JP2011176515A - Image processing apparatus, image processing method, image processing program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide: an image processing apparatus provided with a function of simultaneously reading both sides of a document and a double-sided printing function using a paper inverting mechanism; an image processing method; an image processing program; and a recording medium. <P>SOLUTION: A both side reading control part 14 of a multifunction device 1 stores image data on both sides of a document inputted from scanners 11 and 12 into a page memory 15 and then temporarily stores the image data into a main memory 23. When transferring the image data, via the main memory 23, to a writing part 19 having an odd/even continuous output function of consecutively outputting only a two-page component of front-side image data sequentially in the page order and then consecutively outputting a two-page component of rear side image data sequentially in the page order, the control part 14 sequentially reads out a two-page component of front-side image data and a two-page component of rear side image data from the page memory 15 in accordance with the output order of odd/even continuous output and transfers them to the main memory 23. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an image processing program, and a recording medium, and more specifically, an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and an image processing apparatus equipped with a double-sided printing function using a document double-sided simultaneous reading function and a paper reversing mechanism, The present invention relates to an image processing program and a recording medium.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image processing apparatus such as a composite apparatus or a copying apparatus, a double-sided simultaneous reading unit that simultaneously reads both front and back sides of a document, a single-sided printing unit that prints on one side (front side) of paper, and a single-sided printing unit that prints on one side There is an image processing apparatus that includes a front and back reversing unit that reverses a completed sheet and sends it again to a single-sided printing unit to print on the opposite side (back side) of the sheet, and performs both-sided simultaneous reading and duplex printing. .

  In such an image processing apparatus, an image processing unit that performs image processing necessary for image data is usually provided with a page memory for one front and back (two pages) of a document, and is read by a double-sided simultaneous reading unit. The image data on the front and back surfaces are temporarily stored in the page memory, and the image data on one side is transferred to the main memory of the controller in the order of front side to back side and stored in the main memory. When the image data transfer speed from the image processing unit to the main memory is sufficiently high, if there is a memory area for two pages in the page memory, while transferring the front and back surfaces to the main memory, Even when reading of the next document is started by the double-sided simultaneous reading unit, the image data of the front and back surfaces of the next document can be stored in the page memory. Therefore, when both sides of a plurality of documents are simultaneously read and printed on both sides, the front image data of the first document → the back image data of the first document → the front image data of the second document → 2 from the page memory. The back side image data of the first document is transferred to the main memory in this order and stored in the main memory, so that both sides of the original are simultaneously read at high speed.

  If the image data of a double-sided document stored in the main memory is double-sided printed by the single-sided printing unit using the paper reversing unit, if the single-sided printing unit is slow, the paper printed on the front side is reversed by the paper reversing unit. Then, the process of printing the back side is sequentially repeated for each sheet and printed.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 9, the image processing apparatus is provided with a page memory for four pages (front and back of two originals) in the image processing unit, and a double-sided simultaneous reading unit (hereinafter simply referred to as appropriate). , The front and back image data (1 front, 1 back, 2 back, 2 back,...) Sent from the scanner at the same time from the page memory (page memories P1, P2) for 4 pages. , P3, P4). Then, the image processing apparatus transfers the front image data (1 front) of the first document to the main memory of the controller, and then transfers the back image data (1 back) of the first document to the main memory of the controller. To do. Next, the image processing apparatus transfers the front side image data (2 front) of the second original to the main memory of the controller, and then the back side image data (2 back) of the second original to the main memory of the controller. The process of transferring is performed sequentially thereafter.

  Alternatively, the image data of the document read by the double-sided simultaneous reading unit is the back image data of the first document → the front image data of the first document → the back image data of the second document → the front image data of the second document → Are sent to the page memory in the order of..., Transferred from the page memory to the controller, and transferred to the printing unit in the same order (see Patent Document 1).

  However, in the case of a high-speed machine in which the single-sided printing unit performs color printing at high speed, the single-sided printing unit 100 usually includes image forming units 101C, 101M, 101, and 101B for each color, as shown in FIGS. A plurality of sheets (two sheets in FIG. 11) 102a and 102b are simultaneously conveyed on a sheet conveyance path in which 101Y and 101K are arranged at a predetermined narrow interval, and images of the same surface for the plurality of sheets are printed on the first document, The printing speed is improved by printing the second original document in order, reversing the printed paper by the paper reversing unit 103, and printing the images on the opposite side of the same plurality of originals. That is, the front surface of the first document → the front surface of the second document → the back surface of the first document → the back surface of the second document → the front surface of the third document → the front surface of the fourth document → Print.

  11A shows a case where single-sided printing is performed on a high-speed machine, and FIG. 11B shows a case where double-sided printing is performed on the same high-speed machine. FIG. 11 shows a case where two sheets are simultaneously transported on the transport path of the printing unit.

  Therefore, when the single-sided printing unit is a high-speed machine and simultaneously transports two sheets of paper on the transporting path of the printing unit, image data on the same side is transferred continuously from the main memory of the controller to the printing unit for every two originals. There is a need to.

  Therefore, in the conventional image processing apparatus, as shown in FIG. 12, from the page memory to the memory areas M1 to M4 of the main memory, the first surface → the first back surface → the second surface → the second back surface → Since the image data is transferred in the order of the third sheet surface →..., This image data is sequentially stored in the memory areas M1 to M4 of the main memory, and the first sheet surface → second sheet from the main memory. Transfer to the printing unit in the order of front side → first back side → second back side → third front side → fourth front side →.

