JP2006100987A - Image processor and processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform trimming easily even when the size of an original image is different from the size of a copied image. <P>SOLUTION: The image processor comprises a means for setting a selection range of a first image when image processing is performed for a plurality of images including at least first and second images, and a means for copying the image of a selection range set for the first image by the selection range setting means. The selection range copying means is provided with at least one of the moving function of selection range set by the selection range setting means, variable magnification function and deforming function. Depending on the first and second images and the feature information of selection range, at least one processing of moving the selection range, variably magnifying the selection range, and deforming the selection range is performed thus copying the image of a selection range set for the first image to the second image. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method, and more particularly to a technique suitable for trimming image data.

Conventionally, in the field of digital image processing, a trimming process for cutting out a part of an image according to an instruction from an operator has been conventionally performed.
FIG. 3 shows how the trimming area is designated. In FIG. 3, 31 is image data having a first width W1 and a first height H1, and 33 is a trimming rectangle. In this manner, when the operator interactively designates a rectangular area in the image and cuts out only the portion of the rectangle 33 from the image 31 to create a new image, this is called trimming processing.

  When performing the trimming process, there is a problem that it takes time and effort for the operator to interactively specify a trimming rectangle for each image when the number of operation target images is large. For example, Patent Document 1 provides an image trimming method. However, since it is necessary to designate a trimming rectangle for each individual image, the labor of operation is not reduced.

JP 2003-187257 A

  For example, Adobe's image processing software provides a “copy and paste” function of a trimming rectangle to reduce the labor of the operator. Reference numeral 32 in FIG. 3 denotes an image having a second width W2 and a second height H2 in which the trimming rectangle has not yet been designated.

  At this time, the information of the trimming rectangle 33 of the image 31 (x1, y1, the width w1 of the rectangle of the first image, the height h1 of the rectangle of the first image) is directly used as the information of the rectangle 34 (x2, y2, second By overwriting the rectangular width w2 of the second image and the rectangular height h2) of the second image, the labor of the operator is reduced. However, in these methods, when the copy source image and the copy destination image have the same width and height, that is, the width W1 of the image of the first image = the width W2 of the image of the second image, and It is effective only when the height H1 of the first image is equal to the height H2 of the second image, and cannot be applied when the sizes are different.

  In view of the above-described problems, the present invention has an object to make it possible to easily perform a trimming process even when the sizes of a copy source image and a copy destination image are different.

  The image processing apparatus of the present invention is an image processing apparatus that performs image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image, and a selection range that sets a selection range in the first image. Setting means; and selection range copying means for copying an image of the selection range set in the first image by the selection range setting means to the second image, wherein the selection range copying means It has at least one of a selection range moving function, a scaling function, and a transformation function set by the range setting means, according to the first image and the second image and the feature information of the selection range Then, processing of at least one of the selection range movement, selection range scaling, and selection range transformation is performed to convert the selection range image set in the first image into the second range. Copy it to an image It is a symptom.

  The image processing method of the present invention is an image processing method for performing image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image, and a selection range for setting a selection range in the first image And a selection range copying step of copying an image of the selection range set in the first image by the selection range setting step to the second image. The selection range copying step includes the selection range copying step. It has at least one of a selection range moving process, a scaling process, and a deformation process set by the range setting step, and depends on the first image and the second image and the feature information of the selection range The selection range image set as the first image by performing at least one of the selection range shift, the selection range scaling, and the selection range transformation is changed to the second image. Characterized by copying That.

  A computer program according to the present invention is a program for causing a computer to execute an image processing method for performing image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image, and the selection range in the first image. A selection range setting step for copying the selection range copying step for copying an image of the selection range set in the first image to the second image by the selection range setting step. The process includes at least one of a selection range moving process, a scaling process, and a deformation process set by the selection range setting process, and includes the first image, the second image, and the selection range. According to the feature information of the selection range, the selection range set in the first image by performing at least one of the movement of the selection range, the scaling of the selection range, and the deformation of the selection range. It is characterized in that to execute the image processing method of copying an image on the second image to the computer.

