JP2019109305A - Image formation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide means which suppresses the consumption amount of a developer while suppressing the reduction of the success rate of reading a bar-code.SOLUTION: An image formation apparatus includes: reflectivity detection means which detects the reflectivity of a recording medium; an image processing unit which derives the developer amount used in formation of an image of a bar-code on the basis of the reflectivity and corrects the developer amount; and an image formation unit which forms the image of the bar-code on the recording medium by the corrected developer amount. The image of the bar-code is formed of a first image using a developer in a first color and a second image using a developer in a second color. The image processing unit calculates the developer amount in the first color and the developer amount in the second color satisfying a prescribed condition guaranteeing the success rate of reading the bar-code, and selects a combination of the developer amount in the first color and the developer amount in the second color for which the total use amount of the developer amount in the first color and the developer amount in the second color becomes the smallest.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a barcode printing function.

  The conventional image forming apparatus prints a low reflectance color material and a high reflectance color material according to the reflectance of the recording medium when printing a bar code in which a plurality of low reflectance bars and a high reflectance space are combined. To print bars and spaces on a recording medium (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-341144 A

However, in the prior art, depending on the reflectance of the recording medium, the difference in reflectance between the bar and the space of the printed barcode may be insufficient to reduce the bar code reading success rate. There is a problem that it is necessary to increase the developer as a coloring material used to print the space, and the consumption of the developer increases.
An object of the present invention is to solve such a problem, and to suppress the consumption amount of the developer while suppressing the decrease in the bar code reading success rate.

  Therefore, the present invention derives the amount of developer used to form the image of the bar code based on the reflectance and the reflectance detection means for detecting the reflectance of the recording medium, and corrects the amount of developer. An image processing unit; and an image forming unit for forming an image of the barcode on a recording medium with the corrected amount of developer, and the image of the barcode uses a developer of a first color. The image processing unit comprises a first image and a second image using a developer of a second color, and the image processing unit is configured to satisfy the first condition satisfying a predetermined condition for guaranteeing a success rate of reading the barcode. The first amount of developer for the color and the amount of developer for the second color are calculated, and the total amount of use of the amount of developer for the first color and the amount of developer for the second color is minimized. Select a combination of the color developer amount and the second color developer amount The features.

  According to the present invention as described above, it is possible to suppress the consumption of the developer while suppressing the decrease in the bar code reading success rate.

Block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus in the embodiment Flow chart showing the flow of correction processing in the embodiment Flow chart showing the flow of the first reflectance calculation process in the embodiment Flow chart showing the flow of the second reflectance calculation process in the embodiment Flow chart showing the flow of correction processing in the embodiment Explanatory drawing of the barcode area correction result in an Example Explanatory drawing of the barcode image in a comparative example Explanatory drawing of the barcode image in an Example

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus in the embodiment.

In FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 1 is an electrophotographic printer or the like which forms an image on a recording medium such as plain paper or colored paper using toner as a developer of a plurality of colors including white. The image forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment forms and prints on a recording medium an image of a bar code in which a plurality of spaces with high reflectance and a plurality of bars with low reflectance are arranged in combination by using toners of a plurality of colors.
The bar code has a high light reflectance space (first image using a first color developer) and a low light reflectance bar (second color development) that is lower than the light reflectance of the space. It is configured by combining a plurality of second images (using an agent) and represents various information by the difference in size ratio of bars and spaces and the repetition pattern, and can be read by a bar code reader. There are various types of barcodes (for example, Code 128 etc.), but the barcodes of this embodiment are not limited to a specific barcode.

The image forming apparatus 1 includes a communication unit 11, a reflection sensor 12, an image forming unit 13, and an image processing unit 20.
The communication unit 11 communicates with a host computer connected via, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) as a wired communication line, and receives print data DP and the like transmitted from the host computer. . Also, the communication unit 11 supplies the received print data to the image processing unit 20.