  However, in the above prior art, since the process of changing the output order in accordance with the print order in the printing unit from the input order of the image data sent from the page memory in the main memory is performed, the cost is high. There is a problem that the processing speed decreases. That is, in the main memory, as shown in FIG. 13, in order to transfer the image data transferred from the page memory to the main memory to the printing unit in a different order, the output image data is temporarily saved in the save buffer (main memory). The image data is transferred from the output buffer to the printing unit by performing a swap process in which the data is saved in the save memory area or the save memory area provided in the hard disk or the like and then transferred to the output buffer. As a result, a save buffer is required in addition to the input buffer and the output buffer, and the cost is high, and the processing speed of the copy processing is reduced by the amount of memory swap processing.

  Therefore, the present invention provides an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and an image processing program that can transfer data to the output side without changing data in the image data storage means and improve the processing speed at low cost. And it aims at providing a recording medium.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention stores a plurality of pages of image data input in a predetermined page order in a page memory, transfers them to an image data storage means, temporarily stores them, and stores a predetermined number of continuous pages. When outputting to a data output having an odd-numbered / even-numbered continuous output function of outputting image data of even pages sequentially in order of pages after the same number of consecutive pages after outputting image data of odd pages sequentially sequentially The image data written in the page memory is matched with the output order in the odd / even continuous output, and the odd page image data of the continuous page number and the even page image data of the continuous page number are sequentially read out to store the data. It is characterized by being transferred to the means and stored.

  In the present invention, the data input means reads the front and back sides of the document at the same time, inputs the front side image data as the odd page image data, and inputs the back side image data as the even page image data. In the printing medium, the image is continuously printed on the same side of the print medium having the number of continuous pages based on the continuous image data having the number of continuous pages, and the number of the continuous pages on which the image is printed on one side. It is also possible to reverse the front and back and print again sequentially.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, when the processing mode is other than the data processing mode in which a double-sided document is read and data is output by the odd / even continuous output function, input image data is read from the page memory in the input order and the image is output. The data may be transferred to data storage means.

  According to the present invention, data can be transferred to the output side without replacing data in the image data storage means, and the processing speed can be improved at a low cost.

1 is a block diagram of a main part of an image processing apparatus to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied. The principal part block block diagram of a double-sided reading control part. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of image data transfer processing in a page memory of the composite apparatus. 6 is a flowchart showing document reading processing. 6 is a flowchart showing image data transfer processing from the page memory to the controller. 6 is a flowchart showing processing subsequent to FIG. The flowchart which shows a double-sided simultaneous reading double-sided printing process. Explanatory drawing of the input / output timing of the image data in the main memory of a composite apparatus. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of image data transfer processing in the main memory of the composite apparatus. Explanatory drawing of the image data transfer process in the conventional low-speed machine. Explanatory drawing of the printing condition at the time of single-sided printing and double-sided printing in the printing part of a high-speed machine. Explanatory drawing of the input / output timing of the image data in the conventional main memory. Explanatory drawing of the image data transfer process in the conventional main memory.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, since the Example described below is a suitable Example of this invention, various technically preferable restrictions are attached | subjected, However, The range of this invention is unduly limited by the following description. However, not all the configurations described in the present embodiment are essential constituent elements of the present invention.

  1 to 9 are diagrams illustrating an embodiment of an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an image processing program, and a recording medium according to the present invention. FIG. 1 illustrates an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and an image according to the present invention. 1 is a block configuration diagram of an image processing apparatus 1 to which an embodiment of a processing program and a recording medium is applied.

  In FIG. 1, an image processing apparatus 1 is an image processing apparatus such as a high-speed copying apparatus or a composite apparatus. The image processing apparatus 1 includes an engine unit 10 and a controller unit 20, and although not shown, such as an operation display unit and a communication unit. Each part necessary for an image processing apparatus is provided.

  The engine unit 10 includes a front surface scanner 11, a back surface scanner 12, an image processing unit 13, a double-sided reading control unit 14, a page memory 15, a scanner image processing unit 16, an engine CPU 17, a printer image processing unit 18, a writing unit 19, and the like. The controller unit 20 includes a controller 21, a hard disk 22, a main memory 23, and the like. The controller 21 is equipped with a controller CPU 24.

  For example, a scanner using a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) is used as the surface scanner 11, and the image data on the surface of the document is read by performing main scanning and sub-scanning on the surface of the document to obtain digital image data. The image is output to the image processing unit 13. The image processing unit 13 performs image processing such as correction of scanner characteristics on the surface image data sent from the surface scanner 11 (for example, correction of irradiation unevenness of a light source that irradiates a document, variation in sensitivity of a CCD, and the like). Image processing such as shading correction) is performed and output to the double-sided reading control unit 14. The image processing unit 13 may be built in the surface scanner 11.

  The back surface scanner 12 may be a scanner using a CCD similar to the front surface scanner 11, for example, a CIS (Contact Image Sensor) using a CMOS (complementary MOS) as a photoelectric conversion element. There may be. The back side scanner 12 performs main scanning and sub scanning on the back side of the document, reads the back side of the document, and outputs it to the duplex reading control unit 14. The back surface scanner 12 includes an image processing unit that performs shading correction and the like for correcting variations peculiar to the scanner. The image processing unit is provided outside the back surface scanner 12 in the same manner as the front surface scanner 11. It may be arranged. The front scanner 11 and the back scanner 12 function as data input means as a whole.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the double-sided reading control unit (data transfer control unit) 14 includes a page memory write control unit 14w, a page memory read control unit 14r, data buses 14dw, 14dr, 14dc, and the like. The page memory 15 has a memory area for at least four sides (memory areas P1 to P4 for storing image data of the front and back of two documents), and the double-sided reading control unit 14 determines the number of pages in the page memory 15. Information (page information) and front / back information (information on whether the image data is for the front side or the image data for the back side) are grasped, and image data is written to and read from the memory areas P1 to P4 of the page memory 15. To control.

