JP3170864B2 - Image processing device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus which rotates, compresses, temporarily stores, reads, decompresses, and sends image data input from an image input device to an image output device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Digital copiers meet the recent demand for diversified and multiplied image processing. Digital copiers copy originals from Automatic Documen.
The document is automatically conveyed to a platen of a copying machine sequentially by setting it to t Feeder (hereinafter, referred to as ADF), the image of the document is read by a scanner, and the image information is temporarily converted into a digital signal and stored. Next, the stored image information is read out, and Image Outp
An image is recorded by out Terminal (hereinafter, referred to as IOT), and a copy function of a document is realized.

When storing, since the image data has a large amount of information, in order to store more image information, the information logical redundancy of the image information of the document is compressed to reduce the amount of information. The image information is stored in the state in which the image information is stored.

Here, a magnetic storage device such as a hard disk is used as a storage device for storing compressed image data in many cases because a large capacity is desirable.
The time required to store image information in this storage device is
Including the seek time (the time required for the head to move for one cylinder), etc., the access speed is almost 1 MB /
Second, which is slower than the normal transfer speed of image information sent from the compressor to the storage device of about 10 megabytes / second, and the image compressed by the compressor cannot be transferred to the storage device as it is and stored. .

Therefore, a buffer memory for temporarily storing image information in page units is provided between the compressor and the storage device, and the image information transferred from the compressor is temporarily stored in this buffer memory in page units. Store. The image information temporarily stored in the buffer memory in synchronization with the storage device is transferred to and stored in the storage device.

After that, when the image information is taken out from the storage device, the image data is temporarily stored in the above-mentioned buffer memory in order to absorb the speed difference. It is configured to transfer, sequentially decode, and record an image by IOT.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the basic configuration of a digital copying machine having the above-described configuration. However, illustration from the storage device to the IOT is omitted here.

In this digital copying machine, the buffer memory 10 is provided with a switching device 9 for switching between connection with the compressor 8 and connection with the storage device 11. The switching device 9 connects the buffer memory 10 and the compressor 8 when reading a document from an IIT (image input terminal) 7. Then, after reading the image information of one document, performing compression processing and storing it in the buffer memory 10, when reading out the image data from the buffer memory 10 and storing it in the storage device 11, the buffer memory 10 and the storage device 11 are connected.

In the configuration shown in FIG. 6, when the compressed image information stored in the buffer memory 10 is stored in the storage device 11, the next compressed image information cannot be stored in the page memory. The reading of the document is waiting for processing.

Conventionally, in order to solve this waiting process, a device having a buffer memory A13 and a buffer memory B14 as shown in FIG. 7 has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-297974). In this configuration, the buffer memories used in units of screens are switched by the switching devices 12 and 15, and the image data is read from the stored buffer memory and stored in the storage device 11 while sequentially switching and inputting the compressed image data. The document can be read continuously without waiting for processing.

[0011]

However, the prior art shown in FIG. 7 cannot meet the demands for various functions that require image data rotation processing. That is, in the configuration shown in FIG. 7, storing the compressed data in the buffer memory and storing the stored compressed data in the storage device are performed in parallel. Since rotation processing is performed before compression, parallel processing of rotation processing and compression processing cannot be expected, and as a result, reading must wait for processing.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problem, and to improve productivity in image processing for performing a plurality of processing such as rotation processing and compression processing of image data without waiting for processing. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus capable of performing the following.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus for compressing and storing rotated image data.
One page buffer, rotating means for rotating image data and storing it in the page buffer, compressing means for compressing image data, large-capacity storage means for storing compressed image data, and rotating the input image data. Means for rotating the image stored in one of the two page buffers by means of the means and compressing the rotated image stored in the other of the two page buffers by the compression means and storing the compressed image in the mass storage means; And control means for alternately and repeatedly performing image data for the two page buffers. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the control means stores the rotated image compressed by the compression means in the other page buffer and then stores the rotated image in the large-capacity storage means. Further, in the present invention, when the control means compresses and stores the image data without rotating it, the two page buffers are linked and treated as one page buffer, and the input image data is processed by the compression means. And storing the data in the large-capacity storage means after storing in the one page buffer. The present invention further comprises a determining means for determining whether there is any existing data in the two linked page buffers, wherein the control means determines whether the image data is newly rotated and compressed and stored. The rotation compression of the image data is started based on the judgment result.

