JP2009135904A - Image processing device, image processing method, image processing program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing device in which user-friendliness is improved, an image processing method, an image processing program and a recording medium. <P>SOLUTION: The image processing device is an image processing device for extracting additional information attached to image data and includes an input means to input a plurality of pieces of image data, an additional information extracting means for extracting an additional information from each of the input image data, and a determining means for determining processing to be performed for the each image data based on the extracted additional information. The determining means is configure to determine processing to be performed for an image-data group containing the plurality of pieces of image data, based on a plurality of pieces of additional information extracted from the each image data, and determine processing to be performed for each image data based on the attached additional information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus that performs output image data processing in units of pages and documents.

  Conventionally, a method has been proposed in which additional information indicating that the image data is confidential data is extracted from the image data, and copying of the image data is prohibited. As an application of such a method, there has also been proposed a method in which processing corresponding to the extracted additional information is performed on the image data. The additional information is added to the image data by adding a digital watermark or a background pattern to the image data.

Here, when copying a series of originals composed of a plurality of originals, a method has been proposed in which a dot pattern added to each original is detected and processing for the entire series of originals is determined (Patent Document 1). This method is intended to more reliably prevent information leakage by prohibiting copying of all of a series of manuscripts even if confidential data is included only in a part of the series of manuscripts to be copied. This is the method proposed by
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-200962

  However, in Patent Document 1, since output of all originals is prohibited, there is a problem that user convenience is poor. For example, even if it is desired to copy a document excluding confidential data, it cannot be copied. Further, for example, when a series of originals are copied excluding confidential data, there is a possibility that the person who received the copy will mistakenly recognize that the original of the copy is an original having no confidential data. Therefore, there is a risk that the authenticity of the original document to be copied is lowered.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an image processing program, and a recording medium that are improved in user-friendliness.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an image processing apparatus according to the present invention is an image processing apparatus that extracts additional information added to image data, the input means for inputting a plurality of image data, and the input Additional information extraction means for extracting additional information from each of the image data, and determination means for determining a processing to be performed on the image data based on the extracted additional information, wherein the determination means is extracted from each image data Determining the processing to be performed on the image data group composed of the plurality of image data based on the plurality of additional information and determining the processing to be performed on each image data based on the added additional information. Features.

  In the image processing apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the additional information extracting unit may include group unit additional information that is information related to processing to be performed on the image data group from the additional information extracted from each image data. And the determining means determines processing to be performed on the image data group based on the group unit additional information.

  In the image processing apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the additional information extracting unit may be configured to output the image data from the image processing apparatus in units of the image data group according to additional information related to a non-output process that does not output the image data. It is characterized in that group unit additional information that is information related to processing is generated.

  In the image processing apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the determining unit may include the image data group based on a processing unit related to image data that is a target of non-output processing in which the image data is not output from the image processing apparatus. It is characterized in that processing to be performed in units is determined.

  In one embodiment of the image processing apparatus according to the present invention, when a group of a plurality of image data is input, the first of the image data constituting the image data group extracted by the additional information extraction unit When the additional information of the image data is different from the additional information other than the first image data, the additional information extracting means extracts the additional information other than the first image data from the image processing apparatus as the image data. It is characterized in that it is replaced with additional information relating to a non-output process that is not output.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus with improved user convenience.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an image processing program, and a recording medium that are improved in user convenience.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Software Architecture of Image Processing Device According to the Present Invention)
The concept called “pipe & filter” employed by the software architecture of the multifunction machine, which is an example of the image processing apparatus of the present invention, will be described below.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the concept of “pipe & filter”. As shown in the figure, each filter is connected by a pipe. The filter converts the input data and outputs the result. The pipe transmits the data output from the filter to the next filter.

  In other words, in the MFP according to the present embodiment, each function is regarded as a series of “conversions” for documents (data). Each function of the multi-function peripheral can be generalized as being configured by document input, processing, and output. Therefore, “input”, “processing”, and “output” are regarded as conversions, and a software component that realizes one “conversion” is configured as a filter. A filter for realizing input is particularly referred to as an “input filter”. Further, a filter for realizing processing is particularly referred to as a “processing filter”. Further, a filter that realizes output is particularly referred to as an “output filter”. Each filter is independent, and basically there is no dependency relationship (call relationship) between the filters. Therefore, addition (installation) or deletion (uninstallation) can be performed in units of filters.

