JP2010206648A - Electronic stamp - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic stamp 1 which stamps a seal impression by previously memorizing the seal impression as an electronic image data, taking a photograph of a space inserted in the electronic stamp 1, automatically discriminating a position to be stamped or a frame line to be stamped, which is displayed on the space, and adjusting the position to be stamped, an angle to be stamped, and the size of the seal impression according to the discriminating result. <P>SOLUTION: In the electronic stamp 1 performing a printing on an inserted space, there are provided a paper placing part 5 in which the space is arranged within a printable area, an imaging part 27 which picturizes the space arranged in the paper placing part 5, a memory which memorizes picturized image information and image information of the seal impression, an image identification section which corrects an image of the seal impression while distinguishing the position to be stamped from the image information memorized in the memory, and a printing part 9 which prints a seal impression image revised by the image identification section in the stamping position distinguished by the image identification section. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic stamp that performs printing on a sheet of paper inserted into an apparatus.

  As a conventional electronic stamp, for example, there is an electronic stamp that performs printing with a bottom surface in contact with a printing medium, such as a printer system for imprinting in JP-A-2000-001032 (Patent Document 1). An ink jet head having a nozzle row for spraying ink to the nozzle, and printing is realized by spraying ink according to print data while moving the ink jet head in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle row. Information management on the date and time of the seal is also performed.

  However, in such a stamping printer system, it is necessary to place the electronic stamp correctly at the position of the stamping location on the paper surface, so that it protrudes out of the frame of the stamping column or is tilted with respect to the frame of the stamping column. It may be trapped or accidentally stamped upside down, and may not be stamped correctly. There is also a problem in that the stamp cannot be pressed uniformly against the paper surface, and the stamp cannot be cleanly printed.

  In addition, in the stationary type electronic stamp, since a table on which the paper surface is arranged is prepared, the printing surface can be uniformly pressed against the paper surface, but the position to be stamped is determined in advance. In the same way as the above-mentioned electronic stamps, the paper surface is shifted from the frame of the stamp field, or it is tilted with respect to the frame of the stamp field, or it is accidentally stamped upside down. In some cases, it could not be imprinted correctly.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-041802 (Patent Document 2) discloses a stamp control device that superimposes an image to be a design imprint on an image of an electronic image file, and an image to be imprinted at a predetermined position of the electronic image file. When there is another object image at the time of overlapping, it is determined whether there is a blank space having an area equal to or larger than the size of the imprint image in the vicinity of the position. A method has been proposed in which a blank space having an area is calculated, and the size of the seal is reduced and the seal image is superimposed so that the seal can be superimposed on the calculated blank space.

JP 2000-001032 A JP 2006-041802 A

  In the present invention, for the problem that this imprinting is not performed correctly, an imprint is stored in advance as electronic image data, a paper surface inserted into the electronic stamp is photographed, and the position to be imprinted on the paper surface or It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic stamp that automatically discriminates a frame line to be imprinted and adjusts the imprinting position, the imprinting angle, and the imprint size according to the discrimination result to imprint the imprint.

  An electronic stamp according to the present invention includes a paper placement unit that places a paper surface in a printable area, an imaging unit that images the paper surface inserted into the paper placement unit, and the image information and the image of the imprinted image. A storage unit for storing information, an image identification unit for determining a position to be stamped from the image information stored in the storage unit and correcting the image of the impression, and a stamping position determined by the image identification unit. And a printing unit that prints an imprint image corrected by the image identification unit.

  Further, the image identification unit discriminates characters such as a frame and a mark to be stamped from the captured image information, and sets the center position as the center of the stamp position.

  Then, the image identification unit determines an inclination of a character such as a frame or a mark to be imprinted from the captured image information, generates an imprint image in which the imprint is inclined according to the inclination, and the printing unit The generated imprint image is printed at the determined position to be stamped.

  Further, the image identification unit determines the size of a frame to be imprinted or the size of a character such as a mark from the captured image information, and generates an imprint image in which the imprint is enlarged or reduced according to the size. The printing unit prints the generated imprint image at the determined position to be stamped.

  The electronic stamp further includes an input operation unit for performing a button operation and a display unit for displaying a captured image. The image identification unit includes a frame to be stamped from the captured image information, When a plurality of characters such as a mark are determined, an image indicating a plurality of areas to be stamped is combined with the captured image and displayed on the display unit, and the printing unit is selected by the input operation unit. Print an appropriate seal on the area to be stamped.

  The electronic stamp of the present invention automatically adjusts the imprint position, imprint angle, and imprint size so that it can be properly imprinted on the imprinted area of the inserted paper. There is no need, and simple and accurate imprinting is possible.

