JP2007054973A - Label printing method, and label printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a label printing method by which information recorded on an optical disk is properly laid out and displayed on a label surface, and to provide a label printer. <P>SOLUTION: A printing layout is stored in advance while corresponding to a printing image quantity to be printed on the label surface of a CD 100. Printing images of the same quantity as the designated printing image quantity are selected from image data which is recorded in the CD 100. Then, the selected printing images are printed on the label surface of the CD 100 by the printing layout corresponding to the printing image quantity. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a label printing method and a label printing apparatus for displaying an image recorded in an optical disk on a label surface (surface opposite to a recording surface) of the optical disk.

  Conventionally, an optical disc (optical disc) capable of recording information with a laser beam is known. Such optical disks include CD-R / RW and DVD-R / RW / RAM.

  By the way, in various optical discs, a list of images recorded on a CD is printed on an index sheet in order to identify data recorded on a recording surface (see Patent Document 1). However, when the optical disc and the index sheet are separated, the information in the CD must be actually reproduced and confirmed.

  Thus, visible information such as titles and representative images is printed on the label surface opposite to the recording surface on which information is recorded. For example, in Patent Document 2, several images are selected from images recorded on a CD and printed on a CD label surface. In Patent Document 3, a list of images recorded on a CD is displayed on a CD label surface. The recorded data is identified by printing.

However, it has been difficult to properly lay out and print the content of information recorded on a CD in a limited space such as a CD label surface.
JP-A-5-191761 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-182411 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-86505

  The present invention has been made in view of the above facts, and an object thereof is to appropriately lay out information recorded on an optical disc and display it on a label surface.

  The label printing method according to claim 1 stores a print layout in advance corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on the label surface of the optical disc, and specifies a plurality of designations from the image data recorded in the optical disc. The same number of print images as the number of print images is selected, and the selected print images are printed on the label surface of the optical disc with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images.

  In the present invention, print layouts are stored in advance corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on the label surface of the optical disc. Then, the same number of print images as the designated number of print images is selected from the image data recorded on the optical disc, and the selected print image is printed on the label surface of the optical disc. Since printing on the label surface has a layout stored corresponding to the number of print images, information recorded on the optical disk can be appropriately laid out and displayed on the label surface.

  The label printing method according to claim 2, wherein the period from the earliest shooting date to the latest shooting date in the image data recorded in the optical disc is divided into a number that is one less than the number of the printed images. The printing image is selected one by one from images taken in each divided period.

  By selecting a print image as described above, an image every predetermined period can be used as a print image within the shooting period.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the label printing method, wherein the print image is selected so that the color tones of the plurality of print images to be selected are unified.

  By selecting a print image as described above, it is possible to achieve label printing that looks beautiful with a unified color tone.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the label printing method, wherein the print image is selected so that the color tones of the plurality of print images to be selected are dispersed.

  By selecting a print image as described above, it is possible to achieve label printing that is visually attractive with a well-balanced color tone.

  The label printing method according to claim 5 is characterized in that each of the print images is selected such that the centroids of the plurality of print images to be selected are dispersed.

  By selecting a print image as described above, it is possible to achieve label printing that is balanced and visually attractive.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label printing apparatus comprising: a storage unit that stores a print layout in advance corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on a label surface of an optical disc; and a plurality of image data recorded in the optical disc Selecting means for selecting the same number of print images as the designated number of print images; and the label surface of the optical disc with the selected print images having a print layout corresponding to the number of print images stored in the storage means And printing means for printing.

  In the label printing apparatus of the present invention, the print layout is stored in advance in the storage means corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on the label surface of the optical disc. The selecting means selects the same number of print images as the number of designated print images from the image data recorded on the optical disc. Then, the printing unit prints the selected print image on the label surface of the optical disc with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images stored in the storage unit.

  According to the above configuration, the print image for printing is automatically selected by the selection unit, and the print image can be printed on the label surface of the optical disc with the layout corresponding to the selected number.

  According to the present invention, information recorded on an optical disc can be appropriately laid out and displayed on a label surface.

  FIG. 1 shows a label printing apparatus 104 according to the present embodiment and a CD (compact disk) 100 as an optical disk to be label-printed by the label printing apparatus 104. The CD 100 is a donut shape, and is rotated at high speed around a circular hole 102 provided in the shaft core so that digital data can be written and read out.