[0014]

According to the present invention, the image data is sequentially inputted from the input means, and when the rotation processing is not performed, the processing is performed without dividing the page buffer, and when the image data is rotated, the control means controls the existing page buffer. The page buffer is divided into two parts according to the presence / absence of the data, and the page buffer is divided into two parts. Rotation processing is performed in one of the divided page buffers, and compression processing is simultaneously performed in the other page buffer. By alternately performing the rotation processing and the compression processing on the divided page buffers, it is possible to perform the processing efficiently even in the image processing in which the rotation processing is performed without waiting for the processing.

[0015]

Embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a hardware block diagram showing one embodiment of an image processing apparatus according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, E
SS (Electronic SubSystem)
Reference numeral 1 denotes a II that controls a command / status signal with an IIT / IPS (image reading device) 3 and an image input signal.
T-I / F 101, ROT (rotator) 102 for rotating image data, ROT 102 or COMP (compressor) 1 for image data in page buffers 106 and 107
IBUS (image bus) I /
F103, COMP 104 for compressing image data, page buffer A 106, page buffer B 107, disk CONT 109 for controlling disk 6 as a large-capacity data storage memory, and DECOMP (decompressor) 110 for restoring compressed data to original image data , I
IOT-I / F for communicating with an OT (image output device) 5
111 and a control circuit 105.

IIT / IPS (image reading device) 3
Is an image reading device that reads a document using, for example, a CCD sensor, performs offset adjustment and gain adjustment of a read signal, converts analog image data into digital image data, and performs gap correction, shading correction, and the like. For color reading, R (red), G (green),
Take out the image data of the three primary colors separated into B (blue),
For the image data, for example, END (equivalent neutral density conversion), color masking, document size detection, color conversion, UCR (under color removal) and black generation, halftone dot removal and edge enhancement, TRC (color tone correction control) , And performs a scaling process, an editing process, and the like. The ADF 2 is attached to the IIT / IPS 3 and automatically feeds the read original.

An IOT (image output device) 5 can control the on / off of the laser beam for each pixel based on the binary data generated from the image data and reproduce a halftone image by halftone dots. An example is a laser printer. UI4
Is composed of a display, a control panel, and the like, and performs setting input of various functions and editing, and display output of the contents.

Hereinafter, blocks constituting the ESS 1 will be described. The COMP (compressor) 104 has a compression mode and a through mode, and compresses data in the compression mode using, for example, an adaptive predictive coding method.
The adaptive prediction encoding method is a method in which, for example, image data is simultaneously predicted every eight pixels by a plurality of predictors, and the predictor with the highest hit rate is used for prediction of the next eight pixels. In this case, the pixel signal for which the prediction was successful is replaced with “0”, and the pixel signal for which the prediction is out of order is replaced with “1”.

The DECOMP (decompressor) 110 has a decompression mode and a through mode, and restores original image data before compression by decompressing compressed data in the decompression mode. In the through mode, the image data input to the COMP 104 is directly used as the page buffer A 106 or the page buffer B 10 without performing the compression processing by the COMP 104 and the decompression processing by the DECOMP 110.
7 and used when outputting directly in some cases.

A page buffer A 106 and a page buffer B 107 store image data for several pages of the original,
This is used for temporarily storing read data from the CPU or temporarily storing image data to be output without writing it to the disk 6, and outputting the edited data such as rewriting or replacement by the control circuit 105. Page buffer A1
06, the page buffer B 107 may handle both areas as one, or may handle them separately. To handle both areas as one, use page buffer A10
6 is a ring buffer in which the last address of the page buffer B107 and the top address of the page buffer A106 are continuous.

