JP5259862B2 - Image processing apparatus, image forming apparatus including the same, program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus that creates thumbnails and preview images of image data to be displayed on a display device, an image forming apparatus including the image processing apparatus, a program, and a recording medium.

  Conventionally, thumbnails and preview images of image data are created and displayed in order to facilitate visual identification and confirmation of the image data. For example, when image data is displayed as an 8-bit color image as a thumbnail or a preview image, the data amount is large, and therefore processing time such as time required for reading and displaying image data becomes long. Further, only the display device capable of color display of 8 bits or more can be used for displaying the image data.

  Therefore, thumbnails and preview images have a reduced amount of data for the purpose of enabling faster display than when displaying the original image data and reducing the burden on the device. Yes. As described above, various methods for reducing the amount of image data have been proposed.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, the number of gradations is reduced by a process such as binarizing image data to reduce the amount of image data. Further, image data having a plurality of resolutions or a plurality of gradations is generated, and image data having a low resolution or a low gradation is used for image display.

  In Patent Document 2, in displaying thumbnails, image data is compressed and stored, and a direct current component is thinned out from the image data to be read and displayed.

  In Patent Document 3, regarding display of a preview image of image data, color reduction processing is performed on image data when the display device can express the image with only a small number of colors. Specifically, the character area is separated when displaying the preview image, and the color reduction processing method is switched between the character area and the other areas so that the outline of the character is not blurred. As an example of color reduction processing, a simple threshold processing is performed on pixels in a character area to reduce the number of gradations, and an error diffusion process is performed on other pixels to reduce the number of gradations. .

  In Patent Document 4, the readability of characters is improved with respect to thumbnail display of image data. Specifically, when displaying thumbnails, it is determined in page units whether or not it is a character image. For pages determined to be character images, a part of the image is enlarged and displayed, and other images are displayed. By displaying the entire page, it is possible to ensure the legibility of the characters.

  On the other hand, in digital copying machines and digital multi-function peripherals (MFPs), the results of various jobs such as copying and scanning can be recorded and stored in a hard disk or the like as log information. Log information is generally recorded for the purpose of preventing leakage of important information, auditing, searching, browsing, and reuse of past jobs. Note that the hard disk for recording log information may be either a hard disk mounted inside the device or a hard disk connected to the outside of the device via a network.

  FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of log information. As shown in the figure, the log information includes information such as date and time, job contents, user ID, number of original pages, and original size. The job content further includes information such as job type, color type, document type, document adjustment, scaling ratio, number of printed sheets, output paper size, reception source and transmission destination.

  Currently, the log information display function installed in devices such as MFPs found in the market is simply a device that simply displays the log information as described above in text, and was handled in that job. Image data is not displayed. For this reason, for example, when auditing or browsing a copied manuscript, it is impossible to visually grasp the layout or text of the manuscript. In addition, as a measure for improvement, several techniques related to log information that can be visually grasped by associating and recording log information of various jobs and image data have been proposed in recent years.

  However, to maintain high visibility of the image data used for the log information, it is necessary to store a large amount of image data with little deterioration, which increases the storage capacity of the hard disk and the data transmission time inside and outside the device. There is a problem that it ends up. On the other hand, if the image data capacity is reduced, there is a problem in that the image data is severely deteriorated so that the visibility cannot be secured when displayed. Note that the visibility mentioned here refers to whether the layout of the document, differences in the color and gradation of photographs and drawings, etc. can be understood, whether the characters written on the document can be read, etc. Point to.

  Here, Patent Document 5 describes that log information of various jobs and image data are recorded in association with each other. In this example, in order to reduce the capacity of the image data, the image data is converted to a resolution suitable for recognizing the smallest character appearing in the image data, and further subjected to image compression processing such as JBIG to the hard disk. It is recorded.

JP 11-289416 A (released on October 19, 1999) JP-A-8-195927 (published July 30, 1996) JP2003-224734 (released on August 8, 2003) JP-A-2005-73015 (published on March 17, 2005) JP 2007-004453 (published on January 11, 2007)

  In Patent Document 1, the number of gradations is reduced in order to reduce the amount of data. In this case, for example, the display device has a small number of gradations that can be displayed. If image data is associated with the display device and the number of gradations of the image data is reduced, the image becomes very difficult to see on the display device. Specifically, for example, when simple binarization is performed on an image composed of a screen such as a halftone dot, an image represented by a smooth gradation such as a photographic paper photograph, or an image having a lot of noise, The image data obtained in this way is difficult to understand even the image layout. In particular, if processing such as reducing the resolution extremely is performed, data is lost significantly, so that characters cannot be read at all when displayed. That is, even if the image is enlarged and displayed, it is impossible to read the characters because the image data itself is missing.

  In Patent Document 2, in displaying thumbnails, image data is compressed at a high compression rate and displayed with a direct current component thinned out in order to reduce the amount of data. When such a process is performed, the data is remarkably lost, so that characters cannot be read at all when image data (thumbnail) is displayed. That is, even if the image is enlarged and displayed, it is impossible to read the characters because the image data itself is missing.

  In any of the technologies disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, both of the reduction in processing time for display by reducing the amount of image data and the readability of characters and the visibility of image layout are compatible. Have difficulty.

  In Patent Document 3, when a preview image is displayed, a series of processes are required in which image data is read out, character areas are separated, and color reduction processing such as error diffusion is selected and performed according to the areas. For this reason, it takes a long time to display the preview image. In addition, since the number of gradations is reduced in the character area, a phenomenon that a character with low density disappears or a detail of the character is crushed (filled with the same gradation) occurs.

  In Patent Document 4, when displaying a preview image, it is necessary to read out the image data, determine whether or not the image is a character image, cut out a part of the image according to the determination result, and perform enlargement processing. It is. For this reason, it takes a long time to display the preview image. In addition, since a part of the image of the character image is enlarged and displayed, the entire image layout is completely unknown. Furthermore, since the image data itself is displayed, a preview image cannot be displayed on a display device that can display only a small number of colors or a small number of gradations.

  In the technique of Patent Document 5, a certain degree of resolution is required to ensure the legibility of small characters. For this reason, the capacity of the image data cannot be significantly reduced. For example, the numerical value described in Patent Document 5 requires a resolution of 400 dpi × 400 dpi for a 6-point character, and particularly a color image has a considerably large capacity.

  Further, in the technique of Patent Document 5, if the resolution is reduced for image data including characters and further image compression processing is performed, there is a problem that the legibility of the characters is further deteriorated due to the influence of compression noise. In particular, if compression processing is performed with an algorithm or parameter having high compression efficiency for the purpose of reducing the data capacity, the image quality of characters is significantly deteriorated as a trade-off, resulting in an image having low legibility.

  Therefore, the present invention maintains image visibility, such as character readability and image layout visibility, even when the amount of data to be displayed is reduced to reduce the processing time required for display. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus that can perform image processing, an image forming apparatus including the same, a program, and a recording medium.

In order to solve the above problems, the image processing apparatus according to the present invention determines region attributes for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels for input image data, and region separation data indicating the determination result. Region separating means for generating log information, log information obtaining means for obtaining log information including processing contents for the image data, storage means for storing the region separated data in association with corresponding log information, and displaying the log information In response to a request to be displayed on the means, the log information and the area separation data associated with the log information are output from the storage means to the display means for visualization, and the area to be output to the display means Allocating means for assigning colors or gradations to the separated data for each area attribute, and the area separating means The constant is performed for whether it belongs to a text edge area,
The assigning means assigns black or darkest gradation when the area attribute is a character edge area, and assigns white or brightest gradation when the area attribute is not a character edge area.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, by displaying the region separation data in the thumbnail or preview of the image data, the processing time required for the display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured. .

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a main part of a digital color copying machine as an image forming apparatus including an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2A is an explanatory diagram showing image data, and FIG. 2B is created by processing the image data shown in FIG. 2A by the region separation unit of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the area separation data. 3A is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of a preview image obtained from the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3B is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of a thumbnail obtained from the image processing apparatus. It is. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the area | region isolation | separation part shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the MxN pixel used in each determination part shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a specific configuration or processing procedure of a character edge determination unit illustrated in FIG. 4 as a function unit. 7A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a Sobel filter used in the vertical direction Sobel filter product-sum unit shown in FIG. 6, and FIG. 7B is a lateral Sobel filter shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the Sobel filter used in a product-sum part. FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a specific configuration or processing procedure of a halftone dot determination unit illustrated in FIG. 4 as a function unit. It is a block diagram which shows typically the specific structure or processing procedure of the pair determination part shown in FIG. 8 as a function part. FIG. 10 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a specific configuration or processing procedure of a rising / falling detection unit illustrated in FIG. 9 as a functional unit. It is a block diagram which shows typically the specific structure or processing procedure of the achromatic determination part shown in FIG. 4 as a function part. FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a specific configuration or processing procedure of a background determination unit illustrated in FIG. 4 as a function unit. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of generating region separation data in which a pixel of interest is separated into a character edge region and other regions in the region separation data generation unit shown in FIG. 4. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of generating region separation data in which a pixel of interest is separated into a character edge region, a halftone dot region, and other regions in the region separation data generation unit illustrated in FIG. 4. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of generating region separation data in which a pixel of interest is separated into a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph / solid region, and a background region in the region separation data generation unit shown in FIG. FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a lookup table corresponding to the region separation data obtained by the operation of FIG. 13, which is the lookup table included in the gradation / color assignment unit illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 17A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a lookup table corresponding to the region separation data obtained by the operation of FIG. 14, which is the lookup table included in the gradation / color assignment unit shown in FIG. FIG. 17B is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the lookup table shown in FIG. FIG. 18A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a lookup table corresponding to the region separation data obtained by the operation of FIG. 15, which is a lookup table included in the gradation / color assignment unit shown in FIG. 18B is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the lookup table shown in FIG. 18A, and FIG. 18C shows still another example of the lookup table shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing. It is a block diagram which shows the other example of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the further another example of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a color-compatible image reading apparatus including an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration when an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a system including a computer. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part in a digital color copying machine as an image forming apparatus including an image processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the synthetic | combination part shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the 1st synthetic | combination process in the synthetic | combination part of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a look-up table used by an output value selection unit in the first synthesis process illustrated in FIG. 25. It is a flowchart which shows the 2nd synthetic | combination process in the synthetic | combination part of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the look-up table which an output value selection part uses in the 2nd synthetic | combination process shown in FIG. The block diagram which shows the structure of the principal part in other embodiment of the digital color copying machine shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the synthetic | combination part shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the 1st synthetic | combination process in the synthetic | combination part of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 32 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a look-up table used by an output value selection unit in the first synthesis process illustrated in FIG. 31. It is a flowchart which shows the 2nd synthetic | combination process in the synthetic | combination part of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the look-up table which an output value selection part uses in the 2nd synthetic | combination process shown in FIG. FIG. 24 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 23 and including a storage unit. FIG. 30 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 29 and including a storage unit. FIG. 24 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image reading apparatus illustrated in FIG. 21 and having a configuration corresponding to the image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 23. FIG. 30 is a block diagram of an image reading apparatus having a configuration corresponding to the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. 29, showing another example of the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 21. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the log information which the image processing apparatus of this Embodiment handles. It is a block diagram which shows the further another example of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of correlation with the log information in the memory | storage part shown in FIG. 40, area | region separation compression data, etc. FIG. FIG. 42A is a flowchart showing a series of operations when log information and area separation compressed data are recorded in the storage unit shown in FIG. 40, and FIG. 42B shows log information and area separation compression from the storage unit. It is a flowchart which shows a series of operation | movement when reading data and displaying log information and area separation data on a display part. It is a block diagram which shows the further another example of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. 44A is a flowchart showing a series of operations when recording log information, region-separated compressed data, and compressed image data in the storage unit shown in FIG. 43, and FIG. 44B shows log information from the storage unit. 5 is a flowchart showing a series of operations in the case of reading out region-separated compressed data and compressed image data and displaying them on the display unit. It is a block diagram which shows the further another example of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the synthetic | combination part shown in FIG. FIG. 47A is a flowchart showing a series of operations for recording log information, area separation compressed data, and thinned compressed image data in the storage unit shown in FIG. 45, and FIG. 47B shows a log from the storage unit. It is a flowchart which shows a series of operation | movement when reading information, area | region separation compression data, and thinning compression image data, and displaying these on a display part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the result of having compared the capacity | capacitance of the original image data, the image data (display data) by the technique of patent document 5, and the capacity | capacitance of the image data (display data) by the image processing apparatus of this Embodiment. .

