferred (No at Step S1908), the process proceeds to Step S1908.
Returning to 1901, the scanner image data input is judged again (step S1901). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (step S19)
08 is affirmative), it is determined whether or not the memory input / output image data is compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (step S1909).

As a result of the determination in step S1909, if the command control unit determines in step S1909 that decompression is not required (No in step S1909), the command control unit sends this image data to the image processor 204 without performing decompression. The transfer is performed (step S1913).
On the other hand, when expansion is necessary (step S1909)
Affirmative), whether or not this decompression is performed by the compression / decompression device A1810, that is, the compression of this image data is performed by the compression / decompression device A1810.
It is determined whether or not the processing has been performed in 1810 (step S191)
0). As a result of this determination, when the image data is expanded by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (Yes at step S1910),
The image data is expanded using the compression / expansion unit A1810 (step S1911).

If it is determined in step S1910 that the image data is not decompressed by the compression / decompression device A1810 (No in step S1910), the image data is decompressed by the compression / decompression device B1811 (step S191).
2). The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like (step S1913). After the above-described processing, this flowchart corresponds to step S1901
Move to.

The data compression / expansion unit 180 provided with such a compression / expansion unit A 1810 and compression / expansion unit B 1811
According to No. 1, it is possible to execute the optimal compression / decompression processing for the compression of the image data in consideration of not only the use status of the data bus but also the input speed of the image data.

(Third Configuration Example) Next, a third configuration example of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram for explaining a third configuration example of the second embodiment. In image data control section 1500, an operation of transferring input image data to a memory, and an operation of transferring image data from a memory. An operation of transferring image data to the image processor 204 will be described.

The data compression / expansion unit 2001 according to the third configuration example of the second embodiment includes a compression / expansion unit A1810 and a compression / expansion unit B1811 described in the second configuration example, and further, a certain unit of image. A fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010 for compressing data to convert the data into a fixed amount of data is provided.

In the third configuration example of the second embodiment, when scanner image data is input to image data control section 1500, for example, command control section 809
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the functional devices. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the transferred image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data. Then, the image data is transferred from the path f1 to the data compression / decompression unit 2001.

At this time, the command control unit 809 uses any of the compression / expansion unit A 1810, compression / expansion unit B 1811, and fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010 provided in the data compression / expansion unit 2001 to convert the image data. Determine whether to compress. This determination is made, for example, when the scanner image data is input at a higher speed than the compression speed of the compression / expansion unit B1811, the compression / expansion unit A1810.
Select If there are few available data buses, the compression / expansion unit B1811 is selected, and if none of the above cases applies, the fixed rate compression / expansion unit 2010 is selected.

The data compression / expansion unit 1801 selects the compression / expansion unit A 181 selected by the command control unit 809.
0, compression is performed on the image data input by using any one of the compression / expansion unit B1811, and the fixed rate compression / expansion unit 2010.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines not to compress the image data. Then, without compressing the image data by the data compression / expansion unit 2001 (represented by a path f2),
Path f3 using image data as memory input / output image data
To memory.

On the other hand, when image data is input from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 80
Step 9 determines whether or not the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is transferred to the compressor / decompressor A1810 via the path f4.
Compression / expansion device B1811, fixed rate compression / expansion device 20
10, the image data is input to a compression / decompression device that compresses image data. Compression / decompression device A181 to which image data is input
0, the compression / expansion unit B 1811 or the fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010 expands the input image data so as to return to the state before compression.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, it selects one of the compression / expansion unit A 1810 or compression / expansion unit B 1811 and the fixed rate compression / expansion unit 2010. Without stretching (represented by path f5),
Path f6 using image data as memory input / output image data
From the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 2 as image data for image processing.
Transfer to 20.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the third configuration example of the second embodiment described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. 21. The command control unit 809 first determines whether scanner image data has been input (step S2101). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S2101), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S2110).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2101 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S2101), the usage status of the data bus for image data is determined (step S2102). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not compression of the image data is necessary when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S2103).

If the result of determination in step S2103 indicates that compression is necessary (Yes in step S2103), the command control unit 809 further considers the input speed of the image data, etc. It is determined whether to perform compression (step S2104). As a result of this determination, when the image data is compressed by the compression / expansion unit A1810, the image data is compressed by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (step S2105). Then, the image data is transferred to the memory (step S2109).

If it is determined in step S2104 that the image data is not to be compressed by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (No in step S2104), the compression / expansion unit B
In 1811, it is determined whether to compress the image data (step S2106). As a result of this determination, the compression / expansion unit B1
When compressing image data in step 811 (step S210)
(Yes at 6), the image data is compressed by the compressor / decompressor B 1811 (step S2107). Then, the image data is transferred to the memory (step S2109).

Further, if it is determined in step S2106 that the image data is not compressed by the compression / expansion unit B1811 (No in step S2106), the image data is compressed by the fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010 (step S2106).
2108), and transfer to memory (step S210)
9). If it is determined in step S2103 that compression is not necessary (No in step S2103), the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S2109).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S211).
0). If the memory input / output image data has not been transferred (No at Step S2110), Step S2110 is executed.
Returning to step 2101, the scanner image data input is determined again. If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at Step S2110), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (Step S211).
1).