  The page memory writing control unit 14w receives the front surface image data and the back surface image data read by the scanners 11 and 12, and is connected to the page memory 15 via the data bus 14dw. The page memory read control unit 14r is connected to the page memory 15 via the data bus 14dw and is connected to the scanner image processing unit 16 via the data bus 14dt.

  The page memory write control unit 14w transfers the front surface image data and the back surface image data input from the front surface scanner 11 and the back surface scanner 12 to the page memory 15 via the data bus 14dw, and the page memory read control unit 14r Then, from the image data for the four pages of the front and back two pages of the two consecutive originals stored in the page memory 15, the front image data of the first original and the front image data of the next original are read out and the next Then, the back side image data of the first original and the back side image data of the next original are read out in this order and transferred to the scanner image processing unit 16 via the data bus 14dr and the data bus 14dt.

  That is, the double-sided reading control unit 14 simultaneously stores the front surface image data and the back surface image data sent from the scanners 11 and 12 in the page memory 15, and among the front and back image data stored in the page memory 15, Is transferred to the controller unit 20, and the double-sided image data of the next original is stored in another address of the page memory 15. When the transfer of the surface image data of the first original is completed, the duplex reading control unit 14 continues to transfer the surface image data of the second original to the controller unit 20. When the double-sided reading control unit 14 completes the transfer of the image data for the two front surfaces, there is a space for two pages on the page memory 15, so that the double-sided image data of the next original is further stored in the free memory area. At the same time, the image data for the remaining two back surfaces of the previous document is continuously transferred to the controller 15. When the transfer of the image data for the two back surfaces is completed, the double-sided reading control unit 14 repeats the same processing as described above since two more spaces are left on the page memory 15.

  That is, as will be described later, the double-sided reading control unit 14 stores the image data for both the front and back sides in the page memory 15 for two originals, and matches the writing order in the writing unit 19 when transferring to the controller unit 20. The transfer order of the image data to the controller unit 20 is changed.

  The scanner image processing unit 16 performs various designated image processing such as dither processing, filter processing, and scaling processing on the image data sent from the double-sided reading control unit 14 and outputs the processed image data to the controller unit 20.

  The engine CPU 17 controls the operation of the duplex reading control unit 14 in accordance with an instruction from the controller CPU 24. That is, the duplex reading control unit 14 notifies the engine CPU 17 of the completion of document reading by the front surface scanner 11 and the back surface scanner 12, and the state in the page memory 15 (whether the next document can be read or not). Status) is notified to the engine CPU 17. The engine CPU 17 controls the reading timing of the next document on the basis of the notification from the double-sided reading control unit 14, and if the read document is an odd number in total, without waiting for the next even-numbered reading, Reading by the front surface scanner 11 and the rear surface scanner 12 is terminated.

  The engine CPU 17 controls transfer of image data to the controller unit 20 side by the double-sided reading control unit 14 based on an instruction from the controller CPU 24. That is, the double-sided reading control unit 14 notifies the engine CPU 17 of the completion of reading the original and the state in the page memory 15 (whether or not the next original can be read). The engine CPU 17 controls the transfer timing of the image data to the controller unit 20 based on the notification from the double-sided reading control unit 14, and if the read originals are all odd, the even-numbered image data The transfer process is terminated without waiting for transfer to the controller unit 20 side.

  That is, when there is a transfer instruction from the engine CPU 17 to the controller unit 20, the double-sided reading control unit 14 selects predetermined image data in the page memory 15 or selects it by itself and transfers it to the controller unit 20. At this time, the double-sided reading control unit 14 reads out the image data from the page memory 15 and transfers it to the controller unit 20 side in accordance with the transfer speed (line cycle) given by the register setting. Further, the double-sided reading control unit 14 can perform a process of transferring the image data to the controller unit 20 while reading the image data. In this case, the image data written in the page memory 15 is read so as not to cause an underrun and the controller unit 20 is read. Output to the side. In order to notify the control timing, the double-sided reading control unit 14 sends information such as “end of transfer to the controller”, “end of reading of document”, “status of pages and front and back in the page memory 15”, interrupt, register value, etc. Notify at.

  The plotter image processing unit 18 performs image processing corresponding to the writing unit 19 on the image data sent from the controller unit 20 and transmits the image data to the writing unit 19.

  The writing unit (data output unit) 19 includes a printing unit (printing unit) that prints and outputs a color image on one side of a sheet (printing medium) by a predetermined image forming method, for example, an electrophotographic method, and a single side (surface) ) And a front / back reversing mechanism (front / back reversing means) for reversing the paper on which the image is printed and feeding it back to the printing unit. For example, when the printing unit is an electrophotographic system, it is rotationally driven. A printing unit of each color (for example, CMYK color) in which an optical writing unit, a developing unit and a transfer unit, a fixing unit, a charging unit, a cleaning unit, and the like are arranged at a predetermined interval on the conveyance path. They are arranged side by side. In such an electrophotographic writing unit 19, each color printing unit is modulated on the photosensitive member uniformly charged by the charging unit, and the optical writing unit modulates based on the image data from the plotter image processing unit 18. The electrostatic latent image is formed by irradiating the written light. Each color printing unit supplies the toner (developer) of the color corresponding to the printing unit from the developing unit to the photosensitive member on which the electrostatic latent image is formed, and develops the toner image on the photosensitive member to the transfer unit. The color toner image is transferred onto the paper conveyed by the paper conveyance unit from the paper cassette between the toner and the photoconductor so that the toner images of the respective colors are superimposed on each other by the printing unit of each color. Is conveyed to the fixing unit and fixed by the fixing unit. In the following description, it is assumed that the printing unit of the writing unit 19 is an electrophotographic printing unit, but the present invention can also be applied to printing units using other printing methods.