[Embodiment 1]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a case where the image processing apparatus is applied to an image forming apparatus will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main part of a digital color copying machine as an image forming apparatus provided with the image processing apparatus of the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the digital color copier includes an image input device 1, an image processing device 2, an image output device 3, a display unit 4, and a control unit (control means) 5. The digital color copying machine has a known configuration for printing an image by, for example, an electrophotographic method.

  The image input apparatus 1 includes a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) line sensor, irradiates light on a document image placed on a document table, and reflects light reflected from the document as R, G, B (R: red / G Is converted into an electrical signal (color image signal (RGB analog signal)) color-separated into green and B: blue.

  The image processing device 2 processes the image data input from the image input device 1. Note that the image data processed by the image processing apparatus 2 is not limited to that input from the image input apparatus 1 but may be input from another external apparatus. For example, it may be image data downloaded via a network.

  The image processing apparatus 2 includes an A / D (analog / digital) conversion unit 11, a shading correction unit 12, an input processing unit 13, a color correction unit 14, a black generation / under color removal unit 15, a spatial filter unit 16, and a halftone generation. A unit 17, a region separation unit (region separation unit) 18, a gradation / color assignment unit (assignment unit) 19, and a control unit 5.

  A color image signal (RGB analog signal) input by the line sensor of the image input apparatus 1 is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 11. The shading correction unit 12 removes various distortions generated in the illumination system, the imaging system, and the imaging system of the image input apparatus 1 from the digital image signal output from the A / D conversion unit 11. The input processing unit 13 performs a process of correcting γ for each of the RGB signals output from the shading correction unit 12.

  The color correction unit 14 generates a CMY (C: cyan, M: magenta, Y: yellow) signal that is a complementary color of the RGB signal from the RGB signal, and performs a process for improving color reproducibility. The black generation / undercolor removal unit 15 converts the CMY signal into a four-color signal of CMYK (K: black). The spatial filter unit 16 performs enhancement processing and smoothing processing on the CMYK signal. The halftone generation unit 17 performs gradation reproduction processing for outputting the CMYK signal input from the spatial filter unit 16 as an image signal, and outputs the processed image to the image output device 3.

  The region separation unit 18 receives an output signal (image data) from the input processing unit 13, performs a process of separating region attributes for each pixel of the image data, and generates region separation data. For example, each pixel of the input image data is a character (black character or color character), a halftone dot, a photographic paper photograph (continuous gradation region), a solid region (region having no constant change in gradation), or a background region To which region belongs, and region separation data indicating the determination result is generated. Note that the area separation data indicating the halftone dot area, the photographic paper photograph, the solid area, and the like are filled with uniform data.

  As described above, in the configuration in which the region is separated for each pixel, when the image is a character, the character edge can be extracted finely, so that the shape that can be read as a character can be maintained even for the region separation data. The region separation data created from 8-bit × 3 plane (RGB) image data is 1-bit or 2-bit data. Therefore, the area separation data displayed as a thumbnail or a preview image has a data amount greatly reduced with respect to the original image data.

  The region separation data output from the region separation unit 18 is input to the black generation / undercolor removal unit 15, the spatial filter unit 16, and the halftone generation unit 17, and each unit to which the region separation data is input receives image data. Appropriate processing is performed according to the region indicated by the region separation data.

  The gradation / color assignment unit 19 receives the region separation data from the region separation unit 18 and assigns a color or gradation suitable for each region attribute to the region separation data. Thereafter, the region separation data is output to the display unit 4.

  As described above, by assigning a color or gradation suitable for each region attribute to the region separation data, the visibility of the image is improved when the region separation data is displayed as a thumbnail or a preview image (image Becomes easier to see). For example, when colors are assigned to the region separation data for each region attribute, it is possible to select such as black for characters, red for halftone dots, and white for others. In addition, when gradation is given to each region attribute to the region separation data and displayed in gray, the gradation is 0 for characters, 50 for halftone dots, 100 for photographic paper photographs / solids, and 255 for background. it can.

  By such processing in the gradation / color assignment unit 19, even if the display unit 4 can express only a small number of gradations, the visibility of images such as characters and image layouts can be maintained more reliably. Can do. In the image processing apparatus 2, the provision of the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is preferable for maintaining good visibility of the image, but is not essential, and is output from, for example, the region separation unit 18. It is also possible to display the region separation data directly on the display unit 4.

  The image output device 3 forms an output image based on the CMYK signal from the halftone generator 17. Note that the image output device 3 is, for example, an electrophotographic printer or an inkjet printer, or other device that reproduces an image, and may be an image display device such as a liquid crystal display.

  The display unit 4 is, for example, a small and low-resolution display device including a liquid crystal display or the like installed on the operation panel of the digital color copying machine according to the present embodiment. The display unit 4 displays a visible image of the region separation data output from the gradation / color assignment unit 19.

  The control unit 5 includes a control device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and controls the data flow of each unit in the image processing device 2. In particular, when receiving an instruction to display a thumbnail or a preview image on the display unit 4, after the region separation data created by the region separation unit 18 is processed by the gradation / color assignment unit 19, / The color is assigned from the color assignment unit 19 to the display unit 4.

  Here, the display image when the region separation data and the region separation data are displayed on the display unit 4 will be described.

  2A is an explanatory diagram showing image data, and FIG. 2B is a region separation created by processing the image data shown in FIG. 2A by the region separation unit 18 of the image processing apparatus 2. It is explanatory drawing which shows data. Each of these figures is shown by the state in which each data is displayed.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the image data has a character region (black characters and color characters), a photographic paper photograph region, a halftone dot region, and a background region. In the area separation data obtained from this image data, when gradation is assigned for each area attribute, as shown in FIG. 2B, the character edge area has gradation 0, the photographic paper photograph area has gradation 50, The dot region has a gradation of 100, and the ground region has a gradation of 255.

  3A shows a display example of a preview image obtained from the image processing apparatus 2, and FIG. 3B shows a display example of a thumbnail obtained from the image processing apparatus 2. In any of these, a predetermined gradation is assigned to each area attribute by the gradation / color assignment unit 19. Note that the same region separation data is used when displaying as a thumbnail and when displaying as a preview image, but the region separation data is appropriately enlarged or reduced depending on whether it is displayed as a thumbnail or as a preview image. . This enlargement / reduction processing may be performed by the area separation unit 18 or the gradation / color assignment unit 19 or may be performed by providing an independent enlargement / reduction unit.

  Next, the region separation unit 18 and the gradation / color assignment unit 19 will be described in more detail. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the region separation unit 18. As shown in FIG. 4, the region separation unit 18 includes a character edge determination unit 101, a halftone dot determination unit 102, an achromatic determination unit 103, a background determination unit 104, and a region separation data generation unit 105. The region separation unit 18 receives M × N pixel image data (RGB values) centered on the target pixel, performs character edge determination, halftone determination, achromatic determination, and background determination for the target pixel. Based on the determination result, region separation data for the target pixel is created. FIG. 5 shows a mask of M × N pixels used for each determination.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram schematically showing a specific configuration or processing procedure of the character edge determination unit 101 as a functional unit. In the figure, the representative value calculation unit 111 uses, for example, a 5 × 5 pixel mask and converts the RGB values of 5 × 5 pixels centered on the pixel of interest into representative values K, respectively. Next, the vertical direction sobel filter product-sum unit 112 and the horizontal direction sobel filter product-sum unit 113 calculate the product sum of the K value and the vertical and horizontal sobel filters. The Sobel filter is a filter for edge detection, and an example of each Sobel filter is shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B. Next, the sum of squares calculation unit 114 calculates the sum of squares of the product sum of the K value and the vertical and horizontal Sobel filters. Thereafter, the comparator 115 compares the square sum with a predetermined threshold (THtxt), and outputs Jadge_Text = 1 if the square sum is larger than the threshold, and Jadge_Text = 0 otherwise.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram schematically showing a specific configuration or processing procedure of the halftone dot determination unit 102 as a functional unit. In the figure, a halftone dot determination unit 102 performs pair determination using the RGB values of the vertical and horizontal lines in the M × N pixel mask by the pair determination units 121 and 131. Next, adders (ADD) 122 and 132 calculate the sum of the pair determination results for all lines in the vertical and horizontal directions. Next, the comparator 123 compares the total sum in the horizontal direction with a predetermined threshold value (THpair_x), and the comparator 133 compares the total sum in the vertical direction with a predetermined threshold value (THpair_y). The AND circuit 124 sets Jadge_Screen = 1 when the total in the horizontal direction is larger than the threshold (THpair_x) and the total in the vertical direction is larger than the threshold (THpair_y) as a result of the comparison in each of the comparators 123 and 133. Otherwise, Jadge_Screen = 0 is output.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a specific configuration or processing procedure of the pair determination unit 121 illustrated in FIG. 8 as a function unit. The pair determination unit 131 has the same configuration as the pair determination unit 121. In the representative value calculation unit 141, the RGB values of adjacent pixels in the line are sequentially input, and are converted into representative values K, respectively. The rise / fall detection unit 142 detects the rise and fall based on each K value, and the adders (ADD) 143 and 145 calculate the sum of the rise and fall. The comparator 144 compares the falling sum with a predetermined threshold (THdw), and the comparator 146 compares the rising sum with a predetermined threshold (THup). The AND circuit 147 sets “1” as the pair determination result when the total sum of falling is larger than the threshold value (THdw) and the total sum of rising is larger than the threshold value (THup), and “0” otherwise. Is output.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram schematically showing a specific configuration or processing procedure of the rising / falling detection unit 142 shown in FIG. 9 as a functional unit. The differentiator 151 inputs K values between adjacent pixels and calculates the difference between them. The absolute value calculation unit 152 calculates the absolute value of the difference. The comparator 153 compares the absolute value of the difference with a predetermined threshold (THud), and the comparator 155 compares the difference output from the difference unit 151 with 0. The AND circuit 154 outputs “1” as the fall determination result when the absolute value of the difference is larger than the threshold (THud) and the difference is less than 0, and outputs “0” otherwise. On the other hand, the AND circuit 156 outputs “1” as the rising edge determination result when the absolute value of the difference is larger than the predetermined threshold (THud) and the difference is 0 or more, and outputs “0” otherwise. To do.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram schematically showing a specific configuration or processing procedure of the achromatic determination unit 103 as a functional unit. The maximum value calculation unit 161 and the minimum value calculation unit 162 respectively input the RGB value of the target pixel, and calculate the maximum value and the minimum value of the three values of RGB. The differencer 163 calculates the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value output from the maximum value calculation unit 161 and the minimum value calculation unit 162. The comparator 164 compares the difference with a predetermined threshold (THcol), and outputs Jadge_Black = 1 if the difference is smaller than the threshold (THcol), and Jadge_Black = 0 otherwise.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram schematically showing a specific configuration or processing procedure of the background determination unit 104 as a functional unit. The representative value calculation unit 171 converts the RGB value of the target pixel into a representative value K. The comparator 172 compares the K value with a predetermined threshold (THbg), and outputs Jadge_Bg = 1 if the K value is larger than the threshold (THbg), and Jadge_Bg = 0 otherwise. The coefficients α1, α2, and α3 used in the representative value calculation unit 171 are positive values (for example, α1 = α2 = α3 = 1/3), and the larger the K value, the lower the density (closer to white). It is shown that.

  The region separation data generation unit 105 can be realized by a lookup table that outputs region separation data values according to the four values (Jadge_Text, Jadge_Screen, Jadge_Black, Jadge_Bg) input from the determination units 101 to 104. it can. Alternatively, the region separation data generation unit 105 may be realized by a conditional branching expression that has the same function as the lookup table.

