JP2007223189A - Printer, image processor, printing method, and image processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable even a person's image to be constantly printed with high image quality. <P>SOLUTION: A part, in which the person's teeth is seen, is detected from among image data to be printed, so that image data (representative image data) representing image data on the part can be generated. After the image data on the teeth part are corrected so that the representative image data can correspond to target data which are preset as the preferable color of the person's teeth, the image is printed on the basis of the acquired image data. The correction of the color of the person's teeth to the preferable color enables the person's image to be printed with an agreeable impression. This prevents the misunderstanding that the whole image is lower in quality than a real image because the person in the image cannot be seen with the preferable impression, and enables the printing of the high-quality image on which the performance of the printer is sufficiently exerted. Additionally, a white balance can also be attained on the basis of the color of the teeth part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for printing an image taken including a person.

  Various household printers such as inkjet printers are widely used as image output devices because they have the advantage of easily printing color images without requiring a large-scale device. . Also, in such a printer, in addition to simply printing, in order to be able to print high-quality images, it is possible to increase the number of ink types used, improve image processing technology, Various types of technologies have been developed, such as making it possible to form multi-sized dots in printers that print dots and print images (for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2). As a result, it is now possible to print an image taken with a digital camera with a sufficiently high image quality that is comparable to a color photograph printed from a so-called silver salt film.

JP-A-10-175318 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-6445

  However, when an image including a person is printed, a satisfactory image may not be obtained even though a sufficiently high-quality image is actually obtained. There was a problem that it might be misunderstood as if it were not.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of always printing a sufficiently high-quality image even for an image including a person.

In order to solve at least a part of the problems described above, the first printing apparatus of the present invention employs the following configuration. That is,
A printing apparatus that receives image data of an image taken including at least a person and prints the image,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
Image data correction means for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches target data set in advance;
And an image printing means for printing the image based on the corrected image data.

Further, the first printing method of the present invention corresponding to the printing apparatus described above is
A printing method for receiving image data of an image taken including at least a person and printing the image,
A first step of detecting a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the image data;
A second step of generating representative image data which is image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A third step of correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches the preset target data;
And a fourth step of printing the image based on the corrected image data.

  In the first printing apparatus and the first printing method of the present invention, when image data is received, a portion in which a person's teeth are reflected is detected, and image data (representative image) representing the image data of the portion is detected. Data). Then, after correcting the image data of the portion where the tooth is reflected so that the representative image data matches the target data set in advance as a preferable tooth color, the image is obtained based on the obtained image data. Print.

  In this way, when an image showing a person is printed, the face of the person can always be printed with a favorable impression, so that a high-quality image with sufficient performance of the printing apparatus can be printed. It becomes possible. The reason why this is possible will be described supplementarily. If a person appears in the printed image, the viewer's attention tends to be attracted to the face of the person. And if the person's face happens to be in a state that doesn't look good, even if the other parts are printed with sufficient image quality, the impression of the entire image will deteriorate, and the print image quality will not be sufficient. It was found that it was misunderstood like. Furthermore, the impression of a person's face is greatly influenced by the color of the teeth. If the color of the teeth is stained with, for example, cigarette dust, the impression of the entire face is worsened. It turned out that the impression of the face improves when it has a refreshing white color. As is clear from these findings, it is preferable to detect a portion where teeth appear in the image and correct the image data so that the portion is printed with a preferable impression color. Can be printed on the impression. For this reason, since it is not misunderstood as if the printing image quality is not sufficient, it is possible to obtain a high-quality image in which the performance of the printing apparatus is sufficiently exhibited.

  Further, in the printing apparatus of the present invention, the image data of the tooth portion may be corrected as follows. That is, a plurality of target data for correcting the tooth color is stored in advance, and one target data can be selected from these. When the tooth portion is detected, the image data may be corrected so that the representative image data of this portion matches the selected target data.

  In this way, the tooth color can be corrected to a more preferable color as necessary, so that the performance of the printing apparatus can be sufficiently drawn and a higher quality image can be printed.

Further, in order to solve at least a part of the above-described problems of the conventional technology, the second configuration of the present invention employs the following configuration. That is,
A printing apparatus that receives image data of an image taken including at least a person and prints the image,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
Color tone correction means for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the preset reference white image data;
An image printing means for printing the image based on the image data whose color tone has been corrected.

Further, the second printing method of the present invention corresponding to the printing apparatus described above is
A printing method for receiving image data of an image taken including at least a person and printing the image,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected (A);
(B) generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A step (C) of correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the reference white image data set in advance;
And a step (D) of printing the image based on the image data whose color tone is corrected.

  In the second printing apparatus and the second printing method of the present invention, image data to be a reference white color is set in advance, and image data representing a tooth portion (representative image data) is a reference white color. The entire image data may be corrected so as to match the image data.

  In this way, not only can the tooth color be printed in a preferred color, but also by taking a so-called white balance, the color tone of the entire image can be corrected and a preferred image can be printed. At this time, the color tone of the entire image is corrected so that the tooth portion becomes a reference white color, and only the tooth portion can be corrected to a color set different from the reference white color. It is.

In addition, in order to print an image using the first printing apparatus or the first printing method of the present invention described above, a process of performing predetermined image processing on the image data and correcting the tooth color to a preferable color. If attention is paid to the point that the above is required, the present invention can be grasped as an image processing apparatus and an image processing method as follows. That is, the first image processing apparatus of the present invention is
An image processing apparatus that receives image data of an image captured including at least a person and performs predetermined image processing,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
The gist of the invention is that the representative image data comprises image data correction means for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches preset target data.

Further, the first image processing method of the present invention corresponding to the above-described image processing apparatus is as follows:
An image processing method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected (1);
A step (2) of generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
And a step (3) of correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches preset target data.

