JP5101463B2 - Image reading apparatus, image forming apparatus, image reading apparatus control method, control program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus that reads double-sided originals and generates image data.

  As a scanner that reads originals, it is a type that reads an image from an original placed on a platen, a type that has an original conveyance mechanism and reads an image from one side of an original conveyed from a tray, and both sides of an original conveyed from a tray There is a type that reads the images at the same time. These scanners are provided, for example, in multifunction machines having a copy function, a printer function, a facsimile transmission / reception function, a filing function, a scan to e-mail function, and the like. Then, in response to an instruction from the user, the multifunction device prints an image read from the original, processes the facsimile transmission of the image, processes the image attached to an email, or transmits the image. A process of filing the image on the hard disk of the machine is executed.

  When transmitting an image file obtained by reading an image from a plurality of double-sided originals, the stacking order of the originals on the tray may be reversed (incorrectly reversed). If the stacking order is reversed, the order of the images in the digitized image file (order based on the page number) is reversed from the true order. Reading must be performed, resulting in unnecessary work. And in order to suppress generation | occurrence | production of such a useless work, patent document 1 discloses the following technique.

  The images on both sides of the document are alternately read and all the images are stored in the storage unit. At this time, it is determined whether or not the first page is blank. If the first page is blank, the ratio of white data to the image data in all odd pages is detected, and the odd pages are blank. It is determined whether or not. If it is determined that the odd page is not blank, it is determined that the stacking order of the documents having images on both sides is set in reverse (that is, the order of the read images is reverse to the true order). ), Correction processing (reversal processing) that reverses the order of the images (order based on the page number) is performed, and the corrected images are stored in the storage unit, or based on the corrected images. Print out.

  For example, if the image a is the first page, the image b is the second page, and the image c is the third page before the correction process, the image c is the first page and the image b is 2 when the correction process is performed. The page and image a become the third page.

If it is determined that the first page is not blank, the ratio of white data to the image data in all even pages is detected to determine whether the even page is blank. If it is determined that the even page is not blank, it is considered that a document having images on both sides is set. However, since it is difficult to automatically determine whether the order of the images is correct at this time, the storage unit 1 is read out and displayed on the display unit, and the user is asked to confirm whether or not it is the first page image.
JP 2001-251483 A (publication date: September 14, 2001)

  Incidentally, the user may notice that there is an error in the document stacking order after the document is stacked on the tray and before the scan is completed. Even in this case, if the multi-function peripheral performs scanning as it is and the multi-function apparatus performs the correction process, the user can save time and effort to re-place the document.

  However, according to the configuration of Patent Document 1, even when the user notices that there is an error in the document stacking order after the document is stacked on the tray and before the scan is completed (that is, the correction process is necessary). Even when the user is aware of the characteristics, after the completion of the reading process, all the odd pages or all the even pages are determined to be blank or not (data processing) before the correction process is performed. It has become. Therefore, a considerable time is required until the correction process is performed after the reading process is completed, and there is a problem that it takes time to complete the correction process.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and an object of the present invention is to speed up the completion of correction processing in an image reading apparatus that performs correction of the order of images read from a document.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, in an image reading apparatus that performs reading processing for reading an image on a document surface from both sides of a document for each document surface, (a) no order correction command is input by a user. When there is no command, the order of each image is determined based on the reading order of each read image. (B) When the command correction state is input by the user, the order of each image is determined. An order determining unit that determines an order reverse to the order determined in the absence of the command, and display of a command input image for inputting the order correction command before the completion of the reading process And a display control unit for causing the display device to start.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, when the user notices that the order of the images needs to be corrected, the user inputs the order correction command to correct the order of the images. Is to be done. Further, according to the above configuration, when the user is aware of the necessity for the correction before the completion of the reading process, the order correction command can be input even before the reading process is completed. The correction can be executed before the reading process is completed or immediately after the reading process is completed. Therefore, the completion of the correction process can be accelerated compared to the configuration of Patent Document 1 that requires a considerable time from the completion of the reading process to the start of the correction process.

  In the image reading apparatus of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, the reading process is a job for reading the image from a plurality of originals, and the display control unit displays a preview of the original first read on the display device. The structure to be made may be sufficient. According to this configuration, since the preview of the original read first is displayed, there is a merit that the user can easily notice an error in the order of the images. According to the above-described configuration, the preview display target is the original that has been read first, so that the preview display process can be executed even before all the originals have been read. Therefore, the user can input the order correction command after confirming the correctness of the order of each image in the preview before the reading of all the originals is completed. it can.

  Note that the preview of the original read first is either one of the preview of the front side of the original and the preview of the back side when the scanning process is performed by the double-sided simultaneous reading type scanner. You may be both. When the reading process is performed by a single-sided scanner, the preview of the original read first is a single-sided preview of the original.

  Further, when the number of documents to be processed in the reading process is small, the reading process is completed immediately. That is, if the number of documents to be processed is small, the user has no opportunity to check the stacking order of the documents on the tray during the reading process. Therefore, the stacking order of the originals on the tray is not confirmed before the reading process is started, and there is no opportunity to check the stacking order of the originals on the tray during the reading process because the number of originals to be read is small. In this case, there is a possibility that the user cannot confirm whether or not the correction is necessary and does not know whether or not to input the correction command.

  Therefore, in the image reading apparatus of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, when the number of documents to be processed in the reading process is equal to or less than a predetermined number, the display control unit displays the preview and It is preferable to display the command input image on the display device. According to this configuration, it is possible to check whether or not the order of documents is correct even after the reading process is completed. Therefore, the stacking order of the originals on the tray is not confirmed before the reading process is started, and there is no opportunity to check the stacking order of the originals on the tray during the reading process because the number of originals to be read is small. Even in this case, it is easy to determine whether the correction is necessary.

  In the image reading apparatus of the present invention, the display control unit is configured to display the command input image on a display device only when a mode for displaying the command input image is set by a user. Also good. According to the configuration of the present invention, when the order correction command needs to be input, the command input image must be displayed on a display device. However, if the command input image is displayed on the display device until the user is aware that the correction of the order of the images is unnecessary, unnecessary information will be displayed on the display device, The display content of the display device becomes complicated. In this regard, according to the configuration of the present invention, it is possible to switch the presence / absence of display of the command input image according to a user's request, and therefore when the user thinks that the correction is unnecessary. The display of the command input image can be prohibited, and the display contents of the display device can be prevented from becoming complicated.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes the above-described image reading apparatus.

  Further, according to the present invention, in a control method of an image reading apparatus that performs a reading process for reading an image of a document surface from both sides of a document for each document surface, (a) a command-free state in which no order correction command is input by a user In this case, the order of the images is determined based on the reading order of the read images, and (b) when the command correction state is input by the user, the order of the images is changed to the no command state. The display device starts to display the command input image for inputting the order correction command before the completion of the reading process and the step of determining the order reverse to the order determined in step And a control method including a process.

  Furthermore, the image reading apparatus of the present invention may be realized by a computer. In this case, a control program that causes the computer to operate as each unit of the image reading apparatus, and a computer-readable recording medium that records the control program Are also within the scope of the present invention.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in an image reading apparatus that performs a reading process of reading an image of a document surface from both sides of a document for each document surface, (a) a command-free state in which an order correction command is not input by a user. In this case, the order of the images is determined based on the reading order of the read images, and (b) when the command correction state is input by the user, the order of the images is changed to the no command state. An order determination unit for determining the order to be opposite to the order determined in step (b), and displaying a command input image for inputting the order correction command on the display device before the completion of the reading process. And a display control unit to be started. Therefore, the completion of the correction process can be accelerated compared to the configuration of Patent Document 1 that requires a considerable time from the completion of the reading process until the correction process is performed.

[Embodiment 1]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a multifunction peripheral (image reading apparatus, image forming apparatus) of the present embodiment.

  The multi-function device 100 is a device that can execute at least print processing, copy processing, facsimile transmission / reception processing, and image transmission processing. That is, the multi-function device 100 corresponds to both an image reading device having a scanning function and an image forming device having a printing function.

  The image transmission process is a process of sending data indicating an image read from an original to an address specified by attaching it to an e-mail, and sending data indicating an image read from an original to a predetermined folder or It means a process of transmitting to a USB memory or the like attached to the multifunction device 100.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1, the multifunction peripheral 100 includes an image input device 101, an image processing device 102, an image output device 103, an image display device 104, a reception device 105, a transmission device 106, a storage device 107, and a control unit 108.

  The control unit 108 is a computer including a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor). The control unit 108 controls the various types of hardware included in the multifunction peripheral 100 in an integrated manner, and controls data transfer between the hardware included in the multifunction peripheral 100.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 108 of the present embodiment includes a page number authorization unit 200 and a display control unit 201. The page number recognition unit 200 and the display control unit 201 will be described in detail later.

  The image input device 101 is an image reading unit that reads a document and generates image data. More specifically, the image input device 101 includes a scanner unit including a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), and generates image data indicating an image of the document based on light reflected from the document. is there.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, the image input apparatus 101 according to the present embodiment is a double-sided simultaneous reading type capable of simultaneously reading an image on one original surface and an image on the other original surface of a conveyed document. It is a scanner. In the following, when simply referred to as “original”, it refers to a double-sided original having images formed on both sides.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the image input apparatus 101 includes a document setting tray 122, a first reading unit 110, a second reading unit 123, and a document conveyance path 133. A set of a plurality of documents to be read is stacked on the document set tray 122.

  Of the plurality of stacked originals, the lowermost original is conveyed to the original conveyance path 133 one by one in order. In the image input apparatus 101, the document is transported from the document set tray 122 to the paper discharge tray 233 via the document transport path 133. However, the document can be transported without being reversed. It is supposed to be executed. The first reading unit 110 is disposed on the lower side of the document conveyance path 133 and reads an image on the lower surface of the document conveyed on the document conveyance path 133. The second reading unit 123 is arranged on the upper side of the document conveyance path 133 and reads an image on the upper surface of the document conveyed on the document conveyance path 133.

