JP2001292314A - Image processing apparatus and image processing method, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus that utilizes a frequency characteristic specific to paper moneys and securities or the like so as to attain processing for information extraction without the need for a specific operation. SOLUTION: The image processing apparatus comprises an image data acquisition means 120 that acquires image data, a frequency component arithmetic means 130 that calculates the frequency component data of the image data, a 1st discrimination means 140 that discriminates whether or not the frequency component data denote a frequency component specific to a color line drawing of paper monies and securities or the like, a registration means 150 that matches registration by using feature points in the frequency component data when the discrimination means 140 discriminates that the frequency component has predetermined features, an information extract means 160 that extracts attached information from the image with the matched registration, a 2nd discrimination means 170 that discriminates whether or not the image is a copy inhibit object image on the basis of the obtained attached information, and a signal transmission means 180 that transmits discrimination information by the 2nd discrimination means 170.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information signal processing apparatus and an information signal processing method capable of performing effective registration of a specific image, for example, for preventing forgery of a copy prohibited object such as a bill or a securities. The present invention relates to a preferred information signal processing device and information signal processing method, and in particular, information that is effective in preventing counterfeiting of copying prohibited objects such as bills by a system in which an image input device such as an image scanner or a printer or a printer is connected to a personal computer. The present invention relates to a signal processing device and an information signal processing method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the recent improvement in the functions of color printers and color copiers, there is an increasing possibility that counterfeiting of banknotes, securities and the like is performed by using the color copier alone. For this reason, it has been proposed that a color copier be equipped with an image recognition processing function for preventing forgery of bills, securities, and the like.

If it is determined that the image data to be copied is a forgery prevention target image, the following measures are being considered for the image data. (1) Print out by filling in some color,
(2) print by superimposing some symbol or figure; (3) output by changing color or image size;
(4) Normal copy output is prevented from being performed, such as not performing print output at all.

[0004] In general, a conventional copying machine is to faithfully copy an object placed on a platen except for a copy-prohibited material such as a bill. When an image that can be copied is input, it is necessary to recognize that the image is not a bill and to perform the copy process as it is. Therefore, determination of whether or not the image to be recognized corresponds to the image to be counterfeited requires extremely strict recognition accuracy.

On the other hand, in recent years, the image quality of images obtained by color scanners and color printers, which are inexpensive compared with color copiers, has also been dramatically improved. Similar counterfeiting has become possible through the combined use of machine components. For this reason, even in an image processing system using an inexpensive color scanner or color printer, countermeasures against counterfeiting of bills, securities, and the like by mounting an image recognition processing function and the like have been desired.

As a method of determining whether or not an original is a copy-prohibited object, a method for extracting each pixel value in image data, such as a banknote / securities feature extraction circuit described in Japanese Patent No. 2661966. (R, G, B corresponding to three color signals)
Based on the set of values, the color spectrum distribution of the image data obtained by scanning the original is compared with the data registered in the ROM in advance (the difference is obtained as the sum of the absolute values of the difference values between the numerical values). Or calculate a cross-correlation value between distributions), or compare an overall image pattern of a part or the whole of an original with pattern data registered in advance in a ROM or the like. A calculation method and the like have been proposed.

In recent years, it has become possible to use a technique called “digital watermarking” to include information indicating that the document is a copy-prohibited object in a printed document. I have. That is, when a document that is a copy-prohibited object is created as a printed matter, the original digital information (main information) that is the original digital data (electronic image information) is created beforehand. In this case, a printout is created from image data (also electronic image information) containing copy-inhibited object information generated by embedding second digital information (sub-information) indicating that the object is a copy-inhibited object. Is the way.

This copy-inhibited object information (sub-information) can be extracted from image data containing the copy-inhibited object information before printing the original (digital watermarking technology itself), and the copy-inhibited object information can be extracted. If the conditions at the time of creation as a printed matter from the input image data (electronic image information) and the conditions of reading and extraction processing are matched, the printed matter (original) created from the electronic image information including it Can be extracted from electronic image data obtained by scanning a document with a document scanner such as a color scanner. This technology, called "digital watermarking," is used to prevent illegal duplication of printed documents. Application to the Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-21431 was proposed.