  The recording medium of the present invention is characterized by recording the computer program described above.

  According to the present invention, when image processing is performed on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image, at least one of a selection range moving function, a scaling function, and a deforming function is selected. Since the image of the selection range set in the first image is copied to the second image by performing processing by two functions, the trimming information is obtained even when the copy source image and the copy destination image are different in size. Can be copied, and the labor of the operator in the trimming work can be reduced.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a computer system in which the present invention is executed. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 101 denotes a CPU which controls the entire system. A keyboard 102 is used for inputting information to the computer system together with the mouse 102a. Reference numeral 103 denotes a display unit, which includes a CRT, a liquid crystal, or the like. A ROM 104 and a RAM 105 constitute a storage device of the computer system, and store programs executed by the computer system and data used by the computer system. A hard disk device 106 and a flexible disk device 107 constitute an external storage device used for a file system of a computer system. Reference numeral 108 denotes a printer.

Next, the overall flow of the trimming area copy process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
In step S201, the image width W1 and the image width W2 of the first image, the image height H1 of the first image, and the image height H2 of the second image in FIG. Judge whether each is equal. If they are equal, the process proceeds to step S202, and if they are different, the process proceeds to step S203.

  Next, in step S202, simple pasting of the trimming area is performed. That is, if the starting point X coordinate, starting point Y coordinate, width, and height of the rectangle 33 are x1, y1, w1, h1, and the rectangle 34 is x2, y2, w2, h2, respectively, “x2 ← x1”, “y2 ← y1” ”,“ W2 ← w1 ”,“ h2 ← h1 ”, and the process ends.

  Next, in step S203, whether or not the aspect ratios of the images 31 and 32 are equal, that is, the width W1 of the first image / the height H1 of the image of the first image, and the image height of the second image. It is determined whether or not the width W2 / the height H2 of the second image is equal. As a result of the determination, if they are equal, the process proceeds to step S204, and if not, the process proceeds to step S205.

In step S204, a process of scaling the rectangle 33 based on the ratio of the sizes of the images 31 and 32 and pasting it on the rectangle 34 is performed. That is,
“X2 ← x1 * width W2 of the second image / width W1 of the first image”,
“Y2 ← y1 * width W2 of the second image / width W1 of the first image”,
“The width w2 of the rectangle of the second image ← the width w1 of the rectangle of the first image * the width W2 of the image of the second image / the width W1 of the image of the first image”,
The second image rectangle height h2 ← the first image rectangle height h1 * the second image image width W2 / the first image image width W1, and the process is terminated.

  Next, in step S205, the aspect ratio of the images 31 and 32 is different, and there is no obvious copy method. Therefore, the rectangle 33 is deformed and pasted on the rectangle 34 based on an appropriate algorithm. Details will be described later.

Hereinafter, the process performed in step S205 will be described in detail.
In step S205, trimming rectangle copy processing is performed when the aspect ratios of the images 31 and 32 are different.

  FIG. 4 shows an example in which the second image 32 is horizontally longer than the first image 31 (the figure number is the same as FIG. 3). In the present embodiment, the aspect ratio of the trimming rectangle 33, that is, the rectangular width w 1 of the first image / the rectangular height h 1 of the first image is equal to the rectangular width w 2 / second of the second image. The rectangle 34 is defined to be equal to the height h2 of the image rectangle.

The process flow of step S205 will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG.
In step S501, y2 is determined based on the following equation (1).
y2 ← y1 * second height H2 / first height H1 (1)
That is, a process of scaling and substituting y1 for y2 based on the ratio of the heights of the images 31 and 32 is performed.

Next, in step S502, the rectangular height h2 of the second image is determined based on the following equation (2).
Height of rectangle of second image h2 ← Height of rectangle of first image h1 * Image height H2 of second image / Image height H1 of first image (2)
That is, based on the ratio of the heights of the images 31 and 32, the rectangular height h1 of the first image is scaled and substituted into the rectangular height h2 of the second image.

