JP2006246405A - Image processing apparatus, image processing system and image recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus, an image recording apparatus and an image processing system in which it is monitored that an image added with an image corresponding to a notification destination is read, and the total number of times of reading the image or the like can be managed. <P>SOLUTION: In a compound machine 10 which comprises an image reading unit 16 for reading an image of an original and performs processing on the image read by the image reading unit 16, an image corresponding to a notification destination is added to the image read by the image reading unit 16, the image corresponding to the notification destination is extracted from the image that has been read by the image reading unit 16, by a control unit 12, and information relating to the image read by the image reading unit 16 is notified from a communication unit 14 to the notification destination (administrative server 36) corresponding to the extracted image. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus including an image reading unit that reads an image recorded on a sheet, an image recording apparatus that records an image on a sheet, and an image processing system including the image processing apparatus and the image recording apparatus.

Copiers that copy originals to sheets have been widely used, but in recent years, the number of copiers capable of color copying has increased. Also, the copying performance is improved, and high-precision copying can be performed. However, with the improvement in copying performance, there is a problem that copying with substantially the same quality as the original document becomes possible. For this reason, there has been proposed an apparatus for adding identification information of an apparatus to a copy image so that it is difficult for human eyes to recognize (see, for example, Patent Document 1). By using this apparatus, it is possible to easily identify the apparatus that performed the copying.
JP-A-4-294682

  However, the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a problem that it is not possible to manage that copying has been performed, although the apparatus that has performed copying can be specified. For example, there is a problem that if a copied sheet is not found, it cannot be known that copying has been performed.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and relates to an extraction unit that extracts an additional image corresponding to a notification destination from a read original image, and a read original image to a notification destination corresponding to the extracted additional image. Provided with an image processing apparatus and an image processing system capable of managing at a notification destination that a document image to which an additional image is added is being read by providing a communication means for notifying information The purpose is to do.

  In addition, the present invention includes an accepting unit that accepts an instruction to read an original image and an execution of a process on the read original image, and is configured such that the communication unit makes a notification separately from the process corresponding to the accepted execution instruction. Provided is an image processing apparatus capable of managing at a notification destination that a document image is being read regardless of the processing being performed on the document image to which the additional image is added. For other purposes.

  Further, the present invention is configured to notify the information related to the processing corresponding to the execution instruction received by the receiving unit, thereby reading the document image to which the additional image is added, and It is another object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus capable of managing the processing contents performed on the document image at a notification destination.

  Further, according to the present invention, since the additional image corresponding to the notification destination is an image that is difficult to visually recognize, the adverse effect due to the addition of the additional image is minimized, and the addition is performed after the addition. Another object is to provide an image processing system capable of minimizing a difference from the previous one.

  In addition, the present invention provides a determination unit that determines whether or not to add an additional image corresponding to a notification destination to an image to be recorded on a sheet, and an additional image to an image to be recorded on a sheet when the addition is determined. Another object of the present invention is to provide an image recording apparatus and an image processing system capable of recording a document image with an additional image added thereto on a sheet.

  In addition, the present invention includes a determination unit that determines whether or not the type of image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific type, and based on the determination result, whether or not the determination unit adds an additional image. Another object of the present invention is to provide an image recording apparatus that can automatically determine the addition of an additional image according to the type of image to be recorded on a sheet.

  An image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes an image reading unit that reads an image of a document and a communication unit that notifies a notification destination, and an image corresponding to the notification destination is added to the image read by the image reading unit. An image processing apparatus that performs processing on an image read by a reading unit, the image processing unit including an extraction unit that extracts an image corresponding to a notification destination from an image read by the image reading unit, and the communication unit is extracted by the extraction unit It is configured to notify the information about the image read by the image reading means to the notification destination corresponding to the image.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a receiving unit that receives an image execution instruction for reading an image by the image reading unit and an image read by the image reading unit, and the communication unit receives the execution instruction received by the receiving unit. A feature is that notification is performed separately from the corresponding processing.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the communication means is configured to further notify information relating to processing corresponding to an execution instruction received by the receiving means.