Furthermore, the second image processing apparatus of the present invention corresponding to the second printing apparatus of the present invention described above is
An image processing apparatus that receives image data of an image captured including at least a person and performs predetermined image processing,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
The gist of the invention is that the representative image data includes a color tone correcting unit that corrects the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the preset reference white image data.

The second image processing method of the present invention corresponding to the above image processing apparatus is
An image processing method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data where a person's teeth are reflected (a);
A step (a) of generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
And a step (c) of correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches preset reference white image data.

  In these image processing apparatuses and image processing methods of the present invention, when image data is received, a portion of the image in which a person's teeth are reflected is detected, and the image data is corrected so that the teeth have a preferable color. Can do. Therefore, if an image is printed or displayed using the obtained image data, an image showing a person can always be output as a high-quality image.

Furthermore, the present invention can be realized using a computer by causing a computer to read a program for realizing the above-described printing method or image processing method and executing a predetermined function. Therefore, the present invention includes the following program or a mode as a recording medium on which the program is recorded. That is, the program of the present invention corresponding to the first printing method described above is
A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image photographed including at least a person and printing the image,
A first function for detecting a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the image data;
A second function of generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A third function for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches target data set in advance;
The gist of the present invention is that a fourth function for printing the image based on the corrected image data is realized by a computer.

The recording medium of the present invention corresponding to the above program is
A recording medium which records image data of an image photographed including at least a person and prints the image so as to be readable by a computer,
A first function for detecting a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the image data;
A second function of generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A third function for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches target data set in advance;
The gist of the present invention is that a program for realizing a fourth function for printing the image based on the corrected image data by a computer is recorded.

The program of the present invention corresponding to the second printing method described above is
A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image photographed including at least a person and printing the image,
A function (A) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (B) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A function (C) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches a preset reference white image data;
The gist is to realize a function (D) of printing the image on the basis of the image data whose color tone is corrected by a computer.

The recording medium of the present invention corresponding to the above program is
A recording medium which records image data of an image photographed including at least a person and prints the image so as to be readable by a computer,
A function (A) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (B) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A function (C) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches a preset reference white image data;
The gist of the invention is that a program for realizing a function (D) for printing the image on the basis of the image data whose color tone has been corrected is recorded by a computer.

Furthermore, the program of the present invention corresponding to the first image processing method described above is
A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
A function (1) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (2) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
The gist of the present invention is that a function (3) for correcting the image data of the tooth portion is realized by a computer so that the representative image data matches preset target data.

The recording medium of the present invention corresponding to the above program is
A recording medium which receives image data of an image photographed including at least a person and records a predetermined image processing program readable by a computer,
A function (1) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (2) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
The gist is that a program for realizing the function (3) for correcting the image data of the tooth portion by a computer is recorded so that the representative image data matches preset target data. To do.

The program of the present invention corresponding to the second image processing method described above is
A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
By analyzing the image data, a function (a) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data;
A function (a) for generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
The gist of the present invention is to realize, by a computer, a function (c) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the preset reference white image data.

The recording medium of the present invention corresponding to the above program is
A recording medium which receives image data of an image photographed including at least a person and records a predetermined image processing program readable by a computer,
By analyzing the image data, a function (a) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data;
A function (a) for generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A program for recording a program for realizing the function (c) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the reference white image data set in advance is recorded. The gist.

  If these programs are read into a computer and the various functions described above are realized, even an image showing a person can always be printed as a high-quality image.

Hereinafter, in order to clarify the contents of the present invention described above, examples will be described in the following order.
A. Summary of Examples:
B. Device configuration:
B-1. overall structure:
B-2. Internal configuration:
B-2-1. Internal configuration of the scanner unit:
B-2-2. Internal configuration of the printer unit:
C. Image printing process:
D. Tooth color correction processing:
E. Variation:
(1) First modification:
(2) Second modification:

A. Summary of Examples:
Prior to detailed description of the embodiment, an outline of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of a printing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. The illustrated printing apparatus 10 is provided with a print head 12 that ejects ink droplets, and an image is formed by ejecting ink droplets and forming ink dots while reciprocating the print head 12 on the print medium P. Is a so-called inkjet printer.

  Such inkjet printers have improved in print quality year by year, and nowadays, it is possible to print a sufficiently high-quality image that is comparable to a photo baked from a silver salt film. . However, when printing an image including a person, for some reason, it may not be felt that the image has sufficient print quality. Therefore, as a result of investigating the cause of such a situation, if a person appears in the printed image, the viewer's attention tends to be attracted to the face part of the person. It was found that if the image was taken out of the image, the image quality of the entire image would not be sufficient even if the other parts were printed with sufficient image quality. Furthermore, the impression of a person's face is greatly influenced by the color of the teeth. If the color of the teeth is bad, such as being stained with cigarette stains, the impression of the entire face will be worsened, and vice versa. It has been found that the impression of the face is improved when the teeth have a refreshing white color.

  Based on such knowledge, the printing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment can always print an image with sufficient image quality, as shown in FIG. Modules such as “generation module” and “image data correction module” are mounted. The “module” is a series of processing that is internally performed by the printing apparatus 10 to print an image, focusing on the function. Therefore, the “module” can be realized as a part of the program, or can be realized by using a logic circuit having a specific function, or can be realized by combining them. .

  In the printing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, when image data of an image to be printed is received, the following image processing is performed by each module, and then the print head 12 is driven onto the print medium P. Print the image. First, the “tooth portion detection module” extracts the portion in which the person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the received image data. Next, the “representative image data generation module” generates image data representing the tooth portion (representative image data) by calculating an average value of the image data in the tooth portion. In the “image data correction module”, target image data to be printed with a refreshing white tooth color is set in advance. When the representative image data is received from the “representative image data generation module”, the representative image data is received. The image data of the tooth portion is corrected so that the data matches the preset image data. The image data corrected in this way is supplied to the “image printing module”, converted into a signal for driving the print head 12, and an image is printed on the print medium P.