  In the present embodiment, although an example using a wired LAN is described, the present invention is not limited to this, and a wireless LAN may be used. Also, the present invention is not limited to the LAN, and instead of the LAN, for example, a communication line such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) may be used.

  The reflection sensor 12 as a reflectance detection unit measures (detects) the reflectance of the recording medium on which the image forming unit 13 forms an image. The reflection sensor 12 is, for example, a light reflection type sensor that irradiates light to a recording medium, receives the reflected light, and measures the reflectance (for example, 0 to 100%). The reflection sensor 12 supplies the measured reflectance of the recording medium as the medium reflectance C to the image processing unit 20.

The image processing unit 20 generates five color image data D (color image data DY, color image data DM, color image data DC, color image data DK, color image data DW based on the print data DP received by the communication unit 11). ) And performs correction processing on each color image data D.
The image processing unit 20 of the present embodiment generates five color image data D of a barcode based on the print data DP received by the communication unit 11, and based on the reflectance of the recording medium detected by the reflection sensor 12. While deriving the amount of toner used as the amount of developer used for forming a barcode image, a correction process is performed to correct the amount of toner used for each color image data D.

The image processing unit 20 includes a color image generation unit 21, a barcode region correction unit 22, and a table storage unit 23.
The color image generation unit 21 generates color image data D of five colors (color image data DY, color image data DM, color image data DC, color image data DK, color image based on the print data DP supplied from the communication unit 11 Data DW) and barcode area data R are generated.

The color image data DY is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using yellow (Y) toner.
The color image data DM is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using a magenta (M) toner.
The color image data DC is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using cyan (C) toner.
The color image data DK is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using black (K) toner.
The color image data DW is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using white (W) toner.

  The barcode area data R is data indicating the position (e.g., coordinates) of the barcode area in the image data D.

  In this embodiment, the first color is white, the second color is either black or cyan, the color image data DW is the first image data constituting the space of the barcode, the color image data DC, and the color. One of the image data DK is used as second image data constituting a bar of a barcode.

The bar code area correction unit 22 uses the medium reflectance C, the bar code area data R, and the various conversion tables stored in the table storage unit 23 to obtain color image data D of five colors (color image data DY, color Of the image data DM, color image data DC, color image data DK, color image data DW), correction processing is performed on the color image data D necessary for forming a bar code image, and five color image data E (color image data EY, color image data EM, color image data EC, color image data EK, color image data EW) is generated.
The color image data EY is a yellow (Y) toner, the color image data EM is a magenta (M) toner, the color image data EC is a cyan (C) toner, and the color image data EK is black (K The color image data EW is image data corresponding to an image to be formed using white (W) toner.

  In the present embodiment, the second color toner used for the bar of the bar code is described as a black (K) toner. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any toner having a low reflectance when read by a bar code reader may be used, and a cyan toner may be used.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the toner of the first color used in the space of the barcode is a white (W) toner.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the barcode area correction unit 22 performs correction processing on the color image data DK and DW, and generates the color image data EK and EW after correction. The color image data DY, DM, DC are not corrected and generated as they are as color image data EY, EM, EC.

The table storage unit 23 includes storage means such as a memory, and holds various conversion tables used by the barcode area correction unit 22. The table storage unit 23 includes a bar toner usage conversion table 231, a space toner usage conversion table 232, a bar reflectance conversion table 233, and a MOD calculation table 234.
It is assumed that various tables held by the table storage unit 23 are created in advance based on the relationship between the toner usage amount of the image forming apparatus 1 and the reflectance of the printed matter (recording medium or barcode).

  Here, the toner usage amount is the usage amount of toner for each pixel of each color when forming an image, and is a toner corresponding to the gradation of the color density of 0% (light) to 100% (dark) It is the amount used. In this embodiment, when the amount of toner used to form the highest density pixel is used as a reference and the amount of toner used is 100% of the amount of toner used as the reference, "the amount of toner used is It is expressed by an index of 100%, and the amount of toner used to form the lowest density pixel is expressed by an index of 0% of toner used.