  The filter will be described in more detail. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the components of the filter. As shown in FIG. 2, each filter includes a filter setting UI (User Interface) 21, a filter logic 22, a filter-specific lower service 23, and permanent storage area information 24.

  The filter setting UI 21 is a program for displaying a screen for setting filter execution conditions on the operation panel. For example, in the case of a reading filter that is one of input filters, a screen for setting resolution, density, and image type corresponds. In view of the fact that the display of the operation panel can be performed based on HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) data or a script, the filter setting UI may be HTML data or a script.

  The filter logic 22 is a program in which logic for realizing a filter function is mounted. For example, in the case of a reading filter, the logic for document reading control by the scanner corresponds.

  The filter-specific lower service 23 is a lower function (library) necessary for realizing the filter logic 22. For example, a reading filter corresponds to a function for controlling the scanner.

  The permanent storage area information 24 corresponds to a schema definition of data that needs to be stored in a nonvolatile memory, such as setting information (for example, default values of execution conditions) for a filter.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an input filter, a processing filter, and an output filter of the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment.

  As input filters, there are a reading filter 31, a stored document reading filter 32, a mail receiving filter 33, a FAX receiving filter 34, and a PC document receiving filter 35. The reading filter 31 controls reading of image data by the scanner and outputs the read image data. The stored document read filter 32 reads document data (image data) stored in the storage device of the multifunction peripheral, and outputs the read data. The mail reception filter 33 receives an e-mail and outputs data included in the e-mail. The FAX reception filter 34 controls FAX reception and outputs received data. The PC document reception filter 35 receives print data from a client PC (not shown) and outputs the received print data.

  As the processing filters, there are a document processing filter 36 and a document conversion filter 37. The document processing filter 36 performs predetermined image conversion processing (aggregation, enlargement, reduction, etc.) on the input data and outputs it. The document conversion filter 37 executes a rendering process. That is, the input PostScript data is converted into bitmap data and output.

  The output filters include a print filter 38, a stored document registration filter 39, a mail transmission filter 40, and a FAX transmission filter 41. The print filter 38 causes the plotter to output (print) the input data. The stored document registration filter 39 stores the input data in the hard disk in the multifunction peripheral. The mail transmission filter 40 transmits the input data attached to the electronic mail. The FAX transmission filter 41 transmits the input data by FAX.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a combination of filters for realizing each function (application) in the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment.

  For example, the copy function is realized by connecting the reading filter 31 and the print filter 38. This is because the image data read from the document by the reading filter 31 may be printed by the print filter 38. When processing such as aggregation, enlargement, or reduction associated with the copy function is requested, a document processing filter 36 that implements these processing is inserted between the reading filter 31 and the print filter 38.

  The printer function (printing function from the client PC) is realized by connecting a PC document reception filter 35, a document conversion filter 37, and a printing filter 38. A scan-to-mail function (a function of transferring scanned image data by electronic mail) is realized by connecting the reading filter 31 and the mail transmission filter 40. The FAX transmission function is realized by connecting the reading filter 31 and the FAX reception filter 34. The FAX reception function is realized by connecting the FAX reception filter 34 and the print filter 38. The document box storage function (function of storing scanned image data in the multifunction peripheral) is realized by connecting the reading filter 31 and the stored document registration filter 39. The document box printing function (function of printing document data stored in the multifunction peripheral) is realized by connecting the stored document reading filter 32 and the print filter 38.

(Operational principle of the present invention)
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the operation principle of the image processing apparatus according to the present invention. The image processing apparatus 50 according to the present invention includes a storage unit 51, an acquisition unit 52, a determination unit 53, an additional information extraction unit 54, an input unit 55, a processing unit 56, an output unit 57, a storage unit 58, an input unit 59, and an output unit. 60.

  The input device 59 is a device used by the input means 55 to acquire image data. For example, a scanner, a communication interface, and the like are applicable.

  The output device 60 is a device used by the output means 57 to output image data. For example, a plotter or a communication interface is applicable.

  The input unit 55 performs processing corresponding to the input filter in the above-described “pipe & filter” architecture, and performs image data reading processing using a scanner, mail reception processing, FAX reception processing, and the like.