  That is, a plurality of document sets are stacked on the document set tray 122 so that the first page side is directed downward, the last page side is directed upward, and the document surface with a smaller page number is disposed on the lower side. When the image input apparatus 101 scans a plurality of document images, the first reading unit 110 sequentially reads the images on the odd-numbered document surface in ascending order of the page numbers, and the second reading unit 123 sets the even number in the order of decreasing page numbers. Images on the document surface of the page are sequentially read. The configuration of the image input apparatus 101 will be described in detail later.

  The image processing apparatus 102 is an integrated circuit that performs image processing, and includes an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The image processing apparatus 102 performs necessary processing (such as shading correction) on the image data generated by the image input device 101 and then temporarily stores the image data in the storage device 107. Further, the image processing apparatus 102 inputs image data stored in the storage device 107, performs digital image processing necessary for subsequent output processing (printing or transmission) on the image data, and performs the image processing. Data is sent to the image output device 103 or the transmission device 106.

  In the present embodiment, the image data means data indicating images of all originals read by a single image reading job in a scanner (image input device 101 or the like). For example, when the reading target of one image reading job is one original, the image data indicates the first page image and the second page image. Also, when the reading target of one image reading job is a set of two originals, the image data includes an image on the first page, an image on the second page, an image on the third page, and an image on the fourth page. Is shown.

  The image output device (printer) 103 prints (forms) an image indicated by the image data sent from the image processing device 102 on a recording medium (for example, paper). A color printer using the method can be given.

  The image display device 104 is a liquid crystal display provided in an operation panel (not shown) of the multi-function device 100, and is a display unit capable of displaying a color image. Further, the image display device 104 is covered with a touch panel and has a function as an input interface of the multifunction peripheral 100. That is, the image display device 104 displays a GUI (graphical user interface) and an operation guide for inputting various commands to the multifunction peripheral 100.

  The receiving device 105 is connected to a telephone line or the Internet and receives image data from an external device by facsimile communication. Specifically, when receiving the image data from the external device, the receiving device 105 stores the received image data in the storage device 107.

  The transmission device 106 is connected to a telephone line or the Internet, and is a device that transmits image data input by the image input device 101 and processed by the image processing device 102 to an external device by facsimile communication.

  The storage device 107 is a hard disk device for storing image data handled by the multifunction peripheral 100.

  In the above configuration, during the copying process, image data is generated from the original by the image input device 101, the image processing is performed on the image data by the image processing device 102, and the image data is temporarily stored in the storage device 107. The Then, the image processing apparatus 102 reads out the image data and performs image processing necessary for performing the printing process. The processed image data is sent to the image output apparatus 103, and the printing process is executed.

  At the time of facsimile transmission processing, image data is generated from an original by the image input device 101, image processing is performed on the image data by the image processing device 102, and the image data is temporarily stored in the storage device 107. Then, the image processing apparatus 102 reads out the image data and performs processing necessary for performing facsimile transmission, and then transmits the image data to the transmission apparatus 106. Then, facsimile transmission is executed by the transmission device 106.

  During facsimile reception processing, the receiving device 105 receives image data from an external device, and this image data is temporarily stored in the storage device 107. Then, the image processing apparatus 102 reads out the image data and performs image processing. The processed image data is sent to the image output apparatus 103, and print processing is executed.

  At the time of image transmission processing, image data is generated from a document by the image input device 101, image processing is performed on the image data by the image processing device 102, and the image data is temporarily stored in the storage device 107. Then, the image processing apparatus 102 reads out the image data, performs image processing necessary for performing image transmission processing, and transmits the processed image data to a format conversion unit (not shown). Then, the format conversion unit converts the image data into an image file (PDF file, TIFF file) in a predetermined format, and transmits the converted image file to a specified address, folder, USB memory, or the like. It has become.

  Next, the page number authorization unit 200 and the display control unit 201 provided in the control unit 108 will be described in detail. Hereinafter, processing contents of the page number recognition unit 200 and the display control unit 201 during the image transmission process will be described.

  The page number recognition unit 200 is a block that recognizes the page number of each image in image data generated from a plurality of originals. For example, when image data is generated from three originals, the image data includes an image on the front side of the first original, an image on the back side of the first original, an image on the front side of the second original, Six images of the back side image of the second original, the front side image of the third original, and the back side image of the third original are shown. Then, the page numbers of the first to sixth pages are recognized for these six images.

  More specifically, when an image is read from a document by the image input device 101, the page number recognition unit 200 stores a storage device for each image read by the first reading unit 110 as shown in FIG. Processing for saving each image in the storage area 107 in the storage device 107 and saving each image read by the second reading unit 123 in the storage area b in the storage device 107 is performed.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the page number recognition unit 200 associates an index indicating an odd number with each image stored in the storage area a, and corresponds to each image stored in the storage area b. To associate an index indicating an even number. However, the page number authorization unit 200 associates an index with a smaller number in the order of reading. That is, the first image read by the first reading unit 110 is associated with “ID1” that is the first index, and the image read by the first reading unit 110 is then assigned the third number. The index “ID3” is associated.

  For example, there are four sets of originals. In this original set, as shown in FIG. 3, "A" is displayed on the first page, "B" on the second page, "C" on the third page, It is assumed that “D” is written on the page, “E” on the fifth page, “F” on the sixth page, “G” on the seventh page, and “H” on the eighth page. Then, it is assumed that the set of four documents described above is stacked on the document set tray 122 in the correct stacking order. That is, the set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 so that the first page side is directed downward, the last page side is directed upward, and the document surface having a smaller page number is disposed on the lower side. Then, when the image input apparatus 101 is made to read the image of the original set, the nth index is associated with the nth page image. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the first page image in which “A” is described is associated with the first index, and the second page image in which “B” is described is 2 No. 3 index is associated with the third page image in which “C” is described, and No. 8 index is associated with the eighth page image in which “H” is described. An index is associated.

  On the other hand, it is assumed that the set of four originals described above is stacked on the original set tray 122 in the reverse order of the correct stacking order. That is, it is assumed that the set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 so that the first page side is directed upward, the last page side is directed downward, and the document surface having a smaller page number is disposed on the upper side. In this case, the n-th index is not associated with the image of the n-th page, and an index with a smaller number is associated with an image with a larger page number. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the first index is associated with the eighth page image in which “H” is written, and the second page image in which “G” is written is 2 The index of No. 3 is associated, the image of the sixth page on which “F” is described is associated with the index of No. 3, and the image of the first page on which “A” is described is associated with No. 8 An index is associated.

  After all the images of the image data generated by the image input device 101 are stored in the storage areas a and b, the page number recognition unit 200 recognizes the page numbers of the images stored in the storage areas a and b. Then, each image is read from the storage areas a and b in ascending order of the certified page numbers. Each read image is transmitted to the format conversion unit via the image processing apparatus 102, and the format conversion unit creates an image file in which each image is edited. Here, the page number of each image in the image file is the order read by the page number authorization unit 200. That is, the page number of each image certified by the page number certification unit 200 becomes the page number of each image in the image file.

  Next, a page number recognition method in the page number recognition unit 200 will be described. The page number recognition unit 200 uses different page number recognition methods depending on whether or not an order correction command to be described later is input from the user.

  First, a page number recognition method when no order correction command is input from the user will be described. When no order correction command is input from the user, the page number recognition unit 200 recognizes the index number associated with each image as the page number of each image (number indicating the order of each image). Here, since the index numbers associated with the images are determined based on the reading order of the images, the page number recognition unit 200 determines the order of the images based on the reading order of the images. It will be determined.

  When a set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 in the correct stacking order, if the index number associated with each image is the page number of each image, the image of the nth page is displayed. On the other hand, the nth page number is correctly recognized. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 3, the page number of the first page image in which “A” is described is recognized as “1”, and the page number of the second page image in which “B” is described. Is recognized as “2”, the page number of the third page image in which “C” is described is recognized as “3”, and the page number of the eighth page image in which “H” is described is “3”. 8 ”.

  However, if a set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 in a stacking order opposite to the correct stacking order, the index number associated with each image is recognized as the page number of each image. There is a problem in that the page number n is not assigned to the image of the page, and a smaller page number is recognized for an image having a larger original page number. For example, in the case of the example shown in FIG. 4, the page number of “8” is erroneously recognized as “8” because the index of the number 8 is associated with the image of the first page in which “A” is described. Therefore, since the 7th index is associated with the image of the second page in which “B” is described, the page number of the image is erroneously recognized as “2”. Further, since the index No. 1 is associated with the image of the eighth page on which “H” is described, the page number of the image is erroneously recognized as “1”.

  Next, a page number recognition technique when an order correction command is input from the user will be described. When the order correction command is input by the user, the page number recognition unit 200 recognizes a smaller page number for an image with a larger index number. That is, the order of each image based on the page number authorized when the order correction command is input is reverse to the order of each image based on the page number authorized when the order correction command is not input. become.

  Therefore, when the order correction command is input, even if a set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 in a stacking order opposite to the correct stacking order, the nth page number is displayed on the nth page image. Will be certified correctly. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the image of the first page on which “A” is described is associated with the index No. 8, but the page number of the image is recognized as “1”. The image of the second page in which “B” is described is associated with an index No. 7, but the page number of the image is recognized as “2”. In addition, although the index No. 1 is associated with the image of the eighth page on which “H” is described, the page number of the image is recognized as “8”.

  Next, the display control unit 201 will be described. The display control unit 201 is a block that controls the image display device 104, and displays a graphical user interface for a user to operate the multifunction peripheral 100, an image showing an operation guide, and a preview of an image handled by the multifunction peripheral 100. It is displayed on the image display device 104.

  In this embodiment, when reading a double-sided document, the user operates the operation panel (not shown) to set the double-sided document reading mode to the multifunction device 100, and then issues a scan execution command to the multifunction device 100. Will be input.

