JP2002185797A - Communication terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication terminal that can easily identify whether a received image is a simple binary image or a medium tone image so as to conduct smoothing accordingly. SOLUTION: When a print start command of a received original is received (ST 1), number of pixels N by one page of an image to be printed is obtained (ST 2), a code data threshold Cr with respect to number N of the pixels by one page is obtained (ST 3), whether or not the value of code data is greater than the threshold Cr is discriminated (ST 4), when the level of the code data is the threshold Cr or below, smoothing for a binary original is set (ST 5), and when the code data have a value greater than the threshold Cr, smoothing for a medium tone original is set (ST 6).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

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

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a facsimile apparatus transmits a read image or receives a transmitted image by a facsimile transmission / reception function, and records the image with a printer.
Further, it has a copy function of printing the read image by a printer.

In a facsimile apparatus of this kind, when an image with a low resolution is received, if the performance of a printer provided in the apparatus is good, the received image is smoothed (image smoothed) and printed. Is often done.

[0004]

In the conventional facsimile apparatus described above, when performing image smoothing processing, the same processing is performed for all received images. However,
Some of the received images, such as photographic images, are not suitable for smoothing, and there is a problem that smoothing causes a problem instead.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and can easily identify whether a received image is a simple binary image or a halftone image, and can perform smoothing according to the image. It is intended to provide a communication terminal device.

[0006]

A communication terminal device according to the present invention compares an image receiving unit, an image memory, a pixel data amount and a coded data amount of a received image, and, based on the comparison result,
And a control unit for determining a smoothing process of the received image.

In general, when an image is compressed by, for example, MMR, a halftone (a dither matrix,
The original of the error diffusion processing) may be larger in size than the original image. Therefore, a threshold is given to the MMR data size per certain image size, and if the size exceeds the threshold, it can be determined that the image is halftone.

[0008] The communication terminal device of the present invention employs the above principle, compares the amount of pixel data of a received image with the amount of data after encoding, and when the amount of encoded data is larger than a certain ratio, The received image is subjected to a halftone smoothing process. The smoothing process as the halftone includes a case where no smoothing is performed. If the amount of encoded data is smaller than the amount of pixel data of the received image, a smoothing process as simple binary is performed.

The halftone image referred to in the present invention is a so-called pseudo halftone image. That is, a photographic image is a dither image (pixel data is binary data of white and black,
A method of expressing halftones in the entire matrix by increasing or decreasing the number of black pixels in the entire dot matrix of dot × 16dot or 32dot × 32dot. Black pixels are dispersedly arranged in a matrix). In this case, the number of pixel change points (white to black, black to white) is large, and the encoding increases the data amount.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to embodiments. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a facsimile apparatus in which the present invention is implemented. The facsimile machine 21 is provided with an MPU (control unit)
1, ROM 2, RAM 3, image memory (DRAM) 4,
Operation panel (operation unit) 5, display unit 6 for displaying various data, etc., bus 7, NCU 8, modem 9, scanner 10, printer (output unit) 11, CODEC 12, LAN I / F
13 is provided. Here, a storage unit is constituted by the ROM 2, the RAM 3, and the image memory 4, and the NCU 8, the modem 9, the CO
A communication unit is constituted by the DEC 12 and the LAN1 / F13.

The MPU 1 controls each unit constituting the device 21, receives data from an external information source through a communication unit, stores the data in a storage unit, and displays the data stored in the storage unit on a display unit 6. It has a function to make Also, M
When the received image is encoded by the codec 12 and stored in the image memory 4, the PU 1 compares the number of pixels of the received image with a threshold value of the encoded data value. In this case, it has a function of performing a halftone smoothing process and performing a binary original smoothing process when the threshold value is smaller than the threshold value. The ROM 2 is a device 2
1 is stored. RAM3
Temporarily stores data such as an image memory. The image memory 4 temporarily stores received image data and image data for transmitting image data read by the scanner 10. The operation panel 5 is for the user to instruct facsimile transmission / reception, printing, and the like.