  The processing means 56 performs processing corresponding to the processing filter in the above-described “pipe & filter” architecture, and performs predetermined image processing (aggregation, enlargement, reduction, etc.) and rendering processing on the input data.

  The output unit 57 performs processing corresponding to the output filter in the above-described “pipe & filter” architecture, and performs printing processing, e-mail transmission processing, FAX transmission processing, and the like.

  The additional information extraction unit 54 acquires additional information from the image data input by the input unit 55 via the input device 59. Further, the additional information extraction unit 54 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of the acquired additional information.

  Here, there are two types of additional information in the present embodiment: additional information extracted from each image data by the additional information extracting means 54 and county unit additional information generated by the additional information extracting means 54 based on the additional information. There is additional information. The former is a control code (hereinafter referred to as “code”) that defines the processing contents that each of the input means 55, the processing means 56, and the output means 57 should perform in units of image data (hereinafter, page units). On the other hand, the latter is a control code that defines the processing contents to be performed in units of image data by each of the input means 55, the processing means 56, and the output means 57 (hereinafter referred to as “d_code”).

  Here, the image data group means a data group composed of a plurality of image data input by the input means 55 by a single input operation.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the control code and corresponding operation processing of the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, each control code is associated with processing of each function (printing, mail transmission, etc.), and printing processing is printing processing of image data on paper using a plotter. The transmission process and the PC document transmission process are processes for transmitting image data by e-mail, and the FAX transmission process is a process for transmitting image data by facsimile.

Further, the non-output processing of the multifunction peripheral in the present embodiment refers to processing that does not output image data information input by the input means 55 to the outside of the image processing apparatus. Specifically, This means processing that does not perform printing processing or transmission processing of image data.

  In this embodiment, the value “−1” is treated as information indicating that additional information cannot be acquired from the image data. Here, the additional information other than “−1” is “1stcode”, and the additional information is first extracted from the document (image data group) by the additional information extraction unit 54.

  Hereinafter, an algorithm when the additional information extracting unit 54 acquires the control code (additional information) from the image data will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, the input means 55 inputs image data from the input device 59 in S71, and −1 is substituted for “1stcode” and “d_code” in S72. In this case, “−1”, which is information indicating that the control code cannot be acquired from the image data, is set as an initial value of “1stcode” and “d_code” (group code).

  Then, the control code is read from the image data input in S73, and the read result is substituted into “code”. If the value of “code” is −1 in S74 (Yes in S74), that is, if the control code of the image data cannot be acquired in S73, the process proceeds to S80. If the value of “code” is not −1 in S74 (No in S74), that is, if the control code can be acquired from the image data, the process proceeds to S75.

  Next, if the value of “1stcode” is −1 in S75 (Yes in S75), that is, if the control code has not been acquired from the image data so far, “1stcode” and “d_code” in S78. The value of “code” is substituted for and the process proceeds to S80. In this case, the control code first read from the image data is set to “1stcode” and the value of “d_code” which is a control code in document units.

  On the other hand, if the value of “1stcode” is not −1 in S75 (No in S75), that is, if any control code has been acquired from the image data so far, the process proceeds to S76. If the value of “code” is equal to the value of “1stcode” in S76 (Yes in S76), the process proceeds to S80. Here, it is determined whether the control code acquired first is equal to the control code read after that. If the value of “code” is not equal to the value of “1stcode” in S76 (in the case of No in S76), that is, the control code acquired first and the control code read after that are not equal In S77, 1 is assigned to “code”, and the process proceeds to S79. This is because when a plurality of different control codes are mixed in the document input by the input means 55, the image data is output to the outside in order to clarify the processing of the image processing apparatus 50 according to the present invention. I try not to let you.

  If the non-output process in which image data is not externally output from the image processing apparatus 50 in S79 is in units of pages (Yes in S79), the additional information extracting unit 54 extracts the “code” value from the input image data in S80. Control code. Thus, the control code read from the image data is determined as the control code of the image data.