  Then, when the double-sided document reading mode is set, the display control unit 201 causes the image display device 104 to display a command input image for inputting an order correction command after starting reading of the document image. Note that the display control unit 201 controls the image display device 104 so that the display of the command input image is started before the reading process is completed.

  An example of the command input image is shown in FIG. In this command input image, a message “Do you want to reverse the order of the read originals?” Is displayed, and this message informs the user that the order correction command can be input. It has become.

  Further, the command input image shown in FIG. 5 is a graphical user interface for inputting an order correction command, and the user can execute the order only when the command input image shown in FIG. 5 is displayed on the image display device 104. A correction command can be input. Specifically, when the “Yes” button in FIG. 5 is clicked, an order correction command is input. When the “NO” button in FIG. 5 is clicked, the display of the command input image is ended without inputting the order correction command.

  When the order correction command is input, the page number recognition unit 200 causes the page of each image in the storage areas a and b to be assigned a smaller page number for an image with a larger associated index number. Determine the number. If the order correction command is not input before the reading of all the originals is completed, the page number recognition unit 200 uses the same number as the index number associated with each image as the page number of each image. In this manner, the page number of each image in the storage areas a and b is determined.

  Next, a processing procedure when image transmission processing is performed in the multifunction peripheral 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of image transmission processing executed in the multifunction peripheral 100.

  First, the user stacks a plurality of document sets to be processed in the reading job on the document set tray 122. Next, when the user inputs a scan execution command, the control unit 108 sets the value of the flag (F) to zero (S1), and determines whether the double-sided document reading mode is set (S2).

  Here, when the duplex reading mode is set (Yes in S2), the control unit 108 controls the image input apparatus 101 to convey the originals stacked on the original set tray 122 one by one, Document image reading processing is started (S3). As shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. 4, the page number certification unit 200 associates each read image with the index and stores them in the storage areas a and b.

  Further, the display control unit 201 displays the command input image of FIG. 5 on the image display device (S4).

  When the user clicks the “Yes” button in FIG. 5, the control unit 108 detects the input of the order correction command (Yes in S <b> 5). When detecting the input of the order correction command, the control unit 108 sets the flag value to a (S6) and shifts the process to S7. In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image by shifting to S7.

  On the other hand, when the user clicks the “No” button in FIG. 5, the control unit 108 shifts the process to S7 without changing the value of the flag (No in S5). That is, in this case, the control unit 108 treats the order correction command as not being input, and shifts the process to S7 without changing the value of the flag. In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image by shifting to S7.

  In step S7, the page number recognition unit 200 determines whether image reading has been completed for all the documents stacked on the document set tray 122. If image reading has been completed for all the originals (Yes in S7), the page number recognition unit 200 determines whether or not the flag value is set to a (S8).

  When the value of the flag is zero (No in S8), the page number recognition unit 200 determines that the order correction command has not been input, and determines the index number associated with each image as the page number of each image. (S9). Then, the page number recognition unit 200 reads each image stored in the storage areas a and b in ascending order of page numbers.

  On the other hand, when the value of the flag is a (Yes in S8), the page number recognition unit 200 determines that an order correction command has been input, and assigns a smaller page number to an image with a larger index number. (S10). Then, the page number recognition unit 200 reads each image stored in the storage areas a and b in ascending order of page numbers.

  Thereafter, each image read by the page number recognition unit 200 is sent to the format conversion unit (not shown) via the image processing apparatus 102. Then, the format conversion unit creates an image file (an image file of a predetermined format) in which each sent image is edited (S11), and transmits this image file to a predetermined destination (S12). In S11, the image file is edited so that the arrangement order of the images follows the order of the page numbers authorized by the page number authorization unit 200.

  According to the embodiment described above, the page number recognition unit (order determination unit) 200, when there is no command in which no order correction command is input by the user, Will determine the order. Further, the page number recognition unit 200, when in the command presence state in which the order correction command is input by the user, causes the order of the images to be opposite to the order determined without the command. Will be decided. The display control unit 201 displays a command input image for inputting an order correction command on the image display device (display device) 104 before the reading process is completed.

  According to the configuration of the above embodiment, when the user is aware that it is necessary to correct the order of the images, the user inputs the order correction command to thereby change the order of the images. Correction is performed. Further, when the user has noticed the necessity for the correction before the completion of the reading process, the order correction command can be input even before the reading process is completed. The correction can be performed immediately afterward. Therefore, the completion of the correction process can be accelerated compared to the configuration of Patent Document 1 that requires a considerable time from the completion of the reading process until the correction process is performed.

  Note that the processing procedure shown in FIG. 6 can be applied not only to image transmission processing but also to facsimile transmission and copying processing. When applied to facsimile transmission processing, each image read in S9 or S10 is sent to the transmission device 106 via the image processing device 102. When applied to copying processing, each image read in S9 or S10 is sent to the image output device 103 via the image processing device 102.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, when an order correction command is input, the page number of each image is determined so that a smaller page number is assigned to an image with a larger index number associated therewith. . However, the present invention is not limited to such a determination method, and when an order correction command is input, the page number may be determined by another method.

For example, when an order correction command is input, the index number associated with each image is updated using the following formula A.
ID ′ = M−ID + 1 Formula A
ID ′ is the index number after update, M is the total number of pages, and ID is the index number before update.
Then, the page number authorization unit 200 sets the page number of each image to the same number as the number of the updated index associated with each image. Even in this case, when an order correction command is input, even if a set of documents is stacked on the document set tray 122 in a stacking order opposite to the correct stacking order, the nth image is displayed on the nth page image. The page number is correctly assigned.

  In the present embodiment, a double-sided simultaneous reading type scanner is employed as the image input device 101. However, a single-sided scanning type scanner that reads a document one side at a time may be used as the image input device 101. Note that the system disclosed in Patent Document 1 employs a single-sided scanning scanner. In the single-sided scanning scanner, first, the front surface of the first original is read, and then the first original is reversed and the back side of the original is read. In this way, after the front and back surfaces of the first document are read, reading of the second document is started.

  When a single-sided scanner is employed as the image input device 101, as shown in FIG. 14, all read images are stored in the same storage area c, and the read order is smaller as the previous image. A number index is associated.

  FIG. 14 shows each image read when the set of four documents (see FIGS. 3 and 4) is stacked on the document set tray 122 in the stacking order opposite to the correct stacking order. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a correspondence relationship between and index numbers. As shown in FIG. 14, the index of No. 1 is associated with the image of the eighth page on which “H” is described, and the image of No. 2 is associated with the image of the seventh page on which “G” is described. Index No. 3 is associated with the image of the sixth page in which “F” is described, and index No. 8 is associated with the image of the first page in which “A” is described. It will be associated.

  Then, when the order correction command is not input from the user, the page number recognition unit 200 displays the page number of each image (the order of each image is indicated) corresponding to each image in the storage area c. Number). On the other hand, when an order correction command is input from the user, the page number certification unit 200 assigns a smaller page number to an image with a larger index number associated with the page.

  Therefore, in the example of FIG. 14, when the order correction command is not input, the n-th page number is not assigned to the n-th page image, and a smaller page number is erroneously assigned to an image with a larger page number. End up. On the other hand, when an order correction command is input, the nth page number is assigned to the nth page image, and the same page number as the original page number is assigned to each image.

[Embodiment 2]
In the first embodiment, the command input image for inputting the order correction command is always displayed in the double-sided document reading mode. However, the command input image is displayed only when the user determines that it is necessary. It may be in the form. Hereinafter, this embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the flow of image transmission processing in the present embodiment. 7 are the same as S1 to S3 in FIG. 6, and S29 to S34 in FIG. 7 are the same as S7 to S12 in FIG. Therefore, below, description of S21-S23 and S29-S34 is abbreviate | omitted.

  After the document image reading process is started in S23, the display control unit 201 displays a “special function” button in the function setting image displayed on the image display device 104, as shown in FIG. (See FIG. 10). When the “special function” button is selected by the user in the function setting image shown in FIG. 10 (Yes in S24), the display control unit 201 displays the command input image shown in FIG. It is displayed on 104 (S26).

  If all the documents on document set tray 122 have been read without the user selecting the “special function” button (Yes in S25), control unit 108 shifts the process to S29. As a result, even in the double-sided document reading mode, the process proceeds without displaying the command input image.

  Next, the command input image displayed in S26 will be described. As shown in FIG. 11, the command input image includes an item “original order reversal mode” and an “OK” button. Here, when the user selects the “original order reversal mode” item and presses the “OK” button, an order correction command is input. Further, when the user presses the “OK” button without selecting the “original order reversal mode” item, the display of the command input image is terminated without inputting the order correction command.

  When the command input image shown in FIG. 11 is displayed on the image display device 104, when the user selects the “original order reversal mode” item and presses the “OK” button, the control unit 108. Detects the input of the order correction command (Yes in S27). When detecting the input of the page number correction command, the control unit 108 sets the flag value to a (S28), and shifts the process to S29. In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image of FIG.

  On the other hand, when the user clicks the “OK” button without selecting the “original order reversal mode” item in FIG. 11, the control unit 108 proceeds to S29 without changing the flag value. (No in S27). That is, in this case, the control unit 108 treats that the order correction command has not been input, and shifts the processing to S29 without changing the flag value. In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image of FIG.

  Thereafter, the processing of S29 to S34 is executed. Since the processing of S29 to S34 is the same as S7 to S12 of FIG. 6 as described above, the description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the above embodiment, the display control unit 201 displays the command input image on the image display device 104 only when the mode (special function) for displaying the command input image is set by the user. If the mode is not set by the user, the command input image is not displayed on the image display device 104. According to this configuration, since it is possible to switch the presence / absence of display of the command input image according to a user's request, when the user thinks that the correction of the order of each image is unnecessary By prohibiting the display of the command input image, it is possible to prevent the display content of the image display device 104 from becoming complicated.