  Three types of operations of the region separation data generation unit 105 are shown in FIGS. The operation of FIG. 13 is to generate region separation data in which the pixel of interest is separated into a character edge region and other regions. In FIG. 13, the region separation data generation unit 105 determines whether or not the pixel of interest is a halftone dot region (whether Jadge_Screen = 1) (S1). It is determined that the region is not a character edge region, and the region separation data of the target pixel is set to 0 (S2).

  If it is determined in S1 that the region is not a halftone dot region, it is determined whether the region is a character edge region (whether Jadge_Text = 1) (S3). Is set to 1 (S4). On the other hand, as a result of the determination in S3, if it is not a character edge region, the process proceeds to S2, and the region separation data of the target pixel is set to zero.

  The operation of FIG. 14 generates region separation data in which the pixel of interest is separated into a character edge region, a halftone dot region, and other regions. In FIG. 14, the region separation data generation unit 105 determines whether the pixel of interest is a halftone dot region (Jadge_Screen = 1) (S11). The area separation data is set to 0 (S12).

  If the result of determination in S11 is not a halftone dot area, it is determined whether or not it is a character edge area (whether Jadge_Text = 1) (S13). Is set to 1 (S14).

  If the result of determination in S13 is not a character edge region, the pixel of interest is determined as another region, and the region separation data of the pixel of interest is set to 2 (S15).

  The operation of FIG. 15 is to generate region separation data in which the target pixel is separated into a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph / solid region (photographic paper photograph or solid region), and a background region. In FIG. 15, the region separation data generation unit 105 determines whether or not the pixel of interest is a halftone dot region (whether Jadge_Screen = 1) (S21). The area separation data is set to 0 (S22).

  If the result of determination in S21 is not a halftone dot region, it is determined whether or not it is a character edge region (Jadge_Text = 1) (S23). Is set to 1 (S24).

  If the result of determination in S23 is not a character edge region, it is determined whether or not the pixel of interest is a background region (Jadge_Bg = 1) (S25). The pixel region separation data is set to 2 (S26).

  Further, if the result of determination in S25 is that the region is not a background region, the pixel of interest is determined to be a photographic paper photograph / solid region, and the region separation data of the pixel of interest is set to 3 (S27).

  In the operations of FIGS. 13 to 15 (types 1 to 3), any lookup table or conditional branch expression may be set as a fixed value in advance, or all lookup tables or conditional branch expressions may be used as options. Alternatively, a suitable one may be selected in accordance with a user input or a designation input on the display unit 4. In addition, the number of bits of the region separation data is 1 bit for Type 1 and 2 bits for Type 2 and Type 3.

  Next, the gradation / color assignment unit 19 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. The gradation / color assignment unit 19 can be realized by a lookup table set to output a specific color or gradation value in accordance with the value indicated by the region separation data input from the region separation unit 18. . As this lookup table, types 1 to 3 can be set according to types 1 to 3 of the region separation data.

  FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the lookup table of the gradation / color assignment unit 19 corresponding to type 1 region separation data. FIG. 17A shows an example of the lookup table of the gradation / color assignment unit 19 corresponding to type 2 region separation data, and FIG. 17B is an explanatory diagram showing another example. FIG. 18A shows an example of the lookup table of the gradation / color assignment unit 19 corresponding to type 3 region separation data, FIG. 18B shows another example, and FIG. FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing still another example.

  In FIG. 17B, the output gradation value in the case of gray display in the halftone dot region is 100, but may be an appropriate value between 0 and 255. The same applies to the output gradation values 100 and 50 in the case of gray display of the halftone dot area and the photographic paper photograph / solid area in FIGS. 18B and 18C.

  For the lookup tables shown in FIGS. 16 to 18, a fixed lookup table may be determined in advance, or a value input from the user may be assigned to the lookup table by the control unit 5. . One of a plurality of lookup tables is selectable, and the control unit 5 selects an optimum lookup table according to the characteristics of the display unit 4 (such as the number of reproducible colors and gradations). May be.

[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image processing apparatus. In FIG. 19, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the image processing apparatus 31 further includes a storage unit (storage unit) 32. The storage unit 32 can be configured by a hard disk or other general storage device. In the image processing apparatus 31, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data is created as the image data is processed in each job. Therefore, the storage unit 32 stores each created region separation data in association with the corresponding image data.

  For example, the image data processed by the input processing unit 13 is stored in the storage unit 32. The image data is read from the storage unit 32 and input to the region separation unit 18 when the region separation unit 18 processes the image data. The processing in the region separation unit 18 is the same as that described above. The control unit 5 stores the region separation data created by the region separation unit 18 in the storage unit 32 in association with the corresponding image data. Thereafter, when instructed to display a thumbnail or preview image of specific image data, the control unit 5 reads out the region separation data related to the image data from the storage unit 32 and inputs it to the gradation / color assignment unit 19. . As a result, the region separation data processed by the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is displayed as a thumbnail or a preview image on the display unit 4.

  The control unit 5 performs the following operation in writing and reading the region separation data to the storage unit 32 described above. For example, the storage address or data name of the image data and the storage address of the region separation data are associated with each other and entered in the management table, and data reading / writing control with respect to the storage unit 32 is performed based on the association.

  The control unit 5 controls the display operation when receiving a display instruction for thumbnails or preview images. In this case, by specifying the image data to be displayed for the thumbnail or preview image, referring to the management table, the storage address of the area separation data associated with the image data is obtained, and the area separation data is obtained from the address. Are controlled to be output to the gradation / color assignment unit 19. The processing in the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is the same as that described above.

  In the present embodiment, since the area separation data is stored in the storage unit 32, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or transmitted again to another apparatus, a new area is stored. There is no need to generate separation data, and these processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 32.

[Embodiment 3]
FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating still another example of the image processing apparatus. In FIG. 20, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 20, in addition to the storage unit 32, the image processing apparatus 41 further includes a region separation data compression unit (compression unit) 42 and a region separation data decompression unit (decompression unit) 43. In the image processing apparatus 41, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data is created along with the processing of the image data in each job. The region separation data is stored in the storage unit 32 after being compressed by the region separation data compression unit 42 in order to reduce the data amount. The area separation data read from the storage unit 32 is expanded by the area separation data expansion unit 43 and then input to the gradation / color allocation unit 19. Note that the storage unit 32 stores each region separation data in association with the corresponding image data as described above.

  The compression in the region separation data compression unit 42 may be either lossless compression or lossy compression. However, when lossless compression is performed, image quality does not deteriorate, and character readability and image layout visibility are better than lossy compression. As the lossless compression, a general method such as MMR, MR, LZH, ZIP, MH, or PPM can be used. For lossy compression, a general method such as JPEG, JBIG, or JPEG2000 can be used.

  In the present embodiment, since the compressed area separation data is stored in the storage unit 32, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or when it is transmitted to another apparatus again, There is no need to newly generate area separation data, and these processes can be quickly performed using the compressed area separation data stored in the storage unit 32.

[Embodiment 4]
FIG. 21 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a color-compatible image reading apparatus (scanner) including the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 21 includes an image input apparatus 1 and an image processing apparatus 51. The image processing apparatus 51 includes the A / D conversion unit 11, the shading correction unit 12, the input processing unit 13, the region separation unit 18, the gradation / color assignment unit 19, and the control unit 5. The operation of each unit constituting the image reading apparatus is as described above.

  The RGB image signal that has been subjected to the above processes in the image processing apparatus is output to a computer, a hard disk, a network, or the like. Further, the area separation data to which the color / gradation is assigned by the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is output to an image display device such as a liquid crystal display. Note that a display for display may be installed in the image reading apparatus.

  The image reading apparatus includes the gradation / color assignment unit 19, but the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is not provided in the image reading apparatus but is connected to the image reading apparatus, for example. It may be provided in the computer. In this case, the image reading apparatus outputs the region separation data to the computer, and the computer assigns colors and gradations according to the region separation data.

[Embodiment 5]
FIG. 23 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part in a digital color copying machine as an image forming apparatus provided with the image processing apparatus of the present embodiment. The image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 23 includes an image processing apparatus 201 instead of the image processing apparatus 2 shown in FIG. The image processing apparatus 201 does not have the gradation / color assignment unit 19 included in the image processing apparatus 2, and has an image data compression unit (image data compression unit) 202 and a synthesis unit (composition unit) compared to the image processing apparatus 2. ) 203 is added.

  In the image processing apparatus 201 of the present embodiment, an output signal (image data) from the input processing unit 13 is input in parallel to the region separation unit 18 and the image data compression unit 202. As described above, the region separation unit 18 performs processing for separating region attributes for each pixel of the image data input from the input processing unit 13 to generate region separation data.

  The image data compression unit 202 compresses the image data input from the input processing unit 13 into, for example, JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) format image data. The compression method is not limited to the JPEG method, and any lossy compression or lossless compression may be used as long as the image data size can be greatly compressed. For example, a scheme such as JPEG2000 may be used.

  The synthesizing unit 203 synthesizes the region separation data created by the region separating unit 18 and the compressed image data created by the image data compression unit 202 to create synthesized data, and outputs it to the display unit 4. The composite data is displayed on the display unit 4 instead of the image data in response to a request for visualizing the image data by the display unit 4.

  In order to perform the above synthesis processing, the synthesis unit 203 includes an image data decompression unit 211 and an output value selection unit 212 as shown in FIG. FIG. 24 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the synthesis unit 203 shown in FIG.

  An image data decompression unit 211 illustrated in FIG. 24 performs decompression processing (decompression processing) on the image data compressed by the image data compression unit 202. For example, in the case of the compressed image data in the JPEG format, since it is a YCbCr (Y: luminance, Cb, Cr: color difference) signal, the encoded data of YCbCr is decoded and further subjected to inverse quantization and inverse orthogonal transform. To convert to pixel data. Therefore, the YCbCr signal is converted into an RGB signal.

  The output value selection unit 212 outputs decompressed image data, black image data, or white image data based on the region separation data.

  In the present embodiment, the synthesis unit 203 performs either the first synthesis process shown in FIG. 25 or the second synthesis process shown in FIG. 27 by changing the processing content of the output value selection unit 212. It can be set as follows. 25 is a flowchart showing the first synthesis process in the synthesis unit 203, and FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing the second synthesis process in the synthesis unit 203.

  When performing the first synthesis process, the synthesis unit 203 uses the first synthesis process lookup table (first synthesis process table) illustrated in FIG. 26. This first composition processing table corresponds to the type 1 region separation data generated by the region separation data generation processing shown in FIG. When the second synthesis process is performed, a second synthesis process lookup table (second synthesis process table) shown in FIG. 28 is used. The second synthesis processing table corresponds to the type 3 region separation data generated by the region separation data generation processing shown in FIG.

  The following processing is performed on the “pixel value (note) of the expanded image data” in the column “output gradation value in the case of 8-bit gray display” shown in the first composition processing table of FIG. That is, when the input image data is color image data and the display device is in gray display, the RGB values are converted into gray values and output. Examples of this conversion include (1) outputting the G plane as it is, (2) outputting a weighted average value of the pixel values of each RGB plane. This process is the same for the two “pixel values (note) of decompressed image data” in the second composition processing table of FIG.

  First, the operation of the image processing apparatus 201 that performs the first combining process in the combining unit 203 will be described.

  The region separation data output from the region separation unit 18 and the compressed image data output from the image data compression unit 202 are input to the synthesis unit 203 of the image processing apparatus 201. As shown in FIG. 25, the image data decompression unit 211 of the composition unit 203 decompresses the compressed image data and outputs it to the output value selection unit 212 (S51).

  The output value selection unit 212 determines whether or not the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 1 (S52), and if it is 1, outputs the value of “black” as the combined data of the processing target pixel (S53). . On the other hand, if the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 0, the decompressed image data input from the image data decompression unit 211 is output as composite data of the processing target pixel (S54).

  In the processing of the output value selection unit 212 from S52 to S54 described above, the processing is repeated with the first pixel to the last pixel of the image data as processing target pixels. The combined data created as described above and output from the combining unit 203 is displayed on the display unit 4 as a thumbnail or a preview image.

  Next, the operation of the image processing apparatus 201 that performs the second combining process in the combining unit 203 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 27, the image data decompression unit 211 of the composition unit 203 decompresses the compressed image data and outputs it to the output value selection unit 212 (S61).

  The output value selection unit 212 determines whether or not the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 1 (S52). If the value is 1, the value “black” is output as the combined data of the processing target pixel. (S63).

