JP2011023899A - Image forming apparatus and method for storing image information - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce image deterioration and restriction of re-edition when the box function is used. <P>SOLUTION: An image reading part 1 reads an image from an original and generates basic image data 21 which satisfies the default reading conditions. A control part 7 specifies the reading conditions when reading an image specified by a user. Furthermore, the control part 7 selects any one of the stored image information or the output image data as the data to be stored in an information storage part 5 based on the user operation, or the like. The control part 7 specifies the setting of output conditions when the image is output, and determines the contents of edition of the basic image data 21 from the setting of reading conditions and the setting of output conditions associated with the basic image data 21. An image edition part 6 edits the basic image data 21 with the contents of edition thus determined and generates the output image data. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and an image information storage method.

  In a multi-function peripheral, image data obtained by reading an image from a document can be stored and stored in a document box in a hard disk drive or the like, and the image data can be read from the document box later to print the document. Some have a box function (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-202197 A

  In such a box function, image data suitable for the reading conditions set by the user at the time of image reading is generated and stored in a document box. The image data stored in the document box is used as it is at the time of output such as printing of the document.

  Also, conditions can be set by the user when outputting a document. Therefore, if the output conditions set by the user when outputting image data from the document box are different from the reading conditions, the image data stored in the document box is output after being edited to meet the output conditions. The

  For this reason, two edits are performed on image data: editing to match the reading conditions applied when saving to the document box, and editing to match the output conditions applied when outputting from the document box. Often done.

  As described above, when the image data is edited a plurality of times, the image is deteriorated each time. Also, since the image data is stored in conformity with the scanning conditions, for example, when the scanned color image is edited into a monochrome image and the image data is stored, a color image is output based on the image data. I can't do it. In this way, re-editing may be restricted when outputting from the document box.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus and an image information storage method capable of reducing image degradation and re-editing restrictions when using the box function. And

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is configured as follows.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes an image reading unit that reads an image from a document and generates basic image data conforming to a predetermined default reading condition, and a reading condition that specifies a reading condition setting at the time of image reading specified by a user Editing means for determining the editing content of the basic image data from the specifying means, the output condition specifying means for specifying the output condition setting at the time of image output for the basic image data, and the reading condition setting and the output condition setting corresponding to the basic image data Content determination means, image editing means for editing the basic image data with the edit content determined by the edit content determination means, and generating output image data, and the basic image data and the reading condition settings are stored in association with each other as stored image information. Or information storage means for storing output image data corresponding to the stored image information, and stored image information and output One of the image data, and selecting means for selecting as the data to be stored in the information storage means.

  As a result, when the read image is stored as output image data, the amount of data stored in the information storage unit is smaller than the stored image information, while the read image is stored as stored image information. In this case, when editing at the time of output, using image data that has not been edited to be applied to the scanning conditions can reduce image degradation and re-editing restrictions when using the box function. it can.

  In addition to the image forming apparatus described above, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows. In this case, the image forming apparatus includes a control unit that stores the stored image information or the output image data selected by the selection unit in the information storage unit. Then, the selection unit selects either the stored image information or the output image data as data to be stored in the information storage unit when the image is read from the original by the image reading unit. The control means stores the data selected by the selection means in the information storage means when the image is read from the original by the image reading means.

  As a result, when the output condition setting is confirmed at the time of image reading, the read image is stored as output image data, thereby reducing the amount of data stored in the information storage unit compared to the stored image information. can do.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, the information storage means includes one or a plurality of document boxes. Then, the selection unit selects either the stored image information or the output image data according to the document box set as the data storage destination.

  As a result, when the output condition setting is confirmed for an image stored in the document box for a certain document box, the read image can be automatically stored as output image data. The amount of data stored in can be reduced.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, the image forming apparatus includes a control unit that stores the stored image information or the output image data selected by the selection unit in the information storage unit. Then, when the output image data is selected by the selection means for the saved image information stored in the information storage means, the control means reads the saved image information from the information storage means, and edit content determination means and edit content determination means Thus, output image data is generated from the stored image information, the stored image information is deleted from the information storage means, and the generated output image data is stored in the information storage means.