However, in the above-described method, the process of recognizing the copy-prohibited object is performed by the above-described process for each pixel value (R, G, B corresponding to the three-color signal) in the image data. Value set), the color spectrum distribution of the image data obtained by scanning the original is represented by R
Comparison with data registered in advance in the OM (difference is obtained as the sum of absolute values of difference values between values, calculation of cross-correlation values between distributions, etc.), or a part or the whole of a document This is realized by a method of calculating an evaluation value by comparing the comprehensive image pattern of the above with pattern data registered in advance in a ROM or the like. For this reason,
If the orientation (angle) or position of the original is not determined, the comparison with the pre-registered spectrum data or image pattern data can be performed even in various cases, as compared to the case where the orientation is determined. Therefore, the total amount of calculations tends to increase dramatically.

[0009] On the other hand, in an inexpensive color scanner or color printer, it is desirable to prevent counterfeiting of a copy prohibited object at a lower cost than a relatively expensive color copier. For this purpose, it is possible to use a software-based realization method as much as possible, instead of a hardware-based realization method that uses electronic circuits and the like for the copy prohibition target recognition processing function. On the other hand, if an attempt is made to determine a copy-prohibited image by a software-based realization method, there is a problem that the processing time required for recognition and determination tends to be significantly longer because the total amount of computation is large.

In other words, in order to reduce the amount of computation required for recognition / judgment, in general, it tends to be difficult to realize a copy-inhibited object image that requires strict recognition accuracy, and intentionally read the image. From the image read by changing the conditions (mounting angle of the original on the reading surface, mounting position, etc.), it becomes difficult to detect a copy prohibited object such as a bill, or conversely, it resembles a bill. Even if an image (not a bill, but an image that can be legally copied) is input, it is incorrectly recognized as a copy-prohibited image, and normal output is not performed.
There is a possibility that the function of the original image processing system is impaired.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made with the object of solving the above-mentioned problems, and as one means for achieving this object, an embodiment of the present invention is, for example, as follows. The following configuration is provided.

That is, image data obtaining means for obtaining image data, frequency component calculating means for calculating frequency component data contained in the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means, and frequency calculated by the frequency component calculating means. First determining means for determining whether the component data has a predetermined characteristic, and when the first determining means determines that the frequency component data calculated by the frequency component calculating means has a predetermined characteristic. Registration means for performing registration matching with the image data acquired by the image data acquisition means using the characteristic points of the frequency component data; and extracting information from the registered image data obtained by the registration means. Information extracting means, and image data acquired by the image data acquiring means A second determination unit that determines whether or not the image has a specific image, and a determination result output unit that outputs a determination result as to whether or not the image has the specific image, wherein the second determination unit When the image data acquisition means determines that the acquired image data is a specific image, a signal indicating that the image data includes the specific image is output from the determination result output means.

[0013] For example, the frequency component calculating means performs fast Fourier transform on the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means to calculate frequency component data included in the image data.

Also, for example, the registration by the registration means is a geometric operation such as enlargement / reduction or rotation.

Further, for example, the second determining means is a means for performing a copy-prohibited object determination for determining whether or not the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means includes a copy-prohibited image. There is a feature.

Further, image data obtaining means for obtaining image data, frequency component calculating means for calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means, and frequency calculated by the frequency component calculating means. A first determination unit that determines whether the component data has a predetermined characteristic; and a determination result signal output unit that outputs a determination result signal of the first determination unit. The determination result signal output unit The image data acquired by the image data acquisition means includes a predetermined specific image when the first determination means determines that the image data acquired by the image data acquisition means has predetermined characteristics. And outputting a signal indicating that the operation is in progress.

Further, an image data obtaining step of obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating step of calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step, and a frequency calculating step of the frequency component calculating step. A first determination step of determining whether the component data has a predetermined characteristic, and a determination result signal output step of outputting a determination result signal of the first determination step, wherein the determination result signal output step The image data obtained in the image data obtaining step includes a predetermined specific image when it is determined in the first determination step that the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step has predetermined characteristics. And outputting a signal indicating that the operation is in progress.

