JP2017208622A - Image reading device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To accurately and speedily acquire image data of an identification card.SOLUTION: An arrangement position indication part 11 is arranged under a contact glass 1 and indicates the arrangement position of a predetermined identification card. A mobile optical system 4 reads an image of a predetermined range on the contact glass 1. A card image acquisition part extracts the image of the identification card from an area corresponding to the arrangement position indicated by the arrangement position indication part 11, in the image of the predetermined range.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus.

  An image reading apparatus conveys a small-size document by an automatic document feeder along a conveyance path bent at a reading position, and reads an image of the small-size document at the reading position (see, for example, Patent Document 1). .

  However, when a hard identification card (for example, a personal number card) is a manuscript, it hardly bends in accordance with the conveyance path. Therefore, using an automatic document feeder as described above, It is difficult to read an image.

  A certain flatbed type image reading apparatus cuts out an image of a license placed on a contact glass from a scan image of a predetermined size such as A4 (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

JP 2011-93631 A JP 2010-283492 A

  However, as described above, when an image of a public identification card (personal number card, driver's license, etc.) is cut out from a scan image of a predetermined size, an edge or the like is detected in the scan image to detect the identity card. It is necessary to specify the position and size of the image and cut out the image of the identification card based on the position and size. Further, when the edge cannot be detected accurately, it is necessary to cut out the image of the identification card based on the characteristic layout of the description items of the identification card.

  As described above, in the above-described image reading apparatus, when acquiring image data of a hard identification card based on a hard plastic or the like, it is necessary to perform various image processing on a scan image of a predetermined size. Therefore, it is difficult to acquire the image data of such an identification card accurately and in a short time.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to obtain an image reading apparatus capable of acquiring image data of an identification card accurately and in a short time.

  An image reading apparatus according to the present invention reads a contact glass, an arrangement position instruction unit that is arranged below the contact glass and instructs an arrangement position of a predetermined identification card, and an image in a predetermined range on the contact glass. A moving optical system; and a card image acquisition unit that extracts an image of the identification card from an area corresponding to the arrangement position indicated by the arrangement position instruction unit in the image of the predetermined range.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an image reading apparatus that can acquire image data of an identification card accurately and in a short time.

  These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a top view showing the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the image reading apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a top view showing the image reading apparatus according to the second embodiment.

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

Embodiment 1 FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is an apparatus such as a scanner, a copying machine, or a digital multifunction machine.

  In FIG. 1, a contact glass 1 is a transparent mounting table that is placed on the upper surface of the image reading apparatus main body and on which an object to be read such as a document is placed during image reading.

  The document guide 2 is an elongated, substantially rectangular flat plate member disposed along the main scanning direction. The document guide 3 is an elongated, substantially rectangular flat plate member disposed along the sub-scanning direction. A normal sheet document of a standard size such as A3, A4, etc. has a contact glass 1 with the document in contact with the document guide 2 and the document guide 3 with the intersection of the document guide 2 and the document guide 3 as a reference point. Placed on top.

  The moving optical system 4 optically reads a predetermined range of images on the contact glass 1. Specifically, the moving optical system 4 is installed so as to be movable in a sub-scanning direction along a rail (not shown) by a driving device (not shown), and a one-dimensional image having a predetermined width in the main scanning direction is displayed. By repeatedly reading continuously while moving in the scanning direction, an image in a predetermined range on the contact glass 1 is read.

  The moving optical system 4 includes a carriage and optical elements such as a light source, a mirror, and a lens arranged in the carriage. Note that an image sensor is arranged in the moving optical system 4 so that reflected light from a document or the like is received by the image sensor and an electrical signal corresponding to the reflected light (that is, an electrical signal of the document image) is output. Alternatively, an image sensor is disposed outside the moving optical system 4 and the reflected light from the document or the like emitted from the moving optical system 4 is received by the image sensor and an electrical signal corresponding to the reflected light (that is, the document image). The electrical signal) may be output.

  For example, the light source in the moving optical system 4 is arranged along the main scanning direction, and emits light with a plurality of light emitting diodes arranged. The light emitted from the light source is reflected by a document or the like placed on the contact glass 1 according to the position of the moving optical system 4. An optical element such as a mirror or a lens in the moving optical system 4 makes its reflected light incident on an image sensor in the moving optical system 4 or the reflected light is externally passed through an optical element outside the moving optical system 4. Or enter the image sensor.