  As a result, when the output condition setting is confirmed later for the image once stored in the information storage means as the stored image information, the stored image information can be converted into output image data. The amount of data stored in the means can be reduced.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, the information storage means includes a document box in which a plurality of stored image information is stored. When the output image data is selected by the selection unit for the document box, the selection unit reads all the stored image information stored in the document box from the information storage unit, and the editing content determination unit and the editing content determination unit Thus, output image data is generated from the stored image information, the stored image information is deleted from the document box, and the generated output image data is stored in the document box.

  As a result, when the output condition setting is confirmed for the image stored in the document box, the stored image information in the document box can be converted into output image data at a time. The amount of data stored in the storage means can be reduced.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, the reading condition setting includes at least one of color setting, resolution setting, and image quality setting.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, among the default reading conditions, color is designated for color setting.

  Thereby, even if the reading condition set by the user is monochrome, color can be set in the color setting in the output condition, and color image data can be output.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention may be configured as follows in addition to any of the image forming apparatuses described above. In this case, among the default reading conditions, a constant standard resolution is designated for the resolution setting regardless of the document size.

  Thereby, even when the reading condition set by the user is a low resolution lower than the standard resolution, a high resolution can be set as the resolution setting in the output condition, and high resolution image data can be output.

  An image storage method according to the present invention includes a step of reading an image from a document and generating basic image data conforming to a predetermined default reading condition, a step of specifying a reading condition setting at the time of image reading designated by a user, Selecting one of saved image information including image data and reading condition setting and output image data generated from the saved image information as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium, and storing the data in the predetermined recording medium When the output image data is selected as the data, the step of specifying the output condition setting at the time of image output for the basic image data and the reading condition when the output image data is selected as the data to be stored in the predetermined recording medium A step of determining the editing content of the basic image data from the setting and the output condition setting, and a predetermined recording When output image data is selected as data to be stored in the body, the step of editing the basic image data with the determined editing content to generate output image data, and the data selected as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium Storing any one of the stored image information and the output image data in a predetermined recording medium.

  As a result, when the read image is stored as output image data, the amount of data stored in the information storage unit is smaller than the stored image information, while the read image is stored as stored image information. In this case, when editing at the time of output, using image data that has not been edited to be applied to the scanning conditions can reduce image degradation and re-editing restrictions when using the box function. it can.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an image forming apparatus and an image information storage method capable of reducing image degradation and re-editing restrictions when using the box function.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the various processes in the box function by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining box storage processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. 3 is a flowchart for explaining box preview processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. 4 is a flowchart for explaining box output processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a data conversion process from stored image information in a document box to output image data in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a document box list displayed in the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a document list displayed in the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a document box selection screen when saving a box in the image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of an input screen displayed in the image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 2. FIG.

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

Embodiment 1 FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an image reading unit 1 irradiates light on one side or both sides of a document fed by an automatic document feeder or a document placed by a user and receives reflected light or the like. This is a device that reads the image and outputs it as image data.

  The printing unit 2 is a device that prints a document image based on the image data generated by the image reading unit 1 and the image data stored in the document box 11.

  The communication unit 3 is a device that performs data communication with a host device or the like via a telephone line, a computer network, or the like. For example, the communication unit 3 transmits image data to the host device or the like. The communication unit 3 includes, for example, a network interface card and a modem.

  The operation panel unit 4 includes a display device and an input device (not shown) and is a device that realizes a user interface. A display such as a liquid crystal display is used as the display device. As the input device, a key switch, a transparent touch panel arranged on the screen of the display device, or the like is used. For example, an image of an operation unit such as a button is displayed on the display device, and an operation on the operation unit is detected by the touch panel. The input device of the operation panel unit 4 detects a reading condition setting operation at the time of image reading.

  The information storage unit 5 is a device that stores image data generated by the image reading unit 1. In the information storage unit 5, a storage area is secured as the document box 11, and image data is stored in the document box 11. As the information storage unit 5, a device that drives a readable / writable recording medium such as a hard disk drive is used.