  On the other hand, if the non-output process is a document unit (No in S79), 1 is substituted into “d_code” in S82, and the value of “code” is extracted in S80 by the additional information extraction unit 54. Control code. This is because, when a plurality of different control codes are mixed in the document input by the input means 55 and the non-output process is in units of documents, the document is configured from FIG. The processing that does not externally output all the image data to be performed is determined. Thus, by appropriately setting the non-output process, the user can select a process according to the security policy requested by the user, and an image processing apparatus with improved user convenience can be provided.

  If the input of the image data by the input means 55 is completed in S81 (Yes in S81), the processing by the additional information extracting means 54 is ended in S83, and the next image data is input by the input means 55 in S81. If there is (No in S81), the process proceeds to S73, and the additional information extracting unit 54 reads the additional information from the next image data.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a control code obtained from the algorithm illustrated in FIG. In FIG. 8, image data is input by the input means 55 according to the input order. Referring to FIG. 8 in order of input, first, −1 is assigned to “1stcode” and “d_code” in S72, and −1, which is the control code for the first image data, is assigned to “input code” in S73. Is done. Next, since the value of “code” is −1 in S74 (in the case of Yes in S74), “−1” that is the value of “input code” is substituted for “output code” in S80, and the value of “output code” is A certain -1 is a control code for the first image data. Next, in step S73, the control code of the second image data is read, and 2 is assigned to “input code”. Then, since S74 is a case of No and a case of Yes in S75, 2 which is the value of “code” is substituted into “1stcode” and “d_code” in S78. In S80, 2 as the value of “input code” is substituted into “output code”, and 2 as the value of “output code” becomes the control code of the second image data. Thereafter, the control code “output code” in units of pages and the control code “d_code” in units of documents are determined in the same procedure for the input order 3 and below.

  The storage unit 51 stores processing to be performed by the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57, which are components of the image processing apparatus 50, corresponding to the additional information. Further, in response to a request from the acquisition unit 52 described later, the storage unit 51 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of information related to processing to be performed by the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57 in response to the additional information. The storage unit 51 may be inside the image processing apparatus 50 as shown in FIG. 5 or may be outside the image processing apparatus 50.

  The acquisition unit 52 requests the storage unit 51 for information on processing to be performed by the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57 in response to the additional information notified from the additional information extraction unit 54. In addition, the acquisition unit 52 receives notification of the information from the storage unit 51 in response to the request, and notifies the determination unit 53 of the contents.

  The determination unit 53 receives from the acquisition unit 52 notification of information relating to processing to be performed by the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57 corresponding to the additional information. Through this processing, the determination unit 53 performs the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output on the image data input by the input unit 55 based on the additional information extracted (or generated) by the additional information extraction unit 54. The processing to be performed by the means 57 is determined, and the determined content to be processed is notified to each of these means.

  The determining unit 53 determines processing to be performed by each of the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57 on a document basis based on the additional information indicated by “d_code”.

  The storage device 58 performs processing corresponding to the pipe in the “pipe & filter” architecture described above. That is, the storage device 58 is a memory that temporarily stores the processing results of the input unit 55, the processing unit 56, and the output unit 57. In the present embodiment, the input means 55 and the processing means 56 store the processed image data in the storage device 58, and the processing means 56 and the output means 57 receive the processed image data from the storage device 58. Is read.

(Hardware configuration of MFP according to this embodiment)
An example of the hardware configuration of a multifunction machine that is the image processing apparatus of the present invention is shown below. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the multifunction peripheral according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  As hardware of the multifunction machine, there are a controller 90, an operation panel 97, a facsimile control unit (FCU) 98, an imaging unit 99, and a printing unit 100.

  The controller 90 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 94, ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 96, NB (North Bridge) 95, SB (South Bridge) 101, MEM-P91, MEM-C92, HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 93, A memory card slot 106, a network interface controller (NIC) 102, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) device 103, an IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.) 1394 device 104, and a Centronics device 105 .

  The CPU 94 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) for various information processing. The ASIC 96 is an IC for various image processing. NB95 is a north bridge of the controller. The SB 101 is a controller south bridge. MEM-P91 is a system memory of the multifunction machine. The MEM-C 92 is a local memory of the multifunction machine. The HDD 93 is a storage of the multifunction device. The memory card slot 106 is a slot for setting the memory card 107. The NIC 102 is a controller for network communication using a MAC address. The USB device 103 is a device for providing USB standard connection detection. The Centronics device 105 is a device for providing a Centronics specification connection terminal. The operation panel 97 is hardware (operation unit) for an operator to input to the multifunction device, and hardware (display unit) for the operator to obtain an output from the multifunction device.

