JP2008028962A - Image processing apparatus and control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus and control method thereof in which a reference image can be created while flexibly switching execution and non-execution of a reference image analyzing process or correcting process in accordance with various apparatus configurations and user's preference. <P>SOLUTION: An image processing apparatus includes: an instruction sheet printing means for printing an instruction sheet, instructing printing control, comprising a printing instruction area instructing printing to a recorder and a composing instruction area instructing the composition of image data stored in a memory with a plotted image; a determination means for determining whether or not to perform an image analyzing process on the image data; an analysis means for performing an image analyzing process on the image data; and a printing control means for printing the image data on which the image analyzing process has been performed on the instruction sheet, when the determination means determines that the image analyzing process is to be performed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus that prints a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet used in a sheet scanning method, and a control method for the image processing apparatus.

  Recently, a multifunction peripheral (hereinafter referred to as “MFP”) having a scanner unit and a recording unit has been widely used in homes. For example, in addition to basic MFP functions such as copying, PC printing, and PC scanning, many functions for so-called photographic printing such as film scanning, film copying, and digital camera direct printing have been proposed.

  As a result, an easy home DPE that easily prints photographic images taken with a digital still camera or a silver halide camera at home is being realized. On this extension, as a simple function expansion of the home DPE, more advanced photo print functions such as trimming and frame composition processing have been proposed as well as printing photos as they are.

  Further, there is also provided a drawing synthesis printing function for synthesizing and printing a drawing image handwritten on a specific sheet by a user and an image file recorded on a memory card or the like inserted in the MFP.

As this specific sheet, a proposal has been made regarding a drawing synthesis print sheet in which image data to be combined with drawing is printed as a reference image in a drawing instruction area of the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet (for example, see Patent Document 1). Thus, the user can easily understand the positional relationship between the drawing image drawn on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet and the image data to be synthesized.
JP 2006-94385 A

  On the other hand, as described in Patent Document 1, in order to print the reference image in the composite drawing instruction area that the user enters, the drawing image and the reference image that are entered by the user that are laid out in the composite drawing instruction area Need to be separated after reading.

  Therefore, for example, a method of reducing the density of the reference image and defining and extracting only the density equal to or higher than the threshold value as the drawn image is disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1.

  In addition, there can be considered a means for performing a special image correction on the reference image, for example, a correction process such as contour extraction to improve the separation processing accuracy from the drawn image.

  However, when any image correction is uniformly applied to the reference image laid out on the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet, the reference image printed on the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet may be different from the original image. Thus, if the reference image is different from the original image, it becomes difficult for some users to recognize the reference image during the drawing image filling operation.

  In addition, in order to select an optimal image correction to be performed on the reference image from various image correction processing types, it may be desirable to perform an analysis process on the reference image data in advance.

  However, the image data analysis processing may not be executed or may take time depending on the processing content.

  The present invention provides an image processing apparatus and image processing that can flexibly switch between execution and non-execution of reference image analysis processing and correction processing according to various configurations of the device and user preferences, and image processing An object is to provide a method for controlling an apparatus.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus and a control method for the image processing apparatus that can print a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet that more closely matches the configuration of the apparatus and the user's preference. is there.

The present invention includes a print instruction area for instructing printing to a recording unit, and a combination instruction area for instructing to combine image data stored in the memory and a drawing image, and instructing print control. An instruction sheet printing unit for printing the instruction sheet to be printed. In addition, the present invention includes a memory that stores image data, a determination unit that determines whether to perform image analysis processing on the image data, and an analysis unit that performs image analysis processing on the image data. Furthermore, the present invention is an image processing apparatus including a print control unit that prints image data subjected to image analysis processing on the instruction sheet when the determination unit determines to perform image analysis processing.

According to the present invention, there is an effect that a reference image can be created by flexibly switching between execution and non-execution of reference image analysis processing and correction processing according to various configurations of the device and user preferences. .

  The best mode for carrying out the invention is the following embodiment.