  The information storage unit 5 stores the basic image data 21, the editing information 22, and the thumbnail image data 23 generated by the box saving function as a set of saved image information.

  The basic image data 21 is image data generated by the image reading unit 1 and is image data suitable for default reading conditions. The default reading condition is, for example, a combination of default values for color setting, resolution setting, and image quality setting. Specifically, for example, the default value of the color setting is “color”, the default value of the resolution setting is 600 dpi (dot per inch), and the default value of the image quality setting is “high”.

  The editing information 22 is a reading condition setting at the time of image reading designated by the user. The reading condition setting is, for example, a combination of color setting, resolution setting, and image quality setting designated by the user.

  The thumbnail image data 23 is image data generated by applying the editing information 22 to the basic image data 21 and reducing it to a predetermined low resolution.

  The image editing unit 6 is a processing unit that generates new image data by changing the number of colors, resolution, image quality, data format, and the like of the image data. The image editing unit 6 generates thumbnail image data 23, preview image data, output image data, and the like from the basic image data 21.

  The control unit 7 controls the image reading unit 1, the printing unit 2, the communication unit 3, the operation panel unit 4, the information storage unit 5, and the image editing unit 6 in accordance with a user operation on the input device of the operation panel unit 4. It is a processing unit. The control unit 7 specifies the reading condition setting based on the setting operation detected by the input device of the operation panel unit 4 when reading the document. Further, the control unit 7 specifies the output condition setting based on the setting operation detected by the input device of the operation panel unit 4 when the basic image data 21 is output. Further, the control unit 7 determines the editing content for generating the output image data from the basic image data 21 based on the reading condition setting associated with the basic image data 21 to be output and the output condition setting. .

  The image editing unit 6 and the control unit 7 are realized by, for example, a computer that executes a computer program, a digital signal processor, or the like.

  In this image forming apparatus, the image reading unit 1 is an example of an image reading unit, the information storage unit 5 is an example of an information storage unit, the image editing unit 6 is an example of an image editing unit, and the control unit 7 is a reading unit. It is an example of a condition specifying unit, a control unit, an output condition specifying unit, an editing content determination unit, and a selection unit.

  Next, the operation of the above apparatus will be described.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing various processes in the box function by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. The box function mainly includes three processes: (1) box storage, (2) box preview, and (3) box output.

  Hereinafter, each process will be described.

(1) Box save

  The box saving is a process of saving an image read by the image reading unit 1 in the document box 11 as saved image information 31 together with a reading condition setting designated by the user. When box saving is selected by a user operation on the operation panel unit 4, box saving processing is executed.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining box storage processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the box storing process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the box storage, first, the reading conditions are designated by the user. The reading conditions include conditions such as color, resolution, and image quality. For example, an option list for each condition item is displayed on the display device of the operation panel unit 4, and the user operates the input device of the operation panel unit 4 to select a desired value. This selection operation is detected by the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. And the control part 7 specifies the reading condition setting by a user based on the selection operation (step S1). This reading condition setting is temporarily stored as editing information 22 in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  After the reading conditions are designated by the user, an operation for reading an image is performed on the operation panel unit 4. This operation is detected by the input device of the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. In response to the operation, the control unit 7 controls the image reading unit 1 to read the image of the document (step S2). As a result, the image reading unit 1 reads the image of the document and generates basic image data 21 under the default reading conditions (step S3). The basic image data 21 is temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  Then, the control unit 7 generates thumbnail image data 23 from the basic image data 21 and the editing information 22, and uses the basic image data 21, the editing information 22 and the thumbnail image data 23 as a set of stored image information 31. Is stored in the document box 11 specified by (step S4).

  That is, in the box storage of the first embodiment, image data that does not reflect the reading conditions specified by the user (that is, basic image data 21) and reading conditions that are specified by the user (that is, editing information 22). Are stored in the document box 11 as one saved image information 31. As a result, the read image intended by the user is stored as one stored image information 31.