[Embodiment 3]
A form in which a preview of the read image is displayed while a page number correction command is input may be used. Hereinafter, this embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of image transmission processing in the present embodiment. 8 are the same as S1 to S3 in FIG. 6, and S47 to 54 in FIG. 8 are the same as S5 to S12 in FIG. Therefore, below, description of S41-S43 and S47-54 is abbreviate | omitted.

  After the document image reading process is started in S43, the display control unit 201 displays a “preview confirmation” button in the function setting image displayed on the image display device 104 as shown in FIG. Or an active state (S44).

  When the “preview confirmation” button in FIG. 12 is selected by the user (Yes in S45), the display control unit 201 displays the command input image on the image display device 104 together with the preview as shown in FIG. It is displayed (S46). As shown in FIG. 13, the command input image displayed in S46 is the same as the command input image displayed in S4. Therefore, the description of the command input image displayed in S46 is omitted here.

  If all the documents on the document set tray 122 are read without the user selecting the “preview confirmation” button, the control unit 108 shifts the process to S49 (No in S45). As a result, even in the double-sided document reading mode, the process proceeds without displaying the command input image.

  Next, the preview displayed in S46 will be described. In step S <b> 46, the display control unit 201 not only displays the command input image on the image display device 104, but also causes the image display device 104 to display a preview of the original image read first. Then, after confirming the preview, the user examines whether or not it is necessary to input an order correction command in S47.

  Thereafter, the processing of S47 to S54 is executed. Since the processing of S47 to S54 is the same as S5 to S12 of FIG. 6 as described above, the description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the above embodiment, since the preview of the original read first is displayed, there is a merit that the user can easily notice an error in the order of the images. According to the above-described configuration, the preview display target is the original that has been read first, so that the preview display process can be executed even before all the originals have been read. Therefore, the user can input the order correction command after confirming the correctness of the order of each image in the preview before the reading of all the originals is completed. it can.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the display control unit 201 displays the command input image on the image display device 104 and displays the preview only when the mode for displaying the preview is set by the user. When the mode is not set by the user, the command input image is not displayed on the image display device 104. According to this configuration, as in the second embodiment, it is possible to switch the presence / absence of display of the command input image in response to a user's request. When the person is thinking, the display contents of the image display device 104 can be prevented from becoming complicated by prohibiting the display of the command input image.

  When the image input apparatus 101 is the double-sided simultaneous reading method, in S46, it is possible to display a preview of the front side and a preview of the back side of the original that was read first. In the case of a single-sided scanner, a preview of one side of the original read first is displayed in S46.

  Also, the image processing of the fifth embodiment described later is not used as it is for the preview data, but the same processing as that performed by the input processing unit 4 (see FIG. 17) described later is performed. After performing output tone correction using the gamma curve shown in 19 (a), a preview may be displayed in S45.

[Embodiment 4]
If the number of documents to be processed is small in the reading process of the image input apparatus 101, the reading process is completed immediately. Therefore, when the number of documents to be processed is small, the user has no opportunity to check the stacking order of the documents on the document set tray 122 during the reading process. Therefore, the stacking order of the originals on the tray is not confirmed before the reading process is started, and there is no opportunity to check the stacking order of the originals on the tray during the reading process because the number of originals to be read is small. In this case, there is a possibility that the user cannot confirm whether or not the order correction of the document is necessary and does not know whether to input the order correction command.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the total number of originals read in the reading process is equal to or less than a predetermined number, a preview of the original read first is forcibly displayed on the image display device 104 after the reading process. In addition, it is possible to accept input of an order correction command. In this way, even if the reading process has already been completed, it is possible to determine whether or not the correction is necessary by checking the preview, and the order of each image can be corrected as necessary. become. Below, the flow of the process of this embodiment is demonstrated.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the flow of image transmission processing in the present embodiment. 9 are the same as S1 to S7 in FIG. 6, and S72 to S76 in FIG. 9 are the same as S8 to S12 in FIG. Therefore, below, description of S61-S67 and S72-S76 is abbreviate | omitted.

  After the image reading process is completed for all the documents placed on the document set tray 122 (Yes in S67), the display control unit 201 determines the number of all the documents read in the reading process (S68).

  The number of originals is determined as follows. Based on a signal from a feed timing sensor 165 (see FIG. 2), which will be described later, it is possible to determine the number of originals by sequentially counting the originals being conveyed. Further, the original conveyed based on the output signal of the CCD for reading the original, utilizing the difference between the light guided to the CCD when the original is being conveyed and the light guided to the CCD when the original is not being conveyed. Can also be counted. That is, it is possible to detect the number of documents based on the output signal of the CCD.

  In S68, when it is determined that the number of all originals read in the reading process is equal to or less than the predetermined number, the display control unit 201 displays a command input image and a preview (the first read original of the original as shown in FIG. 13). (Preview) is displayed on the image display device 104 (S69). On the other hand, if it is determined in S68 that the number of all originals read in the reading process exceeds the predetermined number, the control unit 108 shifts the process to S72.

  When the user clicks the “Yes” button in FIG. 13 in S69, control unit 108 detects the input of the order correction command (Yes in S70). When detecting the input of the order correction command, the control unit 108 sets the flag value to a (S71) and shifts the process to S72. In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image by shifting to S72.

  On the other hand, when the user clicks the “No” button in FIG. 13 in S69, the control unit 108 shifts the process to S72 without changing the value of the flag (No in S70). In addition, the display control unit 201 ends the display of the command input image by shifting to S70. Thereafter, the processing of S72 to S76 is executed. Since the processing of S72 to S76 is the same as S8 to S12 of FIG. 6 as described above, the description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the process of FIG. 9 described above, when the number of originals in the reading process is small, the user can determine whether or not the order of the originals needs to be corrected by checking the preview after the reading process. Specifically, even if the reading process is finished immediately after S63 and it is not possible to determine whether or not it is necessary to input the order correction command at the stage of S65, the order correction command is not input and FIG. If the process is advanced by clicking the “No” button (No in S65), it is possible to determine whether or not the document order correction is necessary by checking the preview in S69, and the document order correction in S70. Commands can be entered. Note that clicking the “No” button in FIG. 5 in S65 means that the display of the command input image is terminated as in the case of clicking the “No” button in FIG. 5 in S5 of the first embodiment. .

  In S65, when reading of all the originals is completed before any one of the “Yes” button and the “No” button in FIG. 5 is clicked (that is, no input of an order correction command or order correction is required). If reading of all the originals is completed before an instruction to that effect is input), the display of the command input image may be terminated, and the process may proceed to S68. In this way, it is possible to prevent the state in which the command input image is displayed unnecessarily from being continued.

  Note that the processing shown in FIG. 9 is not always executed, but may be executed only when the user selects the mode for executing the processing in FIG. 9.

[Embodiment 5]
In each of the embodiments described above, it is determined whether or not the flag value is set to “a” after image reading is completed for all the originals. Determines that an order correction command has been input, and assigns a smaller page number to an image with a larger index number. However, if the input of the order correction command is detected without determining whether or not the image reading has been completed for all the originals, the temporary page numbers are assigned in order from the image with the smallest index number, and all the originals are The image may be read when the reading of the image is completed. Hereinafter, this process will be described in detail.

First, when the input of the order correction command is detected, provisional page numbers are assigned in order from the image with the smallest index number, regardless of whether or not the reading of the images has been completed for all documents. The temporary page number assigned to the image with the index number n is shown in Formula B.
Temporary page number = predetermined value− (n−1) Formula B
The predetermined value is a preset value, and the predetermined number is set to the same number as the large number of originals (for example, 1000) that cannot be actually read in one reading job.

  In other words, the provisional page number assigned becomes smaller as the index number of the image becomes larger. Then, the number of all pages can be detected at the time when image reading is completed for all the originals. Thereafter, an image having “predetermined value−total number of pages + 1” is read out first, and then each image is read out in ascending order of the temporary page numbers. May be read). Even in such processing, the reading order of each image and the output order of each image can be reversed. In addition, according to such processing, the image order correction processing can be performed in parallel with the image reading, so that when the image reading is completed, each image can be read immediately, and the processing can be performed. Can be done fast. When each image is read out, a smaller main page number may be assigned to each image as the image is read out in a smaller order.

[Embodiment 6]
Next, modifications of the multifunction peripheral 100 shown in the first to fifth embodiments will be described below. FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a multifunction peripheral (image forming apparatus) 100a according to the present embodiment. The image input device 101a, the image output device 103a, the image display device 104a, the reception device 105a, the transmission device 106a, the storage device 107a, and the control unit 108a in FIG. 103, the image display device 104, the reception device 105, the transmission device 106, the storage device 107, and the control unit 108.

  The multi-function device 100a according to the present embodiment is a digital color multi-function device that executes a selected mode when any one of a copier mode, a print mode, a facsimile transmission mode, a facsimile reception mode, and an image transmission mode is selected. It is.

  The copier mode (copying mode) means a mode for reading image data (reading a document to generate image data) and printing an image of the image data on paper. The print mode means a mode in which an image of image data sent from a terminal device connected to the multifunction peripheral 100a is printed on paper. The facsimile transmission mode refers to a normal facsimile mode in which image data is read and this image data is transmitted by facsimile to an external device using a telephone line, and an Internet facsimile mode in which the image data is attached and transmitted via the Internet. means. The facsimile reception mode means a mode in which image data is received from an external device by facsimile and an image of the received image data is printed on paper. In the image transmission mode, image data generated by reading a document is (1) sent to an e-mail attached to a specified address (scan to e-mail) mode, and (2) in a folder specified by the user. A transmission mode (scan to ftp) and (3) a mode (scan to usb) mode for transmission to a USB memory or the like attached to the multifunction peripheral 100a.

  When the copier mode / print mode is selected, the user outputs a monochrome image that outputs a monochrome image, a full color mode that outputs a full color image, or a single color image composed of only one color desired by the user. Either a single color mode or a two-color mode for outputting a two-color image composed of one color desired by the user and black can be selected.