  If the image is printed in this way, when printing an image including a person, the tooth color is corrected to a refreshing white color, so the face can be printed with a favorable impression, and as a result Even a simple image can be printed with sufficiently high image quality. Below, such a printing apparatus 10 is demonstrated in detail based on an Example.

B. Device configuration :
B-1. overall structure :
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the external shape of the printing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. As illustrated, the printing apparatus 10 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a scanner unit 100, a printer unit 200, an operation panel 300 for setting operations of the scanner unit 100 and the printer unit 200, and the like. The scanner unit 100 has a scanner function of reading a printed image and generating image data, and the printer unit 200 has a printer function of receiving image data and printing an image on a print medium. . Further, if an image (original image) read by the scanner unit 100 is output from the printer unit 200, a copy function can be realized. That is, the printing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is a so-called scanner / printer / copy combined apparatus (hereinafter referred to as an SPC combined apparatus) that can independently realize a scanner function, a printer function, and a copy function.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the document table cover 102 provided on the upper part of the printing apparatus 10 is opened in order to read the document image. As shown in the drawing, when the document table cover 102 is opened upward, a transparent document table glass 104 is provided, and various mechanisms to be described later for realizing the scanner function are mounted therein. . When reading a document image, as shown in the figure, the document table cover 102 is opened, the document image is placed on the document table glass 104, the document table cover 102 is closed, and then the buttons on the operation panel 300 are operated. . In this way, it is possible to immediately convert the document image into image data.

  The scanner unit 100 is entirely housed in an integrated case, and the scanner unit 100 and the printer unit 200 are coupled by a hinge mechanism 204 (see FIG. 4) on the back side of the printing apparatus 10. ing. For this reason, by lifting the front side of the scanner unit 100, it is possible to rotate only the scanner unit 100 at the hinge portion.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the front side of the scanner unit 100 is lifted and rotated. As shown in the figure, in the printing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the upper surface of the printer unit 200 can be exposed by lifting the front side of the scanner unit 100. Inside the printer unit 200, various mechanisms to be described later for realizing the printer function, a control circuit 260 to be described later for controlling the operation of the entire printing apparatus 10 including the scanner unit 100, and the scanner unit 100 are further described. And a power supply circuit (not shown) for supplying power to the printer unit 200 and the like. Also, as shown in FIG. 4, an opening 202 is provided on the upper surface of the printer unit 200, and replacement of consumables such as ink cartridges, paper jam handling, and other minor repairs are performed. Can be performed easily.

B-2. Internal configuration:
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing the internal configuration of the printing apparatus 10 of this embodiment. As described above, the printing apparatus 10 includes the scanner unit 100 and the printer unit 200, and various configurations for realizing the scanner function are mounted in the scanner unit 100. Is equipped with various configurations for realizing the printer function. Hereinafter, the internal configuration of the scanner unit 100 will be described first, and then the internal configuration of the printer unit 200 will be described.

B-2-1. Internal configuration of the scanner unit:
The scanner unit 100 includes a transparent platen glass 104 on which a document image is set, a document platen cover 102 for holding the set document image, a reading carriage 110 for reading the set document image, and a reading carriage 110. The driving belt 120 is configured to move in the reading direction (main scanning direction), the driving motor 122 supplies power to the driving belt 120, the guide shaft 106 that guides the movement of the reading carriage 110, and the like. The operations of the drive motor 122 and the reading carriage 110 are controlled by a control circuit 260 described later.

  When the driving motor 122 is rotated under the control of the control circuit 260, the movement is transmitted to the reading carriage 110 via the driving belt 120, and as a result, the reading carriage 110 is guided to the guide shaft 106 while being driven by the driving motor 122. It moves in the reading direction (main scanning direction) according to the rotation angle. Further, the drive belt 120 is constantly adjusted to be in a moderately tensioned state by the idler pulley 124. Therefore, if the drive motor 122 is rotated in the reverse direction, the reading carriage 110 is moved in the reverse direction by a distance corresponding to the rotation angle. It can also be moved.

  Inside the reading carriage 110, a light source 112, a lens 114, a mirror 116, a CCD sensor 118, and the like are mounted. Light from the light source 112 is applied to the platen glass 104 and reflected by a document image set on the platen glass 104. The reflected light is guided to the lens 114 by the mirror 116, collected by the lens 114, and detected by the CCD sensor 118. The CCD sensor 118 includes a linear sensor in which photodiodes that convert light intensity into an electrical signal are arranged in a row in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction (main scanning direction) of the reading carriage 110. Therefore, by moving the reading carriage 110 in the main scanning direction and irradiating the original image with light from the light source 112 and detecting the reflected light intensity by the CCD 118, an electrical signal corresponding to the original image can be obtained.

  Further, the light source 112 is composed of light emitting diodes of three colors of RGB, and can sequentially irradiate light of R color, G color, and B color at a predetermined cycle. In the CCD 118, reflected light of R color, G color, and B color is sequentially detected. In general, the red portion of the image reflects R light, but hardly reflects G or B light, so the R reflected light represents the R component of the image. Similarly, the reflected light of G color represents the G component of the image, and the reflected light of B color represents the B component of the image. Accordingly, if the original image is irradiated while switching the light of three colors of RGB at a predetermined cycle and the reflected light intensity is detected by the CCD 118 in synchronization therewith, the R component, G component and B component of the original image can be detected. It is possible to read a color image. Note that since the reading carriage 110 is moved even while the color of the light emitted by the light source 112 is switched, the position of the image for detecting each component of RGB corresponds to the movement amount of the reading carriage 110 strictly. However, this deviation can be corrected by image processing after reading each component.