The bar toner usage conversion table 231 is a data table in which the reflectance of the recording medium, the reflectance of the bar of the barcode (minimum reflectance in the barcode), and the usage of the toner of the bar are associated with each other. It is possible to extract the amount of toner used in the bar of the barcode based on the reflectance and the minimum reflectance in the barcode.
The space toner usage conversion table 232 is a data table in which the reflectance of the space of the barcode (maximum reflectance in the barcode) is associated with the usage of the toner of the space, and the maximum reflectance in the barcode is It is possible to extract the toner usage amount of the space of the barcode based on it.

The bar reflectance conversion table 233 is a data table in which the bar toner usage amount of the barcode and the bar reflectance (minimum reflectance in the barcode) are associated, and the barcode is based on the toner usage amount of the bar. It is possible to extract the minimum reflectance within.
The MOD calculation table 234 associates the reflectance of the bar and space of the barcode (minimum reflectance and maximum reflectance of the barcode) with the minimum value (ECmin) of the difference in reflectance between adjacent bars and the space. It is a data table, and it is possible to extract the minimum value (ECmin) of the difference in reflectance between adjacent bars and spaces based on the minimum reflectance and the maximum reflectance of the barcode.

  The image forming unit 13 forms an image on a recording medium based on the color image data E of five colors generated by the image processing unit 20. The image forming unit 13 forms an image on a recording medium using toners of yellow, magenta, cyan, black, and white.

  The image forming unit 13 of the present embodiment forms a barcode image on a recording medium with the amount of toner usage corrected and generated by the image processing unit 20.

The image forming unit 13 forms a yellow image using yellow toner based on color image data EY, forms a magenta image using magenta toner based on color image data EM, and generates a color image A cyan image is formed using cyan toner based on data EC, a black image is formed using black toner based on color image data EK, and white toner is formed based on color image data EW. Form a white image.
At this time, the image forming unit 13 forms a white image, a black image, a cyan image, a magenta image, and a yellow image on the recording medium in this order. That is, a white image is formed in the lowermost layer. By forming the white image in the lowermost layer in this manner, in the image forming apparatus 1, the influence of the color of the recording medium on the image quality can be suppressed.

  In the case where a barcode image is formed on a recording medium in the present embodiment, the image forming unit 13 forms a white toner image on the recording medium, and then forms a black toner image on the recording medium.

Each operation performed by the image forming apparatus 1 is executed by a control unit having control means such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) in accordance with a control program (software) stored in the storage means of the image forming apparatus 1.
The control program is stored in storage means such as a non-volatile memory, volatile memory, or a magnetic storage medium such as a hard disk.
Further, data, tables and the like used and created in each process of the image forming apparatus 1 are stored in storage means such as a non-volatile memory and a hard disk.

  The image processing unit 20 of the image forming apparatus 1 configured as described above uses the first color (white) toner usage and the second color (black) that satisfy a predetermined condition that guarantees the bar code read success rate. The toner usage amount of the first color (white) and the toner usage amount of the first color (white) where the total usage amount of the first color (white) toner usage and the second color (black) toner usage is the smallest And a combination of the second color (black) toner usage.

  The image forming unit 13 forms a barcode image on a recording medium by a combination of the first color (white) toner usage selected by the image processing unit 20 and the second color (black) toner usage. Do.

  The operation of the above-described configuration will be described.

First, the outline of the barcode image forming process performed by the image forming apparatus will be described based on FIG.
The communication unit 11 of the image forming apparatus 1 receives the print data DP from the host computer by communicating with the host computer connected via the communication line, and supplies the print data DP to the image processing unit 20.
The image forming apparatus 1 feeds a recording medium and conveys the recording medium to the image forming unit 13. The recording medium may be a precut sheet stored in a sheet feeding cassette, or may be a continuous sheet.