If it is determined in step S2111 that decompression is not necessary (No in step S2111),
The image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing the decompression (step S211)
7). On the other hand, when expansion is necessary (step S211)
1 affirmative) indicates that the image data is compressed and decompressed by A1810.
, That is, the image data is compressed and decompressed by A1
It is determined whether or not the data has been compressed in step 810 (step S2).
112). As a result of this determination, when the image data is expanded by the compression / expansion unit A1810 (Yes at step S2112)
Expands the image data using the compression / decompression device A1810 (step S2113).

The image data is compressed and decompressed by A181.
If the image data is not decompressed at 0 (No at Step S2112), it is determined whether this image data is decompressed by the compressor / decompressor B1811 (Step S2114). As a result of this decision,
If the image data is expanded by the compression / expansion device B1811 (Yes in step S2114), the compression / expansion device B181 is used.
1 is decompressed using the image data (step S211).
5).

Further, as a result of the determination in step S2114, if the image data is not expanded by the compression / expansion unit B1811 (No in step S2114), the fixed-rate compression / expansion is performed.
The decompressor 2010 decompresses the image data. The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image processing image data (step S211).
7). After the above processing, this flowchart returns to step S2101.

The data compression / expansion unit 180 provided with such a compression / expansion unit A 1810 and compression / expansion unit B 1811
According to No. 1, it is possible to execute the optimal compression / decompression processing for the compression of the image data in consideration of not only the use status of the data bus but also the input speed of the image data.

Further, the fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010
By compressing / expanding image data using the fixed-rate compression / expansion unit 2010, the data amount of the compressed / expanded image data becomes constant, and the data bus of the compressed / expanded image data is used. The occupation time and the use state can be easily determined. With such a configuration, the arithmetic processing and the system of the image processing apparatus are simplified,
Image processing time can be reduced.

(Embodiment 3) Embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described below. In the third embodiment, four configuration examples of a first configuration example, a second configuration example, a third configuration example, and a fourth configuration example will be sequentially described.

(First Configuration Example) The image data control section 1500 of the third embodiment has the same configuration as that of the image data control section 1500 shown in the second embodiment except for the configuration of the data compression / decompression section. are doing. For this reason, in the present embodiment, illustration and description of the image data control unit 1500 are omitted.

FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram for explaining the data compression / decompression unit 2201 of the first configuration example of the third embodiment. In FIG. 22, the image data control unit 150
0, the data compression / decompression unit 2201 stores the input image data in the RAMs 212 and 232 and the ROMs 213 and 23.
An operation of transferring data to a memory such as No. 3 will be described.
An operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processor 204 or the like will be described.

The data compression / decompression unit 2201 has a function as a lossless compression / decompression device for reversibly compressing image data and a function as a lossy compression / decompression device for irreversibly compressing image data. An expander 2210 is provided. Such a compression / expansion unit 2210 compresses image data by either reversible compression / expansion or irreversible compression / expansion in accordance with the judgment of the command control unit 809, for example. While the amount is reduced, the image data that has been subjected to the compression processing is subjected to the expansion processing.

In the first configuration example of the third embodiment, when scanner image data is transferred to image data control section 1500, for example, command control section 809
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the processing units. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

In such a case, the command control unit 809
Inputs image data to the compression / decompression device 2210 from the path g1. Then, it is determined whether the image data input in the compression / expansion unit 2210 is reversibly compressed or irreversibly compressed, and the result of this determination is input to the compression / expansion unit 2210. The compression / expansion unit 2210 reversibly or irreversibly compresses the image data according to this determination. The compressed image data is transferred from the path g3 to the memory as memory input / output image data.

By the way, as is well known, reversible image data compression can form a high quality image very close to the original image. On the other hand, irreversible image data compression cannot completely reproduce the image data before compression when the compressed image data is expanded. For this reason, although it is disadvantageous in terms of image quality compared to reversible processing, it is a data compression method that is advantageous for increasing the compression ratio.

The command control unit 809, based on the difference between the characteristics of the reversible image data compression and the irreversible image data compression, performs, for example, image data compression by reversible compression which can normally form a high quality image. May be compressed, and if it is determined that a load is imposed on the data bus during the processing, switching to irreversible image data compression may be performed. Further, depending on the system of the image processing apparatus, it may be advantageous to always perform irreversible image data compression. Further, reversible image data compression and irreversible image data compression may be switched according to the input destination of image data such as a scanner or a public line.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be compressed. Then, the image data is transferred from the path g3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the compression / decompression device 2010 (represented by the path g2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 8
In step 09, it is determined whether the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is input to the compression / decompression device 2010 via the path g4.

The compression / decompression device 2010 decompresses input image data. The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing via the path g6.

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the image data is stored in the memory without being expanded by the compression / expansion unit 2010 (represented by a path g5). From the path g6 as output image data, the image processor 204 or the serial bus 21 as image processing image data.
0, transfer to the parallel bus 220.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the first configuration example of the third embodiment described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether or not scanner image data has been input (step S2301). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S2301), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S2306).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2301 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S2301), the use status of the data bus for image data is determined (step S2302). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S2303).