B-2-2. Internal configuration of the printer unit:
Next, the internal configuration of the printer unit 200 will be described. The printer unit 200 includes a control circuit 260 that controls the overall operation of the printing apparatus 10, a print carriage 240 that prints an image on a print medium, a mechanism that moves the print carriage 240 in the main scanning direction, and printing. A mechanism for feeding media is mounted.

  The print carriage 240 includes an ink cartridge 242 that stores K ink, an ink cartridge 243 that stores various inks of C ink, M ink, and Y ink, a print head 241 provided on the bottom surface side, and the like. The print head 241 is provided with an ink discharge head for discharging ink droplets for each ink. When the ink cartridges 242 and 243 are mounted on the print carriage 240, each ink in the cartridge is supplied to the ink discharge heads 244 to 247 of each color through an introduction pipe (not shown).

  The mechanism that moves the print carriage 240 in the main scanning direction includes a carriage belt 231 for driving the print carriage 240, a carriage motor 230 that supplies power to the carriage belt 231, and an appropriate tension is constantly applied to the carriage belt 231. And a carriage guide 233 for guiding the movement of the print carriage 240, an origin position sensor 234 for detecting the origin position of the print carriage 240, and the like. When the carriage motor 230 is rotated under the control of the control circuit 260 described later, the print carriage 240 can be moved in the main scanning direction by a distance corresponding to the rotation angle. Further, if the carriage motor 230 is rotated in the reverse direction, the print carriage 240 can be moved in the reverse direction.

  The mechanism for feeding the print medium includes a platen 236 that supports the print medium from the back side, a paper feed motor 235 that feeds the paper by rotating the platen 236, and the like. By rotating the paper feed motor 235 under the control of the control circuit 260 described later, the print medium can be fed in the sub-scanning direction by a distance corresponding to the rotation angle.

  The control circuit 260 has a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a D / A converter that converts digital data into an analog signal, and a peripheral device interface PIF for exchanging data with peripheral devices. It is composed of The control circuit 260 controls the overall operation of the printing apparatus 10, and controls these operations while exchanging data with the light source 112, the drive motor 122, and the CCD 118 mounted on the scanner unit 100.

  Further, the control circuit 260 drives the carriage motor 230 and the paper feed motor 235 to supply the drive signals to the ink discharge heads 244 to 247 of the respective colors while performing the main scanning and the sub scanning of the printing carriage 240, thereby generating ink droplets. Control to discharge is also performed. The drive signals supplied to the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 are generated by reading image data from the computer 20, the digital camera 30, the external storage device 32, etc., and performing image processing to be described later. Of course, it is also possible to generate a drive signal by performing image processing on the image data read by the scanner unit 100. In this way, under the control of the control circuit 260, the ink droplets are ejected from the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 to form the ink dots of the respective colors on the printing medium while the print carriage 240 is moved in the main scan and the sub scan. It is possible to print an image. Of course, instead of performing image processing in the control circuit 260, the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 receive data on which image processing has been performed from the computer 20, and perform main scanning and sub-scanning of the print carriage 240 according to this data. Can also be driven.

  The control circuit 260 is also connected to the operation panel 300 so as to be able to exchange data. By operating various buttons provided on the operation panel 300, detailed operation modes of the scanner function and the printer function are set. It is possible to set. Further, it is possible to set a detailed operation mode from the computer 20 via the peripheral device interface PIF.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a plurality of nozzles Nz for ejecting ink droplets are formed on the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 of each color. As shown in the figure, four sets of nozzle rows for ejecting ink droplets of each color are formed on the bottom surface of the ink ejection head for each color, and 48 nozzles Nz have a nozzle pitch k in one nozzle row. They are arranged in a staggered pattern at intervals. A drive signal is supplied from the control circuit 260 to each of these nozzles Nz, and each nozzle Nz discharges an ink droplet of each ink according to the drive signal.

  As described above, the printer unit 200 of the printing apparatus 10 prints an image by supplying drive signals to the ink discharge nozzles and discharging ink droplets according to the drive signals to form ink dots on the print medium. ing. Control data for driving the ink discharge nozzles is generated by performing predetermined image processing on the image data prior to image printing. Hereinafter, a process (image printing process) of performing image processing on image data to generate control data, and printing an image by forming ink dots based on the obtained control data will be described.

C. Image printing process:
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of image printing processing performed for printing an image by the printing apparatus 10 according to the present exemplary embodiment. Such a process is a process executed by the control circuit 260 mounted on the printing apparatus 10 using functions such as a built-in CPU, RAM, and ROM. Hereinafter, it demonstrates according to a flowchart.

  When the image printing process is started, the control circuit 260 first reads the image data to be printed (step S100). Here, it is assumed that the image data is RGB image data expressed by gradation values of R, G, and B colors.

  Next, a process of converting the resolution of the read image data into a resolution (printing resolution) for printing by the printer unit 200 is performed (step S102). When the resolution of the read image data is lower than the print resolution, the image data is converted to a higher resolution by performing interpolation calculation between adjacent pixels and setting new image data. Conversely, when the resolution of the read image data is higher than the print resolution, the image data is converted to a lower resolution by thinning out the image data at a certain rate from between adjacent pixels. In the resolution conversion process, the read resolution is converted into the print resolution by generating or thinning out the image data at an appropriate ratio with respect to the read image data.