  In order to print at high speed, the writing unit 19 conveys the sheet at a predetermined short interval on the sheet conveyance path, and simultaneously prints on a plurality of sheets with a plurality of printing units. For example, the C color printing unit and the K color printing unit simultaneously print on different paper.

  In addition, when performing the double-sided printing, the writing unit 19 reverses the front and back surfaces of the paper on which the front surface image has been printed by the printing unit by the front and back reversing mechanism unit, and transports the paper to the printing unit again. After the back side image is printed out on the back side of the paper, it is discharged to a paper discharge tray or a post-processing apparatus in the subsequent stage. That is, the writing unit 19 has an odd / even continuous output function. For example, the writing unit 19 continuously prints the number of continuous pages, for example, the surface of two sheets of paper, and reverses it by the front / back reversing mechanism unit. Print continuously on the legal surface of the sheet.

  Then, the controller 21 controls each part of the composite device 1 using a RAM (Random Access Memory) as a work memory based on a basic program stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory) (not shown). The basic processing as the device 1 is executed, and the transfer order of image data from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23 to be described later is controlled based on the image processing program of the present invention in the ROM. An image processing method for performing image processing is executed.

  The hard disk 22 stores various data such as image data under the control of the controller 21.

  The main memory (image data storage means) 23 is composed of a RAM or the like, and under the control of the controller CPU 24, image data being processed, particularly image data read by the scanners 11 and 12 and printed out by the writing unit 19 is stored. Stored temporarily.

  That is, the composite apparatus 1 includes a ROM, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), an EPROM, a flash memory, a flexible disk, a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), a CD-RW (Compact Disc Rewritable), a DVD ( A controller unit by reading an image processing program for executing the image processing method of the present invention recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a digital versatile disk (SD), a secure digital (SD) card, or a magneto-optical disc (MO). The image processing apparatus is constructed as an image processing apparatus that executes an image processing method for appropriately controlling the transfer order of image data from the page memory 15 described later to the controller unit 20 by being installed in the ROM 20 or the hard disk 22. This image processing program is a computer-executable program written in a legacy programming language such as assembler, C, C ++, C #, Java (registered trademark) or an object-oriented programming language, and is stored in the recording medium. Can be distributed.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. The multi-function apparatus 1 of this embodiment stores at least two sheets of front side image data and back side image data of a double-sided document simultaneously read by the front side scanner 11 and the back side scanner 12 in the page memory 15. When transferring to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20, the transfer is performed in accordance with the writing order in the writing unit 19. In the following description, in the case where the writing unit 19 performs double-sided printing, the front side image of the document is printed on the front side of the two sheets first, and the back side image of the two sheets is reversed after the two sides are reversed. Although the description will be made assuming that printing is performed on the back side of a sheet of paper, the same can be applied to the case of printing from the back side image of the original document only by changing the transfer order of the image data.

  When the image of the double-sided original is printed on both sides of the paper, the multifunction apparatus 1 performs double-sided printing according to the following procedure. That is, the multifunction device 1 simultaneously reads the front and back surfaces of a double-sided document with the front surface scanner 11 and the back surface scanner 12, prints on one side of the paper (hereinafter referred to as the front surface) with the writing unit 19, and prints the paper printed on the front surface. Is reversed and fed back to the writing unit 19 and the back side image of the document is printed on the back side of the paper by the writing unit 19. In the description of the above, for the sake of clarity, it is assumed that two sheets are transported), and the surface images of two consecutive originals are continuously printed on the surface of the two sheets of paper. The printed paper is reversed by the front / back reversing mechanism, and the back images of the same two originals are continuously printed by the printing unit on the back of the two sheets again. Thereafter, the writing unit 19 prints similarly from the surface images of the next two original documents.

  In the writing unit 19, the front images of two consecutive originals are continuously printed on the front surfaces of the two sheets of paper, and the back images of the same two originals are continuously printed on the back surfaces of the same two sheets of paper. In this case, it is necessary to transfer the image data from the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20 to the plotter image processing unit 18 in accordance with the printing order.

  However, if the order of the image data stored in the main memory 23 is different from the order of the image data transferred to the writing unit 19, it is necessary to perform memory swap as shown in FIG. Therefore, a saving buffer is required, and the cost increases and the processing efficiency deteriorates.

  Therefore, when the image data is transferred from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23, the double-sided reading control unit 14 transfers the image data according to the writing order (printing order) of the writing unit 19 in the multifunction apparatus 1 of the present embodiment. To do.