  The recording surface of the digital data is the lower surface side of the CD 100 in FIG. 1, and is loaded into the loading unit 106 of the label printing apparatus 104 so that the recording surface faces the recording surface. On the recording surface of the CD 100, image data, index data associated with the image data, and the like are recorded. As the index data, the shooting date of the image data is recorded.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a through hole 108 is provided at the center of the bottom surface of the loading unit 106, and a rotating shaft 110 that fits into the circular hole 102 projects. The rotating shaft 110 is rotated at a high speed by a rotation driving unit 112 shown in FIG.

  Further, a long hole 114 is provided in the radial direction from the vicinity of the rotation shaft 110, and a reading unit 116 that can move along the long hole 114 is provided. The reading unit 116 includes a reading head 118 and a head driving unit 120 that drives the reading head 118.

  Here, the digital data recorded on the CD 100 is read by the reading head 118 while the reading unit 116 moves in the radial direction while the CD 100 is loaded in the loading unit 106 and rotated at high speed. Yes.

  The label printing apparatus 104 is provided with a lid 122 that can be opened and closed. A printing unit 124 is built in the lid 122.

  The print unit 124 includes a head 128 filled with four colors of YMCK ink. The pudding and the unit 124 are controlled by the drive unit 132 (see FIG. 2) so that the inkjet head 128 moves in the main scanning direction along the base 129 and the sub scanning direction along the guide 127 according to image data. Has been.

  Here, in a state where the CD 100 is loaded and stopped and held at a predetermined rotation angle (basically, it may be stopped at any position), the ink jet head 128 along the base 129 and the guide 127. Can be recorded on the surface of the CD 100 by performing main scanning and sub scanning.

  FIG. 2 shows a control block diagram of the label printing apparatus 104.

  The control unit 130 controls each unit of the label printing apparatus 104 and includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The control unit 130 is connected to the memory 131, the drive unit 132 of the print unit 124, the rotation drive unit 112 that rotates the CD 100, and the head drive unit 120 of the reading unit 116.

  The memory 131 stores a label printing process execution program, which will be described later, a print layout corresponding to the number of print images, and the like. As the print layout, when there are six print images, the layout of images a to f shown in FIG. 3A, and when the print image is four, the layout and print of images a to d shown in FIG. When there are five images, the layouts of images a to e shown in FIG. 3C are stored. In addition, the print position of the album title T and the shooting period D is also stored corresponding to each print image number n.

  Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.

  After loading the CD 100 into the loading unit 106 and closing the lid 122, the user includes an instruction unit (not shown) indicating the label printing start instruction together with the number n of print images to be printed and the selection pattern of the image to be printed. Enter from. As an image selection pattern, in the present embodiment, a period selection pattern for selecting an image every predetermined period within the shooting period, a color selection pattern for selecting by the color tone of the image, a center of gravity selection pattern for selecting by the center of gravity of the image, The print image is selected in any one of the three patterns.

  The control unit 130 starts the label printing process shown in FIG.

  In step S10, it is determined whether the input image selection pattern is a period selection pattern. If it is a period selection pattern, a period selection process is performed in step S12. As shown in FIG. 5, in the period selection process, in step S12-1, the image G1 with the oldest shooting date is extracted from all the image data recorded on the CD 100, and in step S12-2, the CD 100 is stored in the CD 100. An image GN having the latest shooting date is extracted from all recorded image data.

  Next, in step S12-3, the number of days DT from the image G1 to the image GN is calculated, and in step S12-4, the predetermined period DS is calculated from the number of days DT / (number of print images n-1).

  In step S12-5, 2 is substituted for i for determining whether the number of print images selected has reached n. In step S12-6, it is determined whether i <n. If i <n, the process proceeds to step S12-7 to select a print image. If i <n, the selection of all print images has been completed, so the period selection process ends and the process proceeds to the next step S14. In step S12-7, the image data of the shooting date / time closest to the date obtained by adding (predetermined period DS × (i−1)) to the shooting date / time DH of the image G1 is selected as the print image data.

  In step S12-8, i = i + 1 is set, and the process returns to step S12-6.