For example, the image data obtaining step of obtaining image data, the frequency component calculating step of calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step, and the frequency component calculating step are performed. A determining step of determining whether the frequency component data has a predetermined characteristic, and, if the determining step determines that the frequency component data has the predetermined characteristic, printing of the image data without performing a detailed determination; And a permitting process.

Further, for example, the detailed judgment includes a registration step of performing a registration process using the characteristics of the frequency component data, and extracting a feature from the image data after the registration process in the registration process. This is a detailed determination step of determining whether the image data is data of a specific image. Alternatively, the feature extracted in the detailed determination step is a digital watermark. Alternatively, the registration processing is a geometric processing of enlargement / reduction and rotation.

Further, for example, the predetermined characteristic is information on a frequency indicating a color line drawing.
The detailed determination is realized by software processing.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment of the Invention] An embodiment of the invention according to the present invention having the above outline will be described below. The following description will be given based on the case where information indicating that the document is a copy-prohibited object included in the document is created by a technique called “digital watermark”. That is, the original, which is a copy-prohibited object, is a second digital information indicating that the original is digitally-produced image data (electronic image information) which is a source of a printed matter. The following description will be given on the assumption that the digital information is generated as a printed matter from image data (also electronic image information) containing copy-inhibited object information generated by embedding the digital information.

<Outline of Embodiment> First, an outline of an embodiment of the present invention according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the present embodiment, for example, a schematic configuration illustrated in FIG. 1 is provided.

That is, image data acquiring means 120 for acquiring and inputting image data from an image data source 110 typified by a color image scanner or an external storage medium, and frequency component data of the image data acquired by the image data acquiring means 120 Frequency component calculation means 1 obtained by various calculations
30 and the frequency component data calculated by the frequency component calculation means 130 to determine whether or not the image data obtained through the image data obtaining means 120 is a frequency component unique to a color line drawing such as a bill or a securities. First determining means 1
40 and the first determination means 140 are the frequency component calculation means 1
When it is determined that the frequency component data calculated in step 30 has predetermined characteristics, a registration unit 150 that performs registration matching using a registration signal in the frequency component data, and a registration obtained by the registration unit 150 Information extracting means 160 for extracting additional information from the matched image, and determining whether or not the image obtained by the image data obtaining means 120 is a copy-prohibited image based on the additional information obtained by the information extracting means 160 And a signal transmitting unit 180 for transmitting the determination information of the second determining unit 170.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 180 denotes a certification information receiving means such as a display device for receiving the judgment information and displaying to the operator of the image processing system or the like that the original is a copy prohibition designation image. Represents a control unit for controlling the operation of the entire image system.

In the above configuration, each functional block (means) operates as follows. By operating an instruction unit (not shown) of the image processing system by the operator of the image system, the image data obtained based on the original set in the data source in advance is calculated through the image data acquisition unit 120. Input to the means 130.

The frequency component calculation means 130 performs a calculation such as a fast Fourier transform, for example, and performs image data acquisition means 12.
The frequency component data of the image data obtained at 0 is obtained. Here, the first determination means is the frequency component calculation means 130
It is determined whether or not the frequency component data of the image data obtained by the above has characteristics unique to a color line drawing such as banknotes and securities.

The registration means 150 performs a registration matching process from the frequency component data obtained by the frequency component calculation means 130 using a frequency signal specific to a color line drawing such as a bill or a securities as a registration signal.

The registration signal referred to here is a signal necessary for executing geometric correction as preprocessing for extracting information such as digital watermark information. The information extracting unit 160 extracts information included in the image preprocessed by the registration unit 150.

The second determining means 170 is an information extracting means 160
It is determined whether or not the image input through the image data acquisition means 120 is a copy prohibition target image such as banknotes or securities based on the information extracted in step (1), and the result is output to the control unit 200. If the result of the determination is a copy-prohibited object, it is output to the authorization information receiving means 190 via the signal sending means 180 in order to inform the fact, for example, to the operator of the image processing system. .