  An image processing system according to the present invention includes an image reading unit that reads an image of a document and a communication unit that notifies a notification destination, and an image corresponding to the notification destination is added to the image read by the image reading unit. An image processing system having an image processing apparatus that performs processing on an image read by a reading unit and an image recording apparatus that records an image on a sheet, the image processing apparatus notifying from an image read by the image reading unit The communication unit is configured to notify the notification destination corresponding to the image extracted by the extraction unit of information related to the image read by the image reading unit. The image recording device determines whether to add an image corresponding to the notification destination to the image to be recorded on the sheet, and when the determination unit determines to add, The image to be recorded on over preparative, characterized in that it comprises adding means for adding image corresponding to the notification destination.

  The image processing system according to the present invention is characterized in that the image corresponding to the notification destination is an image that is difficult to recognize visually.

  An image recording apparatus according to the present invention, in an image recording apparatus that records an image on a sheet, a determination unit that determines whether or not to add an image corresponding to a notification destination related to the image to an image recorded on the sheet; And adding means for adding an image corresponding to the notification destination to the image to be recorded on the sheet when the decision means decides to add.

  An image recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a determination unit that determines whether or not a type of an image to be recorded on a sheet is a specific type, and the determination unit determines whether a notification destination is based on a determination result of the determination unit. It is characterized by determining whether or not to add a corresponding image.

  In the present invention, an image corresponding to the notification destination (hereinafter referred to as an additional image) is added to an image read by the image reading means (hereinafter referred to as an original image), and the extraction means extracts the additional image from the original image. Then, since the communication means notifies the information about the document image to the notification destination corresponding to the extracted additional image, the information about the document image is notified to the notification destination every time the document image is read. The notification destination apparatus can monitor that the original image with the additional image added is being read, and can manage the total number of times the original image has been read. The additional image is, for example, a pattern recognizable image such as a two-dimensional code, and the correspondence between the pattern and the notification destination is stored in advance in a storage unit built in the apparatus. Alternatively, the additional image is an image capable of recognizing characters such as an OCR (Optical Character Reader), and can recognize a notification destination address and the like. The information related to the document image is, for example, a reduced image of the document image or an identifier of the document image. The document image identifier can be added to the document image in advance and extracted from the document image in the same manner as the notification destination.

  In the present invention, the communication means described above separates from the processing corresponding to the received execution instruction, and the reception means receives the execution instruction of the original image read by the image reading means and the original image read by the image reading means. In order to perform the notification, the above-described notification destination is notified regardless of the processing being performed on the read document image. The notification destination apparatus can monitor the reading of the document image regardless of the processing being performed on the document image, and manages the total number of times of reading the document image. Can do.

  In the present invention, the communication means notifies the information relating to the processing corresponding to the execution instruction received by the accepting means to the original image in addition to the information relating to the original image to which the additional image is added. Each time the attached document image is read, the notification destination is notified of information related to the document image and information related to processing executed on the document image. The notification destination apparatus can monitor the reading of the original image with the additional image added, the processing contents being performed on the original image, and the total number of times of reading of the original image, and The number of executions for each type of processing can be managed. The information related to the process corresponding to the execution instruction is a process code such as copying or FAX.

  In the present invention, since the additional image corresponding to the notification destination is an image that is difficult to visually recognize, the adverse effect of the addition is minimized, and the difference between after the addition is performed and before the addition is performed. Can be minimized. An image that is difficult to recognize visually is, for example, an image of a color that is difficult for human eyes to recognize, such as yellow, and / or a thin line image that is difficult for human eyes to recognize.

  In the present invention, the determining means determines whether or not to add an additional image corresponding to the notification destination related to the image, such as an address of a device managing the image, to the image to be recorded on the sheet. When the image is determined, since the adding unit adds an additional image corresponding to the notification destination to the image to be recorded on the sheet, the image to which the additional image is added is recorded on the sheet, and the image processing apparatus or the like described above records the sheet. The additional image can be extracted from the read image. The determination unit can determine to add the additional image by receiving an addition instruction from the operation unit, for example. Addition can be performed on an image that needs addition of an additional image.

  In the present invention, the determination unit determines whether or not the type of image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific type, and the determination unit determines whether to add an additional image based on the determination result. Whether or not to add an additional image can be automatically determined according to the type of image recorded on the sheet. For example, when it is determined as a specific type, it is possible to determine to add an additional image. Further, it is possible to reliably add an image to which an additional image needs to be added. The specific type of image is, for example, an important document image or a confidential document image, and whether or not it is an important document image or a confidential document image is determined by, for example, detecting a secret mark included in the image by pattern recognition, This can be determined by recognizing and detecting characters such as “important” included in the image by OCR.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to monitor that a document image to which an additional image corresponding to a notification destination is added is being read, and to manage the total number of times of reading the document image. .