  By selecting the print image as described above, as shown in FIG. 7, from the image G1 and the image G2 captured at the closest date and time when the predetermined period DS has elapsed since the image G1 and the image G1 having the oldest shooting date and time. An image G3 taken at the closest date and time when the predetermined period DS has elapsed, an image GN with the newest shooting date and time, an image G (N-1) taken at the closest date and time before the predetermined period DS from the image GN, etc. Selected as.

  By selecting a print image in the above-described period selection process, as shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to select image data for each elapse of a predetermined period, and it is possible to perform label printing with an image with dispersed shooting dates and times. .

  In step S <b> 14, print image data is output to the drive unit 132 so that the selected print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100 with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images. As a result, the inkjet head 128 is driven, and a print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100.

  If the determination in step S10 is negative, it is determined in step S20 whether it is a color tone selection pattern. If it is a color tone selection pattern, a color tone selection process is performed in step S22. In the color tone selection process, as shown in FIG. 7, a mapping process is performed for each piece of image data recorded on the CD 100 in step S22-1. In the mapping process, mapping is performed depending on how many RGBCMY colors exist. As shown in FIG. 8A, the color tone of each image data is mapped to a position corresponding to the color tone of the image data on a hexagonal color tone map whose vertex is RGBCMY.

  The mapping process is as shown in FIG. In step S22M-1, the hues of all the pixels in the image data are examined, and in step S22M-2, the most common color and the ratio of the color to the image data are obtained. In step S22M-3, the image data is mapped as color tone data at a corresponding position on the color tone map.

  Next, in step S22-2, the process waits until the user inputs an instruction as to whether to select by color tone dispersion or color tone unification. Here, selection by color tone dispersion is performed so that the area surrounded by n color tone positions mapped to the number of mapped print images is the largest area. On the other hand, the selection based on the unified color tone is performed so that the area surrounded by connecting the n color tone positions of the number of mapped print images is the smallest area.

  If there is an instruction input from the user, it is determined in step S22-3 whether or not the instruction input is selection by color tone dispersion. If the selection is based on color tone dispersion, in step S22-4, n pieces of image data such that the area surrounded by connecting the n color tone positions of the number of mapped print images is the largest area. Is selected as a print image (see FIG. 8B).

  By selecting a print image in the selection of the above-described color tone dispersion, it is possible to create a visually attractive label that is well-balanced in overall color tone.

  If the determination in step S22-3 is negative, the instruction input is a selection based on unified color tone, and in step S22-5, the user further inputs a central color from RGBCMY. stand by. When input by the user, in step S22-6, n images such that the area surrounded by connecting the n tone positions of the number n of printed images mapped around the input color is the smallest area. Data is selected as a print image (see FIG. 8C).

  By selecting a print image in the above-described selection of color tone, the color tone is unified and a visually attractive label can be created.

  In step S24, the print image data is output to the drive unit 132 so that the selected print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100 with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images. As a result, the inkjet head 128 is driven, and a print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100.

  If the determination in step S20 is negative, it can be determined that the centroid selection pattern has been input, and thus the centroid selection process is performed in step S32. As shown in FIG. 10, in the center-of-gravity selection process, in step S32-1, a center-of-gravity calculation process is performed to obtain the center of gravity of one of the image data recorded on the CD 100. As shown in FIG. 11, the center-of-gravity calculation process increases the brightness of the original image data in step S32G-1, and emphasizes the contrast of the image data in step S32G-2 (FIG. 13 (A-2) (B -2) (See C-2)).

  Next, in step S32G-3, the image data is binarized (see FIGS. 13A-3, B-3, and C-3), and in step S32G-4, the binarized image data is converted into the binarized image data. Based on this, it is determined in which of the four areas (areas E1 to E4) shown in FIG. 12 the portion where the black data is concentrated (hereinafter, this portion is treated as “the center of gravity”) to determine the center of gravity area. (See FIGS. 13A-4, B-4, and C-4). The above is the gravity center calculation process.

  Next, in step S32-2, it is determined whether or not the obtained center of gravity position is the area E1, and if the determination is affirmative, in step S32-3, whether the print image in the area E1 is empty, that is, It is determined whether or not a print image in the area E1 has already been determined. If the print image in area E1 is empty, in step S32-4, the image is determined as the image in area E1. If the print image of area E1 has already been determined, the process proceeds to step S32-14.