  For example, the image sensor is a one-dimensional image sensor having light receiving elements of a predetermined number of pixels arranged in the main scanning direction, and outputs an electric signal corresponding to the amount of light received for the pixels of the number of pixels for each line. . For example, a charge coupled device (CCD) is used as the image sensor.

  The document cover 5 is a substantially flat member that is rotatably installed to cover the contact glass 1. The document cover 5 includes a white flat elastic member 5a. For example, the elastic member 5a is formed by bonding a white resin sheet to an elastic base sheet formed of an elastic material such as sponge. The document cover 5 uses an elastic member 5a to bring the document into close contact with the contact glass 1 and prevents ambient light from entering the apparatus from the contact glass 1 during image reading.

  FIG. 2 is a top view showing the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment. It should be noted that the portions outside the contact glass 1 and the document guides 2 and 3 are not shown.

  As shown in FIG. 2, an arrangement position instruction unit 11 is provided at a predetermined position on the upper surface of the moving optical system 4. The arrangement position instruction unit 11 is a display of a marker, a line, or the like that instructs the arrangement position of a predetermined identification card. Since the size of the official identification card is specified, the arrangement position instructing unit 11 instructs the arrangement position according to the size of the identification card.

  In the first embodiment, the arrangement position instruction unit 11 is arranged below the contact glass 1 as the moving optical system 4 moves below the contact glass 1. That is, the user can visually recognize the arrangement position instruction unit 11 through the contact glass 1.

  The arrangement position instructing unit 11 may be configured by a paint by printing or painting at the arrangement position, or may be a seal-like planar member attached to the arrangement position.

  As shown in FIG. 2, incident light or outgoing light on the optical element 12 (or an opening for the optical element 12) such as a lens and a light source of the moving optical system 4 is not blocked by the arrangement position instruction unit 11. In addition, the arrangement position instruction unit 11 is arranged excluding the optical element 12 (the opening thereof).

  In the first embodiment, the arrangement position instruction unit 11 instructs a plurality of arrangement positions of the identification card along the main scanning direction. Thereby, the image of the several identification card can be read by one scanning operation | movement.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the image reading apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 3, the user interface 31 includes an input device such as a key switch that detects a user operation and a touch panel, and a display device such as a liquid crystal display that displays various information to the user.

  As described above, the image sensor 32 is disposed inside or outside the moving optical system 4, receives reflected light from the document via a predetermined optical system, and outputs an electrical signal of the document image.

  The drive device 33 is a device such as a motor for moving the moving optical system 4 in the sub-scanning direction.

  The printing unit 34 is an internal device that prints an image based on image data on a printing paper by an electrophotographic method or the like.

  The image processing device 35 is a device that performs image processing on a document image read by the image sensor 32. The image processing device 35 is realized by, for example, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or a computer that operates according to a control program. The storage device 36 is a nonvolatile storage device such as a hard disk or a nonvolatile memory, and stores various data and control programs.

  The image processing device 35 includes a control unit 41, a card image acquisition unit 42, and a card image output unit 43.

  The control unit 41 controls internal devices such as the user interface 31, the image sensor 32, and the driving device 33, causes the moving optical system 4 to perform a scanning operation, and acquires the image in the predetermined range from the image sensor 32. . At that time, the control unit 41 uses the drive device 33 to acquire an image signal from the image sensor 32 while moving the moving optical system 4 along the sub-scanning direction.

  In the first embodiment, in order to allow the user to place the identification card at a predetermined arrangement position, the control unit 41 has a predetermined position below the contact glass 1 (an arrangement position instruction unit as shown in FIG. 2). The moving optical system 4 is moved to a position where 11 is visible to the user.

  The card image acquisition unit 42 from an area corresponding to the arrangement position designated by the arrangement position instruction unit 11 in the image of the predetermined range (that is, the reading range of the moving optical system 4) (hereinafter referred to as a whole scan image). Extract an image of an ID card.

  In the first embodiment, the arrangement position is specified based on the position of the moving optical system 4 in the sub-scanning direction and the position of the arrangement position instruction unit 11 on the moving optical system 4.

