JP2007310775A - Image processor and image processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To convert image data into a simple most suitable storage format even if storing the image data representing a document comprising a plurality of pages. <P>SOLUTION: A document comprising the plurality of the pages is acquired page by page by an acquisition section 36 to generate page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2, and so on). Whether each of the page data contains only either or both of an illustrated image and a natural image is determined in a determination section 42. According to the determination result, whether to store each page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2, and so on) in a JPEG format or in a GIF format is determined in a determination section 46, and the page data are converted by a conversion section 48 into the determined storage format, and stored in a storage section 38. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method for generating image data from a document including an image formed on a plurality of page data of a recording medium and converting the image data.

  There has been proposed an image processing apparatus that determines an image type of a document acquired by a scanner or the like, determines an optimal storage format based on the determination result, and stores the determined storage format (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-176564 A

  However, in the image processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 described above, no consideration is given to the case of a document having a plurality of pages, and the document cannot be processed.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to convert image data into a simple and optimal storage format even when storing image data representing a document consisting of a plurality of pages.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention of claim 1 is an image processing apparatus, wherein an acquisition unit that acquires image data including a plurality of page data, and storage of the image data from a plurality of determination methods A selection unit that selects a format determination method, a determination unit that determines an image type of an image represented by the page data based on page data included in the image data, and a storage format determination method selected by the selection unit In accordance with the determination result of the determination unit, a determination unit that determines a storage format from a plurality of file formats, a conversion unit that converts the image data into storage data in the storage format determined by the determination unit, and the conversion A storage unit that stores the storage data converted by the unit.

  The invention of claim 2 is the image processing apparatus according to the invention of claim 1, wherein the plurality of determination methods are individual determination methods for determining a storage format for each individual page data included in the image data. It is characterized by including.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the image processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of determination methods have the same storage format for all page data included in the image data. It includes a unified determination method for determining.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the third aspect of the invention, when the unified determination method is selected by the selection unit, the determination unit converts the page data into one page data. A storage format is determined from the plurality of file formats in accordance with a determination result in the determination unit based on.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the image processing apparatus according to the invention of claim 3, wherein the determination unit is included in the image data when the unified determination method is selected by the selection unit. The storage format is determined from the plurality of file formats in accordance with a determination result in the determination unit based on all the page data to be stored.

  The invention of claim 6 is the image processing device according to the invention of claim 5, wherein the determining unit determines the image type according to the largest image type among the image types of the page data determined by the determining unit. The storage format is determined from a plurality of file formats.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the image processing apparatus according to the invention of claim 5, wherein the determination unit includes a natural image in the image type of the page data determined by the determination unit. Determines a storage format suitable for the natural image from the plurality of file formats.

  The invention according to claim 8 is the image processing device according to the invention of claim 5, wherein the determining unit includes an illustration image in the image type of the page data determined by the determining unit. Is characterized in that a storage format suitable for the illustration image is determined from the plurality of file formats.

  The invention of claim 9 is the image processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the determination unit includes a plurality of different types of images in the page data. Is characterized in that the image type of the page data is determined as a predetermined priority image type.

  The invention of claim 10 is an acquisition step of acquiring image data including a plurality of page data, a selection step of selecting a storage format determination method of the image data from a plurality of determination methods, and the image data In accordance with a determination step of determining an image type of an image represented by the page data based on page data included in the page data, and a storage format determination method selected by the selection step, a plurality of determinations according to the determination result of the determination step A determination step for determining a storage format from a file format, a conversion step for converting the image data into storage data in the storage format determined by the determination step, and a storage step for storing the storage data converted by the conversion step; It is characterized by providing.

  According to the first to tenth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to cope with the case where the image data includes a plurality of page data by determining the storage format of the acquired plurality of page data according to the storage format determination method. Further, since the storage format determination method is selected from a plurality of determination methods, it is possible to flexibly cope with the user's request and the contents of the image data.

  In the invention according to claim 2, since the plurality of determination methods include an individual determination method for determining a storage format for each page data included in the image data, the plurality of determination methods are suitable for images represented in each page data. Thus, it is possible to save the image in a storage format and avoid or suppress degradation of the image included in the image data.

  In the invention of claim 3, since the plurality of determination methods include a unified determination method for determining the same storage format for all page data included in the image data, the converted storage data becomes data in a single format, It becomes easy to save and edit saved data.

  In the invention according to claim 4, when the unified determination method is selected, the storage format is determined from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result in the determination unit based on one page data. Can be made promptly.