  When the resolution of the image data is converted into the print resolution in this way, the control circuit 260 starts a process for correcting the tooth color for the image data (tooth color correction process) (step S104). That is, when a person appears in the image, the process is performed to correct the image data so that the face is printed with a preferable impression by correcting the color of the person's teeth to a refreshing white color. As described above, in an image showing a person, if the face of the person is not printed with a good impression, the image may be misunderstood as if the image quality is poor. The facial impression is greatly influenced by the color of the teeth, and the facial impression can be greatly improved by correcting the dental color to a refreshing white color. As a result, it is possible to realize that the entire image is printed with sufficiently high image quality. Details of the tooth color correction processing will be described in detail later.

  When the control circuit 260 of the printing apparatus 10 completes the tooth color correction process, the control circuit 260 performs a color conversion process on the corrected image data (step S106). Here, the color conversion process is a process of converting image data expressed in R, G, and B colors into image data expressed by gradation values of C, M, Y, and K colors. The color conversion process is performed by referring to a three-dimensional numerical table called a color conversion table (LUT).

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a color conversion table (LUT) referred to for color conversion processing. Here, it is assumed that the gradation value of each color of RGB can take a value from 0 to 255. As shown in FIG. 8, considering a color space in which gradation values of R, G, and B colors are taken on three orthogonal axes, all RGB image data are cubes whose length is one side with the origin at the top. It can be associated with a point inside (color solid). This can be thought of as follows if you change your view. That is, when a color solid is subdivided into a grid perpendicular to each axis of RGB and a plurality of grid points are generated in the color space, the coordinate values of each grid point can be read as RGB image data. Therefore, if a combination of C, M, Y, and K gradation values is stored in advance in each grid point, the RGB image data can be converted into each color by reading the gradation value stored in the grid point. It is possible to convert the image data (CMYK image data) represented by the gradation value.

  For example, if the R component of the image data is RA, the G component is GA, and the B component is BA, this image data is associated with point A in the color space (see FIG. 8). Therefore, a cube dV containing point A is detected from small cubes that subdivide the color solid into a lattice shape, and the gradation values of the CMYK colors stored in the lattice points of the cube dV are read out. Then, if the interpolation calculation is performed from the gradation values of these grid points, the gradation value at the point A can be obtained. As described above, the color conversion table LUT is a three-dimensional number in which a combination of gradation values of CMYK colors (CMYK image data) is stored at each grid point indicated by a combination of gradation values of RGB colors. It can be considered as a table, and by referring to the color conversion table, RGB image data can be quickly converted into CMYK image data.

  When the color conversion process is completed as described above, the control circuit 260 starts the halftone process (step S108 in FIG. 7). Halftone processing is the following processing. The CMYK image data obtained by the color conversion process is image data expressed in the range of gradation value 0 to gradation value 255 for each color of C, M, Y, and K. In contrast, since the printer unit 200 prints an image by forming dots, the CMYK image data expressed by 256 gradations is converted into image data (dot data) expressed by the presence / absence of dot formation. Processing is required. Halftone processing is processing for converting image data of CMYK colors into dot data in this way.

  As a method for performing the halftone process, various methods such as an error diffusion method and a dither method can be applied. The error diffusion method is to determine whether or not dots are formed for a certain pixel so as to diffuse an error in gradation expression generated in that pixel to surrounding pixels and to eliminate the error diffused from the surroundings. This is a method of determining the presence or absence of dot formation for each pixel. In the dither method, a threshold value randomly set in the dither matrix and image data of each color of CMYK are compared for each pixel, and it is determined that a dot is formed in a pixel having a larger image data. This is a technique for obtaining dot data for each pixel by determining that a dot is not formed for a larger pixel. As the halftone method, any one of the error diffusion method and the dither method can be used, but the printing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment performs the halftone process using the dither method.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an enlarged part of the dither matrix. In the illustrated matrix, threshold values that are uniformly selected from the range of gradation values 0 to 255 are randomly stored in a total of 4096 pixels, 64 pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions. Here, the threshold gradation value is selected from the range of 0 to 255. In this embodiment, the image data of each color of CMYK after color conversion is 1-byte data, and the gradation value is 0 to 255. It corresponds to the possibility of taking a value. Note that the size of the dither matrix is not limited to 64 pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions as illustrated in FIG. 9, and can be set to various sizes including those having different numbers of vertical and horizontal pixels. It is.

  FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a state in which the presence / absence of dot formation is determined for each pixel while referring to the dither matrix. This determination is made for each color of CMYK, but in the following, in order to avoid complicated explanation, image data of each color of CMYK is simply referred to as image data without being distinguished.

  When determining the presence or absence of dot formation, first, the gradation value of the image data for the pixel of interest (the pixel of interest) as the object of determination is compared with the threshold value stored at the corresponding position in the dither matrix. . The thin broken arrow shown in the figure schematically represents that the image data of the pixel of interest is compared with the threshold value stored at the corresponding position in the dither matrix. If the image data of the pixel of interest is larger than the threshold value of the dither matrix, it is determined that a dot is formed for that pixel. On the other hand, when the threshold value of the dither matrix is larger, it is determined that no dot is formed in the pixel. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the image data of the pixel at the upper left corner of the image is “97”, and the threshold value stored at the position corresponding to this pixel on the dither matrix is “1”. Accordingly, for the pixel at the upper left corner, the image data is larger than the threshold value of the dither matrix, and therefore it is determined that a dot is formed on this pixel. An arrow indicated by a solid line in FIG. 10 schematically represents a state in which it is determined that a dot is to be formed in this pixel and the determination result is written in the memory.