  That is, when double-sided printing is designated on the operation display unit, the multifunction apparatus 1 conveys the set originals one by one, and the front scanner 11 and the back scanner 12 simultaneously display the front and back images of the original. The image data is read and transferred to the double-sided reading control unit 14, and the double-sided reading control unit 14 stores the surface image data (one front), which is the image data of the odd page of the first original, in the page memory 15 as shown in FIG. In the memory area (page memory) P1, back side image data (1 back) which is image data of even pages of the first original is stored in the memory area (page memory) P2 of the page memory 15, respectively. Next, the duplex reading control unit 14 causes the front scanner 11 and the back scanner 12 to read two documents, and the second document sent from the front scanner 11 and the back scanner 12 is read. The front side image data (2 fronts) is stored in the memory area (page memory) P3 of the page memory 15, and the back side image data (2 back) of the second original is stored in the memory area (page memory) P4 of the page memory 15, respectively. Store. When the front side image data (1 side) of the first original is stored in the memory area P1, the double-sided reading control unit 14 side of the front side image data (1 side) of the first original is on the controller unit 20 side. When the transfer of the surface image data (1 front) of the first document is completed, the surface image data (2 front) of the second document is transferred from the memory area P3 to the controller unit 20 side. Start the transfer. When the double-sided reading control unit 14 completes the transfer of the surface image data (2 fronts) of the second original to the controller unit 20 side, the scanner 11 and 12 read the third original and the third original is read. The image data (3 front and 3 back) of the front and back sides of the document are stored in the memory area P1 and the memory area P3 of the page memory 15 respectively, and the back side image data (1 back) of the first document is on the controller unit 20 side. When the transfer to the controller unit 20 is started and the transfer is completed, the transfer of the back side image data (2 back) of the second original to the controller unit 20 side is started. When the double-sided reading control unit 14 completes the transfer of the back side image data (2 back) of the second original to the controller unit 20 side, the fourth original is read by the scanners 11 and 12. Are stored in the memory area P2 and the memory area P4 of the page memory 15, respectively, and the front side image data (3 front) of the third original is transferred to the controller unit 20 side. When the transfer is completed, the transfer of the surface image data (four fronts) of the fourth original to the controller unit 20 side is started. Thereafter, as described above, the duplex reading control unit 14 reads the document on the front and back sides of the document simultaneously by the scanners 11 and 12 and stores them in the page memory 15 and the page memory 15 of the image data of the same surface in two consecutive documents. To the controller unit 20 side repeatedly.

  Then, the duplex reading control unit 14 performs the document reading process as shown in FIG. That is, when the duplex reading control unit 14 is ready to read a document, the duplex scanning control unit 14 starts reading the front and back surfaces simultaneously with the front scanner 11 and the back scanner 12 (step S101), and the reading of the document is completed. (Step S102), it is checked whether there is a next original to be read (step S103).

  In step S103, when there is a next document, the duplex reading control unit 14 checks the free memory area of the page memory 15 to determine whether or not the next document can be read (step S104). If the reading is possible, reading of the next original is started (step S105), the reading of the original is completed (step S106), and whether there is a next reading original is checked (step S107).

  In step S107, when there is a next original, the double-sided reading control unit 14 checks the free memory area of the page memory 15 to determine whether the next original can be read (step S108). When reading is possible, the process returns to step S101 to perform the same processing as described above from the processing of starting reading the next original (steps S101 to S108).

  If there is no next read original in step S103 or step S107, the duplex reading control unit 14 ends the original reading process.

  Then, the double-sided reading control unit 14 performs image data transfer processing from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 side as shown in FIGS.

  That is, the duplex reading control unit 14 waits for the reading of the first document (referred to as document 1 in FIGS. 5 and 6) to be completed and the transfer to the page memory 15 to be completed (step S201). The surface image data of the first original is read from the page memory 15 and transfer to the controller unit 20 is started (step S202). The transfer of the first original from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 is completed. Waiting (step S203), it is checked whether there is image data of a read document that has not been transferred (step S204).

  If there is no untransferred image data in the page memory 15 in step S204, the duplex reading control unit 14 determines that the first document is a single-sided document with an image only on the front side, as shown in FIG. Then, a transfer control end notification is sent to the controller CPU 24 of the controller unit 20 (step S214), and the image data transfer process ends.

  When untransferred image data is in the page memory 15 in step S204 in FIG. 5, the duplex reading control unit 14 reads the next second original (denoted as original 2 in FIGS. 5 and 6). It is checked whether the scanners 11 and 12 have started (step S205). If the reading of the original has not started, the reading of the original is started, and the surface image data of the second original is stored in the page memory 15. Then, transfer to the controller unit 20 is started (step S206), and the transfer of the surface image data of the second original is completed (step S207).

  When the transfer of the front side image data of the second original is completed in step S207, the duplex reading control unit 14 starts transferring the back side image data of the first original from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 (step S208). As shown in FIG. 6, after the transfer of the back image data of the first original is completed (step S209), it is checked whether there is an untransferred read original (step S210).

  In step S210, when there is no untransferred read original image data, the double-sided reading control unit 14 determines that the second original is a single-side original having an image only on the front surface, and transfers it to the controller CPU 24 of the controller unit 20. A control end notification is made (step S214), and the image data transfer process is ended.

  If untransferred image data is present in the page memory 15 in step S210, the double-sided reading control unit 14 starts transferring the back side image data of the second original from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 (step S211). Then, waiting for the transfer of the back side image data of the second original is completed (step S212), and when the transfer of the back side image data of the second original is completed, it is checked whether there is an untransferred read original (step S213). ).

  If untransferred image data is present in the page memory 15 in step S213, the double-sided reading control unit 14 returns to step S201 and performs the same processing as described above from checking whether the reading of the next third original has been completed. (Steps S201 to S213).

  If there is no unread read original in step S203, it is determined that the front image data and the back image data of all originals have been transferred from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20, and the transfer control ends to the controller CPU 24 of the controller unit 20. Notification is performed (step S214), and the image data transfer process is terminated.

  Then, the multifunction apparatus 1 performs double-sided simultaneous reading and double-sided printing as shown in FIG. That is, the multifunction apparatus 1 reads the surface image data of the odd-numbered original document read by the scanners 11 and 12 and stored in the page memory 15 (described as the odd-numbered paper surface in FIG. 7), for example, the front surface of the first original document. The image data is transferred to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20 (step S301), and then the surface image data of the even-numbered document (described as even-numbered sheet surface in FIG. 7), for example, the surface of the second sheet The image data is transferred from the page memory 12 to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20 (step S302). When the surface image data for two sheets is transferred to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20, the composite apparatus 1 transfers the surface image data of the odd-numbered document stored in the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20 to the writing unit 19. Then, print output is performed (step S303), and the even-numbered document surface image data in the main memory 23 is transferred to the writing unit 19 for printing (step S304). When the writing of the surface image data for two sheets is completed in the writing unit 19, the two sheets of paper on which the image is formed on one side are reversed by the sheet reversing mechanism unit and sent to the printing unit again (step S305).