  In the invention according to claim 5, when the unified determination method is selected, the storage format is determined from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result in the determination unit based on all page data. It is possible to omit the operation of selecting the storage format for each page, and it is possible to save in a storage format corresponding to the image data.

  In the invention according to claim 6, since the determination unit determines the storage format from a plurality of file formats according to the most image type among the image types of the page data determined by the determination unit. Deterioration and the like can be avoided or suppressed.

  In the invention according to claim 7, the determination unit determines a storage format suitable for the natural image from a plurality of file formats when the natural image is included in the image type of the page data determined by the determination unit. Therefore, it is possible to avoid or suppress degradation of the natural image included in the image data.

  In the invention according to claim 8, when the image type of the page data determined by the determination unit includes an illustration image, the determination unit determines a storage format suitable for the illustration image from a plurality of file formats. Therefore, it is possible to avoid or suppress the deterioration of the illustration image included in the image data.

  In the invention according to claim 9, when the page data includes a plurality of different types of images, the determination unit determines the image type of the page data as a predetermined priority image type. In addition, it is possible to determine the image type of page data including images of a plurality of types of image types, and it is possible to give priority to one image type over other image types.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<External configuration of the device>
FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are examples of diagrams showing an outline of an external configuration of an image processing apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view with the cover 12B closed, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view with the cover 12B open. For convenience of explanation, coordinate axes are shown in each figure.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the image processing apparatus 10 includes, for example, a scanner 12 provided at the upper part of the housing HS, and an operation unit 14 and a display unit 16 that protrude forward from the upper side of the housing HS. .

  The scanner 12 includes a cover 12B including an ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) 12A and an FBS (Flat Bed Scanner), and optically sequentially reads an image on a document as a recording medium for each page, which will be described later. This is input to the acquisition unit 36 (see FIG. 3). In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a document consisting of a plurality of pages is sequentially read by the ADF 12A.

  The operation unit 14 and the display unit 16 are provided as a user interface.

  The operation unit 14 includes a mechanical switch, and inputs various instructions regarding image acquisition, copying, facsimile transmission / reception, and the like by the scanner 12 to an MPU 30 (see FIG. 3) described later.

  The display unit 16 includes a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and displays various types of information related to image acquisition, copying, facsimile transmission / reception, and the like by the scanner 12.

  For example, in the case of executing image acquisition by the ADF 12A described later, a menu for selecting the image type of the document is displayed on the display unit 16. Note that a touch panel display may be applied to the display unit 16 so as to have a part or all of the functions of the operation unit 14.

<Internal configuration of the device>
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the image processing apparatus 10.

  The image processing apparatus 10 includes an MPU (Micro Processor Unit) 30, a ROM 32, and a RAM 34, and has a function as a microcomputer.

  The MPU 30 detects an input operation on the operation unit 14 and reflects it in the operation of the image processing apparatus 10, and controls the display contents on the display unit 16. The processing contents of the MPU 30 will be described in detail later.

  The ROM 32 stores a control content program executed by the MPU 30 and data necessary for control, and the RAM 34 temporarily stores data necessary for overall control by the MPU 30. Thereby, various functions of the image processing apparatus 10 are realized.

  The image processing apparatus 10 also includes a network interface IF, an acquisition unit 36, and a storage unit 38.

  The network interface IF is, for example, an interface with a network such as a LAN or PSTN, and can perform general data communication, facsimile transmission / reception, and the like.

  The acquisition unit 36 acquires an image data ID including a plurality of page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) As shown in FIG. 4 later, and is based on an input from the scanner 12. Thus, an image data ID, which is a set of page data representing an image formed on each page, is sequentially obtained and generated for each page data.

  The image data ID is so-called raw data that is not compressed, but may be data that can be converted back to raw data. The acquisition unit 36 does not necessarily need to acquire the image data ID based on the input from the scanner 12, but from a drive (not shown) that reads an image stored in a medium such as FD, MO, or CD-R. You may acquire from the data transmitted via network interface IF.

  The storage unit 38 is a general storage device, and stores the storage data SD (see FIG. 4) converted by the conversion unit 48 described later.

  Further, the image processing apparatus 10 includes a printer 18, and forms and outputs an image on recording paper from data stored in the storage unit 38. The printer 18 forms an image on recording paper fed from a paper feeding unit (not shown) that stores recording paper of a predetermined size (for example, A4, B5 size) and feeds it as necessary, and the recording By discharging the paper to a paper discharge unit (not shown), a general copy function, print function, and the like can be realized.