Next, in step S503, the rectangular width w2 of the second image is determined based on the following equation (3).
The width w2 of the second image rectangle ← the height h2 of the second image rectangle * the width w1 of the first image rectangle / the height h1 of the first image rectangle (3)
That is, the width w2 of the rectangle of the second image is determined so that the aspect ratios of the rectangles 33 and 34 are equal.

  Next, in step S504, it is compared whether or not the width W1 of the image of the first image is equal to the width w1 of the rectangle of the first image. That is, it is compared whether or not the rectangle 33 is full of the width of the image 31. As a result of the comparison, if they are equal, the process proceeds to step S505, and if not, the process proceeds to step S506.

Next, in step S505, x2 is determined based on the following equation (4).
x2 ← (the width W2 of the image of the second image 2−the width w2 of the rectangle of the second image) / 2 (4)
That is, x2 is determined so that the rectangle 34 is in the center of the image 32 in the horizontal direction, and the process is terminated.

Next, in step S506, x2 is determined based on the following equation.
x2 ← (the width W2 of the image of the second image 2−the width w2 of the rectangle of the second image) * x1 / (the width W1 of the image of the first image 1−the width w1 of the rectangle of the first image).
That is, x2 is determined so that the ratio of the right margin and the left margin of the rectangle 32 is equal to the ratio of the right margin and the left margin of the rectangle 34, and the processing is ended.
With the above processing, when the image 32 is wider than the image 31, the trimming rectangle can be copied while maintaining the aspect ratio of the trimming rectangle. When the image 32 is longer than the image 31, the above process is executed with the vertical direction and the horizontal direction being replaced. Since the contents are the same, the description is omitted.

(Second Embodiment)
When the sizes of the images 31 and 32 are the same, or when the aspect ratio is the same even if the sizes are different, there is a trimming rectangle trivial copying method as described in the first embodiment. There is no obvious copy method when the ratios are different. That is, in the first embodiment described above, an appropriate copy method is defined so that the aspect ratios of the rectangles 33 and 34 are equal. However, this does not mean that the operation is appropriate for all users. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a method for switching a plurality of copy methods in accordance with an instruction from the operator will be described. Since the contents other than step S205 are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof will be omitted.

[Description of Step S205]
The procedure of the copy process in step S205 in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, in step S601, a prompt (input promotion symbol) as shown in FIG. 7 is presented to the operator. In FIG. 7, 71 is a message box displayed on the display unit 103, 72 and 73 are buttons, and the operator uses the pointing device (mouse 102a) to press any button to select which one. Tell the system if it was selected.

  Next, in step S602, it is determined which button has been selected. If the first button 72 for selecting “method 1” is selected, the process proceeds to step S603, and if not, the process proceeds to step S604.

  In step S603, "copy processing by method 1" is performed. Here, the process described in step S205 of the first embodiment is performed. When the “copy processing by method 1” is completed, the processing is terminated.

On the other hand, in step S604, “copy processing by method 2” is performed. Here, the rectangle 34 is determined so as to hold the ratio of the rectangle 33 to the image 31. That is,
“X2 ← x1 * width W2 of the second image / width W1 of the first image”,
“The width w2 of the rectangle of the second image ← the width w1 of the rectangle of the first image * the width W2 of the image of the second image / the width W1 of the image of the first image”,
“Y2 ← y1 * height H2 of the second image / height H1 of the first image”,
“Second image rectangular height h 2 ← First image rectangular height h 1 * second image image height H 2 / first image image height H 1”, and the process ends. To do.

(Third embodiment)
In the above-described embodiment, the operator selects the copy method every time copying is performed between images having different aspect ratios, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, which method to select can be set as an option and stored, and it can be selected according to the option, or the selection when copying between images having different aspect ratios is stored for the first time. And you may make it follow it after the second time.

  Although two copy method options are shown, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to this and three or more options may be presented. In addition, there are innumerable copying methods when the aspect ratios are different, and the above-described embodiment is only two of them and is not limited thereto.