  FIG. 1 is an external view showing an MFP (image processing apparatus) 100 that is Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  The MFP 100 includes a display unit 1, an operation unit 2, a card interface 3, a reading unit 4, and a recording unit 5.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the reading unit 4 and the recording unit 5 are usually installed in a closed state. Then, when copying or executing drawing synthesis printing by the sheet scanning method of the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1B, the reading unit 4 and the recording unit 5 are opened, and a function desired by the user is obtained. Execute.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of MFP 100.

  The same members as those shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  The MFP 100 includes a display unit 1, an operation unit 2, a card interface 3, a reading unit 4, and a recording unit 5. In addition, the CPU 10, the ROM 11, the RAM 12, the nonvolatile RAM 13, the image processing unit 14, the driving unit 15, and the sensor unit 16 are included.

  The CPU 10 controls various functions provided in the MFP 100, and executes an image processing program stored in the ROM 11 in accordance with operations on the operation unit 2. The ROM 11 stores a control command program for the MFP 100 and the like.

  The reading unit 4 includes a CCD, which reads an original image and outputs analog luminance data of red (R), green (G), and blue (B) colors. As the reading unit 4, a contact image sensor (CIS) may be used instead of the CCD.

  The reading unit 4 is also used for reading a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet described later.

  The card interface 3 reads image data shot with, for example, a digital still camera and recorded on a memory card or the like according to the operation of the operation unit 2.

  Note that the color space of the image data read via the card interface 3 is converted from a digital still camera color space (for example, YCbCr) into a standard RGB color space (for example, NTSC-RGB or sRGB) if necessary. Is done. Also, based on the header information included in the image file including the image data, the read image data is subjected to various processes necessary for the application, such as resolution conversion to the effective number of pixels, as necessary. .

  The image processing unit 14 performs image processing such as image analysis, thumbnail creation, thumbnail correction, and output image correction, and print data obtained by these image processing is stored in the RAM 12. When the print data stored in the RAM 12 reaches a predetermined amount required for recording by the recording unit 5, the recording unit 5 executes a recording operation.

  In the image processing described above, different print data is created depending on various print settings such as recording paper size, recording paper type, date addition / not, and borderless printing.

  The nonvolatile RAM 13 is a battery-backed SRAM or the like, and stores data unique to the MFP 100.

  The operation unit 2 has a photo direct printing start key, a monochrome copy start key at the time of monochrome copy or color copy, and a color copy start key to select image data stored in the storage medium and start recording. The operation unit 2 also includes a color copy start key, a mode key for specifying a mode such as copy resolution and image quality, a stop key for stopping a copy operation, a numeric keypad and a registration key for inputting the number of copies, and an image file to be printed. A cursor key or the like for designating selection means is provided. The CPU 10 detects the pressed state of these keys and controls each unit according to the pressed state.

  The display unit 1 includes a dot matrix type liquid crystal display unit (LCD) and an LCD driver, and performs various displays based on the control of the CPU 10.

  The recording unit 5 is configured by an inkjet type inkjet head, a general-purpose IC, and the like, and reads the recording data stored in the RAM 12 under the control of the CPU 10 and prints it out as a hard copy.

  The drive unit 15 includes a stepping motor for driving the paper supply / discharge roller, a gear for transmitting the driving force of the stepping motor, a driver circuit for controlling the stepping motor, and the like in each operation of the reading unit 4 and the recording unit 5. It is constituted by.

  The sensor unit 16 includes a recording paper width sensor, a recording paper presence sensor, a document width sensor, a document presence sensor, a recording medium detection sensor, and the like. The CPU 10 detects the state of the original and the recording paper based on information obtained from these sensors.

  Although MFP 100 has the configuration shown in FIG. 2, for example, MFP 100 that does not include display unit 1 may be used instead of MFP 100, and the configuration is not limited thereto.

  The CPU 10 and the ROM 11 are examples of image analysis processing determination means for determining whether or not to perform image analysis processing on image data. The image analysis processing means is means for analyzing at least one of the image size, resolution, histogram, tag, file information, and pattern recognition of the image data.

  Next, an outline of the operation of the first embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the operation of the first embodiment.