<Functions of the device>
FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the image processing apparatus 10.

  The image processing apparatus 10 has functions as a determination unit 42, a determination unit 46, a selection unit 44, and a conversion unit 48 using a microcomputer including an MPU 30, a ROM 32, and a RAM 34.

  Based on the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Sequentially acquired and generated by the acquisition unit 36, the determination unit 42 individually determines the image type of the image represented by each page data. Judgment.

  Specifically, the determination unit 42 determines whether the image represented by the page data is an illustration image, a natural image, or an image including both based on the image type determination threshold value 32A stored in the ROM 32. Is.

  More specifically, for example, a certain extraction point is set in the page data, and the extraction point is scanned while detecting the variation in the surrounding color, and the detected color variation determines the image type over the entire scanning range. When the threshold value is 32 A or less, the page data is determined as data including only an illustration image.

  When the detected color variation is higher than the image type determination threshold 32A over the entire scanning range, the page data is determined as data including only a natural image.

  When the detected color variation is higher than the image type determination threshold 32A in a part of the scanning range and lower than the image type determination threshold 32A in another area, the page data is data including both. Is determined.

  Here, when the first page data PD1 includes a plurality of different types of images such as illustration images and natural images, the determination is made based on the priority determination information 32B.

  That is, the priority determination information 32B is information referred to by the determination unit 42, and information indicating which image type (illustration image or natural image in the present embodiment) has priority over the determination unit 42. (Priority image type).

  The selection unit 44 selects a storage format determination method for the image data ID from among a plurality of determination methods. The selection unit 44 in the present embodiment performs selection based on an instruction input from the operation unit 14 by the user.

  Here, the storage format determination method selected by the selection unit 44 is a method of determining the same storage format for all page data (corresponding to a unified determination method) and a storage format for each individual page data. A method (corresponding to an individual determination method).

  The determination unit 46 determines a storage format from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result of the determination unit 42 according to the storage format determination method selected by the selection unit 44.

  Note that the determination unit 46 in the present embodiment determines the storage format from a plurality of file formats such as a JPEG format and a GIF format. The JPEG format is an image file storage format that supports a maximum of 16.77 million colors, and is a storage format suitable for images such as photographs with a large number of colors. The GIF format is a storage format for image files that supports up to 256 colors, and is a storage format suitable for images such as illustrations with a small number of colors.

  When the selection result of the selection unit 44 is a unified determination method in which all the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Is the same storage format, Determine the save format from the file format.

  The determination unit 46 in this embodiment can selectively execute two methods when determining one storage format for all page data.

  The first method is a method of determining one page data representing all page data (for example, the first page data PD1) according to the determination result in the determination unit 42. In this method, since the determination by the determination unit 42 is sufficient once, the determination by the determination unit 46 can be performed at high speed.

  The second method is a method of determining according to a determination result in the determination unit 42 based on individual page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...). In this method, since the image type is considered for all page data, a more appropriate storage format can be determined.

  Note that the determination unit 46 in the present embodiment determines the first method and the second method based on an instruction input from the user (FIG. 6: step S603).

  There are three more methods in the second method. The first method is a method of determining according to the most image type among the image types of the page data determined by the determination unit 42.

  The second method is a storage suitable for a natural image if the image type of the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Determined by the determination unit 42 includes a natural image. This is a method of determining the format.

  The third method is to save an image suitable for an illustration image if the image type of the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Determined by the determination unit 42 is included. This is a method of determining the format.

  Note that the determination unit 46 in the present embodiment determines the above three methods based on the priority determination information 32C (FIG. 8: steps S708 and S711).

  That is, the priority determination information 32C is information referred to by the determination unit 46. The priority determination information 32C indicates identification information indicating validity / invalidity of priority determination to the determination unit 46, and any image type (in the present embodiment, an illustration). Information (priority image type) indicating whether to prioritize an image or a natural image).

  On the other hand, if the selection unit 44 uses the individual determination method in which the selection result of the selection unit 44 is determined for each individual page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...), The storage format of individual page data is determined according to the determination result of the page data regarding the determination unit 42.

  The conversion unit 48 converts the image data ID including the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) In the storage format determined by the determination unit 46 into the storage data SD and writes it to the storage unit 38. Is.

  As described above, the conversion unit 48 converts each page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) When the determination unit 46 determines the storage format for each page data. It is converted into a page file (first page file PF1, second page file PF2,...) In a storage format.

  It should be noted that when a plurality of page files (first page file PF1, second page file PF2,...) Converted by the conversion unit 48 have different storage formats such as JPEG format and GIF format. Is saved as saved data SD representing one image data ID, for example, by creating a file associating the two.