<Description of Specific Configuration> As described above, it is extremely difficult to read a digital image in various digital image forming processes such as a scanner, a facsimile machine, and a digital copying machine without any tilt or movement. When reading an image, a minute enlargement / reduction occurs. For this reason, in order to reliably extract digital watermark data embedded by a digital watermark technique from a generated image, it is desirable to detect a tilt or enlargement / reduction generated as a pre-processing of the extraction and to perform an inverse conversion thereof.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the image processing system of the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, 1
Is a color image scanner as an image input device, 2 is a personal computer as a computer system, 3 is an interface cable between the color image scanner 1 and the computer system 2, and various data between the color image scanner 1 and the computer system 2. Represents a connection cable for sending and receiving.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a keyboard of the computer system 2, reference numeral 5 denotes a mouse of the computer system 2, reference numeral 6 denotes an interface cable between the computer system 2 and the color printer 7, and various kinds of data between the color printer 7 and the computer system 2. Represents a connection cable for sending and receiving. Reference numeral 7 denotes a color printer.

The detailed configuration of the computer system 2 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the computer system 2 of the present embodiment shown in FIG.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 11 denotes a CP which controls the overall control.
U and 12 are RAMs, 13 is a ROM, 14 is a display control unit, 15 is a display which is a display device for displaying various information, and 17 is an operation unit I which controls an interface with operation input devices such as a device keyboard 4 and a mouse 5. /
F and 18 are external storage devices such as a hard disk device in the image processing system, 19 is a memory I / F for controlling an interface with the external storage device, and 20 is an internal bus.

An external I / O 21 is a connection interface with an image input device such as the color image scanner 1.
F. Reference numeral 22 denotes a network I / F which is an interface with communication means such as a network, and reference numeral 23 denotes an external I / F which is a connection interface with the color printer 7.

Next, according to the present embodiment having the above-described configuration, the image data which is the first digital information from which the original, which is the copy prohibited object, is created as a printed matter.
(Electronic image information) from the image data (also electronic image information) containing the copy prohibited object information generated by embedding the second digital information indicating that it is a copy prohibited object The process of generating print data will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation control of the present embodiment.

In the present embodiment, a computer-executable program describing the procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4 is stored in the ROM 13 in advance, or the program stored in the external storage device 19 is stored in advance. After the data is read into the RAM 12, the CPU 11 executes the program (software processing) to execute the following operation control.

When a series of processing is started, the CPU 11 of this embodiment executes the processing of the flowchart of FIG.
First, in step S10, the CPU 11 sets the external I / F
An instruction is given to the color image scanner 1 via the section 21 to read a document placed on a reading surface or a document table.

Upon receiving this instruction, the color image scanner 1 controls the reading of the document placed on the reading surface or on the platen, and sequentially sends the read document data to the external I / F section 21 of the computer system. Come. For this reason, the CPU 11 receives the image data read by the color scanner 1, temporarily captures the image data in the RAM 12, and stores it. This storage may be stored in the external storage device 18.

Next, in step S20, the RAM 12 (or the external storage device 1) read in step S10 is read.
The frequency component of the read image data stored in 8) is calculated, and the process proceeds to step S30. Details of the method of calculating the frequency component of the image data will be described later.

In step S30, based on the calculation result in step S20, peak points of frequency component data present in both the vertical and horizontal directions, which show the most features of bills and securities, for example, the power in the upper part of FIG. Attention is paid to the peak points of the points A, B, C, and D of the spectrum, and the information of the characteristic points is stored in the RAM 12, and the process proceeds to step S40. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of characteristic points in the frequency domain of a color line drawing.