  Note that the software of the multifunction peripheral according to the present invention is stored in, for example, the MEM-C 92 and processed by the CPU 94, thereby causing the multifunction peripheral to execute the function.

(Embodiment of the present invention)
The processing procedure of the multifunction machine according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart relating to the processing operation of the multifunction machine according to the embodiment of the present invention. Here, the processing operation of the “scan to email” function shown in FIG. 4 in the multifunction machine will be described as an example of the processing operation of reading three originals with a scanner and transmitting the read image data by mail.

  When the user performs a “scan to email” operation from the operation panel 97 of the multifunction peripheral, the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 related to the “scan to email” function are selected from FIG. Each filter performs processing related to the “scan to email” function.

  In the present embodiment, the additional information is a control code that defines each process of the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40. There are two types of control codes: a control code extracted from each image data by the additional information extracting unit 54 and a control code generated by the additional information extracting unit 54 based on the control code. The former is a control code in units of pages, and is information that defines processing contents to be performed in units of pages or documents by each of the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40. On the other hand, the latter is a control code in units of documents, and is information that defines processing contents to be performed in units of documents by each of the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40. FIG. 6 shows an example of the operation process of the control code and the corresponding multifunction peripheral.

  Further, the non-output processing of the multifunction device in the present embodiment refers to processing that does not output the information of the image data input by the input unit 55 to the outside of the multifunction device. Specifically, the filling processing for the image data is performed. In addition, it means processing that does not perform printing processing or transmission processing of image data. Further, in the present embodiment, when the non-output process is “filling process”, the non-output process is a process in units of pages, and on the other hand, when the non-output process is “process not to send mail”. The non-output process is a process in units of documents.

(1) When the non-output process is “filling process” (non-output process is page unit) As the first embodiment, when the non-output process of the MFP according to this embodiment is “filling”, that is, An embodiment in which the non-output process is controlled in units of pages will be described.

  In S100, the processing of the multi-function peripheral in the present embodiment is started by the user's “scan to email” operation. In S101, the document is read by the imaging unit 99 (scanner) which is the input device 59, and image data related to the document is input by the input unit 55. In this embodiment, since three originals are read and mail transmission is performed, three originals are read in S101, and image data corresponding to the three originals is input by the input means 55. FIG. 11 shows an example of a document read in S101. In the present embodiment, the control code “2, 6, 2” is embedded in the original document. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the processing of the MFP corresponding to each control code is the non-output process for the control code “1”, the encryption process for the control code “2”, and the control code at the time of mail transmission. For “6”, processing is set so that only the address book registration destination can send mail. About this setting, it can change suitably.

  Next, in S102, the additional information extracting unit 54 extracts (or generates) the control code from each of the three input image data according to the algorithm shown in FIG. FIG. 12 shows an example in which the control code is extracted (or generated) by the additional information extracting means 54. In the present embodiment, since the non-output process is filled (the non-output process is in units of pages), the extracted page-by-page control code (“output code” in FIG. 12) is “2, 1, 2”. The generated document unit control code is “2”. Here, the reason why the original control code of the document is different from the control code extracted by the additional information extracting means 54 is that there is a mixture of control codes shown in S76 and S77 in FIG. This is because the control code “6” is replaced with “1”. In this way, when different control codes are mixed, it is possible to avoid unclear as to which control code should be processed, and to clarify the processing policy in the MFP.

  Next, in response to the control code extracted (or generated) by the additional information extraction unit 54 in S103, the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 perform processing to be performed on the image data. Read from database. Specifically, the additional information extraction unit 54 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of the extracted (or generated) page-unit and document-unit control codes, and the acquisition unit 52 corresponds to the notified control codes. The storage unit 51 is requested to notify the processing contents to be performed. In response, the storage unit 51 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of the processing content corresponding to the control code.

  In step S104, the determination unit 53 applies each of the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 to the image data in accordance with the control code extracted (or generated) by the additional information extraction unit 54. Decide what to do. Specifically, the acquisition unit 52 notifies the determination unit 53 of the processing content corresponding to the control code notified from the storage unit 51, and the determination unit 53 correspondingly receives the processing content received from the storage unit 51. The reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 are notified.