(Fourth embodiment)
First, an outline of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described. The image processing apparatus described in this embodiment selects an image using a GUI, and then performs image data trimming processing.

Hereinafter, the function will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a basic flow of the operation procedure of the image processing apparatus in the present embodiment. First, in step S801, a plurality of image data to be trimmed is selected from the image processing apparatus. Next, one of the image data selected in step S802 is trimmed, and the trimming is applied to another image in step S803. Hereinafter, an implementation example of the operation in each step will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an outline of image selection of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. The folder tree window 301 displays a tree indicating a directory of image data in the image processing apparatus. An image display window 302 displays images in the folder indicated by the folder tree window 301.

  The image displayed here is a reduced image called a thumbnail. The user can click on any thumbnail image from the image display window 302 to select it. If you want to select multiple images, you can do this by holding down the “Shift key” or “Ctrl key” and clicking. By pressing the “Shift key”, it is also possible to designate a plurality of images by designating the start point and end point in one folder.

  After selecting a plurality of images as described above, the trimming tool activation button 303 is clicked to activate the trimming tool. The image processing apparatus has many other functions, but since it is not the main point of the present invention, the description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a screen for performing image trimming processing. When performing the trimming process, the trimming frame 414 is displayed by designating the starting point of the trimming frame with the mouse in the image display area 413 and further dragging the mouse. The trimming frame is reset by a reset button 401.

  Further, when it is desired to select the aspect of the trimming frame, the aspect ratio is selected in the aspect ratio selection box 402. The selected aspect ratio is displayed in an aspect ratio display box 403. Also, an arbitrary aspect ratio can be input in the aspect ratio display box 403. The start point / width / height of the trimming frame is displayed in the start point display area 404 and the width / height display area 405 and can be input. After setting the trimming area as described above, the trimming process is terminated by pressing the OK button 411. As described above, it is possible for a conventional application to set a trimming frame for one image.

A method of copying the trimming frame set here and pasting it to another image will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
In step S1101, a trimming area is set in the first image. Next, in step S1102, the copy button 406 in FIG. 10 is pressed to copy the trimming area.

  Next, in step S1103, the “Next” button 410 is pressed to switch to another image, and the paste button 407 is pressed to paste the trimming area into another image. In step S1104, the trimming area is corrected using a mouse or a keyboard.

  By repeating the above operations for multiple images, it is possible to copy and paste trimming frames between different images, and it is appropriate for a large number of images taken under similar conditions. Trimming work can be performed efficiently.

(Fifth embodiment)
In the embodiment described above, the trimming frame is applied between different images by switching the images and repeating the paste every time. However, when almost the same trimming frame is applied to all the selected images, it is possible to work more efficiently if the trimming frame can be applied to all images at once. In this embodiment, an implementation example in which a trimming frame is applied to all selected images will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S1201, a trimming area is set in the first image, as in the case of the above-described embodiment.
Next, in step S1202, the all image application button 408 in FIG. 10 is pressed to apply the trimming area to all the selected images.

In step S1203, the next button 410 in FIG. 10 is pressed to display the next image. Note that the previous button 409 and the cancel button 412 are used as necessary.
In step S1204, the trimming area is interactively corrected using a mouse or a keyboard.

  Next, in step S1205, it is determined whether or not processing for all images has been completed. As a result of the determination, if all the images are finished, the processing is finished. If the process has not ended, the process returns to step S1203 to process the next image.

  By repeating the above process, it is possible to set a trimming area for all selected images at once, and further fine-tune each image, for a large number of images taken under similar conditions. Thus, it is possible to efficiently perform an appropriate trimming operation.

(Another embodiment according to the present invention)
Each of the steps of the selection range setting means, the selection range copying means, the copying method designating means, and the image processing method constituting the image processing apparatus according to the above-described embodiment of the present invention is stored in a computer RAM or ROM. Can be realized by operating. This program and a computer-readable storage medium storing the program are included in the present invention.