  That is, the card image acquisition unit 42 does not search for the image of the identification card in the entire scan image, but immediately determines the position of the image of the identification card in the entire scan image based on the previously specified arrangement position information. Identify and extract an image of an ID card.

  The card image output unit 43 stores the image data of the identification card in the storage device 36 or, based on the image data of the identification card, the image of the identification card (or the predetermined document including the image of the identification card). Image) is printed by the printing unit 34.

  The card image output unit 43 may perform various types of image processing (color correction, masking of unnecessary information in the description items of the identification card), and the like on the image data as necessary.

  Next, the operation of the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment.

  When a predetermined user operation (mode switching operation) is detected on the user interface 31, the control unit 41 shifts the operation mode to the identification card reading mode (step S1).

  When shifting to the identification card reading mode, the control unit 41 controls the driving device 33 to move the moving optical system 4 from the home position to a predetermined position below the contact glass 1 as shown in FIG. Step S2).

  Thereafter, the user places an identification card on the contact glass 1 in accordance with the arrangement position instruction unit 11, and performs a predetermined user operation (scan start operation) on the user interface 31.

  When the user operation (scan start operation) is detected by the user interface 31, the control unit 41 controls the driving device 33 to temporarily return the moving optical system 4 to the home position (step S4), and then perform sub-scanning. While moving along the direction, the moving optical system 4 performs a scanning operation, and acquires an image signal (that is, the above-described whole scan image) from the image sensor 32 (step S5).

  Then, the card image acquisition unit 42 identifies the position of the image of the identification card in the entire scanned image based on the known arrangement position information indicating the fixed arrangement position, extracts the image of the identification card, and Image data of only the image portion of the certification card is generated (step S6).

  That is, since the above-mentioned predetermined range (reading range of the moving optical system 4), the position of the arrangement position instruction unit 11 within the predetermined range, and the size of the entire scan image are all known, the above-described predetermined range (moving optics) Based on the positional relationship of the arrangement position instruction unit 11 with respect to the reading range of the system 4, the position of the image of the identification card in the entire scanned image is specified.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when the arrangement position instruction unit 11 indicates a plurality of arrangement positions, images of a plurality of identification cards are extracted from positions corresponding to the plurality of arrangement positions, and respective image data are generated. The

  In this way, when the card image acquisition unit 42 generates the image data of the identification card, the card image output unit 43 prints the identification card in the printing unit 34 based on the image data, or the identification card. The image data is stored in the storage device 36.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the arrangement position instruction unit 11 is arranged below the contact glass 1 and instructs the arrangement position of a predetermined identification card. The moving optical system 4 reads an image in a predetermined range on the contact glass 1. The card image acquisition unit 42 extracts an image of the identification card from an area corresponding to the arrangement position designated by the arrangement position instruction unit 11 in the image in the predetermined range.

  As a result, it is possible to immediately identify the position of the image of the identification card without searching for the image of the identification card in the entire scanned image, so that the image data of the identification card can be obtained accurately and in a short time. it can.

Embodiment 2. FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a top view showing the image reading apparatus according to the second embodiment. It should be noted that the portions outside the contact glass 1 and the document guides 2 and 3 are not shown.

  In the second embodiment, the arrangement position instruction unit 61 is arranged below the rear end of the contact glass 1 in the sub-scanning direction. In the second embodiment, an arrangement position instruction unit 61 similar to the arrangement position instruction unit 11 is provided on a structure 62 such as a sheet metal serving as a bottom surface.

  In the second embodiment, the image of the identification card is read using a margin portion outside the maximum document size (A3 size in FIG. 5) that can be read by the contact glass 1.

  Such a rear end portion is not frequently used for image reading of a normal sheet document, and even if the arrangement position instruction unit 61 is provided, the image reading of a normal sheet document other than the image reading of the identification card is performed. It ’s less noticeable. Further, when the user visually recognizes the arrangement position instruction unit 61, it is not necessary to move the moving optical system 4 as in the first embodiment (steps S2 and S4).

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

  Various changes and modifications to the above-described embodiment will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter and without diminishing its intended advantages. That is, such changes and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the claims.