  The drawing composite printing function based on the sheet scan method is a composite printing result by combining and printing the image data 22 recorded on the memory card connected to the MFP 100 and the drawing image handwritten on the drawing composite printing instruction sheet SH1. The purpose is to obtain 23. For this purpose, the recording unit 5 prints the print data created by the image processing unit 14 in accordance with the print control instruction command from the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 and the operation unit 2, thereby enabling the drawing synthesis printing function. Realize.

  The main purpose of the above embodiment is to improve the function of the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1.

  Next, the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet will be described.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 printed by the MFP 100. As shown in FIG.

  The drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is, for example, a printed material laid out on A4 size recording paper.

  First, the duties of the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1 will be described. The drawing composition printing instruction sheet SH1 is used to execute settings necessary for performing drawing composition printing by a sheet scanning method. The contents designated by the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1 are roughly classified into the following two. That is, the first instruction is a print control instruction for instructing the content of print control necessary for the recording unit 5 to print the print data. The second instruction is an image processing instruction for instructing the contents of image processing necessary for the image processing unit 14 including the drawing image combining process to create print data.

  In the first embodiment, the image processing is executed by the recording unit 5 and the print control is executed by the image processing unit 14, but the modules responsible for these processes are not particularly limited. For example, the recording unit 5 may execute the content of the image processing instruction.

  Next, the configuration of the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1 will be described.

  The drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 includes a print instruction area 31, a barcode area 32, and a composite drawing instruction area 33.

  The print instruction area 31 is an area for inputting the print control instruction and the image processing instruction using marks. The print control instruction and the image processing instruction that can be instructed here depend on the specifications of the recording unit 5 of the MFP 100 and the specifications of the image processing unit 14.

  Therefore, the user employs a mark sheet method suitable for a method of selecting a desired setting from options given in conformity with the specifications of MFP 100 in advance. Specifically, in the first embodiment, the “paper setting” item in the print instruction area 31 has a specification in which one can be selected from postcard size, L size, and special media size. Furthermore, the specification is such that the distinction between plain paper and photo paper (photo-only paper) can be selected as the media type of the recording paper.

  In addition, as an item of “effect setting” in the print instruction area 31, options relating to effect processing of an image to be printed are provided. In the first embodiment, the specification is such that one of trimming, backlight correction, noise removal, date, monotone, and automatic correction can be selected.

  Further, the first embodiment has the following three layout items as “layout setting” items in the print instruction area 31. That is, the first layout that separates the reference image and the drawing image vertically, the second layout that combines the reference image and the drawing image, the reference image and the drawing image, and the closed area in the drawing image And a third layout in which the inside of is painted white.

  However, in the above embodiment, the contents of the print instruction set in the print instruction area 31 are not limited. For example, “paper setting” and “effect setting” may be set contents other than those in the first embodiment, and “layout setting” may be always deleted from the print instruction area 31.

  The bar code area 32 includes information necessary for composite printing in addition to the image processing instruction and the print control instruction specified in the print instruction area 31. For example, in the first embodiment, since the reference image to be combined with the drawing image has already been determined, the determined reference image number or the file path information of the reference image is recorded in the barcode area 32. Yes. In the above embodiment, the barcode format is not particularly limited.

  Further, in the above embodiment, it is not particularly limited as to which of the print instruction area 31 and the barcode area 32 includes the image processing instruction and the print control instruction.

  The composite drawing instruction area 33 is an area for writing a drawing image to be combined with the reference image. In the first embodiment, when the user draws in the composite drawing instruction area 33, the reference image is printed in the composite drawing instruction area 33 so that the positional relationship between the drawing image and the reference image can be easily grasped.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, the drawing / combining / printing instruction sheet SH <b> 1 can instruct compositing printing using the mark in the printing instruction area 31, the barcode in the barcode area 32, and the drawing image in the combining / drawing instruction area 33. it can.

  In the first embodiment, the instruction unit of the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is not limited. For example, in the first embodiment, the mark sheet method is used in the print instruction area of the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1, but instead of this, a print control instruction is issued from numbers entered by the user, for example, by an OCR analysis method. You may make it discriminate | determine.

  Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the instruction path for instructing print control or image processing is not limited. For example, in the first embodiment, the print control instruction and the image processing instruction are received by the MFP 100 via the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1. However, the print control instruction and the image processing instruction may be instructed by key input from the operation unit 2 of the MFP 100. In addition, the print control instruction and the image processing instruction are not necessarily issued within the MFP 100 apparatus. For example, the print control instruction and the image processing instruction are issued via a digital still camera or the like connected through a USB interface. You may do it.

  Next, the reference image printed in the composite drawing instruction area of the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 will be described in detail. The reference image is an image arbitrarily selected from the memory card image data 22.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating various forms of the reference image.

  The reference image data 40 is original image data and is original image data of the memory card image data 22. Here, the reference image is printed in order to grasp the positional relationship between the drawing image and the reference image in the combination drawing instruction area 33 of the drawing combination printing instruction sheet SH1. Therefore, if the reference image 40 is printed as it is in the composite drawing instruction area 33, there is a concern that the user's drawing may be hindered due to a high density or the like. Further, it is not preferable for an extraction process in which the drawing image entered in the composite drawing instruction area 33 and the printed reference image are separated and only the drawing image is extracted.

  Therefore, it is desirable that the reference image printed in the composite drawing instruction area 33 of the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 is subjected to image correction such as reducing the density and leaving only the outline.

  The reference image data 41 is reference image data in which the density of the reference image data 40 is reduced.

  If a reference image with reduced density is printed in the composite drawing instruction area 33 as in the reference image data 41, the user can grasp the positional relationship between the image to be drawn and the reference image to be combined, and The concentration is low. Therefore, an effect that the reference image data 41 and the drawn image can be easily distinguished can be expected. In addition, when extracting the drawing image only by analyzing the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1, the printed reference image data 41 has a low density, so it can be expected that the drawing image extraction processing accuracy will be high. it can.

  However, the memory card image data 22 has various image characteristics. Like the reference image data 41, in addition to reducing the density, it may be preferable to perform another image correction depending on the situation.

  For example, when the processing for reducing the density is performed on the reference image data 42 of the night view in the same manner as the reference image data 41, the reference image data 43 is created.

  Although the reference image data 43 has a low density, the original reference image data 42 has a large background fill area due to the night view, and the reference image data 43 also has a low density due to its influence. No, there are still many filled areas. Here, as described above, considering the ease of filling in the drawn image and the ease of extracting the drawn image, it is preferable that the filled area of the reference image is small.

  Therefore, when reference image data 44 obtained by performing negative / positive reversal on the reference image data 42 is created, and the density of the reference image data 44 is reduced, reference image data 45 is created. The reference image data 45 has a feature that the original image is left and the number of filled portions is small. The reference image data 45 is a preferable image for printing on the drawing / printing instruction sheet than the reference image data 43.

  However, the negative / positive inversion process for creating the reference image data 44 should not always be performed. Like the reference image 40, the negative / positive inversion process should not be performed on the image data having a positive tendency, but only on the negative tendency image data such as the reference image data 42.

  Therefore, when the memory card image data 22 arbitrarily selected from the memory card is used as a reference image, an image analysis process is required to determine whether the reference image should be negative-positive-inverted. Depending on the result of the image analysis process, an image correction process for making the reference image more preferable is necessary.

  On the other hand, if the image analysis process and the image correction process are not necessarily performed, the drawing composition function cannot be established. It is also necessary to consider users who do not like negative / positive reversal or contour extracted reference images.

  Therefore, it is important that the reference images 40 to 45 described with reference to FIG. 5 can be flexibly switched according to the user's preference, the specifications of the MFP 100, the function specifications, and the like.

  In other words, the first embodiment is an example of an image processing apparatus that can flexibly switch between image analysis processing and image correction processing according to user settings, device specifications, and functional specifications.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an overall operation from the start to end of the sheet scan drawing composite printing in the first embodiment.