In step S40, based on the characteristic point information of the frequency component data stored in the RAM 12, it is determined whether or not the target image may be a copy-prohibited object such as a bill or a securities. Do. If it is determined that there is no possibility of a copy-prohibited object, the process proceeds to step S90.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S40 that there is a possibility of a copy-prohibited object, the process proceeds to step S40.
Proceeding to 50, a registration process for performing registration using the registration signal in the frequency component data is performed, and the characteristic point information of the frequency component data stored in the RAM 12 and the banknote valuables registered in the ROM 13 in advance. Based on frequency component data such as securities, information on tilt and enlargement / reduction generated at the time of inputting images such as banknotes and securities, or intentionally added by the operator of the image processing apparatus,
For example, points A ', B', C ', and D' are detected as shown in the lower portion of the power spectrum in FIG. 5, and the distance d from the center of one of the points and the rotation angle θ from the center line in the horizontal direction are detected.
, And the inverse transformation is performed.

After performing the registration processing in step S50, the process proceeds to step S60, in which information extraction processing is executed, and information extraction processing for extracting information included in the inspection object image data that has been pre-processed in step S50 is performed. A characteristic check is performed to determine whether the image data to be inspected that has been executed and the preprocessing of which has been completed in step S50 is a copy-prohibited object, and the process proceeds to step S70.

In step S70, it is determined from the result of checking the characteristics in step S60 whether the image is a copy-prohibited image. If it is determined that the image is a copy prohibition target image, the process proceeds to step S80, where image data that is not normal image data is generated and output to the external storage device 18 via, for example, the memory I / F unit 19.

Examples of output of image data that is not normal image data include (1) outputting image data filled with some color, (2) outputting image data with some symbols or graphics superimposed thereon, (3) And (2) outputting image data in which the color and image size have been changed, or an abnormal (not read image data itself) image obtained by any of the methods.

The generation of these abnormal images is performed by the RAM 12
Can be easily configured by executing a program module for performing a corresponding well-known image processing using the image read from the image scanner 1 stored in the CPU 11 as an input by the CPU 11 or the like. The generated abnormal image data is
The image data file may be output to the external storage device 18 via the memory I / F unit 19. This step S
When 80 is completed, a series of processing ends. Thereafter, for example, when processing for the next image data is executed, the processing of FIG. 4 is executed again.

On the other hand, if the image is still a copy prohibition target image in step S70, the flow advances to step S90. This case corresponds to, for example, a case where it is determined that the image is not a copy prohibition target image in step S40.
The image data read in 10 is used as an image data file, for example, via the memory I / F unit 19 in the external storage device 1.
8 is output. When the processing in step S80 is completed, a series of processing ends.

In step S80 described above, not only may any image data file be output, but also no image data may be output. Alternatively, a signal may be output to the display device 15 via the display control unit 14 as a caution / warning signal that the copy-prohibited object is an original.

The check of the characteristics of the copy-prohibited object performed in step S70 is performed by photoelectrically scanning an original as a printed matter created from original image data containing copy-prohibited object information using the above-described digital watermarking technique using a scanner. It is configured to perform the extraction by the method of extracting from the obtained image data. Thereafter, for example, when processing for the next image data is executed, the processing of FIG. 4 is executed again.

With the above configuration, the calculation of the frequency component which is the pre-process of the registration process can be used for the copy-prohibited object, and the efficiency is high. Step S4
If it is determined at 0 that it is not a color line drawing included in banknotes and securities, the digital watermark extraction processing that takes a long time is not performed, so that the output time of a normal printed matter that does not include the majority of color line drawings is prevented. It is possible to prevent printing of a copy-prohibited object.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, by utilizing the frequency characteristic peculiar to bills and securities, special operations are not required to determine bills and securities. Information can be extracted. For this reason,
An image processing apparatus having a simple configuration and capable of inexpensively determining a copy-inhibited image such as a bill or a securities can be provided.

[Second Embodiment of the Invention] In the above-described first embodiment, step S3 shown in FIG.
0, based on the calculation result in step S20, FIG.
As shown in the power spectrum points A, B, C, and D shown in the upper row, vertical and
Although attention has been paid to peak points of frequency component data existing in both horizontal directions, the present invention is not limited to this, and this point may be processed as in the second embodiment of the present invention described below. Thus, a process for extracting information can be performed without requiring a special operation.

