JP3825899B2 - Image output apparatus and method - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image output apparatus and method having image rotation reading and rotation output functions.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, there has been no facsimile apparatus having functions such as rotational reading and rotational recording. However, recently, a multifunction machine in which a facsimile function is added to a copying machine has been commercialized. In such a multifunction peripheral, it is possible to set the orientation of the document to be read in a plurality of directions. For example, when reading an A4 size document, if the orientation of the document placed on the document table or the document feeder is different from the feeding direction of the recording paper, the function rotates when the document is read to correct the orientation. have.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the above conventional example, even if an A4 size document is placed with its longitudinal direction perpendicular to the reading sensor (CCD) (hereinafter, this direction is referred to as A4R direction), the longitudinal direction is placed horizontally with respect to the reading sensor. (Hereinafter, such a direction is referred to as an A4H direction), the image data is rotated and stored in the memory in the same direction (for example, the A4R direction) by the function of rotating the image data during reading. However, when image data rotation processing is performed in copying, the processing speed of the entire copy is reduced.
[0004]
When image data rotation processing is not performed, encoding can be performed in units of one line. Therefore, if line synchronization is established between reading and encoding, encoding ends immediately after completion of reading. On the other hand, when image data is rotated, it can be encoded only after all reading is completed. That is, when image data rotation processing is performed, the time from the start of reading to the end (encoding completion) becomes longer than when rotation processing is not performed.
[0005]
In the case of encoding by rotating, the reason why it can only be executed after reading it will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state of encoding the rotated image data. Here, the pixels read from the reading sensor are sequentially 1, 2, 3,.
[0006]
First, the pixels 1 to 64 of the original image are stored in the image memory as shown in (a). In the rotation processing, the X-axis and Y-axis data are exchanged and rearranged as shown in (b). When the image data is encoded, one line is taken out in the main scanning direction from the storage state of (b). Therefore, the first line when the image data is rotated is 8, 16,..., 64, and the pixel 64 last read from the reading sensor is included in the first line. Therefore, whatever the rotation algorithm is used, the first line can be encoded only after reading is completed.
[0007]
When performing facsimile transmission, since the orientation of the paper size for communication is determined, it is necessary to perform rotation processing as necessary to align the orientation of the image during reading. However, when the copy function is used, it is necessary to align the image direction on the recording paper, but it is sufficient to perform it at the time of reading or recording.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides an image output apparatus and method for appropriately controlling image rotation processing at the time of image reading by providing a function of rotating image data at the time of image output. For the purpose.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, an image output apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention has the following arrangement. That is,
An image output apparatus capable of appropriately selecting a first image input mode for facsimile transmission and a second image input mode for copy processing,
Reading means for reading a document image and determining the document direction;
Determination means for determining whether or not to perform a copy output of two or more copies for the same document image in the second image input mode;
When the first image input mode is selected and the original direction determined by the reading unit is different from the direction specified by facsimile transmission, or when the second image input mode is selected and the determination unit The first storage means for rotating and storing the image data obtained by the reading means when it is determined that the copy output of the number of copies is two or more by
When the second image input mode is selected and the determination means determines that the copy output of the number of copies is 1 , or when the first image input mode is selected and the document direction is facsimile transmission in the case that matches the defined direction, and a second storage means for storing image data obtained by the reading means as it direction,
When outputting the image data in the second image input mode, if the direction of the image data stored in the storage means does not match the direction of the recording paper on which the image is recorded, the direction of the image data is rotated and output. Rotation output means.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0011]
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a facsimile apparatus having a copying function according to this embodiment. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes an operation unit, which includes 10 keys (ten keys), various function keys, an LCD, and the like. A reading unit 12 reads a document image, binarizes it, and stores it as image data in an image memory (14). The reading unit 12 includes a document feeder, and a document size sensor for recognizing the document size and direction is attached to the document feeder.
[0012]
Reference numeral 13 denotes a recording unit which takes out data from the image memory (14) and prints an image on recording paper by any recording method such as a laser beam method, an ink jet method, or a thermal recording method. An image memory 14 develops an image read by the reading unit 12 and an image to be printed. The image memory 14 stores image data that is binarized in black and white and is not encoded.
[0013]
Reference numeral 15 denotes a codec unit that encodes image data and stores it in the encoding memory (16), and a decoding unit that decodes the data in the encoding memory (16) and develops it in the image memory (14). It consists of. Reference numeral 16 denotes an encoding memory, which stores data encoded by the codec unit 15. The image data received by facsimile is also stored here.
[0014]
A communication unit 17 includes an NCU (network control unit) and a modem. A control unit 18 includes a CPU 18a, a ROM 18b, a RAM 18c, and the like, and controls each of the above components.
[0015]
Next, the operation of the facsimile apparatus of the present embodiment having the above configuration will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a processing procedure at the time of image reading in the facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment. Hereinafter, the flow from image reading to encoding will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
[0016]
When reading of the document image is instructed from the operation unit 11, reading of the document image is started in step S11. The image data obtained by reading the document image by the reading unit 12 is temporarily stored in the image memory 14. The facsimile apparatus according to the present embodiment is a composite apparatus with a copying machine, and designates whether to operate as a facsimile apparatus (hereinafter referred to as FAX mode) or as a copying machine (hereinafter referred to as COPY mode) from the operation unit 11. be able to.