  Even when the stamped portion is located at the upper end or the lower end of the paper surface, if the paper surface is inserted without worrying about the orientation (top / bottom) of the paper surface, it can be easily and correctly stamped.

It is a figure which shows the external appearance of the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is an example of printing with the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is a functional block diagram of the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is a flowchart of the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the electronic stamp which concerns on the Example of this invention.

  Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention will be described. The electronic stamp 1 of the present invention includes a paper placement unit 5 that places a paper surface in a printable area, an imaging unit 27 that images the paper surface inserted and arranged in the paper placement unit 5, and the captured image. A storage unit 25 for storing information and image information of an imprint, an image identification unit 29 for determining a position to be stamped from the image information stored in the storage unit 25 and correcting the image of the seal, and the image identification A printing unit 9 that prints the seal image corrected by the image identification unit 29 at the stamp position determined by the unit 29.

  Further, the image identification unit 29 discriminates characters such as a frame and “mark” to be stamped from the captured image information, and sets the center position as the center of the stamp position.

  Then, the image identification unit 29 determines an inclination of a frame to be imprinted or a character of “mark” from the captured image information, generates an imprint image in which the imprint is inclined according to the inclination, and The printing unit 9 prints the generated imprint image at the determined position to be stamped.

  Further, the image identification unit 29 determines the size of a frame to be imprinted or the size of a character such as a mark from the captured image information, and an imprint image obtained by enlarging or reducing the imprint according to the size. Then, the printing unit 9 prints the generated imprint image at the determined position to be stamped.

  Further, the electronic stamp 1 of the present invention further includes an input operation unit 17 for performing a button operation, and a display unit 13 for displaying a captured image or the like, and the image identification unit 29 includes the captured image. When a plurality of characters such as a frame and “mark” to be stamped are determined from the information, an image showing the plurality of areas to be stamped is combined with the captured image and displayed on the display unit 13, and the print The unit 9 prints an appropriate imprint on the area to be stamped selected by the input operation unit 17.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of an electronic stamp 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a printing example using the electronic stamp 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic stamp 1 is formed in a substantially cubic shape, and a paper placement section 5 for inserting and arranging a paper surface on which a space is formed in the vicinity of the lower end of the electronic stamp 1 to form a space parallel to the bottom surface. Is formed. Further, on the upper surface of the electronic stamp 1, an LCD serving as a display unit 13 for displaying a captured image of the paper, selection of various settings and printing positions, and display of each warning display, and an operation as an input operation unit Button 19 is arranged. A printing unit 9 that performs printing on the inserted paper surface and an imaging unit 27 that captures the inserted paper surface are disposed in the electronic stamp 1 at a position immediately above the paper placement unit 5.

  This electronic stamp 1 images the inserted paper surface with the imaging unit 27 so that it can be appropriately stamped at a stamping position (position of a stamping column or the like) described on the paper surface inserted into the paper placement unit 5, By automatically determining the position to be stamped and adjusting the stamp position, the angle of the seal impression, and the size of the seal impression based on the determination result, the position within the frame as shown in FIG. ) Can be correctly stamped, and a stamp can be easily stamped at an appropriate stamping position such as a stamping column.

  The electronic stamp 1 includes a control unit 23, a storage unit 25, an imaging unit 27, an image identification unit 29, a printing unit 9, an input operation unit 17, a display, as shown in FIG. 3 which is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration. Unit 13 and clock unit 15.

  The control unit 23 is a CPU as a microcomputer. The input operation unit 17 and the display unit 13, the clock unit 15, the storage unit 25, the image identification unit 29, the imaging unit 27, and the printing unit 9 are connected to the control unit 23. These operations are controlled by the control unit 23. Then, the control unit 23 starts a system program stored in advance in the ROM of the storage unit 25 in response to a key operation signal from the input operation unit 17 or automatically, and uses the RAM of the storage unit 25 as a work memory. Controls the operation of each part of the circuit.

  The storage unit 25 includes a ROM and a RAM, and the storage unit 25 stores a seal image for imprinting. In addition, as a pattern matching image used in the image identification unit 29 described later, an image such as a rectangular frame, a circular frame, a “mark” character, or the like in the stamp field is stored.

  The ROM of the storage unit 25 stores a program for printing at the stamp position selected by the input operation unit 17, printing fonts, printing data, and the like. The RAM of the storage unit 25 includes an input data memory that stores characters and the like input from the input operation unit 17, a print data memory that stores print pattern data in which print information such as input characters is expanded, and a display Each area such as a display data memory in which pattern data displayed on the unit 13 is stored is secured, and a register, a counter, and the like that temporarily store data necessary for printing processing and the like are provided.