The reflection sensor 12 measures the reflectance of the recording medium on which the image forming unit 13 forms an image, and supplies the measurement result as the medium reflectance C to the barcode area correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20.
The color image generation unit 21 of the image processing unit 20 generates five color image data D (color image data DY, color image data DM, color image data DC, color image data DK, colors based on the supplied print data DP). The image data DW) and the barcode region data R are generated and supplied to the barcode region correction unit 22.

  The barcode area correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 uses the medium reflectance C, the barcode area data R, and the table information stored in the table storage unit 23 to obtain five color image data D (color image data D Correction processing is performed on DY, color image data DM, color image data DC, color image data DK, color image data DW, and five color image data E (color image data EY, color image data EM, color image data) EC, color image data EK, color image data EW) are generated and supplied to the image forming unit 13.

The image forming unit 13 receives five color image data E (color image data EY, color image data EM, color image data EC, color image data EK, color image data supplied from the barcode area correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20). Based on the data EW), the toner image of the bar code is transferred and formed on the recording medium conveyed.
The toner image is fixed by heat and pressure in the fixing unit, and the recording medium on which the toner image of the barcode is formed is discharged to the outside of the apparatus.

  Thus, the image forming apparatus 1 performs barcode image formation processing.

Here, the evaluation parameters of the barcode will be described.
Bar code evaluation parameters include various ones such as decoding determination, symbol contrast (SC), minimum reflectance, minimum edge contrast, displacement width (MOD), defects, and ease of decoding. The barcode region correction unit 22 can set a plurality of conditions for guaranteeing the barcode read success rate using this evaluation parameter.

  In this embodiment, as a predetermined condition for guaranteeing the success rate of bar code reading, it is set that both of the two conditions described below are satisfied, but it is not limited to this. Three or more conditions may be set.

The first condition is that the symbol contrast (SC) is equal to or higher than a threshold TH1 as a first threshold.
The second condition is that the displacement width (MOD) is equal to or greater than a threshold TH2 as a second threshold.
The symbol contrast (SC) is the difference between the maximum reflectance and the minimum reflectance of the bar code.

The displacement width (MOD) is the ratio of the minimum value (ECmin) of the difference in reflectance between adjacent bars and spaces to the symbol contrast (SC).
The displacement width (MOD) can be calculated by the following equation 1.
Displacement width (MOD) = ECmin / SC (Equation 1)
In the present embodiment, the threshold TH1 is set to 60, and the threshold TH2 is set to 0.7. Note that the threshold TH1 and the threshold TH2 can be changed by the user who actually uses the barcode reader.

  Next, the correction processing performed by the barcode region correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 will be described according to the steps represented by S in the flowchart showing the flow of the correction processing in the embodiment of FIG. 2 with reference to FIG.

  S1: The barcode area correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 performs a first reflectance calculation process. Specifically, the barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the reflectance that satisfies the first condition described above.

  S2: Next, the barcode region correction unit 22 performs a second reflectance calculation process. Specifically, the barcode region correction unit 22 determines whether the reflectance calculated in S1 satisfies the above-described second condition, and the second condition is satisfied if the second condition is not satisfied. Correct and calculate the reflectance to satisfy the conditions.

S3: Next, the barcode area correction unit 22 performs a correction process. Specifically, the barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the toner usage amount using the reflectance calculated in S2, that is, the reflectance satisfying the first condition and satisfying the second condition, and the toner usage amount Correction processing is performed to extract a pixel value at which.
Here, the pixel value is a numerical value representing the gradation of the density of the color of the pixel, and is, for example, a numerical value of 0 (light) to 255 (dark).

The details of the processing performed in S1, S2, and S3 described above will be described later.
Next, the first reflectance calculation process performed by the barcode region correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 in S1 of FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the first reflectance calculation process in the embodiment of FIG. 3. It will be described with reference to FIG.

  S11: The barcode region correction unit 22 sets the toner usage amount K1 of the barcode bar. The toner use amount K1 can be set to 0 to 100%, and in S11, an unset value is set. For example, it is assumed that the toner usage amount K1 is sequentially set every 0% to 100%.