  In S105, each of the filters performs a process in units of pages corresponding to the control code extracted by the additional information extraction unit 53. FIG. 13 shows an example of the output result of the multifunction machine according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 13, since there is no processing in page units according to the control code “2”, the processing is not performed on the first and third image data. In FIG. 13, the second image data is subjected to the processing corresponding to the control code “1” by the document processing filter 36, and therefore, the image data filling process, which is a non-output process, is performed. Here, the reading filter 31 and the mail transmission filter 40 do not perform processing because there is no processing to be performed on the second image data.

  Next, in S <b> 106, each of the filters performs document unit processing corresponding to the control code generated by the additional information extraction unit 53. As shown in FIG. 13, based on the document-unit control code “2”, the mail transmission filter 40 encrypts and transmits the three pieces of image data subjected to the page-unit processing in S105. Therefore, the first and third image data are encrypted and sent as e-mails with the original contents, and the second image data is processed after the original contents are filled and encrypted. And mail is transmitted via the NIC 102. When this process is finished, the process of the multifunction peripheral in the present embodiment is finished in S107.

  Thus, in the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment, the user can set processing to be performed on the image data in units of pages and in units of documents, and thus an image processing apparatus with improved user convenience is provided. Can do.

(2) When the non-output process is “a process that does not send mail” (the non-output process is a document unit) As the second embodiment, the non-output process of the MFP according to this embodiment is “not send” In other words, an embodiment in which the non-output process is controlled in units of documents will be described.

  In S100, the processing of the multi-function peripheral in the present embodiment is started by the user's “scan to email” operation. In S101, the document is read by the imaging unit 99 (scanner) which is the input device 59, and image data related to the document is input by the input unit 55. In this embodiment, since three originals are read and mail transmission is performed, three originals are read in S101, and image data corresponding to the three originals is input by the input means 55. FIG. 11 shows an example of a document read in S101. In the present embodiment, the control code “2, 6, 2” is embedded in the original document.

  Next, in S102, the additional information extracting unit 54 extracts (or generates) the control code from each of the three input image data according to the algorithm shown in FIG. FIG. 12 shows an example of control code extraction (or generation) by the additional information extraction means 54. In the present embodiment, since the non-output process is “not transmit” (the non-output process is a document unit), the extracted control code for each page (“output code” in FIG. 12) is “2, 1, 2 ”, and the generated control code for each document is“ 1 ”. Here, the original control code of the document and the control code extracted by the additional information extracting means 54 are different because there is a mixture of control codes shown in S76 and S77 of FIG. This is because the code “6” is replaced with “1”. In this way, when different control codes are mixed, it is possible to avoid obscuring which control code should be used for processing, and to clarify the processing policy in the MFP. Further, the control code for each document is “1”, which is different from the generation result in the first embodiment. Therefore, the user can select the process according to the security policy requested by the user by appropriately setting the non-output process.

  Next, in response to the control code extracted (or generated) by the additional information extraction unit 54 in S103, the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 perform processing to be performed on the image data. Read from database. Specifically, the additional information extraction unit 54 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of the extracted (or generated) page-unit and document-unit control codes, and the acquisition unit 52 displays the processing content corresponding to the notified control code. The storage unit 51 is requested to be notified. Correspondingly, the storage unit 51 notifies the acquisition unit 52 of the processing content corresponding to the control code.

  In step S104, the determination unit 53 applies each of the reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 to the image data in accordance with the control code extracted (or generated) by the additional information extraction unit 54. Decide what to do. Specifically, the acquisition unit 52 notifies the determination unit 53 of the processing content corresponding to the control code notified from the storage unit 51, and the determination unit 53 correspondingly receives the processing content received from the storage unit 51. The reading filter 31, the document processing filter 36, and the mail transmission filter 40 are notified.

  In S105, each of the filters performs a process in units of pages corresponding to the control code extracted by the additional information extraction unit 53. FIG. 14 shows an example of the output result of the multifunction machine according to the present embodiment. Since there is no page unit processing corresponding to the control code “2” or “1” for each of the first, second, and third image data, no processing is performed.