  The above is the description of the configuration and functions of the image processing apparatus 10.

  Next, specific processing performed by the MPU 30 will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the image processing apparatus 10.

<Processing contents of MPU>
First, the selection unit 44 determines whether or not to determine a storage format for each page (page data) based on an input from the operation unit 14 (step S501).

  The image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment performs the determination in step S501 by input from the operation unit 14, but such information may be set in advance as an initial setting.

  If YES is determined in step S501 (determination that the storage format is unified for all pages), unified storage processing (step S502) described later is performed.

  In step S501, if selection (No selection) for determining the storage format for each page is made, the scanner 12 scans one page, and the acquisition unit 36 generates page data of the page in the RAM 34. (Step S503).

  Next, the determination unit 42 determines whether or not the page data generated in step S503 includes only an illustration image based on the image type determination threshold 32A (step S504).

  If YES is determined in step S504 (determination that the page data includes only an illustration image), the determination unit 46 determines the page data from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result. Decide to save in GIF format. Further, the conversion unit 48 converts the page data into a page file as a GIF format file, and writes and saves the page data in the storage unit 38 (step S505).

  In step S504, if the determination of No (determination that the page data is not only an illustration image) is made, it is determined whether or not the page data includes both an illustration image and a natural image. Is further determined (step S506).

  In step S506, when the determination of No (determination that the page data includes only natural images) is made, the determination unit 46 determines that the page data from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result. Is stored in JPEG format. Further, the conversion unit 48 converts the page data into a page file as a JPEG format file, and writes and stores it in the storage unit 38 (step S507).

  If YES is determined in step S506 (determination that the page data includes both an illustration image and a natural image), the page data including both the illustration image and the natural image is displayed in JPEG format. It is determined whether or not to save (step S508).

  Specifically, first, the determination unit 42 refers to the priority determination information 32B and determines the page data as a priority image type (an image type that is prioritized among illustration images or natural images). In response, the determination unit 46 determines whether or not to save the page data in JPEG format.

  More specifically, when the priority image type is an illustration image, the determination unit 46 determines to store the page data in the GIF format (that is, not to store it in the JPEG format). On the other hand, when the priority image type is a natural image, the determination unit 46 determines to save the page data in the JPEG format.

  In step S508, when the determination of Yes is made (determination that page data including both illustration images and natural images is stored in JPEG format), the conversion unit 48 converts the page data into a JPEG format file. Is converted into a page file and written and stored in the storage unit 38 (step S507).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S508 that No is determined (determination that page data including both the illustration image and the natural image is stored in the GIF format), the conversion unit 48 converts the page data into the GIF format. Is converted into a page file and written and stored in the storage unit 38 (step S505).

  Then, it is determined whether or not the above-described step S505 or step S507 has been performed for all pages (step S509). If the determination of No is made, the scanner 12 scans and acquires the next page. The unit 36 generates page data in the RAM 34 and repeats a series of processes. Thereafter, the process is performed until a determination of Yes is made in step S509.

  As described above, in this embodiment, step S503 for scanning one page and generating page data is repeated in step S509 until scanning of all pages of the document is completed. Realized.

  As described above, when the processing from step S503 to step S509 is executed, the storage format is determined for each piece of page data for all page data included in the image data ID. That is, the processes in steps S503 to S509 are executed when the selection unit 44 selects an individual determination method from a plurality of determination methods.

<Unified saving process>
The unified storage process (step S502) when the determination of No (determination that the storage formats of a plurality of pages are unified) is made in step S501. The unified storage process is a process executed when the unified determination method is selected from a plurality of determination methods by the selection unit 44.

  6, 7, and 8 are flowcharts illustrating the unified storage process of the image processing apparatus 10.

  The unified storage process is performed according to the determination method in the determination unit 46, for example, determination of the storage format according to the determination result in the determination unit 42 for the first page data PD1, and determination in the determination unit 42 for all page data. Based on the determination result, the storage format corresponding to the most image type is determined, and the image type when one or more predetermined image types are included based on the determination result of the determination unit 42 for all page data The determination of the corresponding storage format and the determination of the storage format by the user are included.

  First, selection as to whether or not the user decides a storage format to be unified is made by input from the operation unit 14 (step S601).

  If YES is selected in step S601 (selection that the user determines the storage format), user designation processing described later is performed (step S602).