  According to the present invention, it is monitored that the document image is being read regardless of the processing being performed on the document image to which the additional image corresponding to the notification destination is added, and It is possible to manage the total number of times of reading a document image.

  According to the present invention, the reading of the document image to which the additional image is added is performed, and the processing content performed on the document image is monitored. In addition, the number of executions for each type of processing can be managed.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to minimize the adverse effect of adding an additional image corresponding to a notification destination, and to minimize the difference between after the addition is performed and before the addition is performed.

  According to the present invention, a document image to which an additional image corresponding to a notification destination is added can be recorded on a sheet.

  According to the present invention, addition of an additional image corresponding to a notification destination can be automatically determined according to the type of image to be recorded on the sheet, and for an image that needs addition of an additional image, Addition can be performed reliably.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments thereof.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a multifunction peripheral (image processing apparatus) according to the present invention. The multifunction machine 10 has an image scanner function and a copier function in addition to a printer function, and is connected to the computers 32 and 34 and the management server 36 via a communication network 30 such as a LAN or the Internet. .

  The multifunction machine 10 includes an image reading unit (image reading unit) 16 such as an image scanner that reads an image of a document, and a communication unit (communication unit) that is connected to a communication network 30 and communicates with external devices such as computers 32 and 34. ) 14, a storage unit 18 such as a hard disk drive for storing an image read by the image reading unit 16 or an image received by the communication unit 14, an image recording unit 20 for recording the image stored in the storage unit 18 on a sheet, Control of an operation panel (accepting means) 22 having a display unit such as a liquid crystal display panel and an operation unit such as a push button type operation key, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) for controlling each of the above-described components in the apparatus Part 12. The operation panel 22 is provided with a touch panel on the display unit, and the display unit also operates as an operation unit. The control unit 12 includes a RAM (Random Access Memory) and a ROM (Read Only Memory), executes a program stored in the ROM, and stores data generated during the execution of the program in the RAM.

  When the communication unit 14 receives an image based on the print data transmitted from the computer 32, the multifunction machine 10 stores the received image in the storage unit 18 under the control of the control unit 10, and stores the stored image in the image recording unit. The image recording process (output process) on the sheet based on the print data is executed. In this case, the multifunction machine 10 operates as a printer.

  Further, when the MFP 10 receives a copy operation from the operation panel 22 in a state where the document is set in the image reading unit 16, the multifunction device 10 causes the image reading unit 16 to read the image of the document under the control of the control unit 12. The read image is stored in the storage unit 18, the stored image is sent to the image recording unit 20, and an image recording process (output process) on the sheet is executed. In this case, the multifunction machine 10 operates as a copying machine.

  When the MFP 10 accepts a scan operation and a destination specification from the operation panel 22 with the document set in the image reading unit 16, the control unit 12 controls the image reading unit 16 to store the document. The image is read, the read image is stored in the storage unit 18, the stored image is sent from the communication unit 14 to the transmission destination computer 34, and image data transmission processing (output processing) is executed. In this case, the multifunction machine 10 operates as an image scanner.

  An image corresponding to the notification destination (hereinafter referred to as an additional image) is added to the document image read by the image reading unit 16, and the control unit 12 extracts the additional image from the document image read by the image reading unit 16. The communication unit 14 operates as a communication unit that notifies information about a document image read by the image reading unit 16 (hereinafter referred to as notification information) to a notification destination corresponding to the extracted additional image. However, notification (sending) of the notification information is performed separately from the processing corresponding to the processing execution instruction for the document image read by the image reading unit 16 received by the operation panel 22. For example, when a copy instruction is received on the operation panel 22, the control unit 12 controls the image recording unit 20 to record an image on a sheet and transmits notification information from the communication unit 14 to a notification destination.