(2) Box preview

  The box preview is processing for generating preview image data from the stored image information 31 in the document box 11 and displaying an image based on the preview image data. When a box preview is selected by a user operation on the operation panel unit 4, a box preview process is executed.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining box preview processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the box preview process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the box preview, first, a list of stored image information 31 in the document box 11 is displayed on the operation panel unit 4, and the stored image information 31 to be previewed is selected by a user operation on the operation panel unit 4. At that time, as each saved image information 31 in the list, a thumbnail image based on the thumbnail image data 23, editing information 22 and the like are displayed. The selection operation by the user is detected by the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. Then, based on the selection operation, the control unit 7 specifies the saved image information 31 to be previewed (step S11).

  When the preview target is specified, the control unit 7 reads the basic image data 21 and the editing information 22 of the stored image information 31 from the document box 11 (step S12). The basic image data 21 and the editing information 22 are temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  Next, the control unit 7 causes the image editing unit 6 to generate preview image data (step S13). The image editing unit 6 applies preview information 22 to the basic image data 21 to generate preview image data with a predetermined resolution. For example, when the color setting of the basic image data 21 is “color” and the color setting in the editing information 22 is “monochrome”, the image editing unit 6 discards the color information in the basic image data 21. Monochrome preview image data is generated. The generated preview image data is temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  Then, the control unit 7 controls the operation panel unit 4 to display the preview image of the stored image information 31 designated by the user on the display device of the operation panel unit 4 based on the preview image data (step S14).

  That is, in the box preview according to the first embodiment, the reading condition specified by the user at the time of image reading is applied to the basic image data 21 at the time of preview. As described above, since a preview image to which the reading condition specified by the user is applied is displayed at the time of preview, the basic image data 21 to which the reading condition specified by the user is not applied is stored in the document box 11. Is not conscious of the user.

(3) Box output

  Box output is a process of generating and outputting output image data from the stored image information 31 in the document box 11. When box output is selected by a user operation on the operation panel unit 4, box output processing is executed. Box output includes box printing and box transmission. In box printing, the output destination is the printing unit 2, and an original image is printed based on the output image data. In box transmission, the output destination is the communication unit 3, and output image data is transmitted to the outside based on a predetermined communication protocol such as e-mail, FTP (File Transfer Protocol), or facsimile transmission.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining box output processing by the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the box output process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the box output, first, a list of stored image information 31 in the document box 11 is displayed on the operation panel unit 4, and the output target stored image information 31 is selected by a user operation on the operation panel unit 4. At that time, as each saved image information 31 in the list, a thumbnail image based on the thumbnail image data 23, editing information 22 and the like are displayed. The selection operation by the user is detected by the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. And the control part 7 specifies the preserve | saved image information 31 which is an output object based on the selection operation (step S21).

  When the output target is specified, the control unit 7 reads the editing information 22 of the stored image information 31 from the document box 11 and displays it on the operation panel unit 4 (step S22).

  Here, an output condition is designated by the user. Output conditions include conditions such as color, resolution, and image quality. For example, an option list for each condition item is displayed on the display device of the operation panel unit 4, and the user operates the input device of the operation panel unit 4 to select a desired value. This selection operation is detected by the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. And the control part 7 specifies the output condition setting by a user based on the selection operation (step S24). This output condition setting is temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  Next, the control unit 7 specifies the condition item to be changed and the amount of change (hereinafter referred to as output editing information) when generating the output image data from the basic image data 21 from the editing information 22 and the output condition setting. (Step S25). This output editing information is temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  At this time, for a condition item for which an absolute value is specified, the difference between the default reading condition and the value in the output condition setting is specified as the change amount. For example, when the resolution of the default reading condition is 600 dpi, the resolution of the reading condition setting (edit information 22) is 300 dpi, and the resolution of the output condition setting is 600 dpi, the resolution is not changed (that is, the amount of change is Zero). For example, when the color setting of the default reading condition is color, the color setting of the reading condition setting (editing information 22) is color, and the color setting of the output condition setting is monochrome, the color of the image data is Be changed.