[0017]
In step S12, it is determined whether the operation mode instructed by the operation unit 11 is the FAX mode or the COPY mode. If the COPY mode is set, the process proceeds to step S16 as it is. On the other hand, if the operation mode instructed by the operation unit 11 is the FAX mode, the process proceeds to step S13.
[0018]
In step S <b> 13, the process branches depending on the document size and direction recognition result by the document size sensor provided in the reading unit 12. If the document size recognized by the document size sensor is in the A4H direction, the process proceeds to step S14 to perform the rotation process, and if not, the process proceeds to step S16.
[0019]
In steps S14 and S15, rotation processing is performed on the read document image data. That is, in step S14, the process waits until reading of the original image is completed and all image data is developed in the image memory 14. In step S15, the pixels developed on the image memory 14 are taken out one by one, the position after rotation is calculated, and stored in a free image memory. Thus, if the movement of all the pixels, that is, the rotation of the image data is completed, the process proceeds to step S16.
[0020]
In step S <b> 16, the data in the image memory 14 is encoded by the encoding unit of the codec unit 15 and stored in the encoding memory 16. When image data rotation processing is not performed, line synchronization is performed between the reading processing of the reading unit 12 and the encoding processing of the codec unit 15, and reading and encoding are executed in parallel. Also, attribute information indicating the size and direction of the image data is added to the encoded data. This attribute information is used, for example, to determine whether or not the direction of the recording paper and the direction of the image data coincide with each other during a recording process (described later with reference to FIG. 4).
[0021]
In step S17, it is determined whether reading of one document has been completed. If there is an unprocessed portion, the process returns to step S11 and the above-described processing is repeated. However, if the rotation processing (steps S14 and S15) has been performed, it goes without saying that the document has already been read at this point.
[0022]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation at the time of image recording in the first embodiment. In step S41, the direction of the recording paper to be used is first determined. Here, the recording paper to be used is determined based on the document size added as attribute information to the image data (encoded data) to be recorded. Next, in step S42, the direction of the image data is acquired from the attribute information to which the image data is added in the code memory. In step S43, the encoded data is decoded.
[0023]
In step S44, the direction of the recording paper obtained in step S41 is compared with the direction of the image data obtained in step S42. If they do not match, the process proceeds to step S45 to perform rotation processing. In step S45, the image data combined in step S43 is rotated. In step S46, image output (recording processing) is performed. If the directions of the recording paper and the image data match in step S44, the process proceeds to step S46, and the image is output in the same direction. When image rotation processing is unnecessary, decoding processing and image output (recording) can be performed in line synchronization as in encoding.
[0024]
As described above, according to the first embodiment, the rotation reading is not used during the copy process, and only the rotation recording is used. Also, during facsimile processing, since the orientation of paper for communication is defined, rotation reading is executed when the document orientation is A4H. These processes are summarized as shown in FIG.
[0025]
As can be seen from FIG. 3, conventionally, even during the copying process, if the document is in the A4H direction, the rotation process is performed, and when the output is performed, the rotation recording is performed as necessary to match the direction of the recording paper. On the other hand, according to the first embodiment, when the direction of the document image and the recording paper is the A4H direction, neither rotation reading nor rotation recording is required, and the copy speed does not need to be reduced. In the case of a copying machine, this combination is effective because the frequency of use in this direction is high.
[0026]
(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, the processing efficiency is improved by performing the rotation processing in the COPY mode only at the time of recording. However, when a plurality of copies are designated, the processing speed may be improved by performing the rotation process at the time of reading. If the orientation of the original and the recording paper does not match (for example, if the orientation of the original is the A4R direction and the direction of the recording paper is the A4H direction) and an attempt is made to output multiple copies (N copies), When rotated, N rotation processes are required. On the other hand, if the rotation is performed by reading, only one time is required. Even in the COPY mode, it is more efficient to perform the rotation process at the time of reading.
[0027]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a processing procedure at the time of image reading in the facsimile apparatus of the second embodiment. Since the process of step S11-step S17 is the same as that of the above-mentioned 1st Embodiment, description is abbreviate | omitted.
[0028]
If it is determined in step S12 that the set operation mode is the COPY mode, the process proceeds to step S21, and it is determined whether or not the document direction and the recording paper direction match. If they match, the rotation process is unnecessary, and the process proceeds to step S16.
[0029]
If the wording direction and the recording paper direction do not match in step S21, the process proceeds to step S22 to check the number of copies to be output. The number of copies to be output can be arbitrarily set by the user on the operation unit 11. If the number of copies to be output is one, the rotation process is not performed and the process proceeds to step S16.
[0030]
In step S22, when the number of output copies is two or more, it is more efficient to perform rotation processing of image data at the time of reading for the reason described above. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S23, waiting for completion of data reading for one screen, and when reading is completed, image data rotation processing is performed in step S24.