  If the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is not 1 in the determination result in S62, it is determined whether or not the value is 2 (S64). A value of “white” is output as data (S65).

  If the region separation data value of the processing target pixel is not 2 in the determination result in S64, the decompressed image data input from the image data decompression unit 211 is output as the composite data of the processing target pixel ( S66). In the processing of the output value selection unit 212 from S62 to S66 described above, the processing is repeated with the first pixel to the last pixel of the image data as processing target pixels.

  In the present embodiment, the image data compression unit 202 compresses the image data, and the image data is expanded by the image data expansion unit 211 of the synthesis unit 203 for the following reason. In other words, it is possible to reduce the transmission speed and transmission load of data required for display by transmitting image data while reducing the data amount by compression.

  For example, when the image processing apparatus 201 is realized by a plurality of hardware chips, the circuit of the combining unit 203 may be mounted on another chip separately from other function units (thumbnail and preview functions are optional). For example). The amount of data transmitted between chips greatly affects the overall processing time. Therefore, by compressing the image data and transmitting the display data in a state in which the amount of data is greatly reduced, the total amount of data required for display is reduced. There is an effect that processing time can be shortened. Note that the processing time in each circuit such as the image data compression unit 202 and the image data decompression unit 211 is very small with respect to this transmission time, and the effect of performing display processing once the data amount is reduced in this way is as follows. It can be said that it is big. The combining unit 203 may be provided outside the digital copying machine or the like via a network. In that case, by compressing and transmitting the image data, the transmission time on the network and the load on the network are reduced. Such an effect can be expected.

  In the image processing apparatus 201 according to the present embodiment, when display of thumbnails or preview images of image data is instructed, the region separation data output from the region separation unit 18 and the compressed image output from the image data compression unit 202 are displayed. The combined data is generated by the combining unit 203 using the data, and the combined data is displayed on the display unit 4.

  Here, the composite data is obtained by replacing a part of the image data with a predetermined color or gradation based on the region separation data. Specifically, the synthesized data includes only the character edge area replaced based on the area separation data (first synthesis process, using the lookup table in FIG. 26), or only the character edge area and the background area. It is replaced based on the region separation data (second synthesis process, using the lookup table in FIG. 28).

  Therefore, the configuration using the composite data has the following advantages. Since the synthesized data uses the area separation data for the character area, information on the fine shape of the character is maintained. In addition, since the compressed image data is used for the other regions, the color and gradation change information of photographs and drawings is maintained.

  As a result, when the display of thumbnails or preview images of image data is instructed and the above-mentioned composite data is used, the composition processing in the composition unit 203 that can be processed in a short time is necessary, but the region separation is performed. Similar to the configuration using data, it is possible to improve the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout while reducing the processing time required for display.

  Also, as in the configuration of the previous embodiment, when only the region separation data is used, it is difficult to reliably maintain the visibility of images other than characters. This is because, when using the region separation data, the color information and gradation change of the original image data, particularly visual information about the contents of the photograph or the figure is lost. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2B, since the halftone dot area, the photographic paper photograph, or the solid area is filled with uniform gradation or color, the visibility of the entire image layout is Even if it can be ensured, the visibility of the contents of photographs and drawings (that is, hue and gradation change) cannot be ensured.

  On the other hand, when the composite data is displayed, the composite data includes image data other than the region separation data, so that the visibility of the image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a figure, is improved. Can do.

  In the image processing apparatus 201 according to the present embodiment, the combined data is displayed on the display unit 4 when the second combining process shown in FIG. 27 is performed rather than the first combining process shown in FIG. In this case, the image becomes easy to see.

  In the present embodiment, colors or gradations are assigned to the region separation data for each region attribute. However, for example, in the flow of FIG. 13 or FIG. 15, the region separation data is “region separation data = 0” when it is determined to be a character edge region, “region separation data = 255”. The value may be a value that can be used as an output gradation value as it is. In this case, the composition process can be performed without assigning a new color or gradation to the region separation data.

[Embodiment 6]
FIG. 29 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part in a digital color copying machine as an image forming apparatus provided with the image processing apparatus of the present embodiment. The image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 29 includes an image processing apparatus 301 instead of the image processing apparatus 2 shown in FIG. The image processing apparatus 301 does not have the gradation / color assignment unit 19 included in the image processing apparatus 2 and has an image data thinning unit (image data thinning unit) 302 and a combining unit (combining unit) with respect to the image processing apparatus 2. ) 303 is added.

  In the image processing apparatus 301 of the present embodiment, an output signal (image data) from the input processing unit 13 is input in parallel to the region separation unit 18 and the image data thinning unit 302. As described above, the region separation unit 18 performs processing for separating region attributes for each pixel of the image data input from the input processing unit 13 to generate region separation data.

  The image data thinning unit 302 performs a process of thinning the image data input from the input processing unit 13 using a general reduction algorithm by nearest neighbor. Note that the method of thinning out image data is not limited to this, and any method can be used as long as the size of the image data can be significantly reduced. For example, a thinning method using a bilinear or bicubic reduction algorithm instead of the nearest neighbor may be used.

  Here, the nearest neighbor is the value of an existing pixel that is closest to the pixel to be interpolated or has a predetermined positional relationship with the pixel to be interpolated. In the bilinear method, an average of values weighted in a form proportional to the distance between four existing pixels surrounding a pixel to be interpolated is obtained, and that value is used as the interpolation pixel. Bicubic performs interpolation using a total of 16 pixel values including 12 points surrounding the pixels to be interpolated and 12 points surrounding them.

  The synthesizing unit 303 synthesizes the region separation data created by the region separating unit 18 and the thinned image data created by the image data thinning unit 302 to create synthesized data, and outputs it to the display unit 4. The composite data is displayed on the display unit 4 instead of the image data in response to a request for visualizing the image data by the display unit 4.

  In order to perform the above synthesis processing, the synthesis unit 303 includes an image data interpolation unit 311 and an output value selection unit 312 as shown in FIG. FIG. 30 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the synthesis unit 303 shown in FIG.

  An image data interpolation unit 311 illustrated in FIG. 30 performs an interpolation process on the image data subjected to the thinning process by the image data thinning unit 302. The image data interpolation unit 311 performs a process of interpolating the image data using a general nearest neighbor enlargement algorithm. Note that the image data interpolation method is not limited to this, and for example, a bilinear or bicubic enlargement algorithm may be used.

  The output value selection unit 312 outputs the interpolated image data, black image data, or white image data based on the region separation data.

  In the present embodiment, the synthesis unit 303 performs either the first synthesis process shown in FIG. 31 or the second synthesis process shown in FIG. 33 by changing the processing contents of the output value selection unit 312. It can be set as follows. FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing the first combining process in the combining unit 303, and FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing the second combining process in the combining unit 303.

  When performing the first synthesis process, the synthesis unit 303 uses a first synthesis process lookup table (first synthesis process table) illustrated in FIG. 32. This first composition processing table corresponds to the type 1 region separation data generated by the region separation data generation processing shown in FIG. When the second synthesis process is performed, a second synthesis process lookup table (second synthesis process table) shown in FIG. 34 is used. The second synthesis processing table corresponds to the type 3 region separation data generated by the region separation data generation processing shown in FIG.

  The “interpolated image data pixel value (Note)” shown in the compositing process table of FIG. 32 and FIG. 34 is the same as the description of the “expanded image data pixel value (Note)” shown in the compositing process table of FIG. It is the same.

  First, the operation of the image processing apparatus 301 that performs the first combining process in the combining unit 303 will be described.

  The combining unit 303 of the image processing apparatus 301 receives the region separation data output from the region separation unit 18 and the thinned image data output from the image data thinning unit 302. As shown in FIG. 31, the image data interpolation unit 311 of the synthesis unit 303 interpolates the thinned image data and outputs it to the output value selection unit 312 (S71).

  The output value selection unit 312 determines whether or not the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 1 (S72), and if it is 1, the value of “black” is output as the combined data of the processing target pixel (S73). . On the other hand, if the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 0, the interpolated image data input from the image data interpolation unit 311 is output as composite data of the processing target pixel (S74).

  In the processing of the output value selection unit 312 from S72 to S74 described above, the processing is repeated with the first pixel to the last pixel of the image data as processing target pixels. The combined data generated as described above and output from the combining unit 303 is displayed on the display unit 4 as a thumbnail or a preview image.

  Next, the operation of the image processing apparatus 301 that performs the second combining process in the combining unit 303 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 33, the image data interpolation unit 311 of the synthesis unit 303 interpolates the thinned image data and outputs it to the output value selection unit 312 (S81).

  The output value selection unit 312 determines whether or not the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is 1 (S82). If the value is 1, the value “black” is output as the combined data of the processing target pixel. (S83).

  If the value of the region separation data of the processing target pixel is not 1 in the determination result in S82, it is determined whether the value is 2 (S84). If the value is 2, the processing target pixel is synthesized. A value of “white” is output as data (S85).

  If the region separation data value of the processing target pixel is not 2 in the determination result in S84, the interpolated image data input from the image data interpolation unit 311 is output as the synthesis data of the processing target pixel. (S86).

  In the present embodiment, the image data thinning unit 302 thins out image data, and the image data is interpolated by the image data interpolation unit 311 of the combining unit 303 for the following reason. In other words, it is possible to reduce the transmission speed and transmission load of data required for display by thinning out the image data and transmitting the image data with a greatly reduced data amount.

  For example, when the image processing apparatus 301 is realized by a plurality of hardware chips, the circuit of the combining unit 303 may be mounted on another chip separately from other function units (the thumbnail and preview functions are optional). For example). Since the amount of data transmitted between chips greatly affects the overall processing time, the total amount of data required for display can be reduced by thinning out the image data and transmitting the display data in a state where the amount of data is greatly reduced. There is an effect that the processing time can be shortened. Note that the processing time in each circuit such as the image data thinning unit 302 and the image data interpolating unit 311 is very small with respect to this transmission time, and the effect of performing the display processing once the data amount is reduced in this way is as follows. It can be said that it is big. The combining unit 303 may be provided outside the digital copying machine or the like via a network. In that case, the image data is thinned and transmitted to reduce the transmission time on the network and the load on the network. Such an effect can be expected.

  In the image processing apparatus 301 according to the present embodiment, when display of thumbnails or preview images of image data is instructed, the region separation data output from the region separation unit 18 and the thinned image output from the image data thinning unit 302 are displayed. The combined data is generated by the combining unit 303 using the data, and the combined data is displayed on the display unit 4.

  Here, the composite data is obtained by replacing a part of the image data with a predetermined color or gradation based on the region separation data. Specifically, the synthesized data includes only the character edge area replaced based on the area separation data (first synthesis process, using the lookup table in FIG. 32), or only the character edge area and the background area. It is replaced based on the region separation data (second synthesis process, using the lookup table in FIG. 34).

  Therefore, the configuration using the composite data has the following advantages. Since the synthesized data uses the area separation data for the character area, information on the fine shape of the character is maintained. In addition, since information obtained by thinning out image data is used for the other regions, information on shades and gradation changes of photographs and drawings is maintained.

  As a result, when display of thumbnails or preview images of image data is instructed and the above-mentioned composite data is used, the composition processing in the composition unit 303 that can be processed in a short time is necessary, but the region separation is performed. Similar to the configuration using data, it is possible to improve the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout while reducing the processing time required for display.

  Further, as described above, when only the region separation data is used as in the configuration in the previous embodiment, it is difficult to maintain the visibility of images other than characters. On the other hand, when the composite data is displayed, the composite data includes image data other than the region separation data, so that the visibility of the image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a figure, is improved. Can do.

  In the image processing apparatus 301 according to the present embodiment, the combined data is displayed on the display unit 4 when the second combining process shown in FIG. 33 is performed rather than the first combining process shown in FIG. In this case, the image becomes easy to see.

  In particular, when displaying the image data once thinned by the image data thinning unit 302 and enlarged by the interpolation by the image data interpolation unit 311 of the synthesis unit 303, small characters are crushed, that is, they are filled with dark values. There is a possibility. Even if the region separation data is combined with the image data in such a state, that is, even if the pixels in the character edge region are displayed in “black”, the characters appear to be crushed, so that the legibility is lowered. .