S12: The barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the reflectance of the bar of the barcode.
First, the barcode region correction unit 22 searches the bar toner use amount conversion table 231 based on the medium reflectance C supplied from the reflection sensor 12 and extracts the bar toner use amount K2.
Next, the barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the bar toner usage amount K3 by adding the bar toner usage amount K1 set in S11 and the extracted bar toner usage amount K2.

Further, the barcode region correction unit 22 searches the bar reflectance conversion table 233 based on the calculated bar toner use amount K3 and extracts the reflectance of the bar.
In this manner, the barcode region correction unit 22 determines the reflectance of the bar (minimum reflectance in the barcode) when the barcode is printed on the recording medium having the medium reflectance C using the toner amount set in S11. Calculate

  S13: The barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the reflectance of the barcode space.

Here, the barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the reflectance of the space satisfying the first condition (maximum reflectance in the barcode).
Specifically, the barcode region correction unit 22 adds the threshold TH1 to the bar reflectance calculated in S12, and calculates the reflectance of the space that satisfies the first condition.

  The barcode area correction unit 22 sets an upper limit value to the calculated reflectance of the space, and when the reflectance of the calculated space exceeds the calculated upper limit, the bar toner usage amount K1 set in S11 is the first. It may be determined that it is impossible to satisfy the condition of

  S14: The barcode region correction unit 22 determines whether or not the processing is completed with all settings (for example, 0 to 100%) of the toner usage amount of the bar, and is not completed (unset bar toner usage amount If it is determined that there is no bar toner use amount set, the process proceeds to step S11, and if it is determined that the process is completed, the present process is terminated.

  Next, the second reflectance calculation process performed by the barcode region correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 in S2 of FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the second reflectance calculation process in the embodiment of FIG. It will be described with reference to FIG.

  S21: The barcode region correction unit 22 sets the reflectance of the bar and space of the barcode. The barcode region correction unit 22 sets a combination of unselected reflectances among the combinations of the reflectance of the bar and the space calculated in the first reflectance calculation process shown in S1 of FIG.

  S22: The barcode area correction unit 22 calculates a displacement width (MOD).

  The barcode region correction unit 22 searches the MOD calculation table 234 based on the reflectance of the bar and space set in S21 or the reflectance of the bar and space updated in S24, and reflects the adjacent bar and space Extract the minimum value of the difference in rates (ECmin).

The displacement width (MOD) can be calculated by the above-mentioned equation 1, and in this embodiment, since the symbol contrast (SC) is the threshold value TH1, it can be calculated by MOD = ECmin / TH1.
The barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the displacement width (MOD) based on the minimum value (ECmin) of the reflectance difference between the extracted bar and space and the threshold value TH1.

  S23: The barcode region correction unit 22 determines whether the calculated displacement width (MOD) is greater than or equal to the threshold TH2, and if it is determined that the displacement width (MOD) is greater than or equal to the threshold TH2, the process proceeds to S25 and displacement is performed. If it is determined that the width (MOD) is less than the threshold TH2, the process proceeds to S24.

  S24: If the barcode region correction unit 22 determines that the displacement width (MOD) is less than the threshold TH2, the bar code region correction unit 22 updates the reflectance of the set bar and space, and the process proceeds to S22.

  Here, the barcode region correction unit 22 updates the bar to lower the reflectance or to increase the reflectance of the space.

  In this embodiment, the barcode region correction unit 22 alternately performs a process of subtracting the reflectance of the bar by “1” and a process of adding the reflectance of the space by “1”. For example, the barcode region correction unit 22 subtracts “1” from the bar reflectance in the first processing of S24 after the processing of S21, and thereafter calculates the displacement width (MOD) in S22, and the displacement width in S23 When (MOD) becomes less than the threshold value TH2, in the next processing of S24, the reflectance of the space is added by "1". Thereafter, the process of subtracting the reflectance of the bar by “1” and the process of adding the reflectance of the space by “1” are alternately performed until it is determined in S23 that the displacement width (MOD) is equal to or greater than the threshold TH2.