[0031]
As described above, according to the second embodiment, depending on the number of output copies, it is determined whether the rotation processing of image data is performed at the time of reading or at the time of recording, so that the document image can be read more efficiently. it can.
[0032]
As described above, according to each of the above embodiments, image rotation processing at the time of copying can be minimized, and the copy processing speed can be improved. Further, the rotation processing required for the facsimile is not impaired.
[0033]
In the above embodiment, the case where an A4 size document is processed has been described. Needless to say, the processes described in the above embodiments can be applied to other paper sizes.
[0034]
Note that the present invention can be applied to a system including a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), or a device (for example, a copier, a facsimile device, etc.) including a single device. You may apply to.
[0035]
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.
[0036]
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.
[0037]
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.
[0038]
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.
[0039]
Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into 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.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, since the image rotation processing at the time of image reading is appropriately controlled in cooperation with the function of rotating the image data at the time of image output, the amount of rotation processing at the time of copy processing And the copy processing speed can be improved.
[0041]
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a facsimile apparatus having a copying function according to an embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure at the time of image reading in the facsimile apparatus according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a diagram comparing the execution state of a rotation process during a copy process with the conventional embodiment and the first embodiment;
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation at the time of image recording in the first embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure at the time of image reading in the facsimile apparatus according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state of encoding image data that has been subjected to rotation processing.

Claims (9)

An image output apparatus capable of appropriately selecting a first image input mode for facsimile transmission and a second image input mode for copy processing,
Reading means for reading a document image and determining the document direction;
Determination means for determining whether or not to perform a copy output of two or more copies for the same document image in the second image input mode;
When the first image input mode is selected and the original direction determined by the reading unit is different from the direction specified by facsimile transmission, or when the second image input mode is selected and the determination unit The first storage means for rotating and storing the image data obtained by the reading means when it is determined that the copy output of the number of copies is two or more by
When the second image input mode is selected and the determination means determines that the copy output of the number of copies is 1 , or when the first image input mode is selected and the document direction is facsimile transmission in the case that matches the defined direction, and a second storage means for storing image data obtained by the reading means as it direction,
When outputting the image data in the second image input mode, if the direction of the image data stored in the storage means does not match the direction of the recording paper on which the image is recorded, the direction of the image data is rotated and output. An image output apparatus comprising: a rotation output means for performing the operation.   The image output apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first storage unit encodes and stores the rotated image data obtained by rotating the image data.   2. The image according to claim 1, wherein the second storage unit encodes image data in line synchronization with a document image reading process in the reading unit, and stores the encoded image data. 3. Output device.   The image output apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotation output unit performs rotation processing on image data obtained by decoding encoded image data. An image output method for outputting an image by appropriately selecting a first image input mode for facsimile transmission and a second image input mode for copy processing,
A reading process for reading a document image and determining the document direction;
In the second image input mode, a determination step of determining whether or not to perform a copy output of two or more copies for the same document image;
When the first image input mode is selected and the original direction determined in the reading step is different from the direction defined by facsimile transmission, or when the second image input mode is selected and the determination step The first storing step of rotating and storing the image data obtained in the reading step when it is determined that the copy output of the number of copies is two or more by
When the second image input mode is selected and it is determined by the determination step that the number of copies is one , or when the first image input mode is selected and the document direction is facsimile transmission in the case that matches the defined direction, and a second storage step of storing the image data obtained in said reading step as it direction,
When outputting the image data in the second image input mode, if the direction of the image data stored in the storing step and the direction of the recording paper on which the image is recorded do not match, the direction of the image data is rotated and output. An image output method comprising: a rotation output step. 6. The image output method according to claim 5 , wherein in the first storing step, the rotated image data obtained by rotating the image data is encoded and stored. 6. The image according to claim 5 , wherein the second storage step encodes image data in line synchronization with a document image reading process in the reading step, and stores the encoded image data. output method. 6. The image output method according to claim 5 , wherein in the rotation output step, rotation processing is performed on image data obtained by decoding encoded image data. A computer-readable memory for storing a control program for causing a computer to execute an image output process for selectively outputting an image by selectively using a first image input mode for facsimile transmission and a second image input mode for copy processing The image output process is
A reading process for reading a document image and determining the document direction;
In the second image input mode, a determination step of determining whether or not to perform a copy output of two or more copies for the same document image;
When the first image input mode is selected and the original direction determined in the reading step is different from the direction defined by facsimile transmission, or when the second image input mode is selected and the determination step The first storing step of rotating and storing the image data obtained in the reading step when it is determined that the copy output of the number of copies is two or more by
When the second image input mode is selected and it is determined by the determination step that the number of copies is one , or when the first image input mode is selected and the document direction is facsimile transmission in the case that matches the defined direction, and a second storage step of storing the image data obtained in said reading step as it direction,
When outputting the image data in the second image input mode, if the direction of the image data stored in the storing step and the direction of the recording paper on which the image is recorded do not match, the direction of the image data is rotated and output. A computer-readable memory comprising: a rotation output step .

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