  The imaging unit 27 captures a required range of the paper surface inserted into the paper placement unit 5, and the paper surface image captured by the imaging unit 27 is stored in the RAM of the storage unit 25. The imaging device used for the imaging unit 27 is an area formed by a CCD or CMOS element serving as a charge coupled device and used by a linear image sensor, a video camera, a digital still camera, or the like used in a facsimile or copying machine. An image sensor is used. In the embodiment of the present invention, an area image sensor that images a two-dimensional range is used. When a linear image sensor that captures a one-dimensional range is used, the linear image sensor is arranged in parallel and in the vicinity of a nozzle array 11 of the printing unit 9 described later. During imaging, the nozzle array 11 together with the sensor array of the linear image sensor. Are moved in a direction perpendicular to the sensor array to scan, and the paper surface is imaged.

  In addition, the range captured by the imaging unit 27 is wider than the printable range of the printing unit 9 described later.

  Then, the image identification unit 29 performs pattern matching with the pattern matching image held in the storage unit 25 on the paper image captured by the imaging unit 27 and stored in the RAM of the storage unit 25, A quadrangular frame or a circular frame is discriminated, and the discriminated center position of the stamping column is determined as a center position for stamping. When the character “mark” is determined, the center position of the character is determined as the center position to be stamped. Then, the image identification unit 29 further stores the storage unit 25 in accordance with the determined frame angle and frame size, or the determined character angle and character size, in order to appropriately stamp the stamping field. The angle and size of the imprint image stored in is corrected, and a corrected imprint image is generated.

  In addition, the printing unit 9 prints the corrected imprint image generated by the image identification unit 29 on the paper surface inserted into the paper placing unit 5. The printing unit 9 includes an ink jet head having a nozzle row 11 that sprays ink onto the paper surface, and includes a drive mechanism that drives the ink jet head (not shown). At the time of printing, printing is performed by moving the ink jet head in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle row 11 and spraying ink on the paper surface. In the embodiment, an example of a printing method in which ink is sprayed using an inkjet head having the nozzle array 11 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a printing method using a thermal transfer tape or a dot on a transfer tape Any printing method may be used, such as a printing method for printing by printing.

  The input operation unit 17 includes an execution button 21 and an operation button 19 for instructing printing, and a signal input from the input operation unit 17 is transmitted to the control unit 23 as a key operation signal.

  The display unit 13 is composed of an LCD, and displays a captured paper image, selection of various settings and printing positions, and warning displays. Then, by combining the corrected imprint image with the captured image of the paper and displaying it on the display unit 13, it is possible to confirm the result of the imprinting before imprinting.

  The clock unit 15 holds current date and time information, and transmits the current date and current time information to the control unit 23. In addition, when the image identification unit 29 generates an imprint image, these pieces of information can generate an imprint image with the date or time information added based on the current date information and the current time information. Is.

  Next, the operation flow of the electronic stamp 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. FIG. 5A shows a state in which the paper surface is not arranged on the paper placement unit 5, the inner square area indicates the printable range α, and the outer square area indicates the imageable area. β is shown. As for the electronic stamp 1, whether a paper surface as shown in FIG. 5B is inserted and arranged in the paper placement unit 5 by imaging by the imaging unit 27 or by providing a separate sensor in the paper placement unit 5 (step B). S101) is determined.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5C, when there is a change in the image picked up by the image pickup unit 27, or when there is a response to the sensor, a paper surface is inserted and arranged in the paper placement unit 5. The paper surface inserted in the paper placement unit 5 is imaged (step S103) and stored in the RAM of the storage unit 25. If there is no change in the image picked up by the image pickup unit 27 or there is no response to the sensor, step S101 is repeated, and the process waits until a paper surface is placed on the paper placement unit 5.

  Next, image identification by the image identification unit 29 (step S105) is performed based on the paper image captured by the imaging unit 27 and stored in the RAM of the storage unit 25 by arranging the paper surface on the paper placement unit 5. Execute. The image identification unit 29 converts the captured paper surface image within the printable range α into a rectangular frame or a circular frame in the stamping column that is an image for pattern matching stored in the storage unit 25. ”And pattern matching with images such as characters, and when the position to be stamped is identified within the printable range α as a result of the pattern matching, the printing position to be stamped and the angle of the imprint to be stamped The size of the seal impression image is determined (step S107).

  If the pattern matching by the image identification (step S105) is not identified, the process returns to step S101 and waits.

  Then, when the captured image is displayed on the display unit 13, display confirmation (step S109) is executed, and within the printable area α of the paper image stored in the storage unit 25 as shown in FIG. Is displayed on the display unit 13.