  In step S601, when No is selected (selection that the user does not decide the storage format), it is determined whether or not to unify the storage format according to the image type of the first page. (Step S603).

  In step S603, when Yes is selected (selection to unify in the storage format according to the image type of the first page), the scanner 12 scans the first page, and the acquisition unit 36 acquires the RAM 34. First page data PD1 is generated (step S604).

  Then, it is determined whether or not the storage format has been determined (step S605). Here, the case where step S605 is executed is a case where a storage format corresponding to the image type of the first page is determined.

  Therefore, if the page data generated in step S604 is the first page data PD1, it is still an image that is page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Or a set thereof. The data ID storage format has not been determined. In this case, it is always determined No in step S605.

  On the other hand, if the page data generated in step S604 is the page data after the second page data PD2, the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,. The storage format of the image data ID that is a set has been determined. In this case, it is always determined Yes in step S605.

  That is, in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, when processing the second page data PD2 and subsequent steps, steps S606 and S608 (determination of the image type by the determination unit 42) described later are not executed.

  If a determination of No (determination that the storage format has not been determined) is made in step S605, it is determined whether the first page data PD1 generated in step S604 includes only an illustration image. The determination unit 42 determines using the type determination threshold 32A as a reference (step S606).

  In step S606, when a determination of Yes (determination that the first page data PD1 includes only an illustration image) is made, the determination unit 46 determines that all page data is in accordance with the determination result. It is determined that the first page data PD1, the second page data PD2,... Are unified and stored in the GIF format. As a result, the storage format is determined to be the GIF format, so that “Yes” is determined in step S605, and “No” is determined in step S610 described later.

  If YES is determined in step S606, the conversion unit 48 converts the first page data PD1 into the first page file PF1 as a GIF format file in accordance with the storage format determined by the determination unit 46. The data is stored in the storage unit 38 (step S607).

  In step S606, if No is determined (determination that the first page is not only an illustration image), it is determined whether or not the first page data PD1 includes both the illustration image and the natural image. The unit 42 further determines (step S608).

  In step S608, when a determination of No (determination that the first page data PD1 includes only a natural image) is made, the determination unit 46 determines to save the data in the JPEG format. To do. As a result, the storage format is determined to be the JPEG format, so that it is determined as Yes in step S605 and then determined as Yes in step S610 described later.

  If NO is determined in step S608, the conversion unit 48 converts the first page data PD1 into a first page file PF1 as a JPEG format file according to the storage format determined by the determination unit 46. The data is written and saved in the saving unit 38 (step S609).

  In step S608, when a determination of Yes (determination that the first page data PD1 includes both an illustration image and a natural image) is made, the determination unit 42 refers to the priority determination information 32B. Thus, the first page data PD1 is determined as the priority image type (the image type that is given priority among the illustration image and the natural image).

  Then, according to the determination result, the determination unit 46 determines whether or not to save all the page data in the JPEG format. More specifically, when the priority image type is an illustration image, the determination unit 46 determines to store the data in the GIF format (that is, not to store the data in the JPEG format).

  On the other hand, when the priority image type is a natural image, the determination unit 46 determines to save the image in the JPEG format. As a result, the storage format is determined, and thereafter, it is determined Yes in step S605.

  If YES is determined in step S605 or S608, it is confirmed whether the determined storage format is JPEG format or GIF format, and all page data (first page data PD1, PD2,... ) Is unified and stored in the JPEG format (step S610). When step S610 is executed, the storage format has already been determined by the determination unit 46 as described above.

  If YES is determined in step S610 (determination that all page data are unified and stored in the JPEG format), the conversion unit 48 uses the page data (page data generated in step S604). ) Is converted into a JPEG format file and stored in the storage unit 38 (step S609).

  In step S610, if the determination of No is made (determination that all page data are unified and stored in the GIF format), the conversion unit 48 uses the page data (page data generated in step S604). ) Is converted into a GIF format file and written and saved in the saving unit 38 (step S607).

  Then, it is determined whether or not the above-described step S607 or step S609 has been performed for all pages (step S611). If the determination of No is made, the scanner 12 scans and acquires the next page. The unit 36 generates page data in the RAM 34 and repeats a series of processes. Thereafter, the process is performed until a Yes determination is made in step S611.

  If the determination in step S611 is Yes (determination that the above-described step S607 or step S609 has been performed for all pages), the unified storage process (step S502) is terminated, and the process shown in FIG. Return to and finish the process.