  For example, in the copier mode or the print mode, when the user selects the single color mode, the single color image is printed. When the user selects the two-color mode in the copier mode or the print mode, the image data of the two-color image is printed. In the single color mode or the two-color mode, the user can select a desired color from R (red), G (green), B (blue), C (cyan), M (magenta), and Y (yellow). One color will be selected.

  In this embodiment, the automatic discrimination mode can be set in the copier mode. When the automatic determination mode is set, the multi-function device 100a performs automatic color determination processing (ACS) for determining whether the copy target is a color document or a black and white document. When the output process is performed in the full color mode and the document is determined to be a monochrome document, the output process is performed in the monochrome mode.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the multifunction peripheral 100a includes an image input device 101a, an image processing device 102a, an image output device 103a, an image display device 104a, a reception device 105a, a transmission device 106a, a storage device 107a, and a control unit 108a. is doing.

  The image input device 101a is an image reading unit that reads a document and generates image data in the copier mode, the facsimile transmission mode, and the image transmission mode. More specifically, the image input device 101a has a scanner unit having a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), and an electrical signal (analog image signal) obtained by color-separating light reflected from a document into RGB. And the electric signal is input to the image processing apparatus 102a.

  Note that the image input apparatus 101a reads a document image in full color even when any of the above-described full color mode, single color mode, and two-color mode is selected. Further, the image input device 101a reads a document image in full color even when the above-described automatic color discrimination processing is performed in the image processing device 102a.

  The image processing apparatus 102a is an integrated circuit that performs image processing on image data (image signal), and includes an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). As shown in FIG. 15, the image processing apparatus 102 a includes an A / D (analog / digital) conversion unit 2, a shading correction unit 3, an input processing unit 4, a document type automatic discrimination unit 5, a region separation processing unit 6, a compression unit. Unit 7, region separation signal compression unit 8, decoding unit 9, region separation signal decoding unit 10, image quality adjustment unit 11, colorization processing unit 12, color correction unit 13, black generation / under color removal unit 14, spatial filter unit 15, a scaling unit 16, an output tone correction unit 17, and a halftone generation unit 18. The processing content of each block included in the image processing apparatus 102 will be described in detail later.

  The image processing apparatus 102a performs image processing on the image data transmitted from the image input apparatus 101a in the copier mode, facsimile transmission mode, and image transmission mode, and the image data transmitted from the terminal apparatus in the print mode. In the facsimile reception mode, image processing is performed on image data received from an external device. The image processing apparatus 102a transmits image data subjected to image processing to the image output apparatus 103a in the copier mode, print mode, and facsimile reception mode, and transmits the image data subjected to image processing in the facsimile transmission mode to the transmission apparatus. The image data subjected to the image processing is sent to the mail processing unit (not shown) in the scan to e-mail mode of the image transmission mode, and the image data subjected to the image processing in the scan to ftp mode In the scan to usb mode, image data subjected to image processing is transmitted to a folder to a predetermined USB memory.

  The image output device (printer) 103a prints (forms) an image of image data sent from the image processing device 102a on a recording medium (for example, paper). For example, an electrophotographic method or an inkjet method is used. The color printer used can be mentioned. Note that “printing” in the present embodiment means any one of printing in the print mode, printing in the copier mode, and printing in the facsimile reception mode.

  The image display device 104a is a liquid crystal display provided in an operation panel (not shown) of the multifunction peripheral 100a, and is a display unit capable of displaying a color image. The image display device 104a is covered with a touch panel and has a function as an input interface of the multifunction peripheral 100a. That is, a GUI (graphical user interface) and an operation guide for inputting various commands to the multifunction peripheral 100a are displayed on the image display device 104a.

  In the MFP 100a according to the present embodiment, a preview of an image to be printed can be displayed on the image display device 104a before printing in the copier mode or the facsimile reception mode. Furthermore, in the MFP 100a according to the present embodiment, it is possible to display a preview of an image to be transmitted on the image display device 104a before execution of transmission in the facsimile transmission mode or the image transmission mode.

  When the full color mode is selected in the copier mode or the image transmission mode, a full color image preview is displayed. When the single color mode is selected, a single color image preview is displayed, and the two color mode is selected. When selected, a preview of a two-color image is displayed.

  The image display device 104a is not limited to a liquid crystal display, and may be a display means other than the liquid crystal display (for example, an organic EL display, a plasma display, etc.).

  The receiving device 105a is connected to a telephone line or the Internet and receives image data from an external device by facsimile communication. The transmission device 106a is connected to a telephone line or the Internet, and is a device that transmits image data input by the image input device 101a to an external device by facsimile communication.

  The storage device 107a is a hard disk for temporarily storing image data handled by the image processing device 102a.

  The control unit 108a is a computer including a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and comprehensively controls various hardware included in the multifunction peripheral 100a. In addition, the control unit 108a also has a function of controlling data transfer between pieces of hardware included in the multifunction peripheral 100a.

  Next, details of processing executed in each block of the image processing apparatus 102a in each of the copier mode, the facsimile transmission mode, the facsimile reception mode, and the image transmission mode will be described in detail. In the image processing apparatus 102a of the present embodiment, there is a block that operates when a certain mode a is selected but does not operate when a mode b different from the mode a is selected. (Mode a and mode b are any one of a copier mode, a facsimile transmission mode, a facsimile reception mode, and an image transmission mode). The image processing apparatus 102a also includes a block for changing the processing content according to the selected mode. Further, the image processing apparatus 102a operates when processing image data for printing (for transmission), but does not operate when processing image data for preview, even if the selected mode is the same. There are blocks that change processing contents between processing of image data for printing (for transmission) and processing of image data for preview. Therefore, in the following, the contents of the processing executed in each block included in the image processing apparatus 102a will be described as the print processing (or transmission processing) and the preview display, taking the case of the copier mode and the image transmission mode as an example. They will be explained separately.

(1) Copier mode (1-1) During printing process (during image print job)
Hereinafter, the image processing apparatus 102a will be described with reference to FIG. 12, but FIG. 12 shows the flow of image data in the image processing apparatus 102a when the printing process is performed in the copier mode and the full color mode. Let me mention.

  The A / D (analog / digital) converter 2 is a block that converts a color image signal (RGB analog signal) sent from the image input apparatus 101a into digital image data (RGB digital signal). The shading correction unit 3 is a block that performs processing for removing various distortions generated in the illumination system, the imaging system, and the imaging system of the image input apparatus 101a on the image data sent from the A / D conversion unit 2. . The input processing unit 4 is a block that performs gradation conversion processing such as γ correction processing on each of the RGB image data sent from the shading correction unit 3.

  The document type automatic determination unit 5 determines the type of document read by the image input device 101a based on RGB image data (RGB density signal) that has been subjected to processing such as γ correction by the input processing unit 4. Do. Here, as the type of document to be determined, there are a character document, a printed photograph document, a character printed photograph document in which characters and a printed photograph are mixed, and the like. Further, the document type automatic determination unit 5 performs an automatic color determination process (ACS: Auto Color Selection), which is a process for determining whether a read document is a color document or a monochrome document based on the image data. It is also possible to determine whether or not the document is a blank document (whether or not it is a plain document). The RGB image data output from the document type automatic determination unit 5 is input to the region separation processing unit 6 and the compression unit 7.

  Based on the RGB image data sent from the document type automatic discrimination unit 5, the region separation processing unit 6 discriminates for which pixel region the pixel is classified for each pixel of the input image. A process for generating a region separation signal indicating the discrimination result is performed. Here, the image regions discriminated by the region separation processing unit 6 include a black character region, a color character region, a halftone dot region, and the like. Note that the region separation processing may be in a form in which the image region is determined for each block including a plurality of pixels, instead of determining the image region for each pixel.

  The compression unit 7 is a block that performs processing for encoding the image data (RGB signals) sent from the document type automatic discrimination unit 5. Note that the encoding is performed based on, for example, a JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) system.

  The region separation signal compression unit 8 is a block that performs compression processing on the region separation signal generated for each pixel. Note that the compression processing in the region separation signal compression unit 8 is performed based on, for example, the MMR (Modified Modified Reed) method and the MR (Modified Reed) method, which are lossless compression methods.

  The control unit 108a temporarily stores the encoded code (encoded image data) output from the compression unit 7 and the region separation signal code (compressed region separation signal) output from the region separation signal compression unit 8. It is stored in the device 107a and managed as filing data. When the copier output operation is instructed, the control unit 108a reads the encoded code and the region separation signal code corresponding to the encoded code from the storage device 107a, and the decoding unit 9 and the region separation signal decoding unit 10 To each.

  Note that the control unit 108a associates the storage address or data name of the encoded code with the storage address of the region separation signal code and enters them in the management table. That is, the control unit 108a controls reading or writing of the encoded code and the region separation signal code using the management table.

  The decoding unit 9 expands the encoded code into RGB image data by performing a decoding process on the encoded code. The region separation signal decoding unit 10 performs a decoding process on the region separation signal code. The decoded region separation signal is delivered to the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14, the spatial filter unit 15, and the halftone generation unit 18. In the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14, the spatial filter unit 15, and the halftone generation unit 18, the image processing content is switched according to the type of the image area.

  The image quality adjustment unit 11 detects the background of the RGB image data sent from the decoding unit 9 and performs background removal correction. Furthermore, the image quality adjustment unit 11 adjusts the RGB balance (color adjustment, overall color adjustment such as reddish blue), brightness, and vividness based on setting information input from the operation panel (not shown) by the user. Do.

  Further, when the single color mode is selected, the image quality adjustment unit 11 performs processing to convert RGB image data into CMY image data that is a complementary color of RGB. Here, the conversion process from RGB image data to CMY image data in the single color mode is executed by using the following Equation 1. Note that the coefficients r1 to r3 in Equation 1 are determined based on [Table 1]. For example, when the user selects cyan as the desired color in the single color mode, the values of r1 to r3 belonging to the column “Cyan” in [Table 1] are referred to, and r1 = 1, r2 = 0, r3 = 0 is selected.