  Note that the lower limit value may be set for the reflectance of the bar, and the upper limit value may be set for the reflectance of the space. For example, when the reflectance of the bar updated in the process of S24 reaches the lower limit value, the barcode region correction unit 22 sets the reflectance of the bar as the lower limit value, adds “1” to the reflectance of the space, and updates When the space reflectance reaches the upper limit value, the space reflectance is set as the upper limit value, and the bar reflectance is subtracted by “1”.

  Further, when the amount of use of the specific toner is to be saved in S24, the process of updating the reflectance of the other toner not to be saved may be performed. That is, the updating process may be performed to reduce the amount of toner used by giving priority to either the amount of toner used for the first color of the barcode or the amount of toner used for the second color.

  For example, in the case of saving the amount of use of white toner, the process of subtracting the reflectance of the bar by “1” is preferentially performed until the lower limit value is reached. The setting of the toner to be saved may be included in the print data DP, or may be set by the user's operation from the operation panel of the image forming apparatus 1 or the like.

  Further, the toner to be saved may be automatically determined according to the remaining amount of toner without setting. For example, when the remaining amount of white toner among white toner and black toner is smaller than the remaining amount of black toner, the bar reflectance is set to determine the amount of toner used so as to save the white toner. The process of subtracting "1" is preferentially performed until the lower limit value is reached.

  S25: The barcode region correction unit 22 determines whether or not the processing is completed with all settings (combinations) of the reflectance of the bar and the space, and is not completed (the reflectance of the unset bar and the space is If it is determined that there is a bar and space, the process proceeds to step S21 to set the reflectance of the unset bar and space.

  Next, referring to FIG. 1 according to the step represented by S in the flowchart showing the flow of the correction processing in the embodiment of FIG. 5, the correction processing performed by the barcode area correction unit 22 of the image processing unit 20 in S3 of FIG. While explaining.

  S31: The barcode region correction unit 22 acquires the number of pixels PK of the bar of the barcode region and the number of pixels PW of the space from the barcode region data R.

  S32: The barcode region correction unit 22 sets the reflectance of the bar and space of the barcode. It is assumed that the barcode region correction unit 22 sets an unselected one of the combinations of the reflectance of the bar and the space calculated in S2 of FIG.

  S33: The barcode area correction unit 22 calculates the toner use amount of the bar. The barcode area correction unit 22 searches the bar toner use amount conversion table 231 based on the bar reflectance set in S32, and extracts the bar toner use amount K4, which is the toner use amount per pixel.

  S34: The barcode area correction unit 22 calculates the toner usage amount of the space. The barcode area correction unit 22 searches the space toner usage conversion table 232 based on the space reflectance set in S32, and extracts the space toner usage W4 which is the toner usage per pixel.

  The processing order of S32 and S33 may be reversed.

  S35: The barcode area correction unit 22 calculates the total toner use amount. The barcode region correction unit 22 calculates the total toner usage amount according to the following equation 2, using the bar pixel number PK, the space pixel number PW, the bar toner usage amount K4, and the space toner usage amount W4.

Total toner usage amount = PK × K4 + PW × W4 (Expression 2)
The calculated total toner use amount is an index and does not represent the absolute amount of toner used.

  S36: The barcode region correction unit 22 stores the bar toner usage amount as MINK and the space toner usage amount as MINW when the calculated total toner usage amount is the minimum value among the total toner usage amounts already calculated. Hold.

  In addition, when saving the usage amount of a specific toner, the barcode area correction unit 22 holds the usage amount of bar toner when the usage amount of toner to be saved is minimum as MINK and the usage amount of space toner as MINW in the storage means You may do it. For example, in the case of saving the usage amount of white toner, the storage unit holds the usage amount of bar toner as MINK and the usage amount of space toner as MINW when the usage amount of space toner is the minimum value.