  As described above, the processing of steps S604 to S611 is processing for determining the storage format to be unified according to the determination result of the determination unit 42 based on the first page data PD1 with one page data as the first page data PD1. Equivalent to. Note that one page data is not limited to the first page data PD1. For example, the last page data may be set as one page data, or one page data may be selected by the user.

  Further, the page files (first page file PF1, second page file PF2,...) Saved by the above-described processing are sequentially created for each page file. However, for all page data included in one image data ID, the file formats of those page files are unified to the same storage format. Therefore, the page files created individually may be unified into one saved data SD.

  On the other hand, in step S603, when No is selected (selection that the storage format is not set according to the image type of the first page), the scanner 12 scans one page, and the acquisition unit 36 Generates page data in the RAM 34 (step S701).

  Next, the determination unit 42 determines whether or not the page data generated in step S701 includes only an illustration image based on the image type determination threshold 32A (step S702).

  If YES is determined in step S702 (determination that the page data includes only an illustration image), the number of pages of the illustration image is counted up (step S703).

  In step S702, when a determination of No (determination that the page data is not only an illustration image) is made, it is determined whether or not the page data includes both an illustration image and a natural image. Is further determined (step S704).

  In step S704, if No is determined (determination that the page data includes only a natural image), the number of pages of the natural image is counted up (step S705).

  In step S704, when the determination of Yes (determination that the page data includes both an illustration image and a natural image) is made, the determination unit 42 refers to the priority determination information 32B and determines the priority image type. Determines whether the image is a natural image (step S706).

  If YES is determined in step S706 (determination that the priority image type is a natural image), the process proceeds to step S705, and the number of pages of the natural image is counted up. On the other hand, if a determination of No (determination that the priority image type is an illustration image) is made, the process proceeds to step S703 and the number of pages of the illustration image is counted up.

  Then, it is determined whether or not the above-described step S703 or step S705 has been performed for all pages (step S707). If the determination of No is made, the scanner 12 scans and acquires the next page. The unit 36 generates page data in the RAM 34 and repeats a series of processes. Thereafter, the process is performed until a determination of Yes is made in step S707.

  In step S707, when the determination of Yes is made (determination that scanning of all pages, counting of the number of pages of illustration images and counting of the number of pages of natural images has ended), the determination unit 46 has priority. Whether or not the priority determination is valid is determined based on the identification information while referring to the determination information 32C (step S708).

  When the priority determination is invalid, the determination unit 46 determines that one storage format is determined by the majority of the image types, and the determination unit 46 determines whether the number of natural image pages is equal to or greater than the number of illustration image pages. (Step S709).

  In step S709, when the determination of Yes (determination that the number of pages of the natural image is equal to or larger than the number of pages of the illustration image) is made, the determination unit 46 determines that all the page data (first page data PD1, first page data PD1) 2 page data PD2,...) Are unified and stored in the JPEG format. Further, the conversion unit 48 converts the image data ID including all the page data into a storage data SD as a JPEG format file, and writes and stores it in the storage unit 38 (step S712). As a result, when the number of pages of the natural image is large, the image data ID is stored as a JPEG format file.

  In step S709, when the determination of No (determination that the number of pages of the natural image is less than the number of pages of the illustration image) is made, the determination unit 46 determines that all the page data (first page data PD1, first page data PD1) 2 page data PD2,...) Are decided to be stored in the GIF format. Further, the conversion unit 48 converts the image data ID including all the page data into the storage data SD as a GIF format file, and writes and stores it in the storage unit 38 (step S714). Thus, when all pages are illustration images, the image data ID is stored as a GIF file.

  On the other hand, if a determination of Yes (determination that the priority determination is valid) is made in step S708, the determination unit 46 further determines whether or not the number of pages of the natural image is 1 or more ( Step S710).

  If No is determined in step S710 (determination that the number of pages of the natural image is 0), step S714 described above is executed. As a result, it is determined that the document having only the page determined to be an illustration image is stored with the image data ID unified in the GIF format. In other words, even if the priority image type indicated in the priority determination information 32C is “natural image”, if it is determined that all the page data included in the image data ID are illustration images, the image The data ID is stored in a unified GIF format suitable for illustration images.

  If the determination in step S710 is Yes (determination that the number of natural image pages is 1 or more), the determination unit 46 further determines that the priority image type indicated in the priority determination information 32C is a natural image. It is determined whether or not (step S711).

  If YES is determined in step S711 (determination that the priority image type is a natural image), step S712 described above is executed. In this way, when the natural image is included in the image type of the page data determined by the determination unit 42, the determination unit 46 determines to save the image in a JPEG format suitable for the natural image. To do.