  On the other hand, for the pixel on the right side of this pixel, the image data is “97”, and the threshold value of the dither matrix is “177”. Since the threshold value is larger, it is determined that no dot is formed for this pixel. Thus, by comparing the image data with the threshold value set in the dither matrix, it is possible to determine whether or not dots are formed for each pixel. In the halftone process (step S108 in FIG. 7), by applying the above-described dither method to the image data of each color of C, M, Y, and K, the dot data is determined for each pixel to determine dot data. Process to generate.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in the image printing process, when halftone processing is performed to generate dot data for each color of CMYK, interlace processing is started (step S110). The interlace process is a process in which the print head 241 rearranges the dot data in the order in which dots are formed and supplies them to the ink discharge heads 244 to 247 for each color. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the nozzles Nz provided in the ink discharge heads 244 to 247 are provided with an interval of the nozzle pitch k in the sub-scanning direction. When droplets are ejected, dots are formed at intervals of the nozzle pitch k in the sub-scanning direction. Therefore, in order to form dots in all the pixels, the relative position between the print carriage 240 and the print medium is moved in the sub-scanning direction, and new dots are formed in the pixels between the dots separated by the nozzle pitch k. Necessary. As described above, when an image is actually printed, dots are not formed in order from the upper pixel on the image. Furthermore, for pixels in the same row in the main scanning direction, instead of forming dots in a single main scan, the dots are divided into a plurality of main scans in response to image quality requirements. In this main scanning, dots are also widely formed on the pixels at the skipped positions.

  For these reasons, prior to actually starting dot formation, the dot data obtained for each color of C, M, Y, and K is rearranged in the order in which the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 form dots. Processing is required. Such a process is a process called interlace.

  As shown in FIG. 7, when the interlacing process is completed, a process for actually forming dots on the print medium (dot forming process) is started according to the dot data rearranged by the interlace process (step S112). That is, while the carriage motor 230 is driven to cause the print carriage 240 to perform main scanning, the rearranged dot data is supplied to the ink ejection heads 244 to 247. As a result, ink droplets are ejected from the ink ejection heads 244 to 247 according to the dot data, and dots are appropriately formed in each pixel.

  When one main scan is completed, the paper feed motor 235 is driven to feed the print medium in the sub-scanning direction, and then the carriage motor 230 is driven again to cause the print carriage 240 to perform the main scan. The dot data whose order has been rearranged is supplied to the ink discharge heads 244 to 247 to form dots. By repeating such an operation, dots of each color of C, M, Y, and K are formed on the print medium with an appropriate distribution according to the gradation value of the image data, and as a result, the image is printed. Is done.

  In the image printing process of the present embodiment described above, the image data is corrected so that the color of the person's teeth is printed in an appropriate color. For this reason, a person's face is printed with a good impression, and as a result, it is possible to print a high-quality image in which the performance of the printing apparatus 10 is sufficiently exhibited. Hereinafter, the details of the tooth color correction process performed to correct the tooth color during the above-described image printing process will be described.

D. Tooth color correction processing:
FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the tooth color correction process performed during the image printing process of the present embodiment. As shown in the drawing, in the tooth color correction process, first, the image data to be printed is analyzed to detect a portion where a person's teeth are reflected (step S200). The portion where the teeth are reflected can be roughly detected as follows.

  First, the contour portion of the object is extracted from the image data. When extracting the contour, use a two-dimensional filter such as a median filter to remove noise, enhance the contrast and edges, and then binarize, and use the resulting binarized image for the boundary of the object. Extract as Next, the “mouth” portion is first detected from the extracted objects. When detecting the “mouth”, processing is performed to exclude those that are clearly not “mouth” from the contour extracted from the binarized image. For example, an object having a large proportion of straight lines in the extracted contour is highly likely to be a so-called artifact, and is unlikely to be a “mouth”. In this way, objects that can be clearly judged not to be “mouths” are excluded, and objects that seem to be “eyes”, “mouth”, “nose”, etc. are extracted from the shape of the remaining objects. Go.

  If these objects are really “eyes”, “mouth”, “nose”, etc., they should be in a predetermined positional relationship with each other. For example, when an object that seems to be an "eye" is extracted, if the object is really an "eye", there should be an object that looks like an "eye" in the same position at the same height. It is. In addition, an object that looks like a “nose” should exist at a position descending from the position of the center of the second eye, and an object that looks like a “mouth” should exist further below. In this way, objects that seem to be “eyes”, “mouth”, “nose”, etc. are extracted from the contour, and “mouth” is reflected by considering the positional relationship among the extracted objects. Detect the part that is. When the “mouth” portion is detected in this manner, finally, the “tooth” portion can be detected by detecting a bright area therein.

  FIG. 12 shows a state in which a portion including “teeth” is detected based on the positional relationship between “eyes”, “nose”, and “mouth” extracted as described above. In step S200 of FIG. 11, processing for detecting a portion in which a person's teeth are reflected from the image is performed as described above.

  Next, it is determined whether or not a tooth portion has been detected (step S202). That is, depending on the image to be printed, there are cases where teeth are detected and cases where teeth are not detected. In step S200, it is determined whether or not a tooth portion has been detected. If the tooth portion is not detected (step S202: no), the tooth color correction process shown in FIG. 12 is terminated, and the process returns to the image printing process of FIG.

  On the other hand, when the tooth part is detected (step S202: yes), the image data representing the tooth part (representative image data) is generated by averaging the image data of the tooth part. (Step S204). In this embodiment, image data to be printed is received in the form of RGB image data, and representative image data is generated for each of the R, G, and B color components.

  Next, a conversion characteristic for converting the gradation value of the image data is generated based on the representative image data thus generated (that is, the average value of the image data for each of the R, G, and B components) (step S206). . Here, the conversion characteristic is a characteristic line in which the gradation value of the image data before conversion is associated with the gradation value of the image data after conversion. By setting appropriate conversion characteristics in advance, it is possible to quickly convert image data. Here, it is assumed that the tooth color is corrected to a pure white state (that is, each of R, G, and B components has a gradation value of 255). Then, the conversion characteristic can be generated as follows from the average value (representative image data) of the image data obtained for the R, G, and B components in the tooth portion.

  FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a state in which conversion characteristics are generated based on representative image data. For example, it is assumed that the R component of the representative image data of the tooth portion is the average value AvR. Since the gradation value AvR is converted into the target gradation value 255 and the gradation value higher than the gradation value AvR only needs to be converted into the gradation value 255, as shown in FIG. A conversion characteristic can be set by connecting three points of O point, P point, and Q point on a plane with the horizontal axis as the gradation value before conversion and the vertical axis as the gradation value after conversion. it can. By performing such an operation also on the G component and the B component, conversion characteristics can be generated for each of the R, G, and B components. In step S206 in FIG. 11, processing for generating conversion characteristics for each component is performed in this way.

  Next, a process of correcting the image data of the tooth portion according to the generated conversion characteristics is performed (step S208 in FIG. 11). That is, the image data of the pixels included in the detected tooth portion is read out, and then the “gradation value after conversion” when the gradation value of this image data is “gradation value before conversion” is converted. Obtain according to characteristics. In FIG. 13, the manner in which “the gradation value after conversion” is acquired from “the gradation value before conversion” according to the conversion characteristics is indicated by a one-dot chain line arrow. If the gradation value of the uncorrected image data is replaced with the “converted gradation value” thus obtained, the corrected image data can be obtained. When the correction of the image data is completed by performing such an operation for all the pixels constituting the tooth portion (step S208), the tooth color correction process shown in FIG. 11 is terminated and the image printing process of FIG. Return to.

  According to the image printing process of the present embodiment described above, the tooth color of the person is detected from the image data to be printed, and the tooth color is set to a more preferable color (here. Then, it is possible to print in a state corrected to a pure white color. As described above, when a person is included in the print image, if the person's face is not captured with a good impression, the print image quality may be misunderstood. Is printed in a pure white color, a person's face can be made a good impression, and misunderstanding as if the image quality is not high can be avoided. As a result, it is possible to print a high-quality image in which the performance of the printing apparatus 10 is sufficiently exhibited.

  Further, when correcting the image data of the tooth portion, the correction is performed according to the conversion characteristics as shown in FIG. In the actual image, the color of the tooth is also slightly different depending on the location, but by correcting according to the conversion characteristics in this way, it can be corrected to a natural feeling while leaving the color difference depending on the location. It becomes. Moreover, since the conversion characteristics can be easily generated from the average value of the image data at the tooth portion as described above, the image data can be easily corrected.

E. Modified example:
There are several variations of the tooth color correction processing of the present embodiment described above. Hereinafter, these modifications will be briefly described.

(1) First modification:
In the above-described tooth color correction process, the image data is corrected only for the tooth portion. However, when correcting the teeth to be pure white, the color tone of the entire image may be corrected by taking a white balance based on the color of the teeth.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the flow of tooth color correction processing in the first modification. The tooth color correction process of the first modified example is substantially the same as the tooth color correction process described above with reference to FIG. 11, but only the image data of the tooth portion is used when correcting the image data using the conversion characteristics. Instead, the whole image data is corrected. Hereinafter, the tooth color correction process of the first modification will be briefly described with the difference as a center.

  In the tooth color correction process of the first modified example, as in the tooth color correction process described above with reference to FIG. 11, first, a portion where a person's teeth are reflected is detected by analyzing image data. Is performed (step S250). When detecting the portion where the teeth are reflected, the “mouth” portion is first detected, and then the bright portion in the “mouth” is detected to detect the tooth portion.

  Next, it is determined whether or not a tooth portion has been detected (step S252). If a tooth portion has not been detected (step S252: no), the tooth color correction of the first modification shown in FIG. End the process. On the other hand, when the tooth part is detected (step S252: yes), the image data representing the tooth part (representative image data) is generated by averaging the image data of the tooth part. (Step S254). Also in the first modification, the representative image data of the tooth portion is generated for each of the R, G, and B color components. Then, conversion characteristics for converting the gradation value of the image data are generated for each component (step S256). The processing so far is the same as the tooth color correction processing described above with reference to FIG.

  Next, a process for correcting the image data of the entire image is performed according to the generated conversion characteristics (step S258). That is, in the tooth color correction process described above with reference to FIG. 11, only the image data of the tooth portion is converted according to the conversion characteristics. However, in the tooth color correction process of the first modification, the image including the tooth portion is also included. We are going to correct the whole. When all the image data is corrected in this way, the tooth color correction process of the first modification shown in FIG. 14 is terminated, and the process returns to the image printing process of FIG.

  In the tooth color correction process of the first modification described above, the color of the teeth can be corrected to white and at the same time, the color tone of the entire image can be corrected. This point will be supplementarily described. For example, in an image photographed in the evening or an image photographed using a yellow light source, the white teeth may be colored due to the influence of the color of the light source. As described above, in an image shot using a colored light source, the color tone of the entire image is shifted to the color tone side of the light source. In order to accurately correct such a color shift, it is not always easy because it is necessary to know what color light source was used for photographing. However, since a person's teeth are usually close to white, it can be considered that the color of the tooth portion is almost the color of the light source. Therefore, if the entire image is corrected so that the image data representing the tooth portion (representative image data) has a pure white color, the influence of the light source can be corrected and the image can be corrected to the correct color. As a result, a higher quality image can be printed.

(2) Second modification:
In the various tooth color correction processes described above, the tooth color is corrected to be completely white. However, a plurality of target tooth colors may be set, and a more preferable tooth color may be selected from these.

  FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a state in which a plurality of target tooth colors are set. As shown in the figure, target values of R, G, and B components are set for each tooth color, and when a desired color is selected, conversion characteristics for each component are generated accordingly. You may make it.

  FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing how the conversion characteristics are generated according to the color of the selected tooth. Assume that the R component of the representative image data obtained from the detected tooth portion is the average value AvR. Further, it is assumed that the R component of the selected tooth color is the gradation value TR. Then, considering the O point, the P point, and the Q point as shown in FIG. 16, the conversion characteristics for the R component can be generated by connecting these with a straight line. If the image data of the tooth portion is corrected according to such conversion characteristics, the tooth portion can be corrected so as to have a substantially selected target color. Further, if the image data is corrected in this way, the correction is performed in a state in which the light and darkness included in the image of the tooth portion is inherited (that is, the portion brighter than the surrounding remains bright and the portion darker than the surrounding remains dark). Images can be printed.

  Of course, even when the color of the tooth portion is corrected to a color other than pure white as described above, the color tone of the entire image may be corrected using the tooth portion as a reference. That is, the tooth portion is corrected according to the conversion characteristic (characteristic as shown in FIG. 16) that is corrected to the selected tooth color, and the tooth portion is corrected to be white for the portions other than the tooth. Corrections may be made according to such conversion characteristics (characteristics as shown in FIG. 13). In this way, it is possible to correct the color tone of the entire image while correcting the tooth portion to the selected color and print a higher quality image.

  Although the printing apparatus of the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to all the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is explanatory drawing which showed the outline | summary of the printing apparatus of a present Example. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance shape of the printing apparatus of a present Example. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a document table cover provided on the upper part of the printing apparatus is opened to read a document image. It is the perspective view which showed a mode that the front side of the scanner part was lifted and rotated. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the internal structure of the printing apparatus of a present Example. It is explanatory drawing which showed a mode that the several nozzle which discharges an ink drop to the ink discharge head of each color was formed. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of image printing processing performed to print an image with the printing apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the color conversion table referred for a color conversion process. It is explanatory drawing which expanded and illustrated a part of dither matrix. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the mode that the presence or absence of dot formation was judged for every pixel, referring a dither matrix. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the tooth color correction process performed in the image printing process of a present Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows a mode that the part which has a person's tooth | gear reflected in the image was detected. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the mode that the conversion characteristic is produced | generated based on representative image data. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the tooth color correction process of a 1st modification. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the mode that the color of the target tooth | gear was set in multiple numbers. It is explanatory drawing which showed notionally the mode that a conversion characteristic is produced | generated according to the color of the selected tooth | gear.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Printing apparatus, 12 ... Ink discharge head, 100 ... Scanner part,
200: Printer unit, 240: Print carriage, 241: Print head,
242 ... Ink cartridge, 243 ... Ink cartridge,
260 ... control circuit, 300 ... operation panel

Claims (13)

A printing apparatus that receives image data of an image taken including at least a person and prints the image,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
Image data correction means for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches target data set in advance;
An image printing unit that prints the image based on the corrected image data. The printing apparatus according to claim 1,
The image data correcting means includes
Target data storage means for storing a plurality of target data;
A target data selecting means for selecting one target data from the plurality of stored target data,
A printing apparatus, which is means for correcting the image data so that the representative image data matches the selected target data. A printing apparatus that receives image data of an image taken including at least a person and prints the image,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
Color tone correction means for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the preset reference white image data;
A printing apparatus comprising: an image printing unit that prints the image based on the image data in which the color tone is corrected. An image processing apparatus that receives image data of an image captured including at least a person and performs predetermined image processing,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
An image processing apparatus comprising: image data correcting means for correcting image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches preset target data. An image processing apparatus that receives image data of an image captured including at least a person and performs predetermined image processing,
A tooth part detecting means for detecting a part of a person's teeth in the image data by analyzing the image data;
Representative image data generating means for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
An image processing apparatus comprising: a color tone correction unit that corrects a color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches a preset reference white image data. A printing method for receiving image data of an image taken including at least a person and printing the image,
A first step of detecting a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the image data;
A second step of generating representative image data which is image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A third step of correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches the preset target data;
And a fourth step of printing the image based on the corrected image data. A printing method for receiving image data of an image taken including at least a person and printing the image,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected (A);
(B) generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A step (C) of correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches the reference white image data set in advance;
And a step (D) of printing the image based on the image data with the color tone corrected. An image processing method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected (1);
A step (2) of generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
And a step (3) of correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches preset target data. An image processing method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
Analyzing the image data to detect a portion of the image data where a person's teeth are reflected (a);
A step (a) of generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
And (c) correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches preset reference white image data. A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image photographed including at least a person and printing the image,
A first function for detecting a portion of the image data in which a person's teeth are reflected by analyzing the image data;
A second function of generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A third function for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches target data set in advance;
A program for realizing, by a computer, a fourth function for printing the image based on the corrected image data. A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image photographed including at least a person and printing the image,
A function (A) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (B) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A function (C) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches a preset reference white image data;
A program for realizing, by a computer, a function (D) for printing the image based on the image data whose color tone has been corrected. A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
A function (1) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data by analyzing the image data;
A function (2) for generating representative image data as image data representing the detected tooth by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A program for realizing, by a computer, a function (3) for correcting the image data of the tooth portion so that the representative image data matches preset target data. A program for realizing, using a computer, a method for receiving image data of an image captured including at least a person and performing predetermined image processing,
By analyzing the image data, a function (a) for detecting a portion in which human teeth are reflected in the image data;
A function (a) for generating representative image data, which is image data representing the detected tooth, by calculating an average value of the image data in the detected tooth portion;
A program for realizing, by a computer, a function (c) for correcting the color tone of the image data so that the representative image data matches a preset reference white image data.

Images