  The sheet scan type drawing composite printing process is roughly classified as follows. That is, creation of the drawing composition printing instruction sheet SH1 (S10), entry of the drawing composition printing instruction sheet SH1 (S20), analysis and printing of the drawing composition printing instruction sheet SH1 (S30).

  The main feature of the first embodiment is the processing in the creation (S10) of the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1, but the detailed operations in S20 and S30 will also be described.

<Creation of Drawing Composite Print Instruction Sheet SH1 (S10)>
First, the MFP 100 creates a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 in order to perform drawing synthesis printing of the sheet scan method. The series of processes S11 to S14 is defined as a <drawing / combining / printing instruction sheet SH1 creation (S10)> step.

  First, in S11, a drawing image and image data to be combined are selected. Image data 22 stored in a memory card connected to the card interface 3 is specified and determined via the operation unit 2 and the display unit 1. Since the selected image data 22 requires image data for printing as a reference image on the drawing synthesis instruction sheet SH1, the reference image data is read out in S12.

  In the first embodiment, the format and file path of the reference image data (memory card image data) 22 are not limited. In the first embodiment, the image data in the memory card connected to the card interface is selected as a reference image candidate. However, for example, the specification may be that the image data created by reading an arbitrary document from the reading unit 4 is reference image data to be combined with the drawing image.

  Using the reference image data read in S12, reference image data for the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is created in S13.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating in detail the reference image data creation process (S13) for the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 according to the first embodiment.

  First, in S41, reference image data is read. This operation is equivalent to S12 shown in FIG.

  Next, in S42, it is determined whether or not the reference image data needs to be analyzed (analysis processing determination is performed). In the first embodiment, this analysis processing determination criterion is designated by the user.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating examples of an analysis inquiry screen, a correction inquiry screen, an analysis result notification screen, and the like used in the first embodiment.

  The analysis inquiry screen 50 is an example of a display screen that allows the user to select whether or not to analyze the reference image, and the selection result here is used as an analysis processing determination criterion.

  Here, in the first embodiment, the reference for the image analysis determination (S42) is not limited. For example, the analysis process determination may be performed according to a default value preset in MFP 100. In this case, according to the specification of MFP 100, whether or not to perform reference image analysis for each arbitrary model is determined in advance.

  Further, the criterion of the image analysis process determination (S42) may be dynamically determined according to the timing of executing the process. For example, if the memory required for the analysis process cannot be secured, it may be automatically determined that “no analysis” in the image analysis process determination.

  The determination result of the image analysis determination (S42) includes designation of what kind of image analysis is performed.

  If it is determined in S42 that image analysis is to be performed, reference image data is analyzed in S43. The analysis content follows the result of the image analysis determination in S42. In the first embodiment, histogram analysis of reference image data is performed. The purpose of the histogram analysis is to determine the negative / positive tendency of the reference image data. Specifically, the ratio of the luminance component having a value equal to or greater than the threshold to the total number of analyzed pixels is calculated from the histogram analysis result. Thus, for example, if pixels having a luminance component equal to or greater than an arbitrary threshold occupy more than half of all the histogram target pixels, it can be determined that the image data has a positive tendency. Conversely, if the number of pixels having a luminance component equal to or greater than an arbitrary threshold value is less than half of all the histogram target pixels, it can be determined that the image data has a negative tendency.

  In the first embodiment, the content of the image analysis is not particularly limited. Therefore, for example, shooting information such as a shooting scene, exposure, and shutter speed may be analyzed with reference to the Exif tag of the reference image data. For example, even in the MFP 100 configured not to be able to perform the process of creating the histogram, it is possible to determine the image characteristics from the Exif tag analysis of shooting information and the like.

  Further, pattern recognition analysis such as face detection may be performed by other analysis processing. The feature of the reference image can also be determined from the pattern recognition analysis.

  Next, in S44, it is determined whether to notify the result of the analysis process performed in S43. Similarly to the image analysis process determination in S42, the image analysis result notification determination in S44 is also determined from condition criteria such as selection from the user and device-specific settings. In the first embodiment, the determination for notifying the image analysis result is always performed.

  When it is determined to notify the image analysis result in S44, the image analysis result is notified in S45.