The disk 6 is a large-capacity data storage memory for storing a large amount of compressed image data.
The writing and reading are controlled by the disc CON.
T109. The data stored on the disk 12 is 2
Value or multi-valued image data.

The operation realized on the hardware configuration shown in FIG. 1 will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG.
Is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of image processing, FIG. 3 is an operation timing chart of image processing when there is no rotation processing, FIG. 4 is an operation timing chart of image processing when there is rotation processing, and FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for dividing.

The operation of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. When the process is started, the area of the page buffer is secured (S1), and when the page buffer area is secured, the scan preparation in the IIT / IPS3 is started (S1).
2). Next, referring to the job parameters set on the UI 4, it is determined whether or not to perform the rotation processing. If so, the procedure enters into the preparation for rotation processing (S3). enter. When preparation for scanning, rotation, or compression processing is completed, DMA (Direct Memory Access) corresponding to each processing unit is driven, and image data is transferred to the page buffer A 106 or the page buffer B 107. Here, when the rotation processing is not performed, the data is transferred to the COMP 104 and stored in the page buffer while performing the compression processing. When the rotation processing is performed, the data is transferred to the ROT 102 and stored in the page buffer while performing the rotation processing. As described above, since the data stored in the page buffer in the case of the rotation processing is the uncompressed data, the compression processing is further performed. At this time, the image data is transferred not from the input device 101 but from the page buffer.
COMP1 through / Rot IBUS-I / F103
04 and store it in the page buffer after compression processing. When the compressed data is stored in the page buffer, a write start command is issued to the disk 12 (S
5) Write the compressed data to the disk 12.

The IBUS 108 has a page buffer A 106 and a page buffer B 1 by bus arbitration.
07 and each processing block can be accessed simultaneously. The page buffer A 106, the page buffer B 107, and each processing block perform time-division processing. Therefore, parallel processing (details will be described later) of each processing block as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 becomes possible.

When the compressed data is stored, the IO
It is determined from the job parameters whether output to T5 is possible, and if possible, decompression processing by the DECOMP 13 is started (S6), and the image data is transferred to the IOT 5 (S6).
7). Otherwise, the above processing is repeated until the final input is made.

If the second or higher copy is specified from the job parameters, a page buffer area is secured (S8), and then reading from the disk 12 is started (S9). At this time, if compressed data exists in the page buffer, reading from the disk 12 may be omitted. When the compressed data to be output to the page buffer is stored, the decompression process of the DECOMP 13 is started (S1).
0), the image data is transferred to the IOT 5 (S11). Thereafter, the process is repeated from S8 until the final output page is reached. If the above processing satisfies the input number and the number of copies set in the job parameters, it is confirmed that the sheet of the last page is discharged, and then the disk 12 corresponding to the job node (management information relating to the job just performed) is performed. Deletes the image data. This is because when an IOT error such as a jam or a misfeed occurs and the IOT returns to a normal state thereafter, it is possible to output from the continuation of the page ejected before the error.

Next, a description will be given of a difference between a case where rotation is not performed and a case where rotation is performed. In FIG.
First, when the rotation is not performed, the page buffer is used as a continuous ring buffer of the page buffer A106 and the page buffer B107. At this time, the IBUS 20 sets the page buffer A10 by bus arbitration.
6. Since simultaneous access of the page buffer B 107 and each processing block is possible, the compression processing and the disk writing processing can be performed in parallel at the timing shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a case where one copy of three originals is copied. First, initialization in IIT, feed of original 1, IOT
, Initialization, paper feed, IIT scan, original reading, compression processing by COMP, D
The decompression process by ECOMP and the output process by IOT are executed simultaneously, and the writing to the hard disk (HD) is performed at the same time when the compression process ends. The feed, scan, compression process, decompression process, and output process of the document 2 are executed in parallel with the writing to the HD, and the above processes are performed until the output process of the document 3 is completed.