  Next, a determination is made as to whether there are a plurality of stamp targets (step S111). In this step, when two or more stamp fields to be stamped are found, such as when a paper surface having a plurality of stamp locations is inserted as shown in FIG. S113) is executed, and if there is one place to be stamped, the processing of the stamped image (step S115) is executed.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 6 (B), by inserting a paper surface in which a plurality of stamp fields are described on the paper surface into the paper placement unit 5, the paper placement unit 5 as shown in FIG. 6 (A). In the image identification (step S105), two stamp fields are identified as shown in FIG. 6C. In addition, the image identification unit 29 determines the angle of the impression to be impressed and the size of the imprint image for all of the identified imprint fields, and the image identification unit 29 performs the process for FIG. As shown in (C), an image that is a rectangular frame line is synthesized with all of the identified stamp fields, and the synthesized image is displayed on the display unit 13 as display confirmation (step S109) as shown in FIG. 6 (D). Is displayed. Then, the stamp position selection (step S113) is performed to prompt the user to operate the selection button of the input operation unit 17, and when an input for selecting any square frame is performed, the image identification unit 29 is selected. Determines the position to be stamped.

  In this way, the stamp image processing (step S115) is performed on the frame of the stamp position selected by the user in the stamp position selection (step S113). In the stamp image processing (step S115), step S107 is performed. Then, in accordance with the determined impression angle to be imprinted and the determined size of the imprint image, the image is corrected to the angle of the imprint image as shown in FIG. The imprint image as shown in FIG. 5 (E) for appropriately stamping in the stamping column that is to be stamped is generated. Further, when adding date or time information, the information is generated by combining the information with the imprint image. After the step is completed, print execution (step S117) is executed.

  In the printing execution (step S117), the ink jet head having the nozzle array 11 is moved in the direction perpendicular to the nozzle array 11 by the driving mechanism, and ink is sprayed from the nozzle array 11, as shown in FIG. An imprint of an appropriate position and an appropriate imprint size is printed on the stamp field, and the stamping of the electronic stamp 1 is completed.

  If the electronic stamp 1 does not include the display unit 13 or the selection button of the input operation unit 17, a stamped image process (step S115) is executed after the image identification (step S105).

  By adopting such a structure, the position and angle can be automatically adjusted so that the stamped portion of the inserted paper can be properly stamped, and the paper surface is carefully inserted and placed in the paper placement unit 5, etc. There is no need, and simple and accurate imprinting is possible.

  Even when the stamped portion is located at the upper end or the lower end of the paper surface, if the paper surface is inserted without worrying about the orientation (top / bottom) of the paper surface, it can be easily and correctly stamped.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the above Example, A change and improvement are freely possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of invention.

1 Electronic stamp 5 Paper loading section
9 Printing section 11 Nozzle row
13 Display 15 Clock
17 Input control section 19 Operation buttons
21 Execution button 23 Control section
25 Storage unit 27 Imaging unit
29 Image identification unit

Claims (5)

In the electronic stamp that prints on the inserted paper,
A paper placement section for placing the paper surface within the printable area;
An imaging unit that images the paper surface disposed on the paper placement unit;
A storage unit for storing the imaged image information and the image information of the seal impression;
An image identifying unit for determining a position to be stamped from the image information stored in the storage unit and correcting the image of the imprint,
A printing unit that prints the imprint image corrected by the image identification unit at the stamp position determined by the image identification unit;
An electronic stamp characterized by comprising   2. The electronic stamp according to claim 1, wherein the image identification unit discriminates a character such as a frame or a mark to be stamped from the captured image information, and uses the center position as the center of the stamp position.   The image identification unit determines the inclination of a character such as a frame or a mark to be imprinted from the captured image information, generates an imprint image in which the imprint is inclined according to the inclination, and the printing unit generates 3. The electronic stamp according to claim 1, wherein the stamped image is printed at the determined position to be stamped.   The image identification unit determines the size of a frame to be imprinted or the size of a character such as a mark from the imaged image information, and generates an imprint image in which the imprint is enlarged or reduced according to the size, 4. The electronic stamp according to claim 1, wherein the printing unit prints the generated imprint image at the determined position to be stamped. 5. In addition to electronic stamps,
An input operation unit for button operation;
A display unit for displaying captured images and the like,
When a plurality of characters such as a frame and a mark to be stamped are determined from the captured image information, the image identification unit synthesizes an image indicating a plurality of areas to be stamped determined in the captured image. An electronic stamp displayed on a display unit, wherein the printing unit prints an appropriate imprint on a region to be stamped selected by the input operation unit.

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