  At this time, for the condition item for which the relative value is specified, the amount of change is specified by combining the value in the editing information 22 and the value in the output condition setting. For example, the enlargement / reduction setting in the default reading condition is 100%, the enlargement / reduction setting in the reading condition setting (edit information 22) is 50%, and the enlargement / reduction setting in the output condition setting is 200%. In some cases, the enlargement / reduction setting when generating the output image data from the basic image data 21 is 100 percent (= 50 percent × 200 percent). For this reason, enlargement / reduction is not performed when the output image data is generated. Also, for example, the enlargement / reduction setting under the default reading condition is 100%, the enlargement / reduction setting under the reading condition setting (edit information 22) is 50%, and the enlargement / reduction setting under the output condition setting is 100%. In the case of the percentage, the enlargement / reduction setting when generating the output image data from the basic image data 21 is 50 percent (= 50 percent × 100 percent). For this reason, a reduction process of 50% is performed when the output image data is generated. In the reduction process, new image data is generated by thinning out pixels of the image data. In the enlargement process, new image data is generated by complementing and inserting pixels of the image data.

  When specifying the output editing information as described above, the control unit 7 causes the image editing unit 6 to generate output image data (step S26). The image editing unit 6 generates output image data by applying output editing information to the basic image data 21. This output image data is temporarily stored in a RAM (not shown) or the like.

  And the control part 7 outputs the produced | generated output image data (step S27). At this time, in the case of box printing, output image data is output to the printing unit 2, and a document image is printed by the printing unit 2. In the case of box transmission, output image data is output to the communication unit 3, and the output image data is transmitted to the outside by the communication unit 3.

  That is, in the box output according to the first embodiment, at the time of output, output editing information in consideration of the reading condition and the output condition specified by the user at the time of image reading is generated and applied to the basic image data 21. That is, the reading condition and the output condition are collectively applied at the time of output. As described above, since the image data to which the reading condition and the output condition are applied is output, it is indicated to the user that the basic image data 21 to which the reading condition specified by the user is not applied is stored in the document box 11. You don't need to be conscious.

  As described above, (1) box storage, (2) box preview, and (3) box output are performed.

  Further, in the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the saved image information 31 stored in the document box 11 is converted into the output image data 41 described above, and the saved image information 31 is replaced with the saved image information 31. It can be stored in the document box 11.

  At this time, the saved image information 31 or the document box 11 is selected by the user, and the output image data 41 is selected from the selected saved image information 31 or all the saved image information 31 in the selected document box 11 as described above. Is generated in this way. That is, first, the control unit 7 specifies the output condition setting, reads the designated saved image information 31 from the information storage unit 5, and outputs the editing information 22 in the saved image information 31 and the output editing information from the identified output condition setting. The image editing unit 6 is caused to generate output image data.

  Then, the control unit 7 deletes the original saved image information 31 from the document box 11 and stores the output image data 41 in the document box 11 instead. At this time, the control unit 7 stores the thumbnail image data 23 in the document box 11 in association with the output image data 41 without deleting the thumbnail image data 23.

  For example, when the user performs a predetermined operation, the control unit 7 displays a document box list on the display device of the operation panel unit 4. The document box list is a list of one or more document boxes registered in this apparatus.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a document box list displayed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. In the document box list shown in FIG. 7, the name of the document box and the application state of the editing information are displayed for each document box. The application state of the edit information indicates whether the data stored in the document box is the data to which the edit information 22 and the output condition setting are applied (that is, any of the stored image information 31 and the output image data 41). Is stored). When the application state of the editing information is “not yet”, each image may be stored as either the saved image information 31 or the output image data in the document box, and the application state of the editing information is “completed”. ", All images are stored as output image data 41 in the document box.