  The multi-function apparatus 1 transfers the back image data of the odd-numbered original document (described as odd-numbered paper back side in FIG. 7), for example, the first back-surface image data from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20. Next, back side image data of the even-numbered original document (described as even-numbered paper back side in FIG. 7), for example, the back side image data of the second page is transferred from the page memory 15 to the main of the controller unit 20. The data is transferred to the memory 23 and stored (step S307). When the multifunction apparatus 1 transfers and stores two back image data to the main memory 23 in the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20, the multifunction apparatus 1 stores the odd-numbered back image data stored in the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20. The data is transferred to the writing unit 19 for printing (step S308), and the back image data of the even-numbered sheets in the main memory 23 is transferred to the writing unit 19 for printing (step S309).

  When the image printing on the front and back surfaces of the two sheets is completed, the multifunction apparatus 1 checks whether or not the reading of the original by the scanners 11 and 12 is completed (step S310). Returning to S301, the same processing as described above is performed (steps S301 to S310). In step S310, when the reading of the document is completed, the process ends.

  That is, when double-sided printing is performed two by two as shown in FIG. 8, the multifunction apparatus 1 transfers the order of image data used by the writing unit 19 from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20, that is, the front surface. Image data for two sheets (first surface image data and second surface image data) is transferred from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23, and then the back surface image data for two sheets (first sheet image data) Only the back side image data and the second back side image data) are transferred from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23. Similarly, the multi-function apparatus 1 similarly transfers two pieces of image data on the front surface (third surface image data and fourth surface image data) from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23, and then The process of transferring two pieces of back side image data (third back side image data and fourth back side image data) from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23 is repeatedly performed. Then, when image data is sent from the page memory 15 for every two sheets, the controller 21 sequentially stores the image data in the memory area M1 and the memory area M2 of the main memory 23, and the first surface image data is stored in the memory area M1. And the transfer of the first surface image data stored in the memory area M1 to the writing unit 19 is started. When the transfer of the first surface image data from the memory area M1 to the writing unit 19 is completed, the multifunction apparatus 1 starts transferring the second surface image data from the memory area M2 to the writing unit 19, and The process of starting the transfer of the image data of the back surface of the third sheet from the page memory 15 to the memory area M1 is sequentially repeated.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the memory area M3 and the memory area M4 are unnecessary in the conventional main memory 23 shown in FIG. 12, and the memory area for storing image data in the main memory 23 can be reduced. Cost can be reduced.

  Further, since the composite apparatus 1 does not need to transfer the input image data to the writing unit 19 in the main memory 23 by changing the order of the input image data, a memory swap process for changing the input / output order as shown in FIG. 9 is performed. It is not necessary, and no save buffer is required for memory swap processing. That is, for example, the first surface image data (1 front) is transferred from the input buffer to the output buffer, transferred and output as it is, and the second surface image data (2 front) is output from the second input buffer to the output buffer. Can be transferred and output as is. Therefore, it is not necessary to secure a memory area for the save buffer in the main memory 23 or the hard disk 22, the memory area can be used effectively, the cost can be reduced, and the memory swap process is not performed. The processing speed can be improved.

  As described above, the composite apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment stores a plurality of pages of image data input in a predetermined page order in the page memory 15 and then temporarily stores them in the main memory 23 to store two pages (predetermined pages). Number) of image data on the front side (odd pages) is sequentially output in the order of pages, and then the image data on the back side (even pages) is sequentially output in order of pages for the same continuous page number. When outputting to the writing unit 19 having the even-numbered continuous output function, the image data written in the page memory 15 is matched with the output order in the odd-numbered and even-numbered continuous output in the writing unit 19 and the surface image data for two pages and 2 The even image data for the pages are sequentially read out and transferred to the main memory 23 for storage.

  Therefore, the image data can be output to the writing unit 19 without performing the memory swap processing in the main memory 23 in which the data is switched in accordance with the output order of the writing unit 19, and the processing speed can be improved. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a buffer, so that the cost can be reduced.

  Further, the multifunction apparatus 1 of this embodiment reads the front and back surfaces of the document simultaneously by the front surface scanner 11 and the back surface scanner 12 and inputs the front surface image data and the back surface image data to the double side reading control unit 14, and the writing unit 19. A printing unit that prints images continuously on the same side (front side) of two sheets based on continuous image data for two pages, and two sheets of images on one side printed by the printing unit And a front / back reversing mechanism unit that reverses the front / back side and sequentially feeds them to the printing unit.

  Therefore, a plurality of double-sided originals are simultaneously read by the scanners 11 and 12, and the image data of the read double-sided originals are simultaneously conveyed by using a plurality of sheets (two in the above example) and using the front / back reversing mechanism. When printing an image on the main memory 23, the image data can be output to the writing unit 19 without performing a memory swap process in which data is switched in accordance with the output order of the writing unit 19 in the main memory 23, thereby improving the processing speed. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a buffer for memory swap, and the cost can be reduced.

  Furthermore, in the composite apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, when the scanners 11 and 12 are processing modes other than the data processing mode in which the scanners 11 and 12 read both-side originals and the writing unit 19 outputs data using the odd / even continuous output function, the scanners 11 and 12 Are read from the page memory 15 in the input order and transferred to the main memory 23.