If the result of determination in step S 2303 indicates that compression is necessary (step S 2303 affirmative), command control section 809 further performs this compression in a reversible or irreversible manner. A determination is made (step S2404). And a compression / expansion device 2210
Is controlled to compress the image data by a method according to the determination (step S2305), and the image data is transferred to the memory (step S2306). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2303 that compression is not necessary (No in step S2303), the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S230).
6).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S230).
7). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at Step S2307), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (Step S230).
8).

If the result of determination in step S2308 is that decompression is necessary (step S2307 affirmative), decompression is performed on the image data (step S2309), and this image data is used as image data for image processing. Transfer to the processor 204 or the like (step S231)
0). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2308 that expansion is not necessary (No in step S2308), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing expansion (step S231).
0). After the above process, the flowchart proceeds to step S2301.

The compression / decompression device 2 of the first configuration example as described above
According to 210, when transferring image data, the image data is compressed in consideration of not only the usage status of the data bus in the image processing apparatus but also the quality of the image formed by the image data to reduce the amount of transferred data. be able to. For this reason,
The compression / decompression device 2210 can form a relatively high-quality image in addition to the effects obtained in the second embodiment.

(Second Configuration Example) Next, a second configuration example of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 24 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit 2401 according to the second configuration example of the third embodiment. In FIG. 24, the image compression / decompression unit 24 in the image data control unit 1500 is used.
01 stores the input image data in the RAMs 212, 232,
An operation of transferring data to a memory such as the ROMs 213 and 233 will be described. An operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processor 204 or the like will be described.

As shown, the data compression / decompression unit 24
01 is added to the compression / decompression device 2210 of the first configuration example,
A compression order controller 2420 for determining a visual characteristic of an image formed by the image data is provided. And
The compression / expansion unit 2210 operates to change the image data compression processing and the transfer order based on the determination result by the compression order controller 2420.

In the second configuration example of the third embodiment, when scanner image data is transferred to image data control section 1500, for example, command control section 809
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the processing units. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

In such a case, the command control unit 809
Inputs image data to the data compression / decompression unit 2401 from the path h1. The input image data is output to the compression / expansion unit 2210 via the compression order controller 2420. At this time, the compression order controller 2420 preferentially outputs image data determined to need to form a relatively high-quality image to the compression / expansion unit 2210.

The compression order controller 2420 includes, for example, a frame memory for temporarily storing input image data, and determines whether the image data represents a painting or a photograph or a character from the image data stored in the frame memory. It is conceivable to make a configuration so as to roughly determine whether or not it represents. According to such a configuration, image data representing a painting or a photograph is output prior to image data representing a character.

By the above processing, the compression order controller 242
0 preferentially outputs image data that needs to form a high-quality image to the compression / decompression unit 2210. The compression / expansion unit 2210 compresses the input image data reversibly or irreversibly. The compressed image data is transferred from the path h3 to the memory as memory input / output image data.

The compressed data created by the second configuration example of the third embodiment is configured as shown in FIG. That is, of the entire compressed data created, the compressed data (compressed data of a visually important part) of the image data that is required to have high quality as an image is arranged at the front, and on the contrary, the quality is not so important. The compressed data of the image data that is not used (compressed data of a visually insignificant portion) is arranged at the rear.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be compressed. Then, the image data is transferred from the path h3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the data compression / decompression unit 2401 (represented by the path h2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 8
In step 09, it is determined whether the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is input to the compression / expansion unit 2210 via the path h4.

The compression / decompression device 2210 decompresses input image data. The decompressed image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 or the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing via the path h6.

When the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the image data is stored in the memory without being expanded by the data compression / expansion unit 2401 (represented by a path h5). The input / output image data is transferred from the path h6 to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 or the parallel bus 220 as image processing image data.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the second configuration example of the third embodiment will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether or not scanner image data has been input (step S2601). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S2601), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S2608).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2601 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S2601), the use status of the image data data bus is determined (step S2602). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S2603).

If the result of determination in step S2603 indicates that compression is necessary (step S2603: YES), image data is input to the data compression / decompression unit 2401. In the data compression / decompression unit 2401, first, the compression order controller 24
At 20, the compression order of the image data is determined based on the visual importance (step S2604). And
Compress image data according to the determined compression order
Output to the expander 2210.

The command control unit 809 further determines whether this compression is performed in a reversible or irreversible manner (step S2605).
210 is controlled to compress the image data in a manner according to the determination. With this control, image data is compressed and
Reversible or irreversible compression is performed in the order output to the decompressor 2210 (step S2606). The compressed image data is transferred to the memory (Step S2607).

On the other hand, when it is determined in step S2603 that compression is not necessary (No in step S2603)
Transfers the image data to the memory without performing compression (step S2607).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S260)
8). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at Step S2608), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (Step S260).
9).

If the result of determination in step S2609 indicates that decompression is required (step S2609 affirmative), decompression is performed on the image data (step S2610), and this image data is used as image data for image processing. The data is transferred to the processor 204 (step S261)
1). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2609 that decompression is not required (No in step S2609), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing decompression (step S2611).
After the above-described processing, this flowchart corresponds to step S26.
Move to 01.