  The setting of the toner to be saved may be included in the print data DP, or may be set by the user's operation from the operation panel of the image forming apparatus 1 or the like. In addition, the toner to be saved may be automatically determined according to the remaining amount of toner, that is, the toner with a small amount of remaining amount may be determined as the toner to be saved without performing setting.

  S37: The barcode region correction unit 22 determines whether or not the processing is completed with all settings of the reflectance of the bar and the space, and is not completed (the reflectance of the unselected bar and the space exists) If so, the process proceeds to step S32 in order to set the reflectance of unselected bars and spaces, and if it is determined that the process is completed, the process proceeds to step S38.

  S38: The barcode area correction unit 22 uses the bar toner usage amount MINK and the space toner usage amount MINW that minimize the toner usage amount held in the storage unit in S36, and the color image data DK and the color using the barcode region data R A correction process of the image data DW is performed.

First, the barcode region correction unit 22 specifies barcode regions of the color image data DK and the color image data DW using the barcode region data R.
Next, the bar code area correction unit 22 substitutes the value obtained by converting the bar toner usage amount MINK into a pixel value into the pixel value of the area forming the bar of the bar code area of the color image data DK. Correction to generate color image data EK.
In addition, the barcode region correction unit 22 replaces the value obtained by converting the space toner usage amount MINW into a pixel value with the pixel value of the region forming the space of the barcode region of the color image data DW, thereby obtaining color image data DW. Correction to generate color image data EW.
Since the amount of toner used is in the range of 0 to 100%, for example, when the range of pixel values of each color image data D is 0 to 255, the value obtained by multiplying the amount of toner used by 2.55 is the pixel value .

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 uses the combination of the bar toner usage amount and the space toner usage amount to satisfy the predetermined condition for guaranteeing the barcode read success rate by the barcode region correction unit 22. The bar code read success rate by selecting the bar toner use amount and the space toner use amount that minimize the total toner use amount, which is the amount of toner consumed, and printing the bar code in the image forming unit 13 The toner consumption can be suppressed while suppressing the decrease in

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of the bar code area correction result in the embodiment.

  FIG. 6A shows the reflectance of the bar and the reflectance of the space satisfying the first condition with respect to the amount of use of the bar toner by the first reflectance calculation process (S1 in FIG. 2, the process shown in FIG. 3). It is an example calculated. As shown in FIG. 6A, the bar reflectance is obtained with respect to the amount of use of the bar toner, and the space reflectance satisfying the first condition is calculated from the bar reflectance.

  FIG. 6B shows the reflectance of the bar and the reflectance of the space calculated in the first reflectance calculation processing by the second reflectance calculation processing (S2 in FIG. 2 and the processing shown in FIG. 4). This is an example of calculating the reflectance of the bar and the reflectance of the space that satisfy the second condition. As shown in FIG. 6 (b), after the bar reflectance and the space reflectance are processed so as to satisfy the second condition with respect to the bar reflectance and the space reflectance which satisfy the first condition as the set reflectance. It is calculated as the reflectance of

  FIG. 6C shows the total toner use amount with respect to the reflectance of the bar and the reflectance of the space calculated in the second reflectance calculation processing by the correction processing (S3 in FIG. 2 and the processing shown in FIG. 5). This is an example of calculating the index of. As shown in FIG. 6C, the reflectance of the bar and the reflectance of the space calculated by the second reflectance calculation processing, that is, the reflectance of the bar satisfying the first condition and satisfying the second condition The reflectance of the space is set as the reflectance, and the bar toner usage amount, the space toner usage amount, and the total toner usage amount are calculated as an index of the toner usage amount after processing for each combination of reflectances.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, of the combinations of the bar toner usage amount and the space toner usage amount satisfying the first condition and the second condition, as shown in FIG. When the usage amount is 42%, the index of the total toner usage amount is “82820”, which is the minimum.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of a bar code image in the comparative example, and shows an example in which the bar code image is formed on a recording medium having a reflectance of 50%.