  In the same screen as the document box list, an “Open” button and an “Edit application” button are displayed. When the input device of the operation panel unit 4 is operated by the user, one of the document boxes is selected and the “Open” button is pressed, a list of images (that is, documents) stored in the document box is displayed. Is displayed. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a document list displayed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. In the document list shown in FIG. 8, the name of the document and the application state of the editing information are displayed. The application state of the edit information indicates whether or not the data of the document is data to which the edit information 22 and the output condition setting are applied (that is, whether the data is the saved image information 31 or the output image data 41). . When the application state of the editing information is “not yet”, the stored image information 31 is stored for the document, and when the application state of the editing information is “completed”, the output image data 41 for the document. Is saved. In addition, an “edit application” button is displayed in the same screen as the document list.

  Then, when the input device of the operation panel unit 4 is operated by the user, one of the document boxes whose editing information application state is “Not yet” is selected from the document box list, and the “Editing application” button is pressed. The stored image information 31 in the document box is converted into the output image data 41 as described above, and the output image data 41 is stored instead of the stored image information 31. Then, the application information application state for the document box is “completed”, and the edit information application state for all documents in the document box is “completed”. Since the data amount of the output image data 41 is less than or equal to the data amount of the basic image data 21, this increases the free capacity of the information storage unit 5.

  Further, when the input device of the operation panel unit 4 is operated by the user, any document whose editing information application state is “uncompleted” is selected from the document list, and the “edit editing” button is pressed, The stored image information 31 of the document is converted into the output image data 41 as described above, and the output image data 41 is stored instead of the stored image information 31. Then, the application state of the editing information for the document is “completed”.

  Thereafter, when the saved image information 31 is saved as a certain document (image) at the time of box output, the output image data 41 is generated from the saved image information 31 and the output condition setting as described above. Output image data 41 is output.

  On the other hand, when the output image data 41 is saved as a certain document (image) at the time of box output, the output image data 41 is output as it is.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the image reading unit 1 reads an image from a document and generates basic image data 21 that conforms to default reading conditions. The control unit 7 specifies reading condition settings at the time of image reading designated by the user. Further, the control unit 7 selects one of the stored image information and the output image data as data to be stored in the information storage unit 5 based on a user operation or the like. The control unit 7 specifies the output condition setting at the time of image output, and determines the editing content of the basic image data 21 from the reading condition setting and the output condition setting associated with the basic image data 21. Then, the image editing unit 6 edits the basic image data 21 with the determined editing content to generate output image data. The information storage unit 5 stores only one of the saved image information 31 and the output image data 41 for each document.

  Thereby, when the read image is stored as the output image data 41, the amount of data stored in the information storage unit 5 is smaller than the stored image information 31, while the read image is stored image information. In the case of being stored as 31, by using image data that has not been edited to be applied to reading conditions when editing at the time of output, image degradation and re-editing restrictions when using the box function are restricted. Can be reduced.

  Further, according to the first embodiment, the control unit 7 reads the saved image information 31 stored in the information storage unit 5 from the information storage unit 5 and generates the output image data 41 from the saved image information 31. The stored image information 31 is deleted from the information storage unit 5 and the generated output image data 41 is stored in the information storage unit 5.

  Thereby, when the output condition setting is confirmed later for the image once stored in the information storage unit 5 as the saved image information 31, the saved image information 31 can be converted into the output image data 41. Compared to the above, the amount of data stored in the information storage unit 5 can be reduced.

Embodiment 2. FIG.

  In the second embodiment, the image forming apparatus has the same function as that of the first embodiment, and the data format of the image (document) to be saved in the information storage unit 5 at the time of image reading is changed to the saved image information 31 and the output image. The data (document) is selected from the data 41 and stored in the information storage unit 5 in the data format.

  Note that the configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. However, in the second embodiment, the control unit 7 operates as follows when the box is stored.

  In the second embodiment, when saving a box, first, the document box list is displayed on the display device of the operation panel unit 4, and the document box 11 as the data storage destination is selected according to the user operation on the input device of the operation panel unit 4. The

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a document box selection screen when saving a box in the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. On the selection screen shown in FIG. 9, a document box list, a “save document” button, and an “edit application switching” button are displayed. This document box list includes the name of each document box and editing information application settings. The editing information application setting indicates whether the image (document) is stored in the document box as the stored image information 31 or the output image data 41. When the editing information application setting is “apply”, the image (document) is stored as output image data 41, and when the editing information application setting is “not apply”, the image (document) is stored. Saved as saved image information 31.