  Therefore, a plurality of double-sided originals are simultaneously read by the scanners 11 and 12, and the image data of the read double-sided originals are simultaneously conveyed by using a plurality of sheets (two in the above example) and using the front / back reversing mechanism. In processing modes other than the data processing mode for printing an image, such as single-sided printing, data transfer, and data storage, data can be transferred from the page memory 15 to the main memory 23 according to the processing mode. Can be improved.

  In the multifunction apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the double-sided reading control unit 14 controls data transfer from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 according to the image processing mode according to the image processing mode.

  That is, image processing modes other than high-speed printing on both sides in simultaneous reading on both sides, for example, a scanner mode in which image data read by the scanners 11 and 12 is transmitted to a computer or the like on the network, a single-sided document on the front scanner 11 or back scanner 12 in the single-sided copy mode in which the image is read by the writing unit 19 and printed in the writing unit 19, and in the document accumulation mode in which the image data of the original read by the scanners 11 and 12 is stored in the hard disk 22 or the like. The front surface, the first back surface, the second surface, the second back surface, etc.) must be transferred to the controller unit 20.

  Therefore, the duplex reading control unit 14 changes the order of the image data from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 according to the setting parameters from the engine CPU 17 and transfers them.

  In this way, image data can be transferred from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 in the order of image data according to the image processing mode, and productivity can be improved.

  Further, the multifunction apparatus 1 according to the present exemplary embodiment allows a usable page memory size to be set by register setting or terminal setting, and the double-sided reading control unit 14 controls document reading from the set usable page memory size and document size. May be performed.

  In this way, the page memory 15 can be used effectively, the processing speed can be further improved at a lower cost, and the productivity can be further improved.

  Further, in the multifunction apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the double-sided reading control unit 14 may include a register setting that sets the document size together with the memory size of the page memory 15 so that the memory size of the page memory 15 can be set as appropriate.

  That is, since the memory size used by the page memory 15 varies depending on the size of the document, the multifunction device 1 sets the memory size in the memory size setting register or the terminal setting by the engine CPU 17 according to the document size. The double-sided reading control unit 14 controls the memory size of the page memory 15 according to the memory size setting register and the memory size of the terminal setting, controls the number of divisions of the memory area of the page memory 15, and the like. The writing and reading of image data may be changed depending on the area.

  Further, the double-sided reading control unit 14 may acquire not only the document size but also the number of document pages from a setting register or setting input.

  In this way, the memory capacity of the page memory 15 to be used can be finely managed based on the document size and the number of documents, and the document reading control can be performed from the free space, and the productivity can be further improved. .

  Furthermore, the double-sided reading control unit 14 may include a compressor that compresses image data and a decompressor that decompresses compressed image data. Then, when the image data sent from the scanners 11 and 12 is stored in the page memory 15, the double-sided reading control unit 14 compresses the image data with a predetermined compression method (JPEG or the like) by the compressor and stores it in the page memory 15. However, when transferring from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20, it may be transferred by being expanded by an expander.

  In this way, the amount of data in the page memory 15 can be reduced and the page memory 15 can be used effectively, and productivity, in particular, reading productivity can be improved.

  Further, the compression / decompression function of the image data in the double-sided reading control unit 14 may be turned on / off by an on / off operation or an image quality setting operation of the function on the operation display unit.

  That is, the multifunction device 1 sets whether or not image compression / decompression is performed during document reading or controller transfer in the register of the duplex reading control unit 14 according to the operation of the operation display unit. Whether to execute compression / decompression of the image data is determined according to the register setting.

  As a result, the image quality of the compressed image deteriorates. Therefore, in the user's usage environment, the image quality priority mode, etc., the user's usability and image quality are improved by performing processing such as setting to not compress. , Productivity can be improved.

  Furthermore, the expansion function of the double-sided reading control unit 14 may be turned on / off by an image processing mode, an operation of the operation display unit, or the like.

  That is, when the composite apparatus 1 transfers the compressed image data compressed when stored in the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 according to the operation of the operation display unit, the image processing mode such as the transfer mode, etc. Is set in the register of the double-sided reading control unit 14, and the double-sided reading control unit 14 determines whether or not to decompress the compressed image data in accordance with the register setting.

  In this case, a compressed image may be necessary depending on an image processing mode such as an image transfer process. In such a case, the controller unit 20 transfers the compressed image data from the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 as it is. The compression process in 20 can be omitted, and the productivity can be further improved.

  Further, the double-sided reading control unit 14 may have a main / sub scaling function.

  That is, the double-sided reading control unit 14 reads the original image data once stored in the page memory 15 according to the register setting, performs the scaling process in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction of the image, and writes it in the page memory 15. A main / sub scaling function for returning may be provided.

  In this way, enlargement / reduction copying and enlargement / reduction scanner processing can be performed using the page memory 15, which is necessary when scanner image processing or image scaling processing is performed by a controller as in the past. The existing line memory is unnecessary and the cost can be reduced.

  Furthermore, the double-sided reading control unit 14 may have an image editing and image aggregation function using the page memory 15.

  That is, when the image data once stored in the page memory 15 is transferred to the controller unit 20 according to the register setting, the double-sided reading control unit 14 rearranges a plurality of document images by controlling addresses, and performs image editing. And an aggregate image can be generated.

  In this way, it is possible to omit the image handling that is conventionally performed by the controller unit 20 for image editing and image aggregation processing in the main memory 23, and productivity can be improved.

  The double-sided reading control unit 14 may have a function of rotating the image by 90 degrees / 180 degrees / 270 degrees when transferring the image data in the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20.