  If the determination in step S711 is No (determination that the priority image type is an illustration image), the determination unit 46 further determines whether the number of pages of the illustration image is 1 or more (step S713). ) If the number of pages of the illustration image is not 1 or more, step S712 is executed.

  As a result, it is determined that the document having only the page determined to be a natural image is stored with the image data ID unified in the JPEG format. In other words, even if the priority image type indicated in the priority determination information 32C is “illustration image”, if it is determined that all the page data included in the image data ID is a natural image, the image data ID Are stored in a unified JPEG format suitable for natural images.

  On the other hand, if the determination in step S713 is Yes (determination that the number of pages of the illustration image is 1 or more), the above-described step S714 is executed. In this way, when the image type of the page data determined by the determination unit 42 includes an illustration image, the determination unit 46 determines to save the image in a GIF format suitable for the illustration image. To do.

  When step S712 or step S714 is executed, the unified storage process (step S502) is terminated. As a result, the image processing apparatus 10 returns to the process illustrated in FIG. 5 and ends the process.

<User specified processing>
A user designation process (step S602) when Yes is selected (selection that the user determines the storage format) is made in step S601.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing user designation processing (step S602) of the image processing apparatus 10.

  The user designation process (step S602) is a process for performing a storage process of an image data ID that is a set of a plurality of page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Based on a user instruction. .

  When the user designation process (step S602) is started, the image processing apparatus 10 waits until a storage format (for example, JPEG format or GIF format) to be unified by the user is input through the operation unit 14 or the like. (Step S801).

  When a unified storage format is input from the user, it is determined Yes in step S801, and the determination unit 46 determines to unify the input storage format.

  When the storage format is determined, the scanner 12 scans one page, and the acquisition unit 36 generates page data in the RAM 34 (step S802).

  When the page data is generated, it is determined whether or not the storage format determined in step S801 is the JPEG format (step S803).

  If YES is determined in step S803 (determination that the determined storage format is the JPEG format), the conversion unit 48 converts the page data generated in step S802 into the JPEG format. Is converted into a page file and written and stored in the storage unit 38 (step S804).

  On the other hand, when the determination of No (determination that the determined storage format is the GIF format) is made in step S803, the conversion unit 48 converts the page data generated in step S802 to It is converted into a page file as a GIF format file and written and stored in the storage unit 38 (step S805).

  Further, it is determined whether or not the above-described step S804 or step S805 has been performed for all pages (step S806). If the determination of No is made, the process returns to step S802 and the process is repeated.

  On the other hand, if all the pages have been scanned (Yes in step S806), the user designation process is terminated. When the user designation process is finished, the image processing apparatus 10 returns to the process shown in FIG. 6 and finishes the unified storage process. When the unified storage process ends, the image processing apparatus 10 returns to the process shown in FIG. 5 and ends the process.

  As described above, by determining the storage format of the acquired plurality of page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) According to the storage format determination method, a plurality of page data is included in the image data ID. Even if is included, it can respond. Further, since the storage format determination method is selected from a plurality of determination methods, it is possible to flexibly cope with the user's request and the content of the image data ID.

  Here, the plurality of determination methods include individual determination methods for determining the storage format for each page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Included in the image data ID. It is possible to save in a storage format suitable for the image expressed in the data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...), And avoid or suppress deterioration of the image included in the image data ID. be able to.

  In addition, the plurality of determination methods include a unified determination method for determining the same storage format for all page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Included in the image data ID, and are thus converted. The saved data SD becomes data in a single format, and it becomes easy to save and edit the saved data SD.

  When the unified determination method is selected, a plurality of file formats are selected according to the determination result in the determination unit 42 based on one page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...). Since the storage format is determined from the above, the storage format can be determined promptly.

  When the unified determination method is selected, a plurality of file formats are selected according to the determination result in the determination unit 42 based on all the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...). Therefore, the user can omit the operation of selecting the storage format for each page, and the storage format can be stored according to the image data ID.

  Further, the determination unit 46 saves from a plurality of file formats according to the largest image type among the image types of the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Determined by the determination unit 42. Therefore, it is possible to avoid or suppress deterioration of the stored image.

  Further, when the natural image is included in the image type of the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Determined by the determination unit 42, the determination unit 46 has a plurality of file formats. Therefore, it is possible to avoid or suppress deterioration of the natural image included in the image data ID.

  Further, when the image type determined by the determination unit 42 (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Includes an illustration image, the determination unit 46 displays an illustration from a plurality of file formats. Since the storage format suitable for the image is determined, it is possible to avoid or suppress degradation of the illustration image included in the image data ID.