  Therefore, when the region separation data is combined with the image data, if the processing is performed so that the pixels in the base region are displayed in “white”, the collapse of the characters is eliminated and the legibility is improved. In this case, since the resolution of the region separation data is not lowered, it is possible to distinguish the character edge from the background.

[Embodiment 7]
FIG. 35 is a block diagram showing another example of the image processing apparatus 201 shown in FIG. 35, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 35, the image processing apparatus 401 further includes a storage unit (storage unit) 402. The storage unit 402 can be configured by a hard disk or other general storage device.

  In the image processing apparatus 401, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data and compressed image data are created along with the processing of the image data in each job. Therefore, the storage unit 402 stores each created region separation data and compressed image data in association with each other.

  The storage unit 402 receives the region separation data generated by the region separation unit 18 and the compressed image data generated by the image data compression unit 202. The processing in the region separation unit 18 and the image data compression unit 202 is the same as that described above.

  As described above, the control unit 5 stores the region separation data and the compressed image data in the storage unit 402 in association with each other. Thereafter, when the display of a thumbnail or preview image of specific image data is instructed, the control unit 5 reads the compressed image data and related region separation data from the storage unit 402 and inputs them to the synthesis unit 203. Subsequent processing in the synthesis unit 203 is as described above based on the configuration of FIG. As a result, the combined data processed by the combining unit 203 is displayed on the display unit 4 as a thumbnail or a preview image.

  The control unit 5 performs the following operation in writing and reading the region separation data and compressed image data to the storage unit 32. For example, the storage address or data name of the compressed image data and the storage address of the region separation data are associated and entered in the management table, and data reading / writing control is performed on the storage unit 32 based on the association.

  The control unit 5 controls the display operation when receiving a display instruction for thumbnails or preview images. In this case, the compressed image data to be displayed for the thumbnail or preview image is specified, and the storage address of the area separation data associated with the compressed image data is obtained by referring to the management table, and the area is determined from the address. Control is performed so that the separated data is read and output to the combining unit 203.

  In the present embodiment, the area separation data and the compressed image data are associated with each other and stored in advance in the storage unit 402. Therefore, in response to a display request for thumbnails and preview images, the region separation data and the compressed image data can be read from the storage unit 402 to generate composite data, so that prompt display is possible. In addition, since it is the region separation data and the compressed image data that are stored in the storage unit 402 for creating the composite data, the necessary storage capacity of the storage unit 402 can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, since the area separation data is stored in the storage unit 32, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or when it is transmitted again to another apparatus, it is updated. Therefore, it is not necessary to generate the region separation data, and the processing can be quickly performed using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 32.

[Embodiment 8]
FIG. 36 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image processing apparatus 301 illustrated in FIG. 36, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 36, the image processing apparatus 501 further includes a storage unit (storage unit) 402. In the image processing apparatus 501, when a plurality of pieces of image data are processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data and thinned image data are created as the image data is processed in each job. Therefore, the storage unit 402 stores each created region separation data and thinned image data in association with each other.

  The storage unit 402 receives the region separation data generated by the region separation unit 18 and the thinned image data generated by the image data thinning unit 302. The processing in the region separation unit 18 and the image data thinning unit 302 is the same as that described above.

  As described above, the control unit 5 causes the storage unit 402 to store the region separation data and the thinned image data in association with each other. Thereafter, when an instruction to display a thumbnail or preview image of specific image data is given, the control unit 5 reads out the thinned image data and related region separation data from the storage unit 402 and inputs them to the synthesis unit 303. The subsequent processing in the synthesis unit 303 is as described above based on the configuration of FIG. As a result, the combined data processed by the combining unit 303 is displayed as a thumbnail or a preview image on the display unit 4.

  In the present embodiment, the region separation data and the thinned image data are associated with each other and stored in advance in the storage unit 402. Therefore, in response to a display request for thumbnails and preview images, the area separation data and the thinned image data can be read from the storage unit 402 to generate composite data, so that prompt display is possible. Further, since it is the region separation data and the thinned image data that are stored in the storage unit 402 for creating the composite data, the necessary storage capacity of the storage unit 402 can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, since the area separation data is stored in the storage unit 32, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or when it is transmitted again to another apparatus, it is updated. Therefore, it is not necessary to generate the region separation data, and the processing can be quickly performed using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 32.

[Embodiment 9]
FIG. 37 is a block diagram illustrating another example of the image reading apparatus illustrated in FIG. 21, illustrating the configuration of a color-compatible image reading apparatus (scanner) including the image processing apparatus.

  The image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 37 includes an image input apparatus 1 and an image processing apparatus 601. The image processing apparatus 601 includes the A / D conversion unit 11, the shading correction unit 12, the input processing unit 13, the region separation unit 18, the image data compression unit 202, the synthesis unit 203, and the control unit 5. The operation of each unit constituting the image reading apparatus is as described above.

  The RGB image signal that has been subjected to the above processes in the image processing apparatus is output to a computer, a hard disk, a network, or the like. Further, the composite data created by the composition unit 203 is output to a device that displays an image such as a liquid crystal display. Note that a display for display may be installed in the image reading apparatus.

  The image reading apparatus includes the combining unit 203. However, the combining unit 203 may be included in a computer connected to the image reading apparatus, for example, without being included in the image reading apparatus. . In this case, the image reading apparatus outputs the region separation data and the compressed image data to the computer, and the computer creates composite data from the region separation data and the compressed image data.

  FIG. 38 is a block diagram showing another example of the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 37, showing the configuration of a color-compatible image reading apparatus (scanner) provided with the image processing apparatus. The image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 38 includes an image input apparatus 1 and an image processing apparatus 701. The image processing device 701 includes the image data thinning unit 302 and the combining unit 303 instead of the image data compression unit 202 and the combining unit 203 of the image processing device 601 shown in FIG. The operation of the image processing apparatus 701 is as described in the above embodiment.

[Embodiment 10]
FIG. 40 is a block diagram illustrating still another example of the image processing apparatus. In FIG. 40, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 40, the image processing apparatus 801 has a configuration similar to the image processing apparatus 41 shown in FIG. The image processing apparatus 801 includes a region separation unit 18, a region separation data compression unit (compression unit) 42, a storage unit (storage unit) 32, a region separation data decompression unit (decompression unit) 43, and a gradation / color assignment unit 19. I have.

  In the image processing apparatus 801, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data is created in the region separation unit 18 as the image data is processed in each job. The region separation data is stored in the storage unit 32 after being compressed by the region separation data compression unit 42 in order to reduce the data amount. The area separation compressed data read from the storage unit 32 is expanded to the area separation data by the area separation data expansion unit 43 and then input to the gradation / color assignment unit 19. The subsequent processing is as described in the above embodiment.

  In addition, log information of each job performed by the digital color copying machine is input to the storage unit 32. In the storage unit 32, log information of each job is stored in association with area separation compressed data of image data handled by each job. The log information and the region separation compressed data may be stored not in the storage unit 32 of the digital color copying machine but in, for example, a server connected to the digital color copying machine via a network.

  FIG. 41 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the association between log information and area separation compressed data in the storage unit 32. In the present embodiment, the image data (image data 1, 2, 3,...) Corresponds to area separation compressed data.

  An example of the log information is as shown in FIG. 39, for example, and the control unit 5 (CPU) performs acquisition of the log information and writing to the storage unit 32.

  FIG. 42A is a flowchart showing a series of operations when recording log information and region separation compressed data in the storage unit 32. FIG. 42B shows log information and region separation compressed data from the storage unit 32. 4 is a flowchart showing a series of operations when reading, log information, and region separation data are displayed on the display unit 4.

  The operation of the image processing apparatus 801 when recording log information and region separation compressed data in the storage unit 32 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 42A, region separation processing is performed on the input image data by the region separation unit 18 to obtain region separation data (S101). The region separation data is processed by the region separation data compression unit 42 to become region separation compressed data (S102). The area separation compressed data is stored in the storage unit 32 (S103).

  Further, when a predetermined job (processing) is performed on the image data in the digital color copying machine (S104), log information about the job is acquired (S105). This log information is stored in the storage unit 32. In this case, the storage unit 32 associates the log information of the job with the area separation compressed data of the image data processed by the job (S106). Note that the predetermined processing in S104 is, for example, processing from the color correction unit 14 to the halftone generation unit 17 (see FIG. 1).

  Next, the operation of the image processing apparatus 801 when the log information and the region separation compressed data are read from the storage unit 32 and the log information and the region separation data are displayed on the display unit 4 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 42 (b), when a log information display request is input (S111), the log information and the region separation compressed data associated with the log information are obtained from the storage unit 32. Read (S112, S113).

  In this case, the log information display request may be input, for example, by selecting a log display mode from the operation panel of the digital color copying machine, or from a terminal computer connected to the digital color copying machine via a network. May be. The log information read from the storage unit 32 may be a part or all of the log information.

  The region separation compressed data read from the storage unit 32 is decompressed by the region separation data decompression unit 43 to become region separation data (S114), and is processed by the gradation / color assignment unit 19 (S115). . The region separation data processed by the gradation / color assignment unit 19 is displayed on the display unit 4 together with the associated log information (S116).

  In this embodiment, when there is a request to display job log information, area separation data of image data handled in the job is displayed together with the job log information. As described above, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are represented for each local area. Information such as area layout can be maintained. Therefore, by displaying the region separation data instead of the image data, it is possible to reduce the processing time required for the display, reduce the storage capacity required in the storage unit 32, and readability of the characters and the visibility of the image layout. Can be secured.

  In the present embodiment, since the compressed area separation data is stored in the storage unit 32, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or when it is transmitted again to another apparatus. Therefore, it is not necessary to newly generate the region separation data, and the processing can be quickly performed using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 32.

  In the present embodiment, the region separation data compression unit 42 is provided to compress the region separation data, but this process is not essential and may be omitted. This is the same in other embodiments.

[Embodiment 11]
FIG. 43 is a block diagram illustrating still another example of the image processing apparatus. 43, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  The image processing apparatus 901 further includes an image data compression unit 202 in addition to the image processing apparatus 801, and a synthesis unit 203 instead of the gradation / color allocation unit 19. The composition of the combining unit 203 is as shown in FIG. 24, and includes an image data decompressing unit 211 and an output value selecting unit 212. The image data decompression unit 211 performs decompression processing on the image data compressed by the image data compression unit 202 to obtain decompressed image data. The output value selection unit 212 outputs decompressed image data, black image data, or white image data as composite data based on the region separation data.

  In this image processing apparatus 901, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data is created in the region separation unit 18 as image data is processed in each job. The region separation data is compressed by the region separation data compression unit 42 to become region separation compressed data, and is stored in the storage unit 402. The image data input to the region separation unit 18 is also input to the image data compression unit 202 and stored as compressed image data in the storage unit 402. Further, log information of each job performed by the digital color copying machine is input to the storage unit 402.

  Therefore, the storage unit 402 stores the log information of each job, the region separation compressed data of the image data handled in each job, and the corresponding compressed image data of the image data handled in each job in association with each other. The In this case, the image data (image data 1, 2, 3,...) Shown in FIG. 41 corresponds to the region-separated compressed data and compressed image data corresponding to each other.

  44A is a flowchart showing a series of operations when recording log information, area separation compressed data, and compressed image data in the storage unit 402. FIG. 44B shows log information and areas from the storage unit 402. 4 is a flowchart showing a series of operations when reading separated compressed data and compressed image data and displaying them on the display unit 4.

  The operation of the image processing apparatus 901 when recording log information, area separation compressed data, and compressed image data in the storage unit 402 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 44A, region separation processing is performed on the input image data in the region separation unit 18 to obtain region separation data (S121). This region separation data is processed by the region separation data compression unit 42 to become region separation compressed data (S122). Further, the image data input to the region separation unit 18 is also input to the image data compression unit 202 and becomes compressed image data (S123). The region separation compressed data and the compressed image data are associated with each other and stored in the storage unit 402 (S124).

  Further, when a predetermined job (processing) is performed on the image data in the digital color copying machine (S125), log information about the job is acquired (S126). This log information is stored in the storage unit 402. In this case, in the storage unit 402, job log information, area separation compressed data of image data processed by the job, and compressed image data of image data processed by the job are associated (S127).