According to the data compression / decompression section 2401 of the second configuration example of the third embodiment, it is possible to compress visually important image data first when transferring image data. For this reason, for example, even when the load on the data bus is increased during processing and switching to irreversible compression is performed, visually important data can be prevented from being irreversibly compressed. become.

(Third Configuration Example) Next, a third configuration example of the third embodiment will be described. FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram for explaining the data compression / decompression unit 2701 according to the third configuration example of the third embodiment. In FIG. 27, the image data control unit 1500 includes a data compression / decompression unit 27.
01 stores the input image data in the RAMs 212, 232,
An operation of transferring data to a memory such as the ROMs 213 and 233 will be described. An operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processor 204 or the like will be described.

As shown, the data compression / decompression unit 27
01 is a frequency converter 27 in addition to the compressor / decompressor 2710.
20 and a frequency inverse conversion unit 2730. The frequency conversion unit 2720 is configured to convert the input image data into a frequency according to a certain rule. This frequency converter 2
720 may employ any conversion method such as cosine transform or Fourier transform.

The frequency inverse transform unit 2730 is configured to return the image data that has been converted to a frequency into a coefficient group to the original state. Note that the compression / expansion unit 2710 may have a configuration in which a reversible or irreversible compression method can be arbitrarily selected, or may compress data using only one of the reversible and irreversible methods. .

In the third configuration example of the third embodiment, when scanner image data is transferred to image data control section 1500, for example, command control section 809
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the processing units. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

In such a case, the command control unit 809
Inputs image data to the data compression / decompression unit 2701 from the path i1. The input image data is output to the compression / decompression unit 2710 via the frequency conversion unit 2720.
At this time, the frequency conversion unit 2720 performs frequency conversion on the input image data, and converts the converted data into the compression / decompression unit 2.
710. In addition, the frequency conversion unit 2720 compresses and compresses the converted data in order from the lowest frequency component.
The output is controlled to the expander 2710.

By such control, the compression / expansion unit 27
No. 10 compresses the image data in order from the lowest frequency component. The compressed image data is transferred from the path i3 to the memory as memory input / output image data.

The compressed data created by the third configuration example of the third embodiment is configured as shown in FIG. That is, of the entire generated compressed data, image data having a low frequency (low-frequency component compressed data) at the time of frequency conversion is arranged in front, and conversely, high-frequency image data (compressed data of a high frequency component) ) Will be located at the rear.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, it determines that the image data is not to be compressed. Then, the image data is transferred from the path i3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the data compression / decompression unit 2701 (represented by the path i2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 8
In step 09, it is determined whether the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is transferred to the data decompression / compression unit 270 via the path i4.
Enter 1

The data compression / decompression unit 2701 decompresses input image data. The decompressed image data is converted again into image data by the frequency inverse conversion unit 2730, and is transferred as image data for image processing to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 and the parallel bus 220 via the path i6.

When the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the command control unit 809 transfers the image data to the path without being expanded by the data compression / expansion unit 2701 (represented by path i5). From i6, the image data is transferred to the image processor 204, the serial bus 210, and the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus of the third configuration example of the third embodiment will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether or not scanner image data has been input (step S2901). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S2901), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S2907).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2901 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S2901), then the use status of the image data data bus is determined (step S2902). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S2903).

If the result of determination in step S2903 is that compression is necessary (Yes in step S2903), image data is input to the data compression / decompression unit 2701. In the data compression / decompression unit 2701, first, the frequency conversion unit 272
At 0, the image data is frequency converted. Then, the compression order of the image data is determined based on the frequency of the converted image data (step S2904). The image data is output to the compression / decompression device 2710 according to the determined compression order.

The command control unit 809 further performs compression / compression.
The decompressor 2710 is controlled to compress the input image data. With this control, the image data is compressed in the order output to the compressor / decompressor 2710 (step S2905). The compressed image data is transferred to the memory (Step S2906). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2903 that compression is not required (No in step S2903), the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S2).
906).

Next, the command control unit 809 sends the memory input / output image data from the memory to the image data control unit 1.
500 is determined (step S290).
7). If it is determined that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at step S2907), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, whether or not expansion is necessary (step S290).
8).

If the result of determination in step S2908 indicates that expansion is necessary (Yes in step S2908), the image data that has been converted to frequency is inversely frequency-converted and further expanded (step S2909). This image data is
Image processor 20 as image data for image processing
4 (step S2910). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2908 that decompression is not necessary (step S2908: No), the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like without performing decompression (step S2910). After the above process, the flowchart proceeds to step S2901.

Generally, a portion having a low frequency component in image data often represents a photograph, a picture, or a relatively fine character string, and contains more information than image data of a portion having a high frequency component. It has been. Therefore, the data compression / decompression unit 2701 of the third configuration example of the third embodiment
According to the method, when transferring image data, it is possible to compress a large amount of information, that is, important image data first. For this reason, for example, even when the load on the data bus is increased during processing and switching to irreversible compression is performed, important data can be prevented from being irreversibly compressed.