The basic configuration of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will be made only for the portions different from the first embodiment. Do.

In the second embodiment, the processing of step S30 shown in FIG. 4 is different from that of the first embodiment, and the peak points of the frequency component data such as bills and securities are set in the vertical and horizontal directions. , Four points are found such that the combination of the two points characteristic of the frequency component data is point-symmetric with respect to the center point, and these points are identified as points A, B, and ROM13 like C and D
By storing the information above, inverse transformations such as image rotation and enlargement / reduction, which are preprocessing for information extraction in step S50, are performed.

In the second embodiment, by adopting such a configuration, even if the peak point of the frequency component data such as bills and securities does not exist in the vertical and horizontal directions, the information in step S50 can be obtained. It is possible to perform inverse transformation such as image rotation and enlargement / reduction, which are pre-processing of extraction.

[Third Embodiment of the Invention] In the first and second embodiments described above, step S70 is performed.
The feature check of the copy-inhibited object performed in the step is performed by extracting the original as a printed matter created from the original image data containing the copy-inhibited object information using the digital watermark technology from image data obtained by photoelectrically scanning with a scanner. Although an example in which the configuration is made by the method has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and this point can also be specially processed by processing as in the third embodiment of the present invention described below. Processing for information extraction becomes possible without requiring a complicated operation.

Since the basic structure of the third embodiment is the same as that of the first and second embodiments, the following description is based on the first and second embodiments. This is performed only for parts that are different from.

In the third embodiment, each pixel value (R, G, R, G, and R corresponding to the three-color signal) in the image data is checked in the copy prohibition target feature check performed in step S70 shown in FIG. B).
The color spectrum distribution of the image data obtained by scanning the original is compared with the data registered in the ROM 13 in advance (the difference is obtained as the sum of the absolute values of the difference between numerical values,
An evaluation value is calculated by calculating a cross-correlation value between distributions.

Alternatively, an evaluation value is calculated by comparing a comprehensive image pattern of a part or the whole of a document with pattern data registered in advance in a ROM or the like.

In the third embodiment, the evaluation value (the sum of the absolute values of the difference values, the cross-correlation value between the distributions, etc.) determined as described above in step S70 of FIG. (For example, if the sum of the absolute values of the difference values does not exceed the threshold value, the object is regarded as a copy prohibited object, otherwise, it is determined that the object is not a copy prohibited object, or a cross-correlation value Is greater than the threshold value, it is regarded as a copy prohibited object, otherwise, it is determined that the object is not a copy prohibited object.

In the third embodiment, by adopting such a configuration, the same operation and effect as those of the above-described embodiments can be achieved.

[Fourth Embodiment of the Invention] In the first to third embodiments described above, it is determined whether or not there is a possibility that the copy is prohibited in step S40 shown in FIG. If it is determined that the image is a color prohibition target (color line drawing) according to the determination result of whether the image is a color line drawing or not, a series of copy prohibition target images such as a registration process performed in step S50 and subsequent steps. Although the detection process has been performed, the present invention is not limited to this.

That is, if it is determined in step S40 that the image is an image (color line drawing) that may be subject to copy prohibition, the process may directly proceed to step S80 to perform abnormal output.

In this case, effects such as a drastic increase in processing speed can be obtained.

[Fifth Embodiment] In the above-described first to fourth embodiments, processing is performed regardless of whether output is performed as normal image data or abnormal image data. Output / store image data to external storage device 18 via memory I / F 19
Has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this.

That is, as for the output form, various types of information processing devices (e.g., output to the color printer 7 via the external I / F section 23 or connected to another network via the network I / F section 22) (Including a printer and a computer terminal).

The detailed configuration of the computer system 2 according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of a computer system according to the fifth embodiment.

The basic configuration of the sixth embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3, and the following description is different from that of the first embodiment. This is done only for the part where

As shown in FIG. 6, in the fifth embodiment, an external device 100 or an external printer which can be connected to the external network 300 via the network I / F 22 can be connected, for example. It is configured to be able to send and receive data to and from 200 and the like.