  Next, notification of analysis results in the first embodiment will be described.

  In the first embodiment, the analysis result notification method is not particularly limited. In the first embodiment, there are two methods for notifying the analysis result: a display notification method for notifying by displaying on the display unit 1 and a print notification method for notifying by printing on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH2 when the analysis result is notified by printing the analysis result on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet in the first embodiment.

  In the first embodiment, when displaying the image analysis result, the analysis result is displayed on the screen as shown in the analysis result notification screen 52 after the determination of S44. In the first embodiment, a luminance distribution diagram by histogram analysis and shooting scene information by Exif tag analysis are displayed.

  When the image analysis result is printed on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH2, the image analysis result is printed in the analysis / correction result notification area 60 of FIG. Similarly to the analysis result notification screen 52 shown in FIG. 8, the analysis / correction result notification area 60 is also printed with a luminance distribution diagram by histogram analysis and shooting scene information by Exif tag analysis.

  In the first embodiment, the timing for notifying the image analysis result is not particularly limited.

  Next, in S46, it is determined what kind of image correction processing is performed on the reference image or not. The image correction here is image correction performed on the reference image to be printed on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1.

  In the first embodiment, if the reference image is image data having a positive tendency as a result of the image analysis in S43, it is determined to perform only image correction for decreasing the density. If the reference image is image data with a negative tendency as a result of the analysis in S43, it is determined whether to perform negative / positive inversion processing and density reduction processing.

  Note that the determination criteria in S46 are not particularly limited in the first embodiment. For example, when an instruction from the user is to be added as a determination criterion in S46, an option asking whether or not to correct the reference image is displayed as shown in the correction inquiry screen 51 shown in FIG. An instruction may be received. Further, as shown in a screen 53 for prompting correction, the content recommended by the apparatus may be displayed before the correction inquiry screen 51 is displayed.

  Further, depending on the specifications of the MFP 100, it may be determined whether the image correction is always performed or whether the image correction is not always performed in S46.

  In S46, it is determined whether image correction is to be performed. If there is a request for image correction in S46, image correction processing is performed on the reference image data in S47.

  In the first embodiment, for example, if an image correction process for reducing the density is requested, the process is performed. Specifically, the density is lowered by performing a certain division for each of the luminance components of all the pixels of the reference image data. If negative / positive inversion processing is required, processing for inverting the luminance component is performed on all pixels.

  In the first embodiment, the content of image correction is not particularly limited. Correction processing may be performed so that a background other than a person is erased by pattern recognition.

  That is, the image correction processing means in the above embodiment is an example of means for correcting at least one of the image size, resolution, density, luminance, saturation, and trimming of the image data.

  Next, in S48, it is determined whether to notify the image correction result.

  In the first embodiment, the correction result is set to be always notified, but the determination criterion is not particularly limited in the first embodiment.

  If it is determined in S48 that the image correction result is notified, the image correction result is notified in S49.

  In the first embodiment, as in the image analysis result notification method, for example, as shown in the correction content notification screen 54 shown in FIG. 8, the image correction result may be notified by screen display. Alternatively, the image correction result may be notified by printing the analysis / correction result notification area 60 on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH2.

  If no image correction processing is performed, nothing needs to be notified. Or you may make it notify that the image correction is not performed.

  The notification timing of the image correction content in S49 is not particularly limited. Therefore, the correction content that has already been determined may be displayed immediately before executing the correction process (S47).

  The processing of steps S41 to S49 flexibly switches the reference image correction processing such as the reference images 40 to 45 described with reference to FIG. 5 according to the user's preference, the specifications of the MFP 100, the function specifications, and the like. be able to.

  When the image processing of the reference image is completed in S13 shown in FIG. 6, the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is printed using the reference image subjected to the above-described arbitrary image correction in S14.

  In the first embodiment, the processing content for printing the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is not limited. For example, a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is created in advance in the RAM 12 of the MFP 100, and a RAW image (8 bits for each of RGB) formed in accordance with the created layout is converted into a print file that can be printed by the image processing unit 14 of the MFP 100. Convert.