  The notification information is, for example, an image obtained by reducing the original image by the control unit 12 or an identifier of the original image. The notification information also includes information regarding processing corresponding to the execution instruction received by the operation panel 22 for the document image to which the additional image is added. For example, when a copy instruction is received through the operation panel 22, a processing code corresponding to copying is included in the notification information. Note that processing codes for various processes are stored in the storage unit 18 in advance, for example.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a document image to which an additional image is added. An additional image 44 that is difficult to recognize visually is added to the document image 40. The additional image 44 is recorded, for example, in yellow, which is difficult to be recognized by human eyes, and / or is recorded by thin lines, which are difficult to recognize by human eyes. The additional image 44 is, for example, an image capable of recognizing a pattern such as a two-dimensional code. For example, the correspondence relationship between the pattern and the communication destination is stored in the storage unit 18 in advance. The control unit 12 extracts and recognizes the additional image 44 added to the document image 40 read by the image reading unit 16 in the same manner as the pattern recognition such as a two-dimensional code, and a notification corresponding to the recognized pattern. A previous address (for example, an IP address) is acquired from the correspondence relationship stored in the storage unit 18. When the identifier of the document image is used as the notification information, the controller 12 can extract the identifier added in advance to the document image, for example, similarly to a barcode.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an image processing procedure including a notification process. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the flow of data between the components of the multifunction machine 10. When a copy operation is received from the operation panel 22 with a document set on the image reading unit 16, the control unit 12 controls the image reading unit 16 to read the image (S10). The image is stored in the storage unit 18. The control unit 12 performs an additional image extraction process on the read image (S12). When the additional image is extracted and the notification destination is specified (S14: YES), the control unit 12 creates notification information and performs notification processing from the communication unit 14 to the notification destination (the management server 36 in the present embodiment). Perform (S16). When the notification destination cannot be specified (S14: NO), or after notification (S16), the control unit 12 controls the image recording unit 20 to perform image recording processing (output processing) on the sheet. (S18). The management server 36 receives the notification information transmitted from the multifunction device 10 and manages the notification information. For example, it is possible to manage the number of readings, the number of copying, and the like of a document to which an additional image is added.

  In the embodiment described above, the case where an image is read by the image reading unit 16 has been described as an example. However, as indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 4, an original image to which an additional image is added is displayed by the communication unit 14. It can also be received from the computer 32. In the above-described embodiment, the image is recorded on the sheet by the image recording unit 20, but it is also possible to transmit the image from the communication unit 14 to the computer 34 as indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 4. .

  An arbitrary image can be used as the additional image added to the document image 40. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing another example of a document image to which an additional image is added. Further, the additional image 44 does not need to be recorded on the entire original image 40 and can be recorded on a part thereof. Further, the additional image is not limited to a straight line, and may include a curve, a dot, or a character. Further, the color of the additional image is not limited to yellow, and any color can be used.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a multifunction peripheral (image recording apparatus) according to the present invention. The multifunction machine 11 has an image scanner function and a copier function in addition to a printer function, and is connected to computers 32 and 34 via a communication network 30 such as a LAN or the Internet.

  The basic configuration of the multifunction machine 11 is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment (FIG. 1). The image reading unit 16, the communication unit 14, the storage unit 18, the image recording unit 20, the operation panel 22 and the like. And a control unit 12. Similarly to the first embodiment, the multifunction machine 11 operates as a printer, a copier, or an image scanner under the control of the control unit 12 according to an operation received by the operation panel 22 or the like.

  The control unit 12 determines whether to add an additional image corresponding to the notification destination to the image to be recorded on the sheet, and if it is determined to add, the control unit 12 adds the additional image to the image to be recorded on the sheet. It operates as an adding means for adding. The control unit 12 operates as a determination unit that determines whether or not the type of image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific type, and determines whether or not to add an additional image based on the determination result. For example, when it is determined that the image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific type, it is determined to add the additional image. The additional image is stored in the storage unit 18 in advance, for example.

  A specific type of image (hereinafter referred to as a specific image) is, for example, an important document image or a confidential document image. For example, when the confidential image 42 is included in the original image 40 as shown in FIG. 2 or when the important mark 42 is included in the original image 40 as shown in FIG. It is possible to determine. The determination of the presence or absence of the confidential mark or the important mark is performed by detecting the confidential mark or the important mark from the image read by the image reading unit 16, for example, in the same manner as the pattern recognition by OCR, or received by the communication unit 14, for example. It is possible to detect secret characters or important characters included in the print data. Also, the correspondence between each type of specific image and each type of additional image is stored in advance in the storage unit 18, for example, and the control unit 12 adds an additional image corresponding to the detected specific image.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of an image processing procedure including an additional image adding process. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a data flow between the components of the multifunction machine 11. When the communication unit 14 receives an image based on print data or the like from the computer 32, the control unit 12 stores the received image in the storage unit 18 (S30). For the received image, the control unit 12 detects a secret mark, an important mark, or the like, and determines whether the received image is a specific image (S32). When a secret mark or an important mark is detected and determined as a specific image (S34: YES), the control unit 12 adds an additional image to the received image (S36). When the image is not determined to be a specific image (S34: NO), or after adding (S36), the control unit 12 controls the image recording unit 20 to perform image recording processing (output processing) on the sheet. (S38). The image to which the additional image is added in this way is recorded on a sheet and is read by the multifunction machine 10 of the first embodiment.