  Specifically, the program is recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM or provided to a computer via various transmission media. As a recording medium for recording the program, besides a CD-ROM, a flexible disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape, a magneto-optical disk, a nonvolatile memory card, or the like can be used. On the other hand, as the transmission medium of the program, a communication medium (wired line such as an optical fiber, etc.) in a computer network (LAN, WAN such as the Internet, wireless communication network, etc.) system for propagating and supplying program information as a carrier wave A wireless line or the like.

  Further, not only the functions in the above-described embodiments are realized by executing a program supplied by a computer, but also an OS (operating system) or other application software running on the computer. When each function of the above-described embodiment is realized jointly, or all or part of the processing of the supplied program is performed by a function expansion board or a function expansion unit of the computer, each of the above-described embodiment Such a program is also included in the present invention even when the function is realized.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart explaining the flow of the whole trimming area copy process. It is a figure explaining the relationship between an image and a trimming rectangle. It is a figure explaining the relationship between the image from which an aspect ratio differs, and a trimming rectangle. 6 is a flowchart for describing copy processing when the aspect ratios are different in the first embodiment. 12 is a flowchart for explaining copy processing when the aspect ratios are different in the second embodiment. It is a figure explaining the dialog for an operator to select a copy method. 15 is a flowchart illustrating a flow from image selection to image trimming in the image processing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. It is a figure which shows the outline | summary of the image selection of the image processing apparatus in 4th Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the outline | summary of the screen which performs the trimming process in 4th Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the trimming process in 4th Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the trimming process in 5th Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

101 CPU
102 Keyboard 103 Display 104 ROM
105 RAM
106 hard disk 107 flexible disk 108 printer

Claims (10)

An image processing apparatus that performs image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image,
Selection range setting means for setting a selection range in the first image;
Selection range copying means for copying the image of the selection range set in the first image by the selection range setting means to the second image;
The selection range copying unit has at least one of a selection range moving function, a scaling function, and a transformation function set by the selection range setting unit, and the first image and the second image In accordance with the feature information of the selection range, the first image is set by performing processing using at least one of the selection range movement, selection range scaling, and selection range transformation. An image processing apparatus for copying an image in a selection range onto the second image.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the feature information includes at least a vertical / horizontal pixel number or a vertical / horizontal pixel number ratio (aspect ratio).   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selection range copying unit includes a copying method specifying unit that specifies which of a plurality of selection ranges is to be copied.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selection range copying unit is capable of copying the selection range for a plurality of images at once. An image processing method for performing image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image,
A selection range setting step of setting a selection range in the first image;
A selection range copying step of copying an image of the selection range set in the first image by the selection range setting step to the second image;
The selection range copying step includes at least one of a selection range moving process, a scaling process, and a deformation process set in the selection range setting step, and includes the first image and the second image. The selection range set in the first image by performing at least one of the movement of the selection range, scaling of the selection range, and deformation of the selection range according to the feature information of the selection range An image processing method, wherein the image is copied to the second image.   6. The image processing method according to claim 5, wherein the feature information includes at least the number of vertical / horizontal pixels or a ratio of the number of vertical / horizontal pixels (aspect ratio).   The image processing method according to claim 5, wherein the selection range copying step includes a copying method specifying step for specifying which of a plurality of selection ranges is to be copied.   The image processing method according to claim 5, wherein the selection range copying step is capable of performing copying of the selection range for a plurality of images at once. A program for causing a computer to execute an image processing method for performing image processing on a plurality of images including at least a first image and a second image,
A selection range setting step of setting a selection range in the first image;
A selection range copying step of copying an image of the selection range set in the first image by the selection range setting step to the second image;
The selection range copying step includes at least one of a selection range moving process, a scaling process, and a deformation process set in the selection range setting step, and includes the first image and the second image. The selection range set in the first image by performing at least one of the movement of the selection range, scaling of the selection range, and deformation of the selection range according to the feature information of the selection range A computer program for causing a computer to execute an image processing method for copying the image of the image to the second image.   10. A computer-readable recording medium on which the computer program according to claim 9 is recorded.

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