  As described above, step S10 for printing the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is completed by the processing of S11 to S14 shown in FIG.

<Drawing composition printing instruction sheet SH1 entry (S20)>
The user's entry work is performed on the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 created in S10.

  When the user fills in the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1, in the first embodiment, a message such as “first night play” of handwritten characters is written in the composite drawing instruction area 33.

<Drawing Composite Printing Instruction Sheet SH1 Analysis Printing (S30)>
Next, in S30, the MFP 100 analyzes the completed drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 entered in S20, and performs composite printing according to the analyzed contents.

  First, in S31 shown in FIG. 6, the reading unit 4 reads the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1. The detailed reading operation of the drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1 is not limited in the present invention. For example, in the first embodiment, RGB image data is read as 8-bit RGB data into the read image memory at a resolution sufficient to analyze the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1.

  Next, in step S32, the read drawing synthesis printing instruction sheet SH1 is analyzed. In the first embodiment, the method for determining whether or not the read image is the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 is not limited. In the first embodiment, the drawing synthesis / printing instruction sheet SH1 is determined based on whether or not a unique predetermined feature point (feature pixel) of the drawing synthesis / printing instruction sheet SH1 can be detected from the image stored in the image memory. To do.

  In step S32, the print instruction area 31 is also analyzed. In the first embodiment, the method for analyzing the print instruction area is not limited. In the first embodiment, since the mark sheet method is used for the print instruction area 31, mark fill is determined based on the number of pixels having a density of a certain level or more detected in a mark area having a predetermined coordinate. .

  In S32, the barcode area 32 is also analyzed. In the first embodiment, the method for analyzing the barcode area 32 is not limited. In S32, the composite drawing instruction area 33 is also analyzed. In the first embodiment, the analysis method of the composite drawing instruction area 33 is not limited. In the first embodiment, only the drawing image data in the composite drawing instruction area 33 is analyzed and extracted. For example, only the composite drawing instruction area 33 may be read again in the high resolution color mode.

  Next, in S33, the drawing image drawn in the combination drawing instruction area 33 and the reference image are combined. In the first embodiment, the synthesis process is not particularly limited. In S34, the generated composite image data is printed, and the analysis process S30 of the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 is completed.

  According to steps S10, S20, and S30, the user can synthesize a drawn image handwritten by the sheet scanning method with arbitrary reference image data and print it under desired printing conditions.

According to the first embodiment, a reference image can be created by flexibly switching between execution and non-execution of reference image analysis processing and correction processing according to various configurations of the device and user preferences. As a result, the drawing composite print instruction sheet SH1 can be made easier to use in the photo print function based on the sheet scanning method utilizing the characteristics of the MFP.

1 is an external view showing an MFP (image processing apparatus) 100 that is Embodiment 1 of the present invention. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of MFP 100. FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an outline of operation of the first embodiment. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 printed by the MFP 100. FIG. It is a schematic diagram explaining the various forms of a reference image. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an overall operation from the start to the end of a sheet-scan drawing / compositing print process according to the first exemplary embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating in detail a reference image data creation process (S13) for the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet SH1 according to the first exemplary embodiment. It is a figure which shows examples, such as an analysis inquiry screen used in Example 1, a correction inquiry screen, an analysis result notification screen. In Example 1, it is a figure which shows the drawing synthetic | combination printing instruction | indication sheet SH2 at the time of notifying an analysis result by printing an analysis result on a drawing synthetic | combination printing instruction | indication sheet.

Explanation of symbols

100: MFP,
1 ... display part,
2 ... operation part,
3… Card interface,
4 ... reading unit,
5 ... Recording part,
10 ... CPU,
14: Image processing unit,
22: Memory card image data,
23. Composite print result,
SH1 ... drawing composite print instruction sheet,
31 ... Print instruction area,
32 ... Barcode area,
33 ... Composite drawing instruction area,
60: Analysis / correction result notification area.