  In the embodiment described above, the case where the communication unit 14 receives an image based on the print data from the computer 32 has been described as an example. However, as indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 8, the image reading unit 16 reads the image. It is also possible. In the above-described embodiment, the image is recorded on the sheet by the image recording unit 20, but it is also possible to transmit the image from the communication unit 14 to the computer 34 as indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 8. .

  In Embodiment 2 described above, the control unit 12 determines whether the image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific image, and determines whether to add an additional image based on the determination result. For example, it is possible to accept an addition instruction from the operation panel 22 and determine whether or not to add an additional image based on the presence or absence of the addition instruction. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating the flow of data between the components of the multifunction machine 11. In FIG. 9, the control unit 12 does not determine whether the image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific image, and whether to add an additional image based on the presence / absence of an addition instruction received by the operation panel 22. Decide whether or not. Further, selection of an additional image is also accepted by the operation panel 22. For example, when there is no secret mark or important mark as in the original image shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, it is necessary to receive an addition instruction from the operation panel 22.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a multifunction peripheral (image processing apparatus) according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the original image to which the additional image was added. It is a flowchart which shows the example of the image processing procedure containing a notification process. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a data flow between each component of the multifunction peripheral illustrated in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows the other example of the original image to which the additional image was added. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a multifunction peripheral (image recording apparatus) according to the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the example of the image processing procedure containing the addition process of an additional image. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a data flow between components of the multifunction peripheral illustrated in FIG. 6. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a data flow between components of the multifunction peripheral illustrated in FIG. 6.

Explanation of symbols

10, 11 MFP 12 Control unit 14 Communication unit 16 Image reading unit 18 Storage unit 20 Image recording unit 22 Operation panel 30 Communication network 32, 34 Computer 36 Management server 40 Document image 44 Additional image

Claims (7)

An image reading unit that reads an image of a document and a communication unit that notifies a notification destination are provided, and an image corresponding to the notification destination is added to the image read by the image reading unit, and processing on the image read by the image reading unit is performed. An image processing apparatus for performing
An extraction unit that extracts an image corresponding to a notification destination from an image read by the image reading unit;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit is configured to notify information about an image read by the image reading unit to a notification destination corresponding to the image extracted by the extracting unit. Receiving means for receiving an instruction to execute an image reading by the image reading means and an image read by the image reading means;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit is configured to perform notification separately from processing corresponding to the execution instruction received by the receiving unit.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the communication unit is configured to further notify information related to a process corresponding to the execution instruction received by the receiving unit. An image reading unit that reads an image of a document and a communication unit that notifies a notification destination are provided, and an image corresponding to the notification destination is added to the image read by the image reading unit, and processing on the image read by the image reading unit is performed. An image processing system having an image processing device to perform and an image recording device for recording an image on a sheet,
The image processing apparatus includes an extraction unit that extracts an image corresponding to a notification destination from an image read by the image reading unit, and the communication unit sends an image reading unit to a notification destination corresponding to the image extracted by the extraction unit. Is configured to notify information about the scanned image,
The image recording apparatus determines whether to add an image corresponding to a notification destination to an image to be recorded on a sheet, and, when the determining unit determines to add, an image to be recorded on the sheet And an adding means for adding an image corresponding to the notification destination.   The image processing system according to claim 4, wherein the image corresponding to the notification destination is an image that is difficult to recognize visually. In an image recording apparatus for recording an image on a sheet,
Determining means for determining whether or not to add an image corresponding to a notification destination related to the image to the image to be recorded on the sheet;
An image recording apparatus comprising: an adding unit that adds an image corresponding to a notification destination to an image to be recorded on a sheet when the determining unit determines to add. A determination means for determining whether or not the type of image to be recorded on the sheet is a specific type;
The image recording apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the determination unit is configured to determine whether or not to add an image corresponding to a notification destination based on a determination result of the determination unit.

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