  If the determination in step S32-2 is negative, it is determined in step S32-5 whether or not the determined center of gravity position is area E2. If the determination is affirmative, in step S32-6, It is determined whether or not the print image in area E2 is empty, that is, whether or not the print image in area E2 has already been determined. If the print image in area E2 is empty, the image is determined as the image in area E2 in step S32-7. If the print image of area E2 has already been determined, the process proceeds to step S32-14.

  If the determination in step S32-5 is negative, it is determined in step S32-8 whether or not the obtained center of gravity position is area E3. If the determination is affirmative, in step S32-9, It is determined whether or not the print image in area E3 is empty, that is, whether or not the print image in area E3 has already been determined. If the print image in area E3 is empty, the image is determined as the image in area E3 in step S32-10. If the print image of area E3 has already been determined, the process proceeds to step S32-14.

  If the determination in step S32-8 is negative, the obtained barycentric position is area E4. Therefore, in step S32-12, whether or not the print image in area E4 is empty, that is, the print image in area E4. To determine whether has already been determined. If the print image in area E4 is empty, the image is determined as the image in area E4 in step S32-13. If the print image of area E4 has already been determined, the process proceeds to step S32-14.

  In step S32-14, it is determined whether all the image data recorded on the CD 100 has been read (whether it is the last image data). If the determination is negative, there is image data that has not yet been read. In step S32-15, the next image data is read, and the process returns to step S32. If the determination in step S32-14 is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S34.

  According to the above-described center-of-gravity selection process, it is possible to form a visually appealing label in which the center of gravity is dispersed and the overall balance is achieved.

  In step S34, print image data is output to the drive unit 132 so that the selected print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100 with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images. As a result, the inkjet head 128 is driven, and a print image is printed on the label surface of the CD 100.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, a print image is automatically selected from a large number of image data recorded on the CD 100 according to the number of print images, and the layout stored according to the number of print images is stored. Therefore, label printing can be performed by appropriately laying out information recorded on the CD 100.

  In this embodiment, the print image is directly printed on the CD 100. However, the print image may be printed on paper or another recording medium, and the recording medium may be pasted on the CD 100 and displayed.

  In this embodiment, the CD has been described as an example. However, the present invention can also be applied to other optical disks such as a DVD.

It is the schematic of the label printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a schematic block diagram of the control system of the label printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is an example of a layout according to the number of print images. It is a flowchart of the label printing process of this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the period selection process of this embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of the imaging | photography date of the print image selected by the period selection process of this embodiment. It is a flowchart of a color tone selection process of the present embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the mapping by the color tone of this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the mapping process of this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the gravity center selection process of this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the gravity center calculation process of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows 4 areas selected by the gravity center calculation process of this embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the selection process in the gravity center calculation process of this embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

100 CD
104 Label printing device 124 Print unit 128 Inkjet head 130 Control unit 131 Memory

Claims (6)

Corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on the label surface of the optical disc, the print layout is stored in advance,
From the image data recorded in the optical disc, select the same number of print images as the number of the specified print images,
Printing the selected print image on the label surface of the optical disc with a print layout corresponding to the number of print images;
Label printing method. The image data recorded in the optical disk is divided into a number less than the number of print images by dividing the period from the earliest shooting date to the latest shooting date in the image data recorded in the optical disc, and the images shot in each divided period Selecting the print images one by one from
The label printing method according to claim 1. Selecting the print image so that the color tone of each of the plurality of print images to be selected is unified;
The label printing method according to claim 1. Selecting the print image such that the colors of each of the selected print images are dispersed;
The label printing method according to claim 1. Selecting each of the print images such that the center of gravity of each of the plurality of selected print images is dispersed;
The label printing method according to claim 1. Storage means for storing a print layout in advance corresponding to the number of print images to be printed on the label surface of the optical disc;
A selecting means for selecting the same number of print images as the number of the specified print images from the image data recorded in the optical disc;
Printing means for printing the selected print image on the label surface of the optical disc in a print layout corresponding to the number of print images stored in the storage means;
Label printing device equipped with.