  When the “Save Document” button is pressed, the document box currently selected in the document box list is set as the data storage destination.

  When the “edit application switching” button is pressed, the value of the attribute data indicating the application information application setting for the document box currently selected in the document box list is changed from “apply” to “not apply”. Or “Do not apply” to “Apply”.

  Thereafter, the control unit 7 selects whether to apply the editing information and the output condition setting. That is, the control unit 7 selects which of the saved image information 31 and the output image data 41 is saved when saving the box. At that time, the control unit 7 selects either the stored image information 31 or the output image data 41 based on the user operation or the document box 11 of the data storage destination.

  When selecting either the stored image information 31 or the output image data 41 based on the user operation, the control unit 7 causes the display device of the operation panel unit 4 to display an input screen that prompts the user to perform a selection operation. One of the stored image information 31 and the output image data 41 is selected according to a user operation on the input device of the operation panel unit 4. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of an input screen displayed in the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. On the input screen shown in FIG. 10, a message “Yes, apply the editing information to the image and save?” And a “Yes” button and a “No” button are displayed. When the “Yes” button is pressed, the output image data 41 is selected. When the “No” button is pressed, the saved image information 31 is selected.

  When selecting either the saved image information 31 or the output image data 41 according to the document storage destination document box 11, the saved image information 31 or the output image data 41 is selected for the document box 11. Attribute data indicating whether an image (document) is to be stored (that is, attribute data indicating editing information application setting) is provided, and the control unit 7 determines whether to store the stored image information 31 and the output image according to the value of the attribute data. One of the data 41 is selected. The value of the attribute data for each document box 11 is set based on a user operation on the operation panel unit 4.

  When the stored image information 31 is stored in the box storage, the control unit 7 stores the stored image information 31 in the designated document box 11 as described above.

  On the other hand, when the output image data 41 is stored in the box storage, as described above, the control unit 7 sets the image according to the stored image information 31 (that is, the basic image data 21 and the editing information 22) and the output condition setting. The editing unit 6 generates output image data 41 and stores the generated output image data 41 in the designated document box 11.

  Since other operations of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, when the image reading unit 1 reads an image from a document, the control unit 7 stores either the stored image information 31 or the output image data 41 as information. The data is selected as data to be stored in the unit 5, and the selected data is stored in the information storage unit 5.

  As a result, when the output condition setting is confirmed at the time of image reading, the read image is stored as the output image data 41, so that the data stored in the information storage unit 5 can be compared with the stored image information 31. The amount can be reduced.

  Each embodiment described above is a preferred example of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to these, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is.

  For example, in each of the above embodiments, the thumbnail image data 23 may not be included in the stored image information 31.

  In each of the above embodiments, the preview image data is generated at the time of the box preview. However, the preview image data is generated in the same manner as the thumbnail image data 23 and is included in the saved image information 31 in advance and used at the time of the box preview. You may make it do. In that case, the preview image data may be used as the thumbnail image data 23.

  In each of the above embodiments, the image stored in the document box 11 (that is, the image based on the stored image information 31) may be changeable by the user. In that case, the following stored image editing process is executed. For example, after the preview image is displayed, the changed condition settings (color setting, resolution setting, etc.) are input by the user. The input operation is detected by the operation panel unit 4 and notified to the control unit 7. The control unit 7 updates the editing information 22 with the condition setting. Then, the image editing unit 6 regenerates preview image data using the updated editing information 22. The control unit 7 displays the regenerated preview image on the display device of the operation panel unit 4. Thus, in the stored image editing process, the image stored in the document box 11 is edited. At this time, the editing information 22 is changed without changing the basic image data 21 according to the setting change by the user. By doing so, the saved basic image data 21 is not edited no matter how many times the saved image editing process is executed until the image data is output, so that the number of edits of the image data is one at the time of output. , Image degradation and re-editing restrictions can be reduced.