  Next, the operation of the image processing apparatus 901 when the log information, the region separation compressed data, and the compressed image data are read from the storage unit 402 and displayed on the display unit 4 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 44 (b), when a log information display request is input (S131), the log information and the area separation compressed data associated with the log information are stored from the storage unit 402. Read (S132, S133). The region separation compressed data read from the storage unit 402 is decompressed by the region separation data decompression unit 43 to become region separation data (S134), and is input to the synthesis unit 203.

  Further, the compressed image data associated with the log information is read from the storage unit 402 (S135), and the read compressed image data is input to the synthesizing unit 203. The composition unit 203 decompresses the compressed image data to obtain decompressed image data, then performs composition processing of the decompressed image data and the region separation data, and outputs the composite data to the display unit 4 (S136, S137). The display unit 4 displays log information and combined data of region separation data and image data associated with the log information.

  The detailed configuration and operation of the synthesizing unit 203 are as described above based on FIG. 24 and FIGS.

  In the present embodiment, when there is a request to display job log information, combined data of the image data handled by the region separation data and image data is displayed together with the job log information.

  Here, as described above with reference to FIGS. 25 to 28, the composite data is obtained by replacing a part of the image data with a predetermined color or gradation based on the region separation data. Therefore, since the synthesized data uses the area separation data for the character area, information on the fine shape of the character is maintained. In addition, since the image data is compressed and the compressed image data is decompressed and used for the other areas, the color and gradation change information of photographs and drawings is maintained.

  As a result, when the composite data is displayed together with the log information of the job, the composite processing in the composite unit 203 that can be processed in a short time is required, but the display is required as in the configuration using the region separation data. Character readability and image layout visibility can be improved while shortening the processing time.

  Further, when displaying the composite data, since the composite data includes image data other than the region separation data, it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  In the present embodiment, the compressed region separation data is stored in the storage unit 402, and therefore, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or transmitted again to another apparatus. Therefore, it is not necessary to newly generate the region separation data, and the processing can be quickly performed using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 402.

[Embodiment 12]
FIG. 45 is a block diagram illustrating still another example of the image processing apparatus. In FIG. 45, the functional units 11 to 17 from the A / D conversion unit 11 to the halftone generation unit 17 are the same as those in FIG.

  The image processing apparatus 1001 includes an image data thinning unit 302 preceding the image data compression unit 202 with respect to the image processing apparatus 901, and includes a combining unit 1002 instead of the combining unit 203. The image data thinning unit 302 is as described above with reference to FIG. 29, and performs a process of thinning the image data input from the input processing unit 13.

  FIG. 46 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the combining unit 1002 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 46, the synthesis unit 1002 includes an image data expansion unit 211, an image data interpolation unit 311, and an output value selection unit 312. The image data decompression unit 211 performs decompression processing on the input thinned compressed image data to obtain decompressed image data. An image data interpolation unit 311 performs an interpolation process on the decompressed image data to obtain interpolation image data. The output value selection unit 312 outputs interpolated image data, black image data, or white image data as composite data based on the region separation data.

  In the present embodiment, the image data thinning unit 302 performs a process of greatly reducing the resolution and reducing the data capacity. Therefore, the image data interpolation unit 311 of the synthesis unit 1002 performs interpolation processing on the image data after the expansion processing so that the resolution of the image data matches the resolution of the region separation data.

  For example, when the original image data is 600 dpi × 600 dpi, the image data thinning unit 302 thins the data every 8 pixels and reduces the resolution to about 75 dpi × 75 dpi. On the other hand, the area separation data is recorded as 600 dpi × 600 dpi. In view of this, the image data interpolation unit 311 performs interpolation so that the resolution of the image data is returned to 600 dpi × 600 dpi, and then the synthesis process is performed by the output value selection unit.

  In this image processing apparatus 1001, when a plurality of image data is processed by a plurality of jobs, region separation data is created in the region separation unit 18 as image data is processed in each job. The region separation data is compressed by the region separation data compression unit 42 to become region separation compressed data, and is stored in the storage unit 402. Further, the image data input to the region separation unit 18 is also input to the image data thinning unit 302 and becomes thinned image data. The thinned image data is input to the image data compression unit 202 and stored in the storage unit 402 as thinned compressed image data. Further, log information of each job performed by the digital color copying machine is input to the storage unit 402.

  Therefore, in the storage unit 402, the log information of each job, the area separation compressed data of the image data handled by each job, and the corresponding thinned compressed image data of the image data handled by each job are stored in association with each other. Is done. In this case, the image data (image data 1, 2, 3,...) Shown in FIG. 41 corresponds to the area separation compressed data and the thinned compressed image data corresponding to each other.

  FIG. 47A is a flowchart showing a series of operations when the log information, the region separation compressed data, and the thinned compressed image data are recorded in the storage unit 402. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a series of operations when reading region-separated compressed data and thinned compressed image data and displaying them on the display unit 4.

  The operation of the image processing apparatus 1001 when recording log information, area separation compressed data, and thinned compressed image data in the storage unit 402 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 47A, region separation processing is performed on the input image data by the region separation unit 18 to obtain region separation data (S141). This region separation data is processed by the region separation data compression unit 42 to become region separation compressed data (S142). Further, the image data input to the region separation unit 18 is also input to the image data thinning unit 302 and becomes thinned image data (S143). Further, the thinned image data is processed by the image data compression unit 202 to become thinned compressed image data (S144). These region separation compressed data and thinned compressed image data are associated with each other and stored in the storage unit 402 (S145).

  Further, when a predetermined job (processing) is performed on the image data in the digital color copying machine (S146), log information about the job is acquired (S147). This log information is stored in the storage unit 402. In this case, the storage unit 402 associates the log information of the job, the area separation compressed data of the image data processed by the job, and the thinned compressed image data of the image data processed by the job (S148).

  Next, the operation of the image processing apparatus 1001 when the log information, the region separation compressed data, and the thinned compressed image data are read from the storage unit 402 and displayed on the display unit 4 will be described. In this case, as shown in FIG. 47B, when a log information display request is input (S151), the log information and the region separation compressed data associated with the log information are stored from the storage unit 402. Read (S152, S153). The region separation compressed data read from the storage unit 402 is decompressed by the region separation data decompression unit 43 to become region separation data (S154), and is input to the synthesis unit 1002.

  Further, the thinned compressed image data associated with the log information is read from the storage unit 402 (S155), and the read thinned compressed image data is input to the synthesizing unit 1002. The synthesizing unit 1002 decompresses the thinned compressed image data to obtain decompressed image data (S156), and further interpolates the decompressed image data to obtain interpolated image data (S157). Thereafter, the region separation data and the interpolated image data are combined, and the combined data is output to the display unit 4 (S158). The display unit 4 displays log information and combined data of the region separation data associated with the log information and the interpolated image data (S159). The detailed operation of the output value selection unit 312 of the synthesis unit 1002 is as described above with reference to FIGS.

  In the present embodiment, when there is a request to display job log information, combined data of the image data handled by the region separation data and image data is displayed together with the job log information.

  Here, as described above, the composite data is obtained by replacing a part of the image data with a predetermined color or gradation based on the region separation data. Therefore, since the synthesized data uses the area separation data for the character area, information on the fine shape of the character is maintained. In addition, since the image data is thinned out for other regions and the thinned image data is interpolated and used, the information on the color and gradation change of photographs and drawings is maintained.

  As a result, when the composite data is displayed together with the log information of the job, although the composite processing in the composite unit 1002 that can be processed in a short time is required, the display is required as in the configuration using the region separation data. Character readability and image layout visibility can be improved while shortening the processing time.

  Further, when displaying the composite data, since the composite data includes image data other than the region separation data, it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  In the present embodiment, the compressed region separation data is stored in the storage unit 402, and therefore, when the same image data is printed again in the digital color copying machine or transmitted again to another apparatus. Therefore, it is not necessary to newly generate the region separation data, and the processing can be quickly performed using the region separation data stored in the storage unit 402.

  In this embodiment, the image data thinning unit 302 and the image data compression unit 202 are provided, and the image data thinning unit 302 performs resolution reduction processing, that is, thinning processing, and the image data compression unit 202 for the image data. The image data is stored in the storage unit 402 after the compression process in FIG. However, for example, as in the image processing apparatus 301 of FIG. 29, only the image data thinning unit 302 may be provided, and the image data may be stored in the storage unit 402 after performing only the thinning process in the image data thinning unit 302.

  In FIG. 48, the capacity of the original image data is assumed to be 100. This image data capacity and image data (data stored for display) according to the technique described in Patent Document 5, image processing according to the tenth to twelfth embodiments. A result of comparing the capacities of image data (data stored for display) by the apparatus 801, the image processing apparatus 901, and the image processing apparatus 1001 is shown as a capacity ratio. For example, the numerical value described in Patent Document 5 requires a resolution of 400 dpi × 400 dpi for a 6-point character, and particularly a color image has a considerably large capacity. On the other hand, in the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the volume of image data is greatly reduced.

  FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration when the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to a system including a computer. As shown in FIG. 22, the computer system includes an image input device 1, a computer 61, a display device 62, a printer 63, a keyboard 64, and a mouse 65.

  The image input device 1 includes, for example, a flat bed scanner, a film scanner, a digital camera, and the like. The computer 61 functions as the image processing apparatus 2 by loading a predetermined program. The display device 62 displays the processing result of the computer 61, and includes a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, or the like. The printer 63 is a printing device that outputs the processing result of the computer 61 to paper or the like. The computer 61 further includes a network card, a modem, and the like as communication means for connecting to a server or the like via a network.

  The blocks of the image processing apparatuses 2, 51, 201, 301, 401, 501, 601, and 701 may be configured by hardware logic, or may be realized by software using a CPU as follows. Good.

  In other words, the image processing apparatuses 2 and 51 include a CPU (central processing unit) that executes instructions of a control program that realizes each function, a ROM (read only memory) that stores the program, and a RAM (random access) that expands the program. memory), a storage device (recording medium) such as a memory for storing the program and various data. An object of the present invention is a recording in which the program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of the control program of the image processing apparatuses 2 and 51, which is software that realizes the functions described above, is recorded so as to be readable by a computer. The medium is supplied to the image processing apparatuses 2, 51, 201, 301, 401, 501, 601, and 701, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) reads and executes the program code recorded on the recording medium. Is also achievable. The recording medium on which the program is recorded is portable.

  The recording medium may be a program medium composed of a memory such as a ROM because processing is performed by a microcomputer, or a program reading device is provided as an external storage device. It may be a program medium that can be read by being inserted.

  In any case, the stored program may be accessed and executed by the microprocessor. Alternatively, in any case, the program may be read, the program may be downloaded to a program storage area of a microcomputer, and the program may be executed. It is assumed that this download program is stored in the main device in advance.

  Examples of the recording medium include a tape system such as a magnetic tape and a cassette tape, a magnetic disk such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk / hard disk, and an optical disk such as a CD-ROM / MO / MD / DVD / CD-R. Card system such as IC card, IC card (including memory card) / optical card, or semiconductor memory system such as mask ROM / EPROM / EEPROM (registered trademark) / flash ROM.

  Further, the image processing apparatuses 2, 51, 201, 301, 401, 501, 601, and 701 may be configured to be connectable to a communication network, and the program code may be supplied via the communication network. The communication network is not particularly limited. For example, the Internet, intranet, extranet, LAN, ISDN, VAN, CATV communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication. A net or the like is available. Also, the transmission medium constituting the communication network is not particularly limited. For example, even in the case of wired such as IEEE 1394, USB, power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL line, etc., infrared rays such as IrDA and remote control, Bluetooth ( (Registered trademark), 802.11 wireless, HDR, mobile phone network, satellite line, terrestrial digital network, and the like can also be used. 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.

  In the above embodiment, the region separation data in which the region attribute is determined for each pixel of the image data is generated. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for each block composed of a plurality of pixels of the image data. The configuration may be such that region separation data whose region attributes have been determined is created. In this case, for example, the region separation unit 18 divides the image data into blocks composed of a plurality of pixels, performs region separation processing for each block, and stores the region separation data obtained for the target pixel of each block in the block. There is a method of applying and outputting to all of the pixels.