  For example, in the first and second embodiments, the display for instructing the reading surface of the identification card such as “front” and “back” is displayed on the arrangement position instruction units 11 and 61 as shown in FIGS. The card image acquisition unit 42 identifies the reading surface (front or back) of the identification card according to the arrangement position, and associates the reading surface information indicating the reading surface with the image data of the identification card. You may do it. Thereby, for example, the card image output unit 43 displays an image based on the image data of the front (front) surface in a predetermined image area of the front (front) surface in the predetermined template image. It is also possible to insert an image based on the back side image data into a preset back side image area. For example, in the arrangement position instruction units 11 and 61, the letters “table” are displayed at one of the two arrangement positions of the arrangement position instruction units 11 and 61 as shown in FIGS. "Is displayed.

  In the first and second embodiments, the card image output unit 43 prints the extracted identification card image (that is, in the case of a copy of the identification card). The position of the image of the identification card is shifted inward in the sub-scanning direction (backward in the first embodiment, forward in the second embodiment) so that a part of the image is not interrupted (for example, 5 millimeters). You may make it print after it.

  In the first embodiment, the document guide 2 may be provided with a guide display (such as a scale line) for indicating an arrangement position in the main scanning direction at a position corresponding to the arrangement position instruction unit 11. In the second embodiment, a guide display or a guide recess for indicating an arrangement position in the main scanning direction may be provided on the frame in contact with the rear end of the contact glass 1. The guide recess is formed in accordance with the size of the identification card. The user can place the identification card more easily by placing the identification card in accordance with such guide display or guide recess. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, a sensor (an optical sensor, a contact sensor, etc.) for detecting that the identification card is placed in alignment with the guide recess is provided, and an explicit operation as in step S1 described above is provided. Even if no user operation is detected, if the sensor detects that the ID card is placed in alignment with the guide recess, the control unit 41 automatically switches the operation mode to the ID card reading mode. You may make it transfer. In addition, when the sensor detects that the identification card is left on the contact glass 1 after the reading is completed, the control unit 41 uses the user interface 31 to notify the user with a warning sound, a warning message, or the like. May be notified to the user.

  In the first and second embodiments, when the image reading device is disposed in a store such as a convenience store, the control unit 41 uses a communication device (wired or wireless network) (not shown). A notification indicating the transition to the identification card reading mode may be transmitted to the terminal device or server in the store. In that case, the terminal device or server in the store notifies the store employee that the image reading device is being used in the identification card reading mode (for example, blinking a display device such as an LED). Alternatively, the terminal device or server in the store may control the security camera and take a video around the image reading device. Further, the terminal device or server in the store may record the date and time (for example, in association with the above-described video) when the notification indicating the transition to the identification card reading mode is received.

  In the first and second embodiments, when storing the image data of the identification card in the storage device 36, the card image output unit 43 encrypts the image data of the identification card and stores the encrypted identification card. Image data may be stored.

  In the first and second embodiments, the card image output unit 43 may superimpose a watermark indicating a copy such as “COPY” on the image of the identification card.

  The present invention is applicable to an image forming apparatus such as a multifunction machine.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Contact glass 4 Moving optical system 11 Arrangement position instruction | indication part 34 Printing part 41 Control part 42 Card image acquisition part 43 Card image output part

Claims (6)

Contact glass,
An arrangement position indicating unit arranged below the contact glass and indicating an arrangement position of a predetermined identification card;
A moving optical system for reading an image of a predetermined range on the contact glass;
A card image acquisition unit that extracts an image of the identification card from an area corresponding to the arrangement position indicated by the arrangement position instruction unit in the image of the predetermined range;
An image reading apparatus comprising: A control unit for moving the moving optical system;
The arrangement position instruction unit is formed on the upper surface of the moving optical system,
The control unit moves the moving optical system to a predetermined position below the contact glass;
The image reading apparatus according to claim 1.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement position instruction unit is arranged below a rear end of the contact glass in a sub-scanning direction.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement position instruction unit instructs a plurality of arrangement positions of the identification card along a main scanning direction.   5. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement position instruction unit has a display for instructing a reading surface of the identification card corresponding to the arrangement position. A printing section for printing an image on printing paper;
A card image output unit for causing the printing unit to print an image of the extracted identification card;
The card image output unit shifts the position of the image of the identification card inward in the sub-scanning direction by a predetermined length, and causes the printing unit to print the image of the identification card;
The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image reading apparatus is an image reading apparatus.

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