  In each of the above embodiments, image trimming may be specified in each condition setting. In this case, the basic image data 21 is not trimmed, and trimming information (trimming position and trimming amount) is included in the editing information 22. At the time of output and preview, preview image data and output image data reflecting the trimming information are generated. In this case, for example, even if trimming is specified in the reading condition setting, the original size image data can be output by canceling the trimming in the output condition setting.

  In the first embodiment, a communication line is established between the communication unit 3 and a host device capable of data communication, and the control unit 7 communicates with drivers, utilities, and the like of the host device via the communication line. Then, instead of the operation panel unit 4, a user operation is accepted using a display device (display, etc.) and an input device (keyboard, mouse, etc.) of the host device, and output from the stored image information 31 according to the user operation. Conversion to image data 41 may be performed. In this case, for example, the screens shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 are displayed on the display device of the host device, and information on user operations on the input device of the host device is received by the control unit 7 via the communication line.

  The present invention can be applied to, for example, a multifunction machine having a copy function, a facsimile function, and the like.

1 Image reading unit (image reading means)
5. Information storage unit (information storage means, predetermined recording medium)
6 Image editing unit (image editing means)
7 Control unit (reading condition specifying means, control means, output condition specifying means, editing content determination means, selection means)
11 Document Box 21 Basic Image Data 31 Saved Image Information 41 Output Image Data

Claims (9)

Image reading means for reading an image from a document and generating basic image data suitable for a predetermined default reading condition;
Reading condition specifying means for specifying a reading condition setting at the time of image reading specified by a user;
Output condition specifying means for specifying an output condition setting at the time of image output for the basic image data;
Editing content determining means for determining the editing content of the basic image data from the reading condition setting and the output condition setting corresponding to the basic image data;
Image editing means for editing the basic image data with the editing content determined by the editing content determination means and generating output image data;
Storing the basic image data and the reading condition setting in association with each other as stored image information, or storing the output image data corresponding to the stored image information;
Selecting means for selecting any one of the saved image information and the output image data as data to be stored in the information storage means;
An image forming apparatus comprising: Control means for storing in the information storage means the stored image information or the output image data selected by the selection means;
The selection unit selects either the stored image information or the output image data as data to be stored in the information storage unit when an image is read from the document by the image reading unit,
The control unit stores the data selected by the selection unit in the information storage unit when an image is read from the document by the image reading unit;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The information storage means includes one or more document boxes,
The selection means selects one of the stored image information and the output image data according to a document box set as a data storage destination;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2. Control means for storing in the information storage means the stored image information or the output image data selected by the selection means;
When the output image data is selected by the selection unit for the stored image information stored in the information storage unit, the control unit reads the stored image information from the information storage unit, and the editing content determination unit Generating the output image data from the saved image information by the editing content determining means, deleting the saved image information from the information storing means, and storing the generated output image data in the information storing means,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The information storage means includes a document box in which a plurality of the stored image information is stored,
When the output image data is selected by the selection unit for the document box, the selection unit reads all stored image information stored in the document box from the information storage unit, and the editing content determination unit and Generating the output image data from the saved image information by the editing content determining means, deleting the saved image information from the document box, and storing the generated output image data in the document box;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 4.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reading condition setting includes at least one of a color setting, a resolution setting, and an image quality setting.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a color is designated for color setting among the default reading conditions.   2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein among the default reading conditions, a fixed standard resolution is designated for the resolution setting regardless of the document size. Reading an image from a document and generating basic image data suitable for predetermined default reading conditions;
Identifying a reading condition setting at the time of image reading specified by a user;
Selecting one of saved image information including the basic image data and the reading condition setting and output image data generated from the saved image information as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium;
When the output image data is selected as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium, specifying an output condition setting at the time of image output for the basic image data;
Determining the editing content of the basic image data from the reading condition setting and the output condition setting when the output image data is selected as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium;
When the output image data is selected as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium, editing the basic image data with the determined editing content to generate the output image data;
Storing any one of the stored image information and the output image data selected as data to be stored in a predetermined recording medium in the predetermined recording medium;
An image information storage method comprising:

Images