  That is, the output from the image quality adjustment unit 11 in the full color mode is RGB image data as shown in FIG. 15, and the output from the image quality adjustment unit 11 when the single color mode is selected is as follows. FIG. 16A shows CMY image data. Note that the output from the image quality adjustment unit 11 when the two-color mode is selected is RGB image data as shown in FIG. FIG. 16A shows a part of the block of the image processing apparatus 102 when the printing process is performed in the copier mode and the single color mode, and FIG. 2 shows a part of blocks of the image processing apparatus 102 when a printing process is performed in the two-color mode.

  Further, the vividness adjustment executed by the image quality adjustment unit 11 can be realized by changing each value of r1 to r3 and a1 to a3 of the matrix of Expression 1 and using the matrix. Therefore, the matrix can be shared and the image processing circuit can be shared for the above vividness adjustment and the image data conversion process (conversion from RGB to CMY) in the single color mode. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the vividness adjustment and the image data conversion process in the single color mode are performed by the same processing unit (image quality adjustment unit 11).

  When the two-color mode is selected, the two-color processing unit 12 converts the RGB image data output from the image quality adjustment unit 11 into CMY image data as illustrated in FIG. It is a block that performs. The conversion process from RGB image data to CMY image data in the two-color mode is performed by, for example, the method of [Example 1] or [Example 2] described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-28336. Can be realized.

  When the full color mode is selected, the two-color processing unit 12 does not perform any processing on the RGB image data output from the image quality adjustment unit 11, as shown in FIG. The image data is transferred to the color correction unit 13 as it is (through). Further, when the single color mode is selected, the two-color processing unit 12 performs no processing on the CMY image data output from the image quality adjustment unit 11 as illustrated in FIG. First, the image data is transferred to the color correction unit 13 as it is (through).

  When the full color mode is selected, the color correction unit 13 performs color correction processing for converting the RGB image data output from the two-color processing unit 12 into CMY image data, and applies to the image data. This block performs processing for improving color reproducibility. The color correction process described above is realized by creating an LUT (lookup table) in which input values (RGB) and output values (CMY) are associated with each other, and looking up the output values from the created LUT. .

  In addition, when the single color mode or the two-color mode is selected, the color correction unit 13 displays the CMY image output from the two-color processing unit 12 as illustrated in FIGS. No processing is performed on the data, and the image data is transferred to the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 as it is (through).

  The black generation / under color removal unit 14 generates black (K) from the CMY image data output from the color correction unit 13 when the full color mode or the two-color mode is selected. On the other hand, it is a block for performing processing for generating new CMY image data by subtracting black (K) image data from original CMY image data. Thus, when the full color mode or the two-color mode is selected, the CMY image data is converted into CMYK four-color data by the black generation / under color removal unit 14 as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16B. Converted to image data.

  Further, when the single color mode is selected, the black generation / under color removal unit 14 does nothing with respect to the CMY image data output from the color correction unit 13 as shown in FIG. Without performing the processing, the image data is transferred to the subsequent spatial filter unit 15 as it is (through).

  When the full color mode or the two-color mode is selected, the output of the black generation / under color removal unit 14 and the input / output of each block subsequent to the black generation / under color removal unit 14 are as shown in FIG. Thus, the image data is CMYK. However, when the single color mode is selected, the output of the black generation / under color removal unit 14 and the input / output of each block subsequent to the black generation / under color removal unit 14 are different from FIG. It becomes CMY image data.

  The spatial filter unit 15 applies spatial filter processing (enhancement processing, smoothing) to the CMYK or CMY image data output from the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 based on a region separation signal (region identification signal). Etc.). That is, the spatial filter unit 15 executes different image processing for each image region based on the region separation signal.

  The scaling unit 16 is a block that performs image enlargement or reduction processing based on a scaling command (information indicating the magnification of a print image) input by a user via an operation panel (not shown).

  The output tone correction unit 17 is a block that performs output γ correction processing for outputting the image data output from the scaling unit 16 to a recording medium such as paper. The halftone generation unit 18 performs tone reproduction processing (halftone generation processing) necessary for printing an image in the image output apparatus 103a using an error diffusion method or a dither method.

  The CMYK or CMY image data output from the halftone generation unit 18 is transferred to the image output device 103a, and the image output device 103a prints an image of the image data on a recording medium (for example, paper).

(1-2) Preview Display Next, contents of processing executed in each block of the image processing apparatus 102 when displaying a preview of an image to be printed in the copier mode will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 is a block diagram showing the same multifunction device 100a as the multifunction device 100a of FIG. 15, and is a diagram showing the flow of image data when preview display is performed in the copier mode and the full color mode.

  An A / D (analog / digital) conversion unit 2, a shading correction unit 3, an input processing unit 4, a document type automatic discrimination unit 5, a region separation processing unit 6, a compression unit 7, a region separation signal compression unit 8, and a decoding unit. 9. Since the processes of the image quality adjustment unit 11 and the colorization processing unit 12 are the same as in the printing process, the description thereof is omitted below.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the region separation signal decoding unit 10 passes the decoded region separation signal to the spatial filter unit 15 and the output tone correction unit 17 during preview display.

  The color correction unit 13 inputs RGB image data in the full color mode. Note that RGB image data is data that conforms to the color space of the scanner (image input device 101). Then, the color correction unit 13 performs a process of converting the RGB image data into R′G′B ′ image data suitable for the color space of the image display device 104.

  That is, the color correction unit 13 performs processing for converting RGB image data suitable for the image reading characteristics of the scanner into R′G′B ′ image data suitable for the display characteristics of the display device. Note that the process of converting RGB image data to R′G′B ′ image data was also created by creating an LUT in which input values (RGB) and output values (R′G′B ′) were associated with each other. This is accomplished by looking up the output value from the LUT.

  In the present embodiment, in the full color mode, conversion processing from RGB image data during printing to CMYK image data and conversion from RGB image data during preview display to R′G′B ′ image data are performed. The image processing circuit is shared with the conversion process.

  Here, FIG. 17 shows the multi-function device 100a when the full color mode is selected, as in FIG. 15, and the color correction unit 13 inputs RGB image data in the full color mode. It has become. However, in the single color mode or the two-color mode, as shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B, the color correction unit 13 inputs CMY image data. FIG. 18A shows a part of the blocks of the image processing apparatus 102 when the preview display process is performed in the copier mode and the single color mode, and FIG. 18B shows the copier mode. In addition, a part of the blocks of the image processing apparatus 102 when the preview display process is performed in the two-color mode is shown.

  In the single color mode or the two-color mode, the color correction unit 13 performs a process of converting CMY image data into R′G′B ′ image data. That is, the color correction unit 13 performs processing for converting CMY image data suitable for the printing characteristics of the printing process into R′G′B ′ image data suitable for the display characteristics of the display device. The process of converting CMY image data into R'G'B 'image data is also created by creating an LUT that associates input values (CMY) with output values (R'G'B'). This is accomplished by looking up the output value from the LUT.

  As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 outputs R ′ output from the color correction unit 13 in any of the single color mode, the two color mode, and the full color mode. No processing is performed on the G′B ′ image data, and the image data is transferred (through) to the subsequent spatial filter unit 15 as it is.

  The spatial filter unit 15 performs spatial filter processing (enhancement processing, smoothing processing) on the R′G′B ′ image data output from the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 using a digital filter based on the region separation signal. Etc.). That is, in the spatial filter unit 15, different image processing is performed for each image region based on the region separation signal as in the print processing.

  The scaling unit 16 performs a thinning process (a process for reducing the number of pixels) that converts the number of pixels of the image composed of R′G′B ′ image data output from the spatial filter unit 15 into the number of pixels of the image display device 104. I do. The image display device 104 provided in the operation panel of the multifunction peripheral 100a has a lower resolution than the resolution of image data to be printed, and is usually an extremely small display. Therefore, it is necessary to thin out the image data during preview display. The scaling unit 16 enlarges an image based on a scaling command (information indicating display magnification, for example, a fixed magnification such as 2 to 4 times) input from an operation panel (not shown) provided in the multifunction device. Reduction processing is performed.

  The output tone correction unit 17 performs an output γ correction process on the image data output from the scaling unit 16 based on the region separation signal. More specifically, the output tone correction unit 17 selects a different gamma curve depending on the image region based on the region separation signal, and varies the content of the output γ correction processing for each image region. For example, a gamma curve corresponding to the display characteristics of the image display device 104 is selected for a region other than a character, and a gamma curve for displaying a character clearly is selected for a character region. Here, FIG. 19A is a gamma curve corresponding to the display characteristics of the image display device 104. Further, the curve indicated by the solid line in FIG. 19B is a gamma curve for clearly displaying characters. The broken line in FIG. 19B is a gamma curve corresponding to the display characteristics of the image display device 104 and is shown for comparison with a gamma curve for clearly displaying characters.

  In the present embodiment, the output tone correction unit 17 selects the gamma curve based on the region separation signal, but only the gamma curve of FIG. 19A is selected without performing selection based on the region separation signal. It may be used to perform output gradation correction.

  Then, the halftone generation unit 18 does not perform any processing on the R′G′B ′ image data output from the output tone correction unit 17, and uses the image data as it is to the subsequent image display device 104. Deliver (through). Thereby, the image display device 104 can display a preview of the image to be copied based on the image data of R′G′B ′.

  Note that the output γ correction processing executed in the output tone correction unit 17 may be executed in the image quality adjustment unit 11.

(1-3) Operation / non-operation of each block As described above, the two-color processing unit 12 of the image quality adjustment unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 18 does not operate during printing in the full color mode. All other blocks operate (see FIG. 15). On the other hand, of the image quality adjustment unit 11 to halftone generation unit 18, the two-color processing unit 12, the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14, and the halftone generation unit 18 do not operate during full color mode preview display. However, all other blocks operate (see FIG. 17).