  Next, in S <b> 106, each of the filters performs document unit processing corresponding to the control code generated by the additional information extraction unit 53. As shown in FIG. 14, the mail transmission filter 40 cancels the mail transmission processing of the three pieces of image data based on the control code “1” in document units. When this process is finished, the process of the multifunction peripheral in the present embodiment is finished in S107.

  As described above, when the user appropriately sets the non-output process, it is possible to select a process according to the security policy requested by the user and to provide an image processing apparatus with improved user convenience.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims.・ Change is possible.

It is a figure for demonstrating the concept of a "pipe & filter." It is a figure for demonstrating the component of a filter. It is a figure which shows an example of the input filter in this Embodiment, a process filter, and an output filter. It is a figure which shows the example of the combination of the filter for implement | achieving each function in the multifunctional device of this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement principle of the image processing apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the operation | movement process of the multifunction device based on this invention corresponding to a control code. It is a figure which shows the algorithm which acquires additional information from image data. It is a figure which shows the example of the additional information obtained from the algorithm shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions in embodiment of this invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a flowchart relating to a processing operation of a multifunction peripheral according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a document read by the multifunction machine according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the control code obtained from the algorithm shown in FIG. 7 in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the output result of the multifunctional machine in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the output result of the multifunctional machine in embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

50 image processing device 51 storage unit 52 acquisition unit 53 determination unit 54 additional information extraction unit 55 input unit 56 processing unit 57 output unit 58 storage unit 59 input unit 60 output unit

Claims (12)

An image processing apparatus for extracting additional information added to image data,
Input means for inputting a plurality of image data;
Additional information extracting means for extracting additional information from each of the input image data;
Determining means for determining processing to be performed on the image data based on the extracted additional information,
The determining means determines processing to be performed on an image data group composed of a plurality of image data based on a plurality of additional information extracted from each image data, and each image data based on the added additional information. An image processing apparatus that determines a processing process to be performed on the image processing apparatus. The additional information extracting means generates group unit additional information that is information related to a processing process to be performed on the image data group from the additional information extracted from each image data,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determining unit determines a processing to be performed on the image data group based on the group unit additional information.   The additional information extraction unit generates group unit additional information, which is information related to processing in units of image data groups, according to additional information related to non-output processing that does not output the image data from the image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.   The determination means determines processing to be performed in units of the image data group based on a processing unit related to image data that is a target of non-output processing in which the image data is not output from the image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1. When a group of multiple image data is input,
When the additional information of the first image data in the image data constituting the group of image data extracted by the additional information extraction unit is different from the additional information other than the first image data,
5. The additional information extracting unit replaces additional information other than the first image data with additional information related to a non-output process in which the image data is not output from the image processing apparatus. An image processing apparatus according to claim 1. An image processing method of an image processing apparatus for extracting additional information added to image data,
Input procedure to input multiple image data,
Additional information extraction procedure for extracting additional information from each of the input image data;
A determination procedure for determining processing to be performed on the image data based on the extracted additional information,
The determination procedure determines processing to be performed on an image data group composed of a plurality of image data based on a plurality of additional information extracted from each image data, and each image data based on the added additional information. An image processing method characterized by determining a processing process to be performed on the apparatus. The additional information extraction procedure generates group unit additional information that is information relating to processing to be performed on the image data group from the additional information extracted from each image data,
The image processing method according to claim 6, wherein the determining step determines a processing to be performed on the image data group based on the group unit additional information.   The additional information extraction procedure generates group unit additional information, which is information related to processing in units of the image data group, according to additional information related to non-output processing that does not output the image data from the image processing apparatus. The image processing method according to claim 6 or 7.   The determination procedure determines a process to be performed in units of the image data group based on a processing unit related to image data that is a target of non-output processing in which the image data is not output from the image processing apparatus. The image processing method according to any one of 6 to 8. When a group of multiple image data is input,
When the additional information of the first image data in the image data constituting the image data group extracted by the additional information extraction procedure is different from the additional information other than the first image data,
10. The additional information extracting procedure replaces additional information other than the first image data with additional information related to a non-output process that does not output the image data from the image processing apparatus. An image processing method according to claim 1.   An image processing program for causing a computer to execute the image processing method according to claim 6.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the image processing program according to claim 11 is recorded.

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