  As described above, in the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the area separation data created in the area separation process is stored, read out, and displayed, so that the processing time required for display can be reduced. it can. In addition, the area separation data has a smaller data amount than the original image data, and the transmission time can be greatly reduced when reading out compared with the case of reading out the original image data.

  Further, in the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the shape of the character edge can be extracted and the result can be displayed, so that it is possible to solve the problem that the character with low density disappears or the details of the character are crushed. Further, the visibility of the layout of the entire image can be ensured.

  Furthermore, since colors and gradations suitable for display can be assigned to the region separation data, even display devices that can express only a small number of colors and gradations can support the display of region separation data and characters. And the visibility of the image layout can be improved.

  In addition, in the configuration in which the combined data of the region separation data and the image data is output as a thumbnail or a preview image of the image data, the combined data compresses or expands the original image data according to the region attribute, or thinned out Since the interpolated image data is also included, it is possible to improve the visibility of the image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of the photograph or drawing.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Control means for outputting the region separation data to the display means instead of the image data for visualization in response to a request for visualizing the image related to the image data by the display means.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, And a step of outputting the region separation data to the display means instead of the image data for visualization in response to a request for visualizing the image related to the image data by the display means.

  Here, the image related to the image data is an image based on image data in which the data amount of the image data is reduced, for example, a thumbnail or a preview image of the image data. This point is the same in the following configurations.

  According to said structure, when visualizing (displaying) an image on the screen of display means, such as a display, it can visualize using the area | region separation data with respect to the image instead of image data.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). In addition, the data width per pixel can be generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying the region separation data instead of the image data in the thumbnail or preview of the image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured. In general, image thumbnails and previews refer to displaying a simplified version of the original image data instead of the original image data, but the above-described region separation data is a simplified version of the image data. By using it for display, thumbnails and previews of images can be realized.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Storage means for storing the area separation data in association with corresponding image data, and areas stored in association with the image data instead of the image data in response to a request for visualizing an image related to the image data by the display means And control means for outputting the separated data from the storage means to the display means for visualization.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, A step of storing the region separation data in association with the corresponding image data, and a region separation stored in association with the image data instead of the image data in response to a request to visualize an image related to the image data by a display means And a step of outputting the data to a display means for visualization.

  According to the above configuration, when the image is visualized (displayed) on a screen such as a display, the region separation data for the image can be visualized instead of the image data. Furthermore, by associating the image data with the corresponding area separation data and storing them in a hard disk or the like, the area separation data for the image data to be displayed can be quickly displayed even when there are a plurality of image data. Can be pulled out and displayed. Further, since the area separation data is stored in advance, it is not necessary to perform the area separation process after the display is requested, and the processing time required for the display can be shortened.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). The data width per pixel is generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying the region separation data instead of the image data in the thumbnail or preview of the image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured. In general, image thumbnails and previews refer to displaying a simplified version of the original image data instead of the original image data, but the above-described region separation data is a simplified version of the image data. By using it for display, thumbnails and previews of images can be realized.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

  The image processing apparatus includes a compression unit that compresses the region separation data obtained from the region separation unit and applies the compressed data to the storage unit, and a decompression unit that decompresses and outputs the region separation data output from the storage unit. The storage unit may store the region separation data that has passed through the compression unit in association with the corresponding image data.

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the amount of data when data required for displaying thumbnails and previews of image data, that is, region separation data is stored in the storage unit.

  In the image processing apparatus, the compression unit may be configured to reversibly compress the region separation data.

  According to the above configuration, since the region separation data is reversibly compressed by the compression means, even if the amount of data to be stored is reduced by compression, the data is always restored as it is when decompressed. Is never missing. Therefore, it is possible to prevent deterioration of the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout in the data necessary for displaying the thumbnail and preview of the image data, that is, the region separation data.

  The image processing apparatus may include an assigning unit that assigns a color or a gradation for each region attribute to the region separation data output to the display unit.

  According to the above configuration, a color or gradation is assigned to each region attribute in the region separation data output to the display unit. Therefore, it is possible to improve the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout when the region separation data output from the image processing device is displayed on the display device.

  In the above image processing apparatus, the region separation unit may be configured to determine whether or not the region attribute belongs to a character edge region.

  According to the above configuration, since the determination result of the region attribute can be expressed by 1 bit (data width 1 bit), the data amount of the region separation data can be reduced and the region separation data is displayed. The legibility of the characters can be maintained.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to whether or not the region attribute belongs to a character edge region, and the allocation unit determines whether the region attribute is black or black when the region attribute is a character edge region. A configuration may be adopted in which the darkest gradation is assigned and white or the brightest gradation is assigned when the region attribute is not a character edge region.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only one color or two gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of characters.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit may determine whether the region attribute belongs to a character edge region, a halftone dot region, or another region.

  According to said structure, the determination result of an area | region attribute can be represented by 2 bits (data width 2 bits). Therefore, it is possible to reduce the data amount of the area separation data, maintain the legibility of characters when the area separation data is displayed, and ensure the visibility of the layout in the halftone area and the characters.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, and another region belongs, and the allocation unit includes the region Black or darkest gradation may be assigned when the attribute is a character edge area or halftone dot area, and white or brightest gradation may be assigned when the area attribute is another area.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only one color or two gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, and another region belongs, and the allocation unit includes the region If the attribute is a character edge area, assign black or the darkest gradation, and if the area attribute is a halftone area, assign a chromatic color or a gradation between the brightest and darkest gradation, A configuration may be adopted in which white or the brightest gradation is assigned when the region attribute is other regions.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only two colors or three gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout.

  In the above image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs. Also good.

  According to said structure, the determination result of an area | region attribute can be represented by 2 bits. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the amount of area separation data, maintain the legibility of characters when the area separation data is displayed, and ensure the visibility of the layout in the halftone area, characters, and photographic paper or solid area. can do.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs, The assigning means assigns black or the darkest gradation when the area attribute is a character edge area, a halftone dot area, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid area, and assigns a white or brightest gradation when the area attribute is a background area. It is good also as a structure which assigns a key.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only one color or two gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs, The assigning means assigns black or darkest gradation when the area attribute is a character edge area, and chromatic color or brightest when the area attribute is a halftone dot area, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid area. A gray scale between the gray scale and the darkest gray scale may be assigned, and when the area attribute is a background area, white or the brightest gray scale may be assigned.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only two colors or three gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs, The assigning means assigns black or the darkest gradation when the area attribute is a character edge area, and assigns the first chromatic color or the brightest gradation and the darkest gradation when the area attribute is a halftone dot area. And assigning a second chromatic color or a second gradation between the lightest and darkest gradations for a photographic paper photograph or solid area, When the area attribute is the background area, white or the brightest gradation may be assigned.

  According to the above configuration, even if the display device that displays the region separation data is a display device that can express only three colors or four gradations, it is possible to maintain the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data compression means for compressing image data to generate compressed image data; composition means for generating composite data by decompressing the compressed image data and combining with the region separation data; and an image relating to the image data Control means for outputting the synthesized data to the display means for visualization in place of the image data in response to a request to be visualized by the display means.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, A step of generating compressed image data by compressing the image data, a step of generating composite data by decompressing the compressed image data and combining with the region separation data, and an image relating to the image data is visually displayed by a display means And a step of outputting the synthesized data to a display means for visualization in place of the image data in response to a request for conversion.

  According to the above configuration, when visualizing (displaying) an image on the screen of a display means such as a display, instead of the image data, image data obtained by decompressing the compressed image data of the image data is referred to as region separation data. It is possible to visualize using the synthesized data generated by the synthesis.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). The data width per pixel is generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying composite data including area separation data instead of image data in thumbnails and previews of image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and character readability and image layout visibility are ensured. can do.

  Further, since the composite data includes image data obtained by compressing and expanding the original image data in addition to the region separation data, it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data compression means for compressing image data to generate compressed image data; storage means for storing the region separation data in association with corresponding compressed image data; and decompressing the compressed image data and the region separation data; In response to a request for visualizing an image related to the image data by a display unit, the compressed image data and the region separation data stored in association with the compressed image data are stored in the combining unit that generates combined data by combining The data is transferred from the storage means to the composition means to generate the composition data, and the composition data is substituted for the image data. It is characterized in that a control means for visualizing and outputting the data to the display unit.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, Compressing the image data to generate compressed image data; storing the region separation data in association with the corresponding compressed image data; and decompressing the compressed image data and combining with the region separation data In response to a step of generating composite data and a request for visualizing an image related to the image data by a display unit, the compressed image data and the region separation data stored in association with the compressed image data are read and the composite data is read And outputting the composite data instead of the image data to a display means for visualization. It is characterized by a door.

  According to the above configuration, when visualizing (displaying) an image on the screen of a display means such as a display, instead of the image data, image data obtained by decompressing the compressed image data of the image data is referred to as region separation data. It is possible to visualize using the synthesized data generated by the synthesis. Further, by associating the image data with the region separation data and compressed image data corresponding thereto and storing them in a hard disk or the like, even if there are a plurality of image data, the region for the image data to be displayed The separation data and the compressed image data can be quickly extracted to generate and display composite data.

  Further, since the area separation data and the compressed image data are stored in advance, it is not necessary to perform the area separation process and the image data compression process after the display is requested, and the processing time required for the display can be shortened.

  Here, as described above, the area separation data has a data size that is significantly smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are represented for each local area. It is possible to maintain information such as the layout. Therefore, by displaying composite data including area separation data instead of image data in thumbnails and previews of image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and character readability and image layout visibility are ensured. can do.

  Further, since the composite data includes image data obtained by compressing and expanding the original image data in addition to the region separation data, it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to whether or not the region attribute belongs to a character edge region, and the combining unit determines that the region attribute indicated by the region separation data is a character edge region. The synthesized data may be generated by assigning black or the darkest gradation to the pixels and assigning the color or gradation of the expanded image data to the pixels that are not the character edge region.

  According to the above configuration, the composite data is generated by performing two types of processing based on whether or not the region attribute is the character edge region, so that the processing time required for display can be reduced and the character Synthetic data that can improve legibility, image layout visibility, and photo and figure visibility can be obtained by simple processing.

  Also, black or the darkest gradation is assigned to pixels whose area attribute is the character edge area, and the color or gradation of the expanded image data is assigned to pixels that are not the character edge area. It is possible to provide easy-to-view previews and thumbnail images that clearly display colors and gradation changes clearly in photographs and figures.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs, The synthesizing unit assigns black or the darkest gradation to a pixel whose region attribute indicated by the region separation data is a character edge region, and expands image data for a pixel that is a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid region. In other words, the synthesized data may be generated by assigning a white or brightest gradation to the pixel which is the background area.

  According to the above configuration, black or the darkest gradation is assigned to a pixel whose region attribute indicated by the region separation data is a character edge region, and expansion is performed for a pixel which is a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid region. The color or gradation of the image data is assigned, and white or the brightest gradation is assigned to the pixel that is the background area. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the legibility of characters, the visibility of the image layout, and the visibility of photographs and drawings while shortening the processing time required for display and reducing the memory capacity.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data thinning means for thinning out image data to generate thinned image data; composition means for generating composite data by interpolating the thinned image data and combining with the region separation data; and displaying an image related to the image data According to a request to be visualized by the means, a control means is provided for outputting the synthesized data instead of the image data to the display means for visualization.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, Thinning out image data to generate thinned image data, interpolating the thinned image data and synthesizing with the region separation data, generating synthesized data, and visualizing an image related to the image data by display means A step of outputting the synthesized data instead of the image data to a display means for visualization in response to a request to be made.

  According to the above configuration, when visualizing (displaying) an image on the screen of a display means such as a display, instead of the image data, the image data obtained by interpolating the thinned image data of the image data, the region separation data, It is possible to visualize using the synthesized data generated by the synthesis.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). The data width per pixel is generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying composite data including area separation data instead of image data in thumbnails and previews of image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and character readability and image layout visibility are ensured. can do.