  Further, during printing in the two-color mode, the color correction unit 13 of the image quality adjustment unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 18 does not operate, but all other blocks operate (FIG. 16B). reference). On the other hand, of the image quality adjustment unit 11 to halftone generation unit 18, the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 and the halftone generation unit 18 do not operate during the two-color mode preview display. All the blocks operate (see FIG. 18B).

  Further, during the printing in the single color mode, among the image quality adjustment unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 18, the two-color processing unit 12, the color correction unit 13, and the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14 do not operate. All other blocks operate (see FIG. 16A). On the other hand, during the preview display in the single color mode, among the image quality adjustment unit 11 to halftone generation unit 18, the two-color processing unit 12, the black generation / undercolor removal unit 14, and the halftone generation unit 18 operate. However, all other blocks operate (see FIG. 18A).

(2) Image transmission mode (2-1) During transmission processing (during image transmission job)
When the MFP 100a is operated during the transmission processing in the image transmission mode, the image input device 101, the A / D (analog / digital) conversion unit 2, the shading correction unit 3, the input processing unit 4, the document type automatic discrimination unit 5, The processing contents of the region separation processing unit 6, the compression unit 7, the region separation signal compression unit 8, and the decoding unit 9 are the same as those in the copier mode. Note that the region separation signal decoding unit 10 supplies region separation signals to the spatial filter unit 15 and the output tone correction unit 17.

  Then, the image quality adjustment unit 11 performs undercolor removal and color balance adjustment, and the color correction unit 13 performs R "G" B "image data (for example, suitable for display characteristics of display devices that are widely used) (for example, sRGB data), and spatial filter processing (enhancement processing, smoothing processing) using a digital filter is performed in the spatial filter unit 15 based on the region separation signal. In the output tone correction unit 17, for example, the character region is corrected using the gamma curve of FIG. The correction using the gamma curve of a) is performed, and the two-color processing unit 12 and the black generation / under color removal unit 14 do not perform processing on the input image data, and this image data is used as it is. In the latter block To over. Therefore, it is the image data the R "G" B "being outputted from the output tone correction section 17.

  Further, R "G" B "image data output from the output tone correction unit 17 is converted into an image file such as a PDF file by a format conversion processing unit (not shown), and the image file is processed by mail processing (not shown). A part (job device) is attached to an electronic mail, and the electronic mail is transmitted to the other party via the network.

(2-2) Preview display When the MFP 100a is operated during preview display in the image transmission mode, the image input device 101, the A / D (analog / digital) conversion unit 2, the shading correction unit 3, and the input processing unit 4 are displayed. , Processing contents of the document type automatic discrimination unit 5, the region separation processing unit 6, the compression unit 7, the region separation signal compression unit 8, the decoding unit 9, the region separation signal decoding unit 10, the image quality adjustment unit 11, and the coloration processing unit 12. Is the same as the transmission in the image transmission mode.

  Then, at the time of preview display in the image transmission mode, the color correction unit 13 performs processing for converting the RGB image data into R′G′B ′ image data that matches the color space of the image display device 104.

  After that, as in the transmission, spatial filter processing (enhancement processing, smoothing processing) by a digital filter is performed in the spatial filter unit 15 based on the region separation signal. The scaling unit 16 performs a thinning process so as to match the size of the image display device 104. Further, in the output tone correction unit 17, for example, correction using the gamma curve of FIG. 19B is performed for the character region, and the gamma curve of FIG. 19A is applied to the region other than the character. Correction using is performed.

  Then, the R′G′B ′ image data output from the output tone correction unit 17 is supplied to the image display device 104, and the image display device 104 performs a preview display based on the R′G′B ′ image data. Do.

[Embodiment 7]
The configuration of the present invention can also be applied to an image reading apparatus 300 as shown in FIG. Hereinafter, an image reading apparatus (flatbed scanner) to which the present invention is applied will be described.

  FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating an image reading apparatus 300 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 20, the image reading apparatus 300 includes an image input device (color image input device) 101b and an image processing device (color image processing device) 102b.

  As shown in FIG. 20, the image processing apparatus 102b includes an A / D conversion unit, a shading correction unit, an input processing unit, a color correction unit, and an output gradation processing unit. The image input device 101b is the same as the image input device 101 in FIG. Although omitted in FIG. 20, the image reading device 300 includes the same devices as the control unit 108, the storage device 107, and the image display device 104 in FIG. 1.

  When a document is read by the image input device 101b, an image signal is sent through the image processing device 102 in the order of an A / D conversion unit, a shading correction unit, an input processing unit, a color correction unit, and an output tone correction unit. It is done.

  The A / D (analog / digital) converter is a block that converts a color image signal (RGB analog signal) sent from the image input device into digital image data (RGB digital signal). The shading correction unit is a block that performs processing for removing various distortions generated in the illumination system, the imaging system, and the imaging system of the image input apparatus on the image data sent from the A / D conversion unit. The input processing unit is a block that performs gradation conversion processing such as γ correction processing on each of the RGB image data sent from the shading correction unit. When the image transmission mode is selected, the color correction unit converts the RGB image data into R "G" B "image data (for example, sRGB data) that conforms to the display characteristics of a display device that is generally popular. In addition, when previewing the first page of the read double-sided document or the image data of the first and second pages, the RGB image data is adapted to the color space of the image display device. The output gradation correction unit converts the R′G′B ′ image data or the R′G′B ′ image data output from the color correction unit into a G′B ′ image data. On the other hand, for example, output tone correction processing using the gamma curve of FIG.

  The image data processed by the image processing apparatus 102b is temporarily stored in the storage device 107. Thereafter, after the page number is determined by the page number recognition unit 200, the image data is sent to a format conversion unit (not shown) and converted into an image file of a predetermined format. Then, this image file is transmitted via the network to an address specified by being attached to an e-mail or to a folder specified by the user.

[Image input device]
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the image input apparatus (main reading apparatus) 101 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the image input apparatus 101 includes a lower housing 203, an upper housing 202, and a paper discharge tray 233. In the image input apparatus 101, the document is read in a stationary reading mode in which the document is stopped and the image is read, in a traveling reading mode in which the image is read while the document is conveyed, or in a duplex mode in which the image on both sides of the document is read while the document is conveyed. Can be read. These modes (reading modes) are input from an operation panel (composed of a display device including a liquid crystal display and a button for setting) provided in the multi-function device 100. For example, when a start key is pressed in a state where a document is set on the document set tray 122 (a document is detected by a document set detection sensor), it is set to read in the traveling reading mode. When reading in the mode, settings are made from the operation panel. In addition, when the start key is pressed in a state where no document is set on the document set tray 122 (a document is not detected by the document set detection sensor), there is a method of reading in the stationary reading mode.

  In the static reading mode, the first reading unit 110 in the lower housing 203 reads an image. In the single side mode of the travel reading mode, the first reading unit 110 in the lower housing 203 reads an image. In the double-side mode of the traveling reading mode, both the first reading unit 110 and the second reading unit 123 are set to be used simultaneously.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the lower housing 203 includes a first reading unit 110 and a first contact glass 111. As shown in FIG. 2, the first reading unit 110 includes a first scanning unit 112, a second scanning unit 113, an imaging lens 114, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) 115, and a second contact glass 116. .

  The second contact glass 116 is a table for placing a document to be read in the stationary reading mode, and the first scanning unit 112 moves along the first contact glass 111 from left to right at a constant speed V. The document is exposed. The first scanning unit 112 includes a light source (exposure lamp) 150 and a first reflection mirror 151 that guides reflected light of the document to the second scanning unit 113.

  The second scanning unit 113 follows the first scanning unit 112 and moves at a speed of V / 2. The second scanning unit 113 guides the light from the first reflecting mirror 151 to the imaging lens 114 and the CCD 115. Third reflection mirrors 152 and 153 are provided.

  The imaging lens 114 focuses the reflected light from the third reflecting mirror 153 on the CCD 115. The CCD 115 converts light from the imaging lens 114 into an electrical signal (analog image data). This electric signal is converted into digital image data by the image processing apparatus.

  Further, the first reading unit 110 has a function of reading an image of a document conveyed by a member of the upper housing 202 in addition to reading a document placed on the first contact glass 111, as will be described later. Also have.

  Further, when reading the document on the first contact glass 111, the first scanning unit 112 moves in the direction from the position Pos1 to the position Pos2 in FIG. 2 according to the document size detected by the document size detection means. It moves by a predetermined distance. On the other hand, when reading the conveyed document, it stops at the position Pos3 in FIG. Further, during standby that is not in use, the vehicle stops at a position Pos0 (not shown) (home position) between Pos1 and Pos3 in FIG.

  In addition, a document reference plate (not shown) is provided on the front side of the end portion of the first contact glass 111, and an index indicating the size and placement direction of the document placed on the first contact glass 111 is shown. Yes. Therefore, the user can easily place the document on the first contact glass 111 according to this index.

  The second reading unit 123 is for reading an image of a document placed on the document set tray 122, and includes a document transport unit 131, an image sensor unit 132, a document transport path 133, and a document discharge unit 134. .

  The document transport unit 131 takes in a document placed on the document set tray 122 and transports it on the document transport path 133. The image sensor unit 132 reads an image of a document being conveyed. The document discharge unit 134 discharges the document after the image is read by the image sensor unit 132 to the discharge tray 233.

  The document conveyance unit 131 includes a feeding auxiliary roller 161, a document set detection sensor 162, a document pressing plate 163, a friction pad 164, a feeding timing sensor 165, a feeding roller 166, and an alignment roller pair 167.

  The auxiliary feeding roller 161 and the document holding plate 163 draw the document detected by the document set detection sensor 162 into the second reading unit 123. The friction pad 164, the feeding roller 166, and the alignment roller pair 167 guide the drawn originals one by one to the image sensor unit 132 based on the detection result of the feeding timing sensor 165.