Similarly, it is possible to output image data to be printed out to the color printer 7 via the external I / F 23.

In the fifth embodiment having the above configuration, in the processing of steps S80 and S90 shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4 in the first to fourth embodiments, the image data is externally stored. What is output to the device 18 is output to the color printer 7 connected to the image processing system via the external I / F 23.

Thus, even in the copying process, it is possible to extract information for judging bills, securities, and the like without requiring any special operation. Therefore, it is possible to provide an image processing system having a simple configuration and capable of discriminating a copy-inhibited image such as a bill or a securities at a low cost.

The output form of the image data in steps S80 and S90 may be such that the image data is output to the outside of the system via an interface with a communication means such as a network such as the Internet. Of course.

[Sixth Embodiment of the Invention] In the first to fifth embodiments described above, it is assumed that an image read by the color scanner 1 is subjected to a characteristic check of a copy-prohibited object. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

That is, the object to be checked is not necessarily limited to the color image read by the color scanner 1;
For example, image data obtained from, for example, the external device 100 obtained via communication means such as an external network 300 connected via the network I / F 22 shown in FIG. 6, or provided in the computer system 2 (not shown). Removable storage media (e.g.,
A similar process may be performed on image data read from a smart media, a compact flash (registered trademark), a magneto-optical disk, or the like.

In this case, the image data fetching procedure is only required to change the image fetching process in step S1. Thereafter, the processing shown in step S20 and subsequent steps in FIG. 4 may be executed.

[Other Embodiments] Even if the present invention is applied to a system constituted by a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), an apparatus comprising one device (For example, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, etc.).

Further, an object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium (or a recording medium) in which a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is recorded to a system or an apparatus, and to provide a computer (a computer) of the system or the apparatus. Or a CPU or MPU) reads out and executes the program code stored in the storage medium,
Needless to say, this is achieved. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium implements the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.
In addition, by the computer executing the readout program code, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also based on the instructions of the program code,
The operating system (OS) running on the computer performs part or all of the actual processing,
It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by the processing is also included.

Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion card inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, based on the instruction of the program code, The CPU provided in the function expansion card or function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing,
It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by the processing is also included.

When each of the above-described embodiments is applied to the storage medium, the storage medium stores program codes corresponding to the above-described flowchart and control description.

As described above, according to the present invention, a simple configuration can be realized by utilizing a frequency characteristic peculiar to a specific image such as a banknote or a securities in a process of discriminating a specific image such as a banknote or a securities. Thus, information extraction can be performed without requiring a special operation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an outline of an embodiment of the present invention according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a configuration of an image processing system according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of a computer system according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing operation control of the computer system according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of characteristic points in a frequency domain of a color line drawing.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image processing system according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 color image scanner 2 computer system (personal computer) 3, 6 connection cable 4 keyboard 5 mouse 7 color printer 11 CPU 12 RAM 13 ROM 14 display control unit 15 display 17 operation unit I / F unit 18 external storage device 19 memory I / F Unit 20 CPU bus 21 External I / F unit with scanner 22 Network I / F unit 23 External I / F unit with printer 100 External device 200 External printer 300 External network

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yoshihiro Iwata 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Junichi Hayashi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon In-house F term (reference) 2H034 FA01 5C076 AA14 BA06 5C077 LL14 MP08 PP20 PP22 PP23 PP43 PP49 PP59 PQ22 SS01 TT06 5L096 AA02 BA07 BA18 EA03 EA13 EA16 FA23 HA08 JA11