  In addition to the region separation data, the composite data includes image data obtained by thinning out and interpolating the original image data, so that it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data thinning means for thinning out image data to generate thinned image data, storage means for storing the region separation data in association with corresponding thinned image data, and interpolating the thinned image data to synthesize with the region separation data And synthesizing means for generating synthesized data, and in response to a request to visualize an image related to the image data by a display means, the thinned image data and the region separation data stored in association with the thinned image data are stored in the memory Means to generate the synthesized data by transferring to the synthesizing means, instead of the image data It is characterized in that a control means for visualizing and outputting the synthesized data to the display unit.

  In addition, the image processing method of the present invention includes determining a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generating region separation data indicating the determination result, A step of generating thinned image data by thinning image data, a step of storing the region separation data in association with the corresponding thinned image data, and a composition by interpolating the thinned image data and combining with the region separation data In response to a step of generating data and a request for visualizing an image related to the image data by a display unit, the thinned image data and the region separation data stored in association with the thinned image data are read and the combined data is read Generating and outputting the synthesized data instead of the image data to a display means for visualization. It is characterized by that example.

  According to the above configuration, when visualizing (displaying) an image on the screen of a display means such as a display, instead of the image data, the image data obtained by interpolating the thinned image data of the image data is referred to as region separation data. It is possible to visualize using the synthesized data generated by the synthesis. Further, by associating the image data with the corresponding region separation data and the thinned image data and storing them in a hard disk or the like, even when there are a plurality of image data, the region for the image data to be displayed The separation data and the thinned image data can be quickly extracted to generate and display composite data.

  Further, since the area separation data and the thinned image data are stored in advance, it is not necessary to perform the area separation process and the image data thinning process after the display is requested, and the processing time required for the display can be shortened.

  Here, as described above, the area separation data has a data size that is significantly smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are represented for each local area. It is possible to maintain information such as the layout. Therefore, by displaying composite data including area separation data instead of image data in thumbnails and previews of image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and character readability and image layout visibility are ensured. can do.

  In addition to the region separation data, the composite data includes image data obtained by thinning out and interpolating the original image data, so that it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to whether or not the region attribute belongs to a character edge region, and the combining unit determines that the region attribute indicated by the region separation data is a character edge region. The synthesized data may be generated by assigning black or the darkest gradation to the pixels that are, and assigning the color or gradation of the interpolated image data to the pixels that are not the character edge region.
According to the above configuration, since the composite data is generated by performing two types of processing based on whether or not the region attribute is the character edge region, the composite data can be obtained by simple processing.

  In addition, black or the darkest gradation is assigned to pixels whose area attribute is the character edge area, and the color or gradation of the interpolated image data is assigned to pixels that are not the character edge area. It is possible to provide easy-to-view previews and thumbnail images that clearly display colors and gradation changes clearly in photographs and figures.

  In the image processing apparatus, the region separation unit performs the determination on the region attribute as to which of a character edge region, a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph or a solid region, and a background region belongs, The synthesizing unit assigns black or the darkest gradation to a pixel whose region attribute indicated by the region separation data is a character edge region, and interpolates image data that is a halftone dot region, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid region. In other words, the synthesized data may be generated by assigning a white or brightest gradation to the pixel which is the background area.

  According to the above configuration, black or the darkest gradation is assigned to a pixel whose area attribute indicated by the area separation data is a character edge area, and interpolation is performed for a pixel which is a halftone dot area, a photographic paper photograph, or a solid area. The color or gradation of the image data is assigned, and white or the brightest gradation is assigned to the pixel that is the background area. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the legibility of characters, the visibility of the image layout, and the visibility of photographs and drawings while reducing the processing time required for display and reducing the memory capacity.

  In particular, when image data obtained by interpolating thinned image data is displayed, a small character may be crushed, that is, may be filled with a dark value. Even if the region separation data is combined with the image data in such a state, that is, even if the pixels in the character edge region are displayed in “black”, the character appears to be crushed and thus becomes less legible. Sometimes. Therefore, when the region separation data is combined with the image data, if the processing is performed so that the pixels in the base region are displayed in “white”, the collapse of the characters is eliminated and the legibility is improved. In this case, since the resolution of the region separation data is not lowered, it is possible to distinguish the character edge from the background.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; In response to a request to display log information on the display means, log information acquisition means for acquiring log information including processing content for image data, storage means for storing the region separation data in association with corresponding log information, and display the log information on the display means, Control means for outputting the log information and the region separation data associated with the log information from the storage means to a display means for visualization.

  In the image processing method of the present invention, for the input image data, a region attribute is determined for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels, and a region separation step for generating region separation data indicating the determination result; In response to a request to display log information on a display unit, a log information acquisition step for acquiring log information including processing contents for image data, a storage step for storing the region separation data in association with corresponding log information, and a storage unit Accordingly, there is a step of outputting the log information and the region separation data associated with the log information from the storage means to the display means for visualization.

  According to the above configuration, when the job log information is displayed on the display unit, the region separation data of the image data handled in the job is also displayed. Therefore, it is possible to visually grasp, for example, the layout and text of an image of a document handled in the job.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). In addition, the data width per pixel can be generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information. Therefore, by displaying the region separation data instead of the original image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data compression means for compressing image data to generate compressed image data, log information acquisition means for acquiring log information including processing contents for the image data, and log corresponding to the region separation data and the compressed image data In response to a request for displaying the log information on a display unit, a storage unit that stores the information in association with information, a combining unit that generates the combined data by expanding the compressed image data and combining it with the region separation data, The region separation data and the compressed image data associated with the log information are retrieved from the storage unit to the synthesis unit. And it is characterized in that a control means for visualizing and outputting to the display unit with the generated synthesized data and the log information on the basis of these data.

  In the image processing method of the present invention, for the input image data, a region attribute is determined for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels, and a region separation step for generating region separation data indicating the determination result; An image data compression step for compressing image data to generate compressed image data, a log information acquisition step for acquiring log information including processing contents for the image data, and a log corresponding to the region separation data and the compressed image data A request for displaying the log information on the display means, a storing step for storing the information in association with the information in the storage means, a combining step for generating the combined data by decompressing and combining the compressed image data with the region separation data; In response, the region separation data and the compressed image data associated with the log information are read from the storage means Generating the combined data, it is characterized in that it comprises a step of visualizing outputs and the log information and the synthetic data to the display unit.

  According to the above configuration, when displaying the log information of the job on the display unit, the composite data regarding the image data handled in the job is also displayed. Therefore, it is possible to visually grasp, for example, the layout and text of a document image, for example, handled in the job from the displayed composite data.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). The data width per pixel is generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying the composite data including the area separation data instead of the original image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured.

  Further, since the composite data includes image data obtained by compressing and expanding the original image data in addition to the region separation data, it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

  The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a region separation unit that determines a region attribute for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data thinning means for thinning image data to generate thinned image data, image data compression means for compressing the thinned image data to generate thinned compressed image data, and log information including processing contents for the image data is acquired Log information obtaining means, storage means for storing the region separation data and the thinned compressed image data in association with corresponding log information, decompressing the thinned compressed image data, interpolating the decompressed image data, and the region Combining means for generating combined data by combining with the separated data, and displaying the log information on the display means In response to the request, the region separation data and the thinned compressed image data associated with the log information are transferred from the storage unit to the combining unit, and the combined data generated based on these data and the log information are Control means for outputting to the display means for visualization is provided.

  In the image processing method of the present invention, for the input image data, a region attribute is determined for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels, and a region separation step for generating region separation data indicating the determination result; Image data thinning step for thinning image data to generate thinned image data, thinning image data compression step for compressing the thinned image data to generate thinned compressed image data, and log information including processing contents for the image data A log information acquisition step to be acquired, a storage step of storing the region separation data and the thinned-out compressed image data in association with corresponding log information, and decompressing the thinned-out compressed image data, and interpolating the expanded image data And combining the region separation data to generate combined data, and the log information In response to a request to be displayed on the display means, the thinned compressed image data and the region separation data are read from the storage means to generate the composite data, and the composite data and the log information are output to the display means for visual It is characterized by comprising a step of making it.

  According to the above configuration, when displaying the log information of the job on the display unit, the composite data regarding the image data handled in the job is also displayed. Therefore, it is possible to visually grasp, for example, the layout and text of a document image, for example, handled in the job from the displayed composite data.

  Here, the area separation data represents the area attribute of the image data (which area belongs when the image type is divided into several types such as characters, halftone dots, and photographic paper photographs). This is a signal generated as a result of determining the region attribute for each local region (each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels). The data width per pixel is generated only by the number of bits necessary to express the number of image types. Therefore, the area separation data is much smaller than the original image data, and the area attributes are expressed for each local area, so fine shapes such as characters, layouts of various areas, etc. It is possible to maintain the information.

  Therefore, by displaying the composite data including the area separation data instead of the original image data, the processing time required for display can be shortened, and the legibility of the characters and the visibility of the image layout can be ensured.

  In addition to the region separation data, the composite data includes image data obtained by thinning out and interpolating the original image data, so that it is possible to improve the visibility of an image to be displayed, particularly the visibility of a photograph or a drawing.

  Further, since the thinned image data is further compressed and then stored in the storage means, the capacity required for storing the image data in the storage means can be further reduced.

  Further, since the area separation data is stored, it is not necessary to newly generate the area separation data when the same image data is printed again or when it is transmitted and output again to another apparatus. These processes can be performed quickly using the region separation data.

  The image processing apparatus includes a compression unit that compresses the region separation data obtained from the region separation unit and applies the compressed data to the storage unit, and a decompression unit that decompresses and outputs the region separation data output from the storage unit. The storage means may store the region separation data that has passed through the compression means in association with the corresponding log information.

  In the above image processing method, the region separation data compression step of compressing the region separation data obtained by the step of generating the region separation data and giving it to the storage means, and the region separation data output from the storage means are expanded. A region separation data decompression step for outputting the region separation data, and in the storage step, the region separation data that has undergone the region separation data compression step may be stored in association with corresponding log information.

  According to the above configuration, since the region separation data is compressed and then stored in the storage unit, the capacity required in the storage unit can be further reduced.

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

  The configuration of the present invention can be applied to an apparatus that displays thumbnails of image data and preview images, and is particularly suitable for an apparatus having an area separation processing function.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image input device 2 Image processing device 3 Image output device 4 Display part 5 Control part (control means)
18 Region separation unit (region separation means)
19 Gradation / color assignment section (assignment means)
31 Image Processing Device 32 Storage Unit (Storage Unit)
41 Image Processing Device 42 Region Separation Data Compression Unit (Compression Unit)
43 Region separation data expansion unit (expansion means)
51 Image Processing Device 61 Computer 62 Display Device 63 Printer 101 Character Edge Determination Unit 102 Halftone Determination Unit 103 Achromatic Determination Unit 104 Background Determination Unit 105 Area Separation Data Generation Unit 201 Image Processing Device 202 Image Data Compression Unit (Image Data Compression Unit) )
203 Synthesizer (synthesizer)
211 Image Data Expansion Unit 212 Output Value Selection Unit 301 Image Processing Device 302 Image Data Thinning Unit (Image Data Thinning Unit)
303 Synthesizer (synthesizer)
311 Image Data Interpolation Unit 312 Output Value Selection Unit 401 Image Processing Device 402 Storage Unit 501 Image Processing Device 601 Image Processing Device 701 Image Processing Device 801 Image Processing Device 901 Image Processing Device 1001 Image Processing Device 1002 Composition Unit (Composition Unit)

Claims (4)

A region separation unit that determines region attributes for each pixel or each block composed of a plurality of pixels with respect to input image data, and generates region separation data indicating the determination result;
Log information acquisition means for acquiring log information including processing contents for the image data;
Storage means for storing the region separation data in association with corresponding log information;
In response to a request to display the log information on the display means, the control means for outputting the log information and the region separation data associated with the log information from the storage means to the display means for visualization .
Assigning means for assigning a color or gradation for each area attribute to the area separation data to be output to the display means,
The region separation means performs the determination on the region attribute as to whether or not it belongs to a character edge region,
The assigning means assigns black or darkest gradation when the area attribute is a character edge area, and assigns white or brightest gradation when the area attribute is not a character edge area. apparatus.   An image forming apparatus comprising the image processing apparatus according to claim 1.   A program for causing a computer to function as the image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the program causes the computer to function as each of the means.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to claim 3 is recorded.

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