  The alignment roller pair 167 includes an electromagnetic clutch (not shown) on its drive shaft, and can control transmission of driving force from a drive motor (not shown) so that there is no document. Then it has stopped. When the leading edge of the document comes into contact with the feeding timing sensor 165 and a predetermined signal is transmitted from this sensor, the document is set to rotate in the direction of transporting the document downstream. When the alignment roller pair 167 is stopped, the leading edge of the document conveyed from the upstream side by the friction pad 164 and the feeding roller 166 hits the nip portion of the alignment roller pair 167 to form a predetermined deflection on the document. Later, the document is rotated so as to convey the document downstream. At this time, the leading edge of the document is aligned by the nip portion of the alignment roller pair 167 so as to be perpendicular to the conveyance direction. Further, the alignment roller pair 167 forms a part of the document conveyance path 133 with the second contact glass 116.

  The document discharge unit 134 includes a document discharge roller pair 169 and a document discharge sensor 159. The upper roller of the document discharge roller pair 169 is a driving roller, and is integrally provided on the left side of the upper casing 202 and is driven by a driving mechanism in the upper casing 202. The upper roller of the document discharge roller pair 169 is nipped and conveyed by the lower roller (driven roller) of the document discharge roller pair 169 rotatably provided on the lower housing 203 side. Thus, it has a function of discharging onto the discharge tray 233.

  The document discharge sensor 159 is disposed on the downstream side of the document discharge roller pair 169, and transmits document discharge to a reading control unit (not shown).

  An image sensor unit (CIS: Contact Image Sensor) 132 is provided in the upper housing 202 and is for reading an upper image in a document traveling on the document conveyance path 133.

  Next, a reading process in the image input apparatus 101 will be described. In the stationary reading mode, only the single-sided mode can be selected, and only the first reading unit 110 is used for reading a document. At this time, the first scanning unit 112 of the first reading unit 110 is first disposed at the home position (between Pos3 and Pos1 in FIG. 2). Then, in accordance with an instruction from the reading control unit, the original placed on the first contact glass 111 is moved from the position Pos1 to the Pos2 side together with the second scanning unit 113. Thereby, the CCD 115 can receive the reflected light corresponding to the document image. As described above, the first reading unit 110 reads an image formed on the lower surface (front surface) of a stationary document.

  In the traveling reading mode, both the single-side mode and the double-side mode can be selected. In the single side mode of the travel reading mode, only the first reading unit 110 is used for reading a document. When there is an instruction for this mode, the first scanning unit 112 of the first reading unit 110 moves from the position of the home position to the position of Pos3 and stops, and holds the stopped state as it is to read the running document. Do. Then, in response to an instruction from the reading control unit, the CCD 115 reads an image of the document conveyed on the document conveyance path 133 from the lower side through the second contact glass 116. That is, the first reading unit 110 reads an image formed on the lower surface (front surface) of the document.

  In the duplex mode of the traveling reading mode, both the first reading unit 110 and the second reading unit 123 are used for reading a document. At this time, the first scanning unit 112 of the first reading unit 110 is stopped at the position Pos3 in FIG. 11 as in the single-sided mode of the traveling reading mode.

  Then, in response to an instruction from the reading control unit, the first reading unit 110 reads the image of the document conveyed on the document conveyance path 133 from the lower side through the second contact glass 116. Similarly, the image sensor unit 132 of the second reading unit 123 reads an image formed on the upper surface (back surface) of the conveyed document from the upper side.

  As described above, in the double-side mode of the image input apparatus 101, the first reading unit 110 and the second reading unit 123 read the images on both the front and back sides of the transported document at once from the vertical direction.

[About the program]
In the present invention, a program indicating processing executed by the page number recognition unit 200 and the display control unit 201 in FIG. 1 is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium in which a program to be executed by a computer is recorded. You can also. As a result, it is possible to provide a portable recording medium on which the program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) for performing the above processing is recorded.

  In the present embodiment, as the recording medium, a memory (not shown) such as a ROM itself may be a program medium because processing is performed by a microcomputer. However, it may be a program medium provided with a program reading device as an external storage device and readable by inserting a recording medium therein.

  In any case, the stored program may be configured to be accessed and executed by the microprocessor, or in any case, the program code is read and the read program code is stored in the microcomputer. It may be downloaded to a program storage area (not shown) and the program may be executed. It is assumed that this download program is stored in the main device in advance. Here, the program medium is a recording medium configured to be separable from the main body, such as a tape system such as a magnetic tape or a cassette tape, a magnetic disk such as a flexible disk or a hard disk, a CD-ROM / MO / MD / DVD, or the like. Optical discs, IC cards (including memory cards) / optical cards, etc., semiconductors such as mask ROM, EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), flash ROM, etc. It may be a medium that carries a fixed program code including a memory.

  In the present embodiment, since the system configuration is such that a communication network including the Internet can be connected, a medium that dynamically carries the program code so as to download the program code from the communication network may be used. When the program is downloaded from the communication network in this way, the download program may be stored in the main device in advance or may be installed from another recording medium. The present invention can also be realized in the form of a computer data signal embedded in a carrier wave in which the program code is embodied by electronic transmission. The recording medium is read by a program reading device provided in a digital color multifunction peripheral or a computer system, thereby executing the above-described processing.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope shown in the claims, and the embodiments can be obtained by appropriately combining the respective technical means disclosed in the above-described embodiments. The form is also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The image reading apparatus of the present invention is suitable for a multifunction machine, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, and a scanner dedicated machine.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a multifunction peripheral according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the image input apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between each read image and an index number associated with each image when a plurality of document sets are stacked on a tray in a correct stacking order. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between each read image and an index number associated with each image when a plurality of document sets are stacked on a tray in an incorrect stacking order. It is a figure which shows the image for command input which notifies a user that the input of an order correction command is possible. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of image transmission processing executed in the first embodiment. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of image transmission processing executed in the second embodiment. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of image transmission processing executed in the third embodiment. 14 is a flowchart showing a flow of image transmission processing executed in the fourth embodiment. It is a figure which shows the image for a function setting in which the "special function button" is shown. FIG. 6 is a command input image that prompts the user to input an order correction command, and shows a command input image in a form different from the command input image of FIG. 5. It is a figure which shows the image for a function setting in which the "preview confirmation" button is shown. It is the figure which showed the preview image currently displayed with the image display apparatus, and the image for command input. In the case where a single-sided scanning scanner is employed, and when the above-described four document sets are stacked on the document set tray 122 in the stacking order opposite to the correct stacking order, they are read. It is the figure which showed the corresponding relationship between each image and the index number. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a multifunction machine according to a sixth embodiment, and is a block diagram illustrating a flow of image data when printing processing is performed in a copier mode and a full color mode. (A) is a block diagram showing a part of the image processing apparatus when printing processing is performed in the copier mode and the single color mode in the sixth embodiment. (B) is a block diagram showing a part of the image processing apparatus when printing is performed in the copier mode and the two-color mode in the sixth embodiment. FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating a multifunction machine according to a sixth embodiment, and is a block diagram illustrating a flow of image data when preview display processing is performed in a copier mode and a full color mode. (A) is a block diagram showing a part in the image processing apparatus when preview display is performed in the copier mode and the single color mode in the sixth embodiment. (B) is a block diagram showing a part in the image processing apparatus when preview display is performed in the copier mode and the two-color mode in the sixth embodiment. (A) is the figure which showed an example of the gamma curve according to the display characteristic of an image display apparatus. (B) is a figure which showed the gamma curve for displaying a character clearly as a continuous line, and showed the gamma curve according to the display characteristic of the image display apparatus with the broken line. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus according to a sixth embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

100 MFP (image forming apparatus, image reading apparatus)
101 Image Input Device 104 Image Display Device (Display Device)
107 Storage Device 108 Control Unit 200 Page Number Recognition Unit (Order Determination Unit)
201 Display Control Unit 300 Image Reading Device

Claims (9)

In an image reading apparatus that performs a reading process for reading an image of a document surface from both sides of a document for each document surface,
(A) In the case of no command in which the order correction command is not input by the user, the order of each image is determined based on the reading order of each read image, and (b) the order correction command is input by the user. An order determination unit that determines the order of each image to be in the reverse order to the order determined in the absence of command,
A display control unit that displays a command input image for inputting the order correction command on a display device before the completion of the reading process and while the operation of the reading process is being performed. An image reading apparatus. The order determination unit includes:
For each image read in the reading process, an index number with a smaller number is given as the reading order is first,
When the order correction command is input, an image with a smaller index number is assigned a larger temporary page number to each image regardless of whether the reading process has been completed for all documents. ,
2. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the reading process is completed for all the originals, the respective images are read in ascending order of temporary page numbers. The reading process is a job for reading the image from a plurality of documents,
Wherein the display control unit includes an image reading apparatus according to a preview of a document read first in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that to be displayed on the display device. The display control unit causes the display device to display the preview and the command input image after the end of the reading process when the number of documents to be processed in the reading process is equal to or less than a predetermined number. The image reading apparatus according to claim 3 . Wherein the display control unit only if the mode for displaying the input image the command is set by the user, among the claims 1 to 4, characterized in that for displaying the command input image to the display device The image reading apparatus according to any one of the above. An image forming apparatus comprising the image reading apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. In a control method of an image reading apparatus that performs a reading process for reading an image of a document surface from both sides of a document for each document surface,
(A) In the case of no command in which the order correction command is not input by the user, the order of each image is determined based on the reading order of each read image, and (b) the order correction command is input by the user. Determining the order of the images to be in the opposite order to the order determined in the absence of command,
And a step of displaying a command input image for inputting the order correction command on a display device before completion of the reading process and while the operation of the reading process is being performed. A method for controlling the image reading apparatus. A control program for controlling the image reading apparatus according to claim 1, any one of 5, a control program for operating the computer as each unit of the image reading apparatus. A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 8 is recorded.

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