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. An image data obtaining means for obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating means for calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means, and a frequency calculated by the frequency component calculating means. First determining means for determining whether or not the component data has a predetermined characteristic, and when the first determining means determines that the frequency component data calculated by the frequency component calculating means has a predetermined characteristic. Registration means for performing registration matching with the image data acquired by the image data acquisition means using the characteristic points of the frequency component data; and extracting information from the registered image data obtained by the registration means. Information extraction means to be executed and image data acquired by the image data acquisition means are predetermined. A second determination unit that determines whether or not the specific image has the characteristic, and a determination result output unit that outputs a determination result as to whether or not the specific image has the specific image, wherein the second determination unit When the image data acquired by the image data acquiring means is determined to be a specific image, a signal indicating that the image data contains the specific image is output from the determination result output means. apparatus. 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the frequency component calculating unit performs a fast Fourier transform on the image data acquired by the image data acquiring unit to calculate frequency component data included in the image data. Image processing device. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the registration by the registration unit is a geometric operation such as enlargement / reduction or rotation. 4. The second determining means is means for performing a copy-prohibited object determination for determining whether or not the image data acquired by the image data acquiring means includes a copy-prohibited image. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 5. An image data obtaining means for obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating means for calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained by the image data obtaining means, and a frequency calculated by the frequency component calculating means. A first determination unit that determines whether the component data has a predetermined characteristic; and a determination result signal output unit that outputs a determination result signal of the first determination unit. The determination result signal output unit The image data acquired by the image data acquisition means includes a predetermined specific image when the first determination means determines that the image data acquired by the image data acquisition means has predetermined characteristics. An image processing apparatus, which outputs a signal indicating that the user is in the office. 6. An image data obtaining step of obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating step of calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step, and a frequency calculated in the frequency component calculating step A first determining step of determining whether or not the component data has a predetermined characteristic, and when the first determining step determines that the frequency component data calculated in the frequency component calculating step has a predetermined characteristic. A registration step of registering the image data acquired in the image data acquisition step using the characteristic points of the frequency component data, and extracting information from the registered image data obtained in the registration step. Information extracting step, and the image data acquired by the image data acquiring means are predetermined. A second determination step of determining whether or not the specific image has the characteristic, and a determination result output step of outputting a determination result of whether or not the specific image has, the second determination step When the image data acquired by the image data acquiring means is determined to be a specific image, a signal indicating that the image data includes the specific image is output from the determination result output step. Image processing method. 7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the frequency component calculation step performs a fast Fourier transform on the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step to calculate frequency component data included in the image data. Image processing method. 8. The image processing method according to claim 6, wherein the registration in the registration step is a geometric operation such as enlargement / reduction or rotation. 9. The copy-inhibited object determination for determining whether a copy-inhibited image is included in the registered image data obtained in the registration step. 9. The image processing method according to claim 6, wherein the image processing is performed. 10. An image data obtaining step of obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating step of calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step, and a frequency calculated in the frequency component calculating step A first determination step of determining whether the component data has a predetermined characteristic; and a determination result signal output step of outputting a determination result signal of the first determination step, wherein the determination result signal output step The image data obtained in the image data obtaining step includes a predetermined specific image when it is determined in the first determination step that the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step has predetermined characteristics. An image processing method, comprising: outputting a signal indicating that the image is being read. 11. An image data obtaining step of obtaining image data, a frequency component calculating step of calculating frequency component data included in the image data obtained in the image data obtaining step, and a frequency calculated in the frequency component calculating step A judging step of judging whether or not the component data has a predetermined characteristic; and when the judging step judges that the component data has the predetermined characteristic, the image data is allowed to be printed without performing a detailed judgment. An image processing method comprising: 12. The detailed determination includes: a registration step of performing a registration process using characteristics of the frequency component data; and extracting a feature from the image data after the registration process in the registration process. 12. The image processing method according to claim 11, wherein the image processing method is a detailed determination step of determining whether the image data is data of a specific image. 13. The image processing method according to claim 12, wherein the feature extracted in the detail determination step is a digital watermark. 14. The image processing method according to claim 12, wherein the registration processing is a geometric processing of enlargement / reduction and rotation. 15. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the predetermined characteristic is information on a frequency indicating a color line drawing.
The image processing method according to claim 14. 16. The method according to claim 11, wherein the detailed determination is realized by software processing.
5. The image processing method according to any one of 5. 17. A computer-readable storage medium storing a code for performing image processing according to claim 1. Description: 18. A computer program sequence for realizing the function according to claim 1. Description: 19. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program for realizing the functions according to claim 1. Description: