JP3710300B2 - Image editing apparatus and storage medium - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image editing apparatus and an image editing method capable of easily identifying output prints by order in an image editing apparatus that performs image editing such as synthesis processing of a design template and an input image and outputs the result. .
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, services that synthesize and output images recorded on various media in a frame (design template) in which colors and images are designed in advance and a space (image slot) in which image data is inserted are prepared, and photo prints Services such as extension of images and output by adding special effects such as color conversion to images.
[0003]
In an image editing apparatus that performs such image processing, the processing result is printed as it is according to the service selected by the customer. Therefore, when the processing is continuously performed for a plurality of services, the operator prints the printing result for each service. As long as it is not taken out from the printing section, printed products related to a plurality of services are sequentially stacked in time series on the printer section. When printing is completed, a list of customer numbers issued at the same time as the start of acceptance and order numbers issued at the time of service execution are displayed on the display device, and the name, work status, and work performed by the customer. The start time, data size, etc. were displayed in text.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In such a conventional image editing apparatus, the number of pages printed in one order is not fixed in a situation where the printed materials are stacked in time series. It has become difficult to identify. Further, even in the order list showing the printing work history displayed on the display device, it was impossible to visually understand what kind of image was printed in each order. For this reason, it is difficult to search for a necessary order from a large number of order lists and execute reprinting.
[0005]
The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and easily identify the stacked printed matter in order units without imposing a heavy load, and the operator can easily confirm the print contents corresponding to the order list. An object of the present invention is to provide an image editing apparatus that can be used.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
That is, the gist of the present invention is an order in which a template having a plurality of pages is selected, and an order for outputting a plurality of pages is received, and a composition process of image data and a template is performed for each page. An image editing apparatus that performs predetermined processing including, and outputs the processed image data as a result thereof for each order, and reduces each page of the processed image data after the synthesis processing to generate reduced processed image data A conversion unit; a management unit that stores the reduced image data created by the image conversion unit in a storage device and manages the data for each order; and the reduced image data stored in the storage device together with information on a selected template The image editing apparatus includes output means for laying out and outputting for each order.
Another aspect of the present invention is a storage medium for storing a program executable by an apparatus, wherein the apparatus for executing the program is an order in which a template having a plurality of pages is selected, and a plurality of pages An image editing apparatus that accepts an order for outputting image data, performs predetermined processing including synthesis processing of image data and a template for each page, and outputs the processed image data as a result for each order. Then, each page of the processed image data after the synthesis process is reduced, and image conversion means for creating reduced image data, and reduced image data created by the image conversion means are stored in the storage device and managed for each order. a management unit, the reduced image data that has been stored in the storage device, together with information of the template is selected, and outputs the layout for each order Resides in a storage medium, characterized in that to operate as a device having a power unit.
Another aspect of the present invention is an order in which a template having a plurality of pages is selected, and an order for outputting a plurality of pages is received, and image data and a template are combined for each page. This is an image editing method that performs predetermined processing including processing and outputs the processed image data as a result for each order, and reduces each page of the processed image data after the composition processing to create reduced processed image data The image conversion step, the reduced image data created in the image conversion step is stored in the storage device, the management step for managing each order, and the reduced image data stored in the storage device is stored in the selected template. An image editing method includes an output step of laying out and outputting each order together with information .
[0007]
The image editing apparatus according to the present invention creates so-called thumbnail image data having a sufficiently small amount of data from high-resolution image data actually printed, and performs index printing by collecting the thumbnail data in order units.
[0008]
In addition, when creating thumbnail image data, it is possible to store image data representing a print image to be displayed on a normal display device for the purpose of confirming the editing result before final printing, and use the data during index printing. , Processing load can be reduced. This is because a display device such as a CRT display usually has a resolution much lower than that of a printer, and the screen display data has a smaller amount of information than the final print data.
[0009]
When the image editing result has a plurality of pages, display data for creating thumbnail image data can be created for all pages. Thumbnail image data is output to the index print page together with text information such as the order number, the selected design template number, and the name of the executed service.
[0010]
A dedicated template is prepared for index printing, and thumbnail image data is pasted (synthesized) in the image slot of the template and printed before final high-resolution printing. At this time, if the number of pages to be printed is larger than the number of image slots of the template for index printing, image data from the first page to the number of image slots of the template is output, and the remaining images are indexed. Are synthesized and output after the second page.
[0011]
For example, if there are five image slots in the index print template, the index print image data for the first five pages of the final print data is printed. If the actual number of pages is less than the number of image slots, an empty slot is created.
[0012]
There are various types of index printing templates depending on the number of image slots. This device includes not only how many slots the template actually used has but also whether index printing is performed in the first place. Is defined in advance as one item of the system management setting, and can be changed by the operator according to the environment in which the apparatus is installed.
[0013]
Further, when there are a plurality of output pages, it is possible to print the number of pages on the final printed matter. Also in this case, whether or not the number of pages is printed is defined in advance as one item of the system management setting.
[0014]
When printing is completed, a list of customers or order histories including the latest printed ones is displayed on the display device. The customer number is issued when the customer starts using the image editing apparatus. However, this number does not uniquely manage customers. A pair with the customer number is an input image group. Various services can be repeatedly executed on this input image group. The execution unit of this service is called an order. A new order number is issued when a service is selected. When a customer number is selected from the customer list on the screen, detailed information such as the history and data size of the executed service belonging to the customer number and the time when the customer number is issued is displayed.
[0015]
At this time, the thumbnail image data used in the index printing can be used to display the print status in each service. Also, when a plurality of service orders are received with the same customer number, the printed thumbnail image data can be displayed by selecting the order number from the order list under the customer number.
[0016]
By realizing these, it becomes possible for the operator of the image editing device to easily identify the printed matter in order units, and to make it possible to visually understand what kind of printing has been performed for the order on the order list. Can do.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, a description will be given by taking as an example a process of combining input image data with a design template as image editing.
[0018]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a portion necessary for explanation of the present embodiment in an image editing apparatus that performs synthesis processing of a design template and an input image according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0019]
In FIG. 1, 1 is an input device such as a keyboard / mouse, 2 is a central processing unit that performs system management control, a composite process of an input image and a design template, 3 is a terminal used for display, 4 is a printing device, Reference numeral 5 denotes an image input device, and reference numeral 6 denotes a storage device such as a magnetic disk drive or an optical disk drive. In the following description, the image input device 5 is assumed to be a scanner.
[0020]
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of an output method for visually identifying printed materials by order using the configuration of FIG.
[0021]
The initial screen displayed on the display device 3 after the system is started is a screen on which a customer list including items such as customer numbers is displayed, and is selected from the list on the screen by the input device 1 such as a mouse or a keyboard. Detailed customer information can be displayed.
[0022]
When the operator receives a new customer order, the process starts from this initial screen. At this time, the central processing unit 2 issues a customer number (step 11). The central processing unit 2 reads image data such as prints and printed materials brought by the customer with the image input device 5 (step 12) and stores them in the storage device 6. One of the services provided by the design template and input image combining process is selected (step 13), and an order number is issued at this time.
[0023]
When the service is selected, the central processing unit 2 reads the high-resolution image data for printing of the design template that can be used for the selected service, which is stored in the storage device 6 in advance, and has a size suitable for display on the display device. Convert it to the size and display it on the screen. Further, the central processing unit 2 creates low-resolution screen display image data (thumbnail image data of the input image) reduced to a predetermined size for each of the image data read by the image input device 5 and design template. Is displayed on the same screen.
[0024]
These are selected by the user and a timely synthesis process is performed (step 14). The combining process is performed using, for example, high-resolution data and input image data of a template, and resolution conversion is performed from the result data to generate low-resolution data for displaying a combined result image and display it on a display device. If necessary, the size of the image slot of the design template and the size of the input image data are also adjusted during the synthesis process.
[0025]
When the central processing unit 2 displays the synthesis result of the design template and the input image, the central processing unit 2 stores the synthesis result image display image data as a file in the storage device 6. At this time, if a file for the same service already exists, such as a file created by user trial and error during template selection, the existing file is overwritten. A file for the same service can be specified by assigning a file name using the order number issued when the service is selected. Each design template has a unique number.
[0026]
When a composite image is displayed, if a template with multiple pages is selected, not all pages are necessarily displayed on the screen, so the composite results for all pages, including pages that are not displayed. Image display image data is created and a data file is created (step 15). Then, the central processing unit 2 checks whether or not index printing is necessary, which is preset in the system setting file (step 16), and if so, a design template for performing index printing specified in the system setting file. (Index printing template) is acquired from the storage device 6.
[0027]
Then, the data file created in units of pages is sequentially read from the storage device 6 and processing such as scaling is performed so that the image of the entire page is included in the size of the image slot of the obtained index printing template (for template printing). Create thumbnails). As will be described later, this thumbnail image is stored in the storage device 6 when it is reused after processing. Next, the thumbnail is combined with the image slot of the index printing template, and the order number, the number of the selected template and the name of the executed service are set as text information in the index printing template (step 17). Printing is performed (step 18).
[0028]
Here, a description will be given of a set of text information in the index printing template. FIG. 3 shows a configuration example of attribute areas in the index printing template data used in the present invention. In the figure, the template includes an image slot for displaying thumbnails and a text slot for order number / service name / template number. The number of image slots differs for each template, and the template that is actually index printed is determined by the designation of the number of frames (number of image slots) at the time of index printing set in the system settings.
[0029]
FIG. 4 shows an example of index printing of a 5-frame thumbnail output in order units in the present invention. Here, the order number, service name, template number, and thumbnail are printed in five frames. As described above, when the number of input images to be combined is smaller than the number of image slots of the index printing template, blank image slots are generated. Conversely, when the number of image slots is small, an index of a plurality of pages is printed, and thumbnails of all pages are printed on the index.
[0030]
Next, the central processing unit 2 creates a final high resolution composition result from the high resolution template data and the read image data, and prints page by page (step 19). After the printing is completed, the user is asked whether or not the composition process is to be repeated. If so, the process returns to the service selection step to continue the same service for the same input image (step 20). On the other hand, if the synthesis process is not executed, all the processes are completed, the customer history data is updated, and the screen returns to the existing customer list display screen (step 21).
[0031]
In this way, by outputting the print contents of each order as an index prior to printing the processing result of the order, a plurality of orders are continuously processed by the same printing device, and a plurality of orders are printed on the printing device. Even when stacked, it becomes possible to easily sort by order.
[0032]
Next, a configuration for reusing a thumbnail image used for index printing will be described. When returning from step 21 to step 11 in FIG. 2, a list is displayed on the screen. By using the thumbnail image for displaying the selected order or the processing contents performed for the customer in this list display, the order is displayed. It is possible to easily check the contents.
[0033]
On the list display screen, the operator can select two types, for example, a list display for each customer for which a customer number is issued and a list display for each order made by one customer. When a customer number is selected on the former list display, thumbnails for printing of all services performed under the customer number are displayed. For the latter, a thumbnail corresponding to the selected service is displayed.
[0034]
FIG. 5 shows an example of a list display format for each customer output on the display device according to the present invention. Reference numeral 21 denotes a thumbnail display area, in which the details of the customer information selected in the customer list display area 22 are displayed together with thumbnail image data for each order made by the customer number. When a plurality of pages are printed in one order, for example, a thumbnail of the first page is displayed.
[0035]
In the customer list display area 22, arbitrary items such as a customer number, the number of orders, the number of data, and the reception time are displayed in a list. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the second customer (customer number # 2) is selected and the thumbnails are displayed in the thumbnail display area 21 for five orders made by the customer.
[0036]
On the other hand, FIG. 6 is a list display example of an order unit made by a specific customer, which is output on the display device according to the present invention. Reference numeral 31 denotes a thumbnail display area, and details of the order information selected in the order list display area 32 are displayed together with thumbnail image data of the order. In the order list display area 32, arbitrary items such as an order number, a service name, a used template number, a total number of pages, a reception time, and a data size are displayed in a list. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the second order (order number # 2) is selected and the thumbnail of the order # 2 made by the customer number #n is displayed in the thumbnail display area 31.
[0037]
[Other Embodiments]
In the above-described embodiment, image synthesis has been described as an example of image editing. However, the present invention can be applied to any processing such as deformation and color conversion as well as synthesis.
[0038]
In the embodiment, the case where the scanner is used as the image input device and the image data is read has been described. However, the image data prepared in advance in the storage device 6 may be used as the input image data. It is also possible to read image data that has already been in the form of electronic data, such as image data that has been created or image data that has been created by a computer. In this case, the electronic data recording medium is arbitrary such as a flash memory, a magnetic recording medium, and an optical recording medium, and any input method may be used.