(Fourth Configuration Example) Next, a fourth configuration example of the third embodiment will be described. FIG. 30 is a schematic diagram for explaining the data compression / decompression unit 3001 according to the fourth configuration example of the third embodiment. In FIG. 30, the image compression / decompression unit 30 is used in the image data control unit 1500.
01 stores the input image data in the RAMs 212, 232,
An operation of transferring data to a memory such as the ROMs 213 and 233 will be described. An operation of transferring the image data transferred from the memory to the image processor 204 or the like will be described.

As shown, the data compression / decompression unit 30
01 is a compressor / decompressor 3 configured as a hierarchical encoder
010. The compression / expansion unit 3010 is configured to sequentially and hierarchically compress and expand image data from a relatively wide area of the image.

In the fourth configuration example of the third embodiment, when scanner image data is transferred to image data control section 1500, for example, command control section 809 is executed.
Detects the use status of the data bus transferred between the processing units. If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus cannot be secured to transfer the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines to compress the image data.

In such a case, the command control unit 809
Inputs image data to the data compression / decompression unit 3001 from the path j1. The input image data is output to the compression / decompression device 3010. At this time, the compression / decompression device 301
0 compresses the image data hierarchically, that is, compresses the image data included in a wider area of the image first, and sequentially narrows this area to compress the image data. Then, the data is transferred from the path j3 to the memory as memory input / output image data in accordance with the compression order.

If the command control unit 809 determines that a sufficient data bus can be secured for transferring the input image data to the memory, the command control unit 809 determines not to compress the image data. Then, the image data is transferred from the path j3 to the memory as the memory input / output image data without being compressed by the data compression / decompression unit 3001 (represented by the path j2).

On the other hand, when the image data is transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 1500, the command control unit 8
In step 09, it is determined whether the image data is compressed. If the image data has been compressed, the image data is transferred to the data decompression / compression unit 300 via the path j4.
Enter 1

The data compression / decompression unit 3001 decompresses input image data in the input order (the same as the compression order). The decompressed image data passes through a path j6,
Image processor 20 as image data for image processing
4, or serial bus 210, parallel bus 220
Is forwarded to

If the command control unit 809 determines that the image data transferred from the memory is not compressed, the command control unit 809 transfers the image data without decompression by the data compression / decompression unit 3001 (represented by path j5). From j6, the image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the serial bus 210 or the parallel bus 220 as image data for image processing.

Next, a processing method performed by the image processing apparatus according to the fourth configuration example of the third embodiment described above will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The command control unit 809 first determines whether scanner image data has been input (step S3101). If it is determined that the scanner image data has not been input (No at Step S3101), it is determined whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred to the image data control unit 1500 (Step S3107).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3101 that the scanner image data has been input (Yes in step S3101), the use status of the data bus for image data is determined (step S3102). Then, based on this usage status, it is determined whether or not the image data needs to be compressed when the transferred image data is further transferred to the memory (step S3103).

If the result of determination in step S3103 is that compression is necessary (Yes in step S3103), image data is input to data compression / decompression section 3001. The data compression / decompression unit 3001 sequentially compresses the image data hierarchically (step S3104). The compressed image data is transferred to the memory according to the compression order (Step S3105). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3103 that compression is not required (step S310
If No, the image data is transferred to the memory without performing compression (step S3105).

Next, the command control unit 809 determines whether or not the hierarchical compression performed sequentially is completed (step S3106). If the result of this determination is that compression has not been completed (No at Step S3106), hierarchical compression is repeated until the compression is completed (Step S3104). On the other hand, when the compression is completed (Yes in step S3106)
Determines whether the memory input / output image data has been transferred from the memory to the image data control unit 1500 (step S3107).

If the command control unit 809 determines that the memory input / output image data has been transferred (Yes at step S3107), the command control unit 809 determines whether or not the memory input / output image data has been compressed, that is, the decompression is performed. It is determined whether it is necessary (step S3108). Step S31
As a result of the determination in step 08, when decompression is necessary (step S
3108 affirmative) decompresses the image data (step S
3109). This image data is transferred to the image processor 204 or the like as image processing image data (step S3110).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3108 that decompression is not required (step S3108: No)
Transfers the image data to the image processor 204 or the like without performing the decompression (step S311)
0). After the above process, the flowchart moves to step S3101.

According to the data compression / expansion unit 3001 of the fourth configuration example of the third embodiment, information on image data can be obtained at an early stage by performing compression and expansion hierarchically. . For this reason, the subsequent processing performed using this information can be started earlier, and the image processing time by the image processing apparatus can be reduced.

The image processing methods described in the first to third embodiments of the present invention are realized by executing a prepared program on a computer such as a personal computer or a workstation. This program is used for hard disks, floppy disks,
The program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, and is executed by being read from the recording medium by the computer. Further, this program can be distributed via the recording medium and as a transmission medium via a network such as the Internet.

The image processing apparatus described above is, for example, a SIMD (SiM) that transmits and receives a particularly large amount of image data.
ngle Instruction Multiple
This is particularly effective when used in a (Data stream) type processor.