  That is, the double-sided reading control unit 14 controls the memory address when transferring the image data in the page memory 15 to the controller unit 20 according to the register setting, thereby rotating the image by 90 degrees / 180 degrees / 270 degrees. Data can be expanded and stored on the main memory 23 of the controller unit 20.

  In this way, it is possible to omit the image handling that has conventionally been performed in the main memory 13 in order to perform image rotation processing in the controller unit 20, and to improve productivity.

  The invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the preferred embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to that described in the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. It goes without saying that it is possible.

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an image processing program, and a recording apparatus that print image data obtained by simultaneously reading both sides of a document on both sides of a sheet to be reversed using a front / back reversing mechanism. It can be used as a medium.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image processing apparatus 10 Engine unit 11 Front scanner 12 Back scanner 13 Image processing part 14 Duplex reading control part 14w Page memory write control part 14r Page memory reading control part 14dw, 14dr, 14dc Data bus 15 Page memory 16 Scanner image processing Part 17 Engine CPU
18 Printer Image Processing Unit 19 Writing Unit 20 Controller Unit 21 Controller 22 Hard Disk 23 Main Memory 24 Controller CPU

JP-A-2005-25072

Claims (11)

Data input means for inputting image data of a plurality of pages in a predetermined page order;
A page memory for storing at least four pages of image data;
Image data storage means for temporarily storing image data;
Data output having an odd / even continuous output function for outputting image data of odd pages for a predetermined number of consecutive pages sequentially and sequentially, and outputting image data for even pages of the same number of consecutive pages sequentially. Means,
The image data input from the data input means is written to the page memory, and from the page memory, the image data of the odd number of continuous pages and the number of continuous pages of the data output means are matched with the output order of the data output means. Data transfer control means for sequentially reading out the image data of the even pages and transferring and storing them in the image data storage means;
Data reading means for reading out the odd page image data and the even page image data from the image data storage means according to the storage order and outputting the data to the data output means;
An image processing apparatus comprising: The data input means is a reading means for simultaneously reading the front surface and the back surface of the document to input the front surface image data as the odd page image data and inputting the back surface image data as the even page image data.
The data output means includes
Printing means for continuously printing images on the same side of the print medium having the continuous page number based on the continuous image data having the continuous page number;
Reversing means for reversing the print medium for the number of continuous pages on which an image is printed on one side by the printing means and sequentially feeding it to the printing means;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:   The data transfer control means is input from the data input means when the reading means is in a processing mode other than the data processing mode in which the double-sided original is read and the data output means outputs data by the odd / even continuous output function. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image data to be read is read from the page memory in the order of input and transferred to the image data storage means. The image processing apparatus includes setting means for setting appropriate information among a memory size of the page memory, a usable memory size, and an image data size to be written to the page memory,
The image processing according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the data transfer control unit controls writing and reading of the image data to and from the page memory based on a setting of the setting unit. apparatus. The data transfer control means includes
A scaling unit for enlarging or reducing the image data is provided,
2. The image data is read from the page memory, and the scaling unit performs an enlargement process or a reduction process in accordance with a predetermined enlargement ratio or reduction ratio and writes the image data back to the page memory. Item 5. The image processing device according to any one of Items 4 to 5. The data transfer control means includes
An editing / aggregating means for controlling an address read from the page memory and performing editing processing and aggregation processing on the image data,
2. The image data read from the page memory is transferred to the image data storage unit by causing the editing / aggregating unit to perform image data editing processing and / or aggregation processing. Item 6. The image processing apparatus according to Item 5. The data transfer control means includes
Equipped with image rotation means for controlling the read address from the page memory and performing image rotation processing on the image data,
7. The image data read from the page memory is transferred to the image data storage unit by causing the image rotation unit to rotate the image data. The image processing apparatus described. The data transfer control means includes
Compression means for compressing the image data into compressed data by a predetermined compression method;
Decompressing means for decompressing the compressed data, compressing the image data from the data input means by the compressing means, storing the compressed data in the page memory as compressed data, and storing the compressed image data read from the page memory 5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processing apparatus is expanded by the expansion unit and transferred to the image data storage unit. A data input processing step for inputting image data of a plurality of pages in a predetermined page order;
Data having an odd / even continuous output function step for outputting image data of odd-numbered pages for a predetermined number of consecutive pages sequentially and sequentially and outputting even-numbered pages of image data for the same number of consecutive pages. An output processing step;
The image data input from the data input processing step is written in the page memory, and the odd page image data and the continuous pages are output from the page memory in accordance with the output order in the data output processing step. A data transfer control processing step for sequentially reading out the image data of the even number of pages and transferring and storing the image data in the image data storage means for temporarily storing the image data;
A data read processing step of reading out the image data of the odd pages and the image data of the even pages from the image data storage means according to the storage order and outputting them to the data output processing step;
An image processing method characterized by comprising: On the computer,
A data input process for inputting image data of a plurality of pages in a predetermined page order;
Data output having an odd / even continuous output function that outputs image data of odd-numbered pages for a predetermined number of consecutive pages sequentially and sequentially and outputs even-numbered pages of image data for the same number of consecutive pages. Processing,
The image data input from the data input process is written to the page memory, and from the page memory, the image data of the odd number of continuous pages and the number of continuous pages are matched in the output order in the data output process. A data transfer control process for sequentially reading the image data of the even pages and transferring and storing the image data in the image data storage means for temporarily storing the image data;
A data reading process of reading out the image data of the odd pages and the image data of the even pages from the image data storage means according to the storage order and outputting them to the data output processing step;
An image processing program for executing   A computer-readable recording medium on which the image processing program according to claim 10 is recorded.

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