[0039]
In addition, the data used to create thumbnails used for index printing is not limited to data used for screen display as in the embodiment, and high-resolution data for printing may be used or a combination thereof. . When the data displayed on the screen is not used, the processing load increases, so it is necessary to determine the processing capacity of the system and the size of the image data.
[0040]
Further, image data editing (including resolution conversion and scaling) may be performed by the central processing unit in software or may be processed using dedicated hardware.
[0041]
Further, if the high-resolution data to be printed finally is created once at the time of creating the screen display data, it may be stored and read and used at the time of printing. However, since the print data has a large capacity, it is necessary to consider the capacity of the recording medium to be stored and the read / write speed.
[0042]
In addition, when the number of image slots of the preset index template is less than the number of print pages, it has been described that a plurality of indexes are printed so that all thumbnails are printed. It is not always necessary to print a plurality of indexes as long as the separation is performed. However, in that case, it is impossible to check if the order is incorrect or missing. On the other hand, the system setting value that defines the number of image slots of the index template may be automatically changed when the number of printed pages is determined, and a template that fits in one index may be automatically selected.
[0043]
The present invention may be applied to an image editing system including a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, and a printer) or an image editing device including a single device. .
[0044]
Another object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium storing software program codes for implementing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus stores the storage medium. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by reading and executing the program code stored in the.
[0045]
In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.
[0046]
As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like can be used.
[0047]
Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (operating system) operating on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.
[0048]
Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.
[0049]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, before the final composite image result is printed, the index printing in units of orders is performed together with the information of the template selected using the image data which is the low resolution data. By performing, it is possible to easily recognize what kind of synthesis processing is performed and output , and which template is used . Moreover, it is suitable for confirming the previously performed order by displaying the order list on the display unit together with the reduced images included in each order. In particular, when a specific customer is selected, the order made by the customer and the reduced images included in the order are displayed, which is highly convenient for order confirmation on a customer basis.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an image editing apparatus constituting an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration example of an attribute area of template data used in order index printing;
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an output example of order index printing in the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a customer number list displayed in the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an order number list displayed in the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Input device 2 Central processing unit 3 Display device 4 Printing device 5 Image input device 6 Storage device

Claims (5)

Page is of the order of plural templates are selected, accepting an order for outputting a plurality of pages, each page 1 performs predetermined processing including combining processing of the image data and the template, An image editing apparatus that outputs the processed image data as a result for each order,
Image conversion means for reducing each page of the processed image data after the synthesis processing and creating reduced processed image data;
Management means for storing the reduced image data created by the image conversion means in a storage device and managing the data for each order;
An image editing apparatus comprising: output means for laying out and outputting the reduced image data stored in the storage device for each order together with information on the selected template . Furthermore, it has a display means for displaying the processed image data,
2. The image editing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a list of orders managed by the management unit is displayed on the display unit together with the reduced images included in each order. Furthermore, it has a display means for displaying the processed image data,
In the management means, the order is managed for each customer,
The image editing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display unit displays an order made by the customer and the reduced image included in the order in response to selection of a specific customer. A storage medium for storing a program that can be executed by the apparatus, wherein the apparatus for executing the program is an order in which a template having a plurality of pages is selected, and accepts an order for outputting a plurality of pages. , for each page, performs a predetermined processing including combining processing of the image data and the template, an image editing device for outputting the processed image data as a result for each of the orders,
Image conversion means for reducing each page of the processed image data after the synthesis processing and creating reduced processed image data;
Management means for storing the reduced image data created by the image conversion means in a storage device and managing the data for each order;
A storage medium that operates as an apparatus having output means for laying out and outputting the reduced image data stored in the storage device for each order together with information on the selected template . Page is of the order of plural templates are selected, accepting an order for outputting a plurality of pages, each page 1 performs predetermined processing including combining processing of the image data and the template, An image editing method for outputting processed image data as a result for each order,
An image conversion step of reducing each page of the processed image data after the synthesis processing and creating reduced processed image data;
A management step of storing the reduced image data created in the image conversion step in a storage device and managing the reduced image data for each order;
An image editing method comprising: an output step of laying out and outputting the reduced image data stored in the storage device for each order together with information on the selected template .

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