  Further, when the page data (first page data PD1, second page data PD2,...) Includes a plurality of different types of images, the determination unit 42 determines the page data (first page data PD1, Since the image type of the second page data PD2,... Is determined as a predetermined priority image type, page data (first page data PD1, second page data) containing images of a plurality of image types is determined. PD2,...) Can be determined, and one image type can be prioritized over other image types.

<Modification>
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the thing of the content demonstrated above.

  For example, in this embodiment, the storage format (compression method) of the image file is one of the JPEG format and the GIF format, but a compression method such as a TIF format, a bitmap format, a PNG format, or a PDF format may be used. Of course, a compression method adapted to a facsimile communication protocol such as MMR format or MH format may be used.

  Further, for example, regardless of the determination result in the determination unit 42, the storage format may be set in advance by input from the operation unit 14.

  In the above embodiment, the image type determination threshold 32A, the priority determination information 32B, and the priority determination information 32C are illustrated in FIG. However, these are not necessarily stored in the ROM 32, and may be stored in the RAM 34. In addition, the user may be able to select either the ROM 32 or the RAM 34 to save. Further, the stored information may be changed by the user.

  Further, the present invention may be a circuit configuration capable of performing the above-described processing, and is not limited to the above-described steps.

  The determination method selected as the storage format determination method is not limited to the individual determination method and the unified determination method described in the above embodiment. For example, a method of determining a storage format for every two page data may be used. Alternatively, it is determined by unifying the storage format for half of the page data and determining the storage format for each different number of page data, such as determining the storage format for the remaining page data individually. There may be.

1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of an external configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention (a state in which a cover is closed). 1 is a diagram illustrating an outline (in a state where a cover is opened) of an external configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of an image processing apparatus. It is a functional block diagram of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the unified preservation | save process of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the unified preservation | save process of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the unified preservation | save process of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the user designation | designated process of an image processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image processing apparatus 12 Scanner 14 Operation part 16 Display part 30 MPU
32 ROM
34 RAM
36 acquisition unit 38 storage unit IF network interface 42 determination unit 44 selection unit 46 determination unit 48 conversion unit ID image data PD1 first page data PD2 second page data SD storage data PF1 first page file PF2 second page file

Claims (10)

An image processing apparatus,
An acquisition unit for acquiring image data including a plurality of page data;
A selection unit for selecting a storage format determination method of the image data from a plurality of determination methods;
A determination unit that determines an image type of an image represented by the page data based on page data included in the image data;
In accordance with a storage format determination method selected by the selection unit, a determination unit that determines a storage format from a plurality of file formats according to a determination result of the determination unit;
A conversion unit that converts the image data into storage data in the storage format determined by the determination unit;
A storage unit for storing the storage data converted by the conversion unit;
An image processing apparatus comprising: The image processing apparatus according to claim 1,
The plurality of determination methods include an individual determination method for determining a storage format for each page data included in the image data. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The plurality of determination methods include a unified determination method for determining the same storage format for all page data included in the image data. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,
When the uniform determination method is selected by the selection unit, the determination unit determines a storage format from the plurality of file formats according to a determination result in the determination unit based on one page data. An image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,
In the case where the unified determination method is selected by the selection unit, the determination unit selects from the plurality of file formats according to the determination result in the determination unit based on all the page data included in the image data. An image processing apparatus characterized by determining a storage format. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5,
The image processing apparatus, wherein the determination unit determines a storage format from the plurality of file formats in accordance with the largest image type among the image types of page data determined by the determination unit. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5,
The determining unit determines a storage format suitable for the natural image from the plurality of file formats when a natural image is included in the image type of the page data determined by the determining unit. An image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5,
The determining unit determines a storage format suitable for the illustration image from the plurality of file formats when the image type of the page data determined by the determining unit includes an illustration image. An image processing apparatus. An image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The determination unit determines an image type of the page data as a predetermined priority image type when a plurality of different types of images are included in the page data. An acquisition step of acquiring image data including a plurality of page data;
A selection step of selecting a storage format determination method of the image data from a plurality of determination methods;
A determination step of determining an image type of an image represented by the page data based on page data included in the image data;
According to the storage format determination method selected by the selection step, a determination step of determining a storage format from a plurality of file formats according to the determination result of the determination step;
A conversion step of converting the image data into storage data in the storage format determined by the determination step;
A storage step of storing the storage data converted by the conversion step;
An image processing method comprising:

Images