FIG. 7A shows an example in which a bar code image is formed with both the toner use amount of the bar 71 and the toner use amount of the space 72 as 100%.
FIG. 7B shows an example in which the bar code image is formed with the toner usage of the bar 71 being 100% and the toner usage of the space 72 being 0%.
FIG. 7C shows an example in which the bar code image is formed with the toner usage of the bar 71 being 0% and the toner usage of the space 72 being 100%.

In the example shown in FIG. 7A, it is possible to form a barcode image with a high read success rate, but it is not possible to suppress the usage amount (consumption amount) of toner.
On the other hand, in the example shown in FIG. 7 (b) or FIG. 7 (c), although it is possible to reduce the use amount (consumption amount) of the toner, the bar code image can be used with either the bar 71 or the space 72. Because of the formation, the difference in reflectance between the bar 71 and the space 72 becomes 50% or less, and the bar code reading success rate decreases.

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of a bar code image in the embodiment, and shows an example in which the bar code image according to the present embodiment is formed on a recording medium having a reflectance of 50%.

As shown in FIG. 8, in the present embodiment, the toner usage of the bar 81 and the use of the space 82 which satisfy the first condition and the second condition as the predetermined condition are used to guarantee the success rate of reading the barcode. Since the combination of 38% of bar toner usage and 42% of space toner usage, which is the combination that minimizes the total toner usage, is selected among the combinations of volumes, the bar code read success rate is guaranteed. In order to form a bar code image with the minimum necessary toner consumption.
Therefore, the barcode image formed according to the present embodiment can reduce the amount of toner consumption (consumption) while guaranteeing the success rate of barcode reading.

  As described above, in this embodiment, among the combinations of the bar toner usage amount and the space toner usage amount which satisfy a predetermined condition for guaranteeing the success rate of reading the barcode, the total toner usage which is the amount of toner consumed is used By selecting the amount of bar toner used and the amount of space toner used to minimize the amount and printing the bar code, it is possible to suppress the consumption of developer while suppressing a drop in the bar code reading success rate. The effect of being able to

  Although the image forming apparatus has been described as a printer in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and any image forming apparatus capable of forming an image on a recording medium may use an input image such as a multifunction peripheral (MFP). It may be an apparatus for processing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 image forming apparatus 11 communication unit 12 reflection sensor 13 image forming unit 20 image processing unit 21 color image generation unit 22 bar code area correction unit 23 table storage unit 231 bar toner usage conversion table 232 space toner usage conversion table 233 bar reflectance Conversion table 234 MOD calculation table

Claims (7)

Reflectance detection means for detecting the reflectance of the recording medium;
An image processing unit that derives an amount of developer used for forming a barcode image based on the reflectance and corrects the amount of developer;
An image forming unit for forming the image of the barcode on a recording medium with the corrected developer amount;
Have
The image of the bar code is composed of a first image using a developer of a first color and a second image using a developer of a second color,
The image processing unit
The amount of developer of the first color and the amount of developer of the second color that satisfy a predetermined condition that guarantees the success rate of reading the barcode are calculated, and the amount of developer of the first color and the amount of developer of the first color are calculated. 2. An image forming apparatus, comprising: selecting a combination of the developer amount of the first color and the developer amount of the second color in which the total usage amount of the developer amount of 2 colors is minimized. In the image forming apparatus according to claim 1,
The image forming unit is
An image forming apparatus comprising: forming the first image on the recording medium; and forming the second image on the recording medium. In the image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The image processing unit
An image forming apparatus characterized in that the amount of developer used is reduced by giving priority to one of the amount of developer of the first color and the amount of developer of the second color. In the image forming apparatus according to claim 3,
The image processing unit
An image forming apparatus characterized by reducing the use amount of a developer having a small remaining amount among the developer of the first color and the developer of the second color. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The second image has a lower reflectance than the first image,
The predetermined condition is
An image forming apparatus, wherein a symbol contrast of the barcode is equal to or more than a first threshold, and a displacement width of the barcode is equal to or more than a second threshold. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first color is white. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second color is either black or cyan.

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