When performing rotation, the page buffers are a page buffer A 106 and a page buffer B 107
And used in a divided state. At this time, the rotation processing, the compression processing, and the disk writing processing are alternately performed in the respective buffers at the timing shown in FIG. 4, so that the rotation processing and the compression processing, and the rotation processing and the disk writing processing can be performed in parallel.

FIG. 4 shows a case where one copy of three originals is copied. First, initialization in IIT, feed of original 1, IOT
, The paper is fed, the IIT scan is performed, and the document is read, and the rotation process is performed. The compression process, the decompression process, and the output process are simultaneously performed at the same time as the rotation process is completed, and the writing to the HD is performed at the same time as the compression process is completed. In addition, in parallel with the compression processing of the data of the rotated document 1, feed, scan, and rotation processing of the document 2 are performed.
The decompression process and the output process are performed simultaneously, and writing to the HD is performed at the same time when the compression process ends. Hereinafter, original 3
Until the processing for is completed.

Next, the procedure for dividing the page buffer will be described with reference to FIG. Page buffer A 106, page buffer B
Reference numeral 107 denotes an initial state in which both buffers are used as a continuous ring buffer. First, when performing the rotation process, it is checked whether or not there is valid data in the buffer. If there is, wait until the data in the page buffer becomes invalid. If division is possible, the buffer is divided (S14). If the rotation is not performed, it is checked whether the page buffer is divided. If the page buffer is divided, the page buffer is set as a ring buffer (S15). If the page buffer is not divided, the page buffer is used as it is.

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention, a page buffer which can be divided and stored for each page is provided, and when rotating image data, the page buffer is divided and each page buffer is divided. By alternately performing rotation processing and compression processing, rotation processing of image data,
The image data compression processing and the storage processing to the storage device can be performed in parallel, so that the reading processing of the original can be sequentially performed without waiting, and the productivity can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of a hardware configuration of an image processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of image processing.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation timing chart of image processing when there is no rotation processing.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an operation timing chart of image processing when there is a rotation process.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a flowchart of a page buffer dividing procedure.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of a conventional digital copying machine.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of a conventional digital copying machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ESS, 2 ADF, 3 IIT / IPS, 4 U
I, 5 IOT, 6 disk, 7 IIT, 8 compressor, 9 data switch, 10 buffer memory, 11 storage device, 12 data switch, 1
3 ... Buffer memory A, 14 ... Buffer memory B, 15
... data changeover switch, 101 ... IIT-I / F, 1
02: Rotator, 103: IBUS-I / F, 104
... Compressor, 105 ... Control circuit, 106 ... Page buffer A, 107 ... Page buffer B, 108 ... IBUS, 1
09: disk CONT, 110: expander, 111: I
OT-I / F.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ identification code FI H04N 1/21 B41J 3/12 T (58) Investigated field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04N 1/38-1 / 393 H04N 1/21 H04N 1/41-1/419 G06T 1/00-1/40 G06T 3/00-5/50 G06T 9/00-9/40 G06F 12/00-12/06 G06F 13/16- 13/18

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. An image processing apparatus for compressing and storing rotated image data, comprising: two page buffers; rotating means for rotating the image data and storing it in the page buffer; and compression for compressing the image data. Means, large-capacity storage means for storing compressed image data, and storing the input image data in the other of the two page buffers while rotating the input image data in one of the two page buffers. Operation of compressing the rotated image thus compressed by the compression means and storing the compressed image in the large-capacity storage means,
Control means for making the two page buffers alternately and repeatedly performed for each image data. 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stores the rotated image compressed by the compression unit in the other page buffer and then stores the rotated image in the large-capacity storage unit. . 3. The control means links the two page buffers and treats them as one page buffer when compressing and storing the image data as it is without rotating the image data. 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the compressed image data is stored in the one page buffer and then stored in the large-capacity storage unit. And determining means for determining whether there is data existing in the two linked page buffers, wherein the control means determines whether or not the image data is to be newly rotated and compressed and stored. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein rotation compression of the image data is started based on a result of the determination.