The NCU 8 has a function of controlling connection with a telephone line (PSTN) 14 and detecting transmission and reception of a dial signal corresponding to a telephone number (including a FAX number) of a destination. . The modem 9 is an ITU-
Recommendation T. 30 based on a facsimile transmission control procedure according to V.30. 17, V.I. 27ter, V.I. Modulation and demodulation of transmission / reception data according to 29 or the like. Scanner 10
Reads image data of an original when performing FAX transmission and copying. The printer 11 records received image data and image data of a document read by the scanner 10 in a copy operation on a recording sheet. The CODEC 12 encodes (reads) the read image data by MH, MR, MMR, or the like in order to transmit the image data, and decodes (decodes) the received image data. The LAN I / F 13 is connected to the LAN network 16.

Next, the operation of the facsimile apparatus of this embodiment for printing a received original will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In step ST1, the transmitted image is stored in the image memory, and a command to start printing the received document is issued. Next, the process proceeds to step ST2. In step ST2, the number N of pixels of one page of pixels to be printed is obtained. Since the relationship between the number of image pixels and the code data threshold corresponding to the number of pixels is as shown in the table of FIG. 3, if the number N of pixels per page is determined, the code data threshold corresponding thereto can be determined. Therefore, when the number of pixels N for one page is obtained, the process proceeds to step S
Move to T3.

In step ST3, a code data threshold value Cr for the number N of pixels of one page is obtained. For example,
Assuming that the number of pixels N for one page is 16386 (KBytc), the encoded data threshold Cr = 19663 (KB
ytc) is determined. Next, the process proceeds to step ST4.

In step ST4, it is determined whether or not the data amount of one page obtained by encoding the received image by MMR is larger than the code data threshold value Cr. If the encoded data for one page is smaller than the threshold value Cr, the received image is determined to be a binary image, and the process proceeds to step ST5. on the other hand,
When the code data for one page is larger than the threshold value Cr,
Assuming that the received image is halftone (photograph), step ST
Move to 6.

In step ST5, smoothing setting for a binary document is performed, and a smoothing process (smoothing) is performed on the encoded received image, and the process proceeds to step ST7. As an example of the smoothing process in this case, as shown in (a), (b), and (c) of FIG. 4, the image before smoothing is smoothed in the direction of the arrow. On the other hand, step S
At T6, halftone smoothing is set, halftone smoothing processing is performed, and the process proceeds to step ST7. If the smoothing process is performed in the same manner as that for a binary document, whitening occurs in the case shown in FIG.
Since the smoothing process corresponding to the halftone is performed, the whitening as shown in FIG. 5 does not occur. In step ST7, the printer is activated and printing is performed.

In the above embodiment, the encoded data is set to the threshold C
If the value is larger than r, the halftone smoothing process is performed. However, if it is determined that the received image is a halftone received image, no smoothing may be performed.

[0019]

According to the present invention, the amount of pixel data of a received image and the amount of encoded data are compared, and based on the comparison result,
Since the smoothing process of the received image is determined, even if the simple binary image is smoothed, it is possible to avoid the problem of smoothing the photograph.

Further, a threshold value of the code data amount is set in advance,
When the code amount is equal to or smaller than the threshold value, the first smoothing process is performed, and when the code amount exceeds the threshold value, the second smoothing process is performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a print processing operation of a received image of the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between the number of image pixels of an image and a code data threshold.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of smoothing of a pure binary image.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a case where the same smoothing processing as that of a binary image is performed on a photographic image.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 MPU 2 ROM 3 RAM 4 Image memory 5 Operation panel 6 Display unit 7 Bus 8 NCU 9 Modem 10 Scanner 11 Printer 12 CODEC 13 LAN I / F 14 Telephone line 16 LAN

Claims (3)

[Claims] An image receiving unit, an image memory, and a control unit for comparing a pixel data amount and a coded data amount of a received image and determining a smoothing process of the received image based on the comparison result. A communication terminal device characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The communication terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit does not perform the smoothing process when the encoded data amount is larger than the pixel data amount. 3. The control unit sets a threshold value for the amount of encoded data, and performs a first smoothing process when the amount of encoded data is equal to or less than the threshold value, and performs a second smoothing process when the amount of encoded data exceeds the threshold value. A communication terminal device characterized by performing a conversion process.