[0300]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, even when the usable image data bus is not sufficiently provided, it is possible to transfer the image data while suppressing the data amount. When the image data bus can be sufficiently used, the image data can be transferred in a state where the data amount is large. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an image processing apparatus capable of adjusting the amount of image data to be transferred according to the use state of the data bus without adding hardware, and performing optimal data transfer control as a whole system. To play.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the amount of data to be transferred can be reduced in accordance with the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit, so that the usable image data bus is sufficiently provided. If not, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount. In addition, since the image data that has been subjected to the reduction processing can be enlarged, there is an effect that an image processing apparatus capable of eliminating the influence of image reduction in image processing after transfer can be obtained.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the number of image data buses used by image data can be easily calculated, and the processing related to image data transfer can be simplified. Therefore, the configuration of the arithmetic unit can be simplified and reduced in size, and the configuration of the entire device can be simplified and reduced in size.

Further, according to the invention of claim 4, it is possible to simplify the process of changing the size of the image and to suppress a decrease in the amount of information depending on the characteristics of the image data. For this reason, it is possible to obtain an image processing apparatus that can maintain the quality required for an image while increasing the transfer speed of image data.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the image data bus that can be used is not sufficiently provided, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount, and the transferred image data can be transferred. In processing, the effect of image compression can be eliminated. Therefore, there is an effect that an image processing apparatus capable of executing image processing at higher speed can be obtained without adding hardware to the image processing apparatus.

According to the invention of claim 6, not only can the transfer capability of the image processing apparatus be improved, but also the image data can be processed by a compression / decompression method suitable for each image data, and the entire system can be processed. There is an effect that an image processing apparatus capable of performing optimal data transfer control can be obtained.

Further, according to the present invention, the number of image data buses used by image data can be easily calculated, the processing related to image data transfer can be simplified, and the entire system can be simplified. There is an effect that an image processing apparatus capable of performing optimal data transfer control can be obtained.

According to the invention of claim 8, when a sufficient image data bus is not provided, image data can be transferred with a reduced amount by compressing the data amount. In image processing after transfer, the influence of image data compression can be eliminated. Also,
At this time, the image data can be compressed by an appropriate compression method, either reversible or irreversible, so that the image processing can be performed at higher speed and suitable for the image data without adding hardware to the image processing apparatus. There is an effect that a processing device can be obtained.

Further, according to the ninth aspect of the present invention, even when the load on the data bus increases during the processing, the loss of the information amount is reduced for the image data whose visual characteristics are regarded as important. Can be processed with fewer compression schemes. For this reason, an effect is obtained that an image processing apparatus capable of creating a high-quality image can be obtained for image data in which visual characteristics are regarded as important.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention,
It is possible to compress and transfer important image data containing a large amount of information, that is, important image data earlier. For this reason,
For important image data, an image processing apparatus capable of creating a high-quality image can be obtained.

[0310] According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention,
Information on image data can be obtained at an early stage. Therefore, the following processing performed using this information can be started earlier, and an image processing apparatus capable of reducing the image processing time can be obtained.

[0311] According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention,
Even when the image data bus that can be used is not sufficiently provided, the image data can be transferred while suppressing the data amount. When the image data bus can be sufficiently used, the image data is transferred in a state where the data amount is large. be able to.
For this reason, the amount of image data to be transferred is adjusted according to the usage status of the data bus without adding hardware,
There is an effect that an image processing method capable of performing optimal data transfer control as the whole system can be obtained.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention,
Since the amount of data transferred according to the state of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit can be reduced, if there is not enough available image data bus,
Image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount. In addition, since the reduced image data can be interpreted in an enlarged manner, an effect is obtained that an image processing method capable of eliminating the influence of image reduction in image processing after transfer is obtained.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention,
The quantity of the image data bus used by the image data can be easily calculated, and the processing related to the image data transfer can be simplified. For this reason, there is an effect that an image processing method capable of simplifying and reducing the size of the configuration of the arithmetic processing device of the image processing device and, further, simplifying and reducing the configuration of the image processing device can be obtained.

[0314] According to the fifteenth aspect,
It is possible to simplify the process of changing the size of the image and to suppress a decrease in the amount of information depending on the characteristics of the image data. For this reason, there is an effect that an image processing method capable of maintaining the quality required for an image while increasing the transfer speed of the image data is obtained.

According to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention,
When the usable image data bus is not sufficiently provided, the image data can be transferred with a reduced data amount, and the effect of image compression can be eliminated in the image processing after the transfer. For this reason, there is an effect that an image processing method capable of executing image processing at higher speed can be obtained without adding hardware to the image processing apparatus.

According to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention,
It is possible to provide an image processing apparatus which not only enhances the transfer capability of the image processing apparatus but also can process the image data by a compression / decompression method suitable for each image data, and can perform optimal data transfer control as a whole system. There is an effect that a possible image processing method is obtained.

According to the eighteenth aspect of the present invention,
The number of image data buses used by image data can be easily calculated, the processing related to image data transfer can be simplified, and an image processing method that can perform optimal data transfer control as a whole system can be obtained. To play.

According to the nineteenth aspect of the present invention,
If there is not enough available image data bus, image data can be transferred by reducing the amount of data by compressing the data amount, and the effect of image data compression can be eliminated in image processing after transfer. it can. At this time, the image data can be compressed by an appropriate compression method, either reversible or irreversible, so that image processing can be performed at higher speed and suitable for the image data without adding hardware to the image processing apparatus. This provides an effect that an image processing method that can perform the processing is obtained.

[0319] According to the twentieth aspect of the present invention,
Even when the load on the data bus increases during the processing, image data for which visual characteristics are regarded as important can be processed by a compression method with less loss of information amount. For this reason, for image data in which visual characteristics are regarded as important, an image processing method capable of creating a high-quality image is obtained.

According to the twenty-first aspect of the present invention,
It is possible to compress and transfer important image data containing a large amount of information, that is, important image data earlier. For this reason,
For important image data, an image processing method capable of creating a high-quality image is obtained.

Further, according to the invention of claim 22,
Information on image data can be obtained at an early stage. Therefore, the following processing performed using this information can be started earlier, and an image processing method capable of shortening the image processing time by the image processing apparatus is obtained.

According to the twenty-third aspect of the present invention,
By recording a program for causing a computer to execute the method according to claims 12 to 22, the program becomes machine-readable, whereby the program is read.
This provides an effect that a recording medium capable of realizing the operations Nos. To 23 by a computer can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram functionally showing a configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a single scanner of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of processing of an image memory access control unit of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a process performed by an image processor of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a video / video of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;
It is a block diagram showing an outline of processing of a data control part.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a facsimile control unit of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a process of an image data control unit of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a multiplier according to a first configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a first configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating a multiplier according to a second configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a second configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating a multiplier according to a third configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a third configuration example of the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a process of an image data control unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a first configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a first configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a second configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a second configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a third configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a third configuration example of the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a first configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a first configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 24 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a second configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram showing data created by a data compression / decompression unit according to a second configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a second configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a third configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 is an explanatory diagram showing data created by a data compression / decompression unit according to a third configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a third configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 30 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data compression / decompression unit according to a fourth configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 31 is a flowchart illustrating a series of procedures in an image processing method according to a fourth configuration example of the third embodiment of the present invention;

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 image data control unit 102 image memory control unit 103 image processing unit 104 image writing unit 201 reading unit 202 sensor board unit 203 image data control unit 204 image processing processor 205 video data control unit 206 imaging unit 210 serial bus 211 Process controller 220 Parallel bus 221 Image memory access control unit 222 Memory module 224 Facsimile control unit 231 System controller 234 Operation panel 401 Parallel data I / F 402 System controller I / F 403 Memory access control unit 404 line Buffer 405 Video control unit 406 Data compression unit 407 Data expansion unit 408 Data conversion unit 502 Scanner image processing unit 505 Image quality processing unit 507 Command control unit 508 Serial I / F 601 Edge smoothing processing unit 602 Pulse control unit 603 Parallel data I / F 604 Serial data I / F 605 Data conversion unit 701 Facsimile transmission / reception unit 703 Facsimile image Processing unit 704 Image memory 705 Memory control unit 706 Data control unit 707 Image compression / decompression unit 708 Modem 709 Network control unit 801 Image data input / output control unit 802 Image data input control unit 803 Data compression unit 804 Data conversion unit 805 Parallel data I / F 806 Data expansion unit 807 First serial data I / F 808 Second serial data I / F 809 Command control unit 810 Magnifier 811 Data reduction unit 812 Data enlargement unit 813 Image data Output control section 1110 fixed magnification zooming 1310 subscanning magnification unit 1500 image data controller 1501,1801,2001,2401,2701,
3001 Data compression / decompression unit 1503 Data compression unit 1506 Data decompression unit 1510, 2010, 2210, 2710, 3010
Compression / expansion device 1810 Compression / expansion device A 1811 Compression / expansion device B 2010 Fixed-rate compression / expansion device 2420 Compression order controller 2720 Frequency conversion unit 2730 Frequency inverse conversion unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yoshiyuki Hatsuka 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hideto Miyazaki 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company, Ltd. (72) Inventor Shinya Miyazaki 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Yuji Takahashi 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Takako Sato 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Takeharu Tone 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Invention Person Fumio Yoshizawa 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Takusho Fukuda 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Share Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Rie Ishii 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Stock Company Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Sugitaka Shikogi 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Stock Company Ricoh Company F term (reference) 5B057 AA11 CD05 CG01 CH11 CH12 CH14 5B077 AA15 NN02 5C062 AA02 AA05 AA13 AA27 AB11 AB42 AB43 AC25 AC43 AF06 AF11 BA00 5C076 AA21 AA22 BA03 BB42 CB01

Claims (23)

[Claims] 1. An image processing apparatus for processing image data to create an image, the image processing apparatus comprising: a plurality of image processing units that independently execute a process performed for image creation for each type of process; Image data bus management means for collectively managing image data buses for transmitting image data between the image processing units, wherein the image bus management means responds to the status of use of the image data bus by the image processing unit. An image processing apparatus comprising: a transfer data amount adjusting unit that adjusts a transfer data amount of image data. 2. An image processing apparatus that executes processing for creating an image based on image data in independent image processing units for each type of processing, wherein the image data is transmitted between the image processing units. Image data bus management means for collectively managing image data buses to be performed; image data bus use state determination means for determining the use state of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus management means; According to the determination made by the data bus usage determining means, the image data is subjected to an image reduction process of reducing the image to reduce the transfer data amount, while the image data subjected to the reduction process is enlarged to enlarge the image. An image processing apparatus comprising: an image scaling unit that performs processing. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image scaling unit processes the image data so as to scale the image at a fixed magnification. 4. The image scaling device according to claim 2, wherein the image scaling means processes the image data so as to scale the image in one of a main scanning direction and a sub-scanning direction of the image. An image processing apparatus according to claim 1. 5. An image processing apparatus which executes processing for creating an image based on image data in independent image processing units for each type of processing, wherein the image data is transmitted between the image processing units. Image data bus management means for collectively managing image data buses to be performed; image data bus use state determination means for determining the use state of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus management means; Image compression / expansion means for reducing the amount of transfer data by compressing the image data in accordance with the determination by the data bus use status determination means and for performing expansion processing on the compressed image data. Image processing apparatus. 6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said image compression / expansion means includes a plurality of compression / expansion units having different compression / expansion methods. 7. The image compression / decompression means includes a plurality of compression / decompression devices and a fixed compression ratio compression / decompression device for compressing image data at a constant compression ratio. Or the image processing device according to 6. 8. An image processing apparatus which executes processing for creating an image based on image data in independent image processing units for each type of processing, wherein the image data is transmitted between the image processing units. Image data bus management means for collectively managing image data buses to be performed, image data bus use state determination means for determining the use state of the image data bus by the image processing unit in the image data bus management means, image data A lossless compression / expansion device for reversibly compressing the image data bus, and an irreversible compression / expansion device for irreversibly compressing the image data bus. While compressing the image data using one of the irreversible compression / decompression devices, the amount of transfer data is reduced, while the compression processing is performed. The image processing apparatus characterized by comprising: a lossless lossy compression and decompression means for performing a decompression process on the image data has been subjected. 9. A visual determination unit for determining a visual characteristic of an image formed by the image data, wherein the reversible and irreversible compression / decompression unit determines the image data based on a result of the determination by the visual determination unit. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a compression process and a transfer order are changed. 10. The reversible and irreversible compression / expansion means converts the frequency of image data, compresses the converted image data from those having low frequency components, and transfers the image data. 10. The image processing apparatus according to 9. 11. The reversible irreversible compression / decompression means sequentially and hierarchically compresses and decompresses image data from a relatively wide area of the image.
The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 13. 12. An image processing method executed in an image processing apparatus having an independent image processing unit for each type of image processing based on image data, the image processing method comprising: transmitting an image data between the image processing units. An image data bus status determining step of determining a use status of a data bus; and a transfer data amount adjusting step of adjusting a transfer data amount of image data according to a determination result in the image data bus status determining step. Image processing method. 13. An image processing method executed in an image processing apparatus having an independent image processing unit for each type of image processing based on image data, the image processing method comprising: transmitting an image data between the image processing units. An image data bus status determining step of determining the use status of the data bus; and an image reduction process of reducing an image on the image data according to the determination result in the image data bus status determining step, thereby reducing a transfer data amount. On the other hand, an image scaling step of performing an enlargement process for enlarging an image on image data that has been subjected to a reduction process. 14. The image processing method according to claim 13, wherein in the image scaling step, the image data is processed so as to scale the image at a fixed magnification. 15. The image magnification process according to claim 13, wherein the image data is processed so as to scale the image in one of a main scanning direction and a sub-scanning direction of the image. The image processing method according to 1. 16. An image processing method which is executed in an image processing apparatus having an independent image processing unit for each type of image processing based on image data, wherein an image for transmitting image data between the image processing units is provided. An image data bus status determining step of determining a use status of the data bus; an image compression process of reducing the transfer data amount by compressing image data according to a determination result in the image data bus status determining process; and the image compression process. An image decompression step of performing decompression processing on image data that has been subjected to compression processing by: 17. The image processing method according to claim 16, wherein the image compression step and / or the image decompression step execute compression / decompression of image data using a plurality of different compression / decompression methods. . 18. The image processing method according to claim 16, wherein in the image compression step, the image data can be compressed by a plurality of methods, and the image data is compressed at a fixed compression rate. 19. An image processing method which is executed in an image processing apparatus having an independent image processing unit for each type of image processing based on image data, wherein the image data is transmitted between the image processing units. An image data bus status determining step of determining the usage status of the data bus; and performing the reversible compression processing or the irreversible compression processing of the image data according to the determination in the image data bus usage determination step. An image processing method comprising: a reversible irreversible compression step; and an expansion step of performing expansion processing on image data that has been subjected to compression processing by the reversible irreversible compression step. 20. A visual determination step for determining a visual characteristic of an image formed by the image data, wherein the reversible and irreversible compression step includes an image data compression process based on a determination result by the visual determination step. 20. The image processing method according to claim 19, wherein the order of the image data and the order of transferring the compressed image data to another image processing unit are changed. 21. The image processing apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the reversible and irreversible compression step performs frequency conversion of the image data, performs compression processing on the converted image data from a low frequency component, and transfers the image data. The image processing method described in the above. 22. The image according to claim 19, wherein the reversible and irreversible compression process compresses the image data in a hierarchical manner sequentially from a relatively wide area of the image. Processing method. 23. A computer-readable recording medium on which a program for causing a computer to execute the method according to claim 12 is recorded.