Claims (14)

A memory for storing image data;
An instruction sheet for instructing print control, comprising a print instruction area for instructing printing to a recording unit, and a combination instruction area for instructing to combine image data stored in the memory and a drawing image. An instruction sheet printing means for printing;
Determining means for determining whether or not to perform image analysis processing on the image data;
Analysis means for performing image analysis processing on the image data;
A print control unit that prints the image data subjected to the image analysis process on the instruction sheet when the determination unit determines to perform the image analysis process;
An image processing apparatus comprising: In claim 1,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit is a unit that uses a set value set by a user as a determination criterion. In claim 1,
The image processing apparatus, wherein the analysis means is means for analyzing at least one of image size, resolution, histogram, tag, file information, and pattern recognition of the image data. A memory for storing image data;
An instruction sheet for instructing print control, comprising a print instruction area for instructing printing to a recording unit, and a combination instruction area for instructing to combine image data stored in the memory and a drawing image. An instruction sheet printing means for printing;
Determining means for determining whether or not to perform image correction processing on the image data;
Correction means for performing image correction processing on the image data;
A print control unit that prints the image data subjected to the image correction process on the instruction sheet when the determination unit determines to perform the image correction process;
An image processing apparatus comprising: In claim 4,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit is a unit that uses a set value set by a user as a determination criterion. In claim 4,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction unit is a unit that corrects at least one of an image size, resolution, density, luminance, saturation, and trimming of the image data. A memory for storing image data;
An instruction sheet for printing an instruction sheet for instructing print control, comprising a print instruction area for instructing printing to the recording unit, and a composition instruction area for synthesizing the image data stored in the memory and the drawing image Printing means;
Analysis determination means for determining whether or not to perform image analysis processing on the image data;
Correction determination means for determining whether or not to perform image correction processing on the image data;
If the analysis determination unit determines that the image analysis process is to be performed, the image analysis process is performed on the image data, then the image data is printed on the instruction sheet, and the correction determination unit determines that the image correction process is to be performed. Print control means for printing the image data on the instruction sheet after performing image correction processing on the image data;
An image processing apparatus comprising: In claim 7,
The correction processing means uses the result of the image analysis processing as a determination criterion. In claim 7,
The correction determination means uses both the result of the image analysis process and the set value set by the user as determination criteria. In claim 7,
An image processing apparatus comprising: notification means for notifying a user of at least one result of the image correction process as a result of the image analysis process. In claim 10,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notifying means is a means for notifying by at least one of display on an LCD and printing on the drawing synthesis print instruction sheet. A print instruction area for instructing printing to the recording unit, and a combination instruction area for instructing to combine the image data stored in the memory for storing the image data and the drawn image, and instructing print control An instruction sheet printing process for printing the instruction sheet to be performed;
A determination step of determining whether or not to perform image analysis processing on the image data;
An analysis step of performing image analysis processing on the image data;
A print control step of printing the image data subjected to the image analysis processing on the instruction sheet when it is determined that the image analysis processing is performed in the determination step;
A control method for an image processing apparatus, comprising: A print instruction area for instructing printing to the recording unit, and a combination instruction area for instructing to combine the image data stored in the memory for storing the image data and the drawn image, and instructing print control An instruction sheet printing process for printing the instruction sheet to be performed;
A determination step of determining whether or not to perform image correction processing on the image data;
A correction step of performing an image correction process on the image data;
A print control step of printing the image data subjected to the image correction process on the instruction sheet when it is determined that the image correction process is performed in the determination step;
A control method for an image processing apparatus, comprising: An instruction sheet for instructing printing control, comprising a print instruction area for instructing printing to the recording unit, and a composition instruction area for combining image data stored in a memory for storing image data and a drawing image An instruction sheet printing process for printing;
An analysis determination step for determining whether or not to perform image analysis processing on the image data;
A correction determination step for determining whether or not to perform image correction processing on the image data;
If it is determined that the image analysis processing is performed in the analysis determination step, the image data is printed on the instruction sheet after the image analysis processing is performed on the image data, and the correction determination step is determined to perform the image correction processing. A print control step of printing the image data on the instruction sheet after performing an image correction process on the image data;
A control method for an image processing apparatus, comprising:

Images