JP6675504B2 - Image processing apparatus and method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to image processing for reproducing a texture of an object.

  There is a demand for a printer that reproduces the texture of an object by controlling glossiness and the like in addition to color. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reproducing gloss by heating and melting heat-fusible particles contained in a recording medium. Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for quantizing gloss data in order to reproduce a texture well.

  However, the technologies disclosed in Patent Literatures 1 and 2 disclose a range of a texture of an object to be reproduced (hereinafter, an object) and a range of a texture that can be reproduced by a texture reproducing device such as a printer (hereinafter, a texture reproduction range). No consideration is given to the elimination of mismatches between them. Therefore, when the texture range of the target object does not match the texture reproduction range of the texture reproduction device, the texture of the target object cannot be appropriately reproduced.

JP 2001-047732 JP JP 2010-246049 A

JIS Z 8722 "Color measurement method-Reflected and transmitted object colors" JIS Z 8781-4 "Colorimetry-Part 4: CIE 1976 L * a * b * color space" JIS Z 8741 `` Specular gloss-measurement method '' JIS K 7374 "Plastics-How to determine image clarity" JIS H 8686-1 "Image clarity test method for anodic oxide coatings on aluminum and aluminum alloys-Part 1: Visual measurement method" ISO 13803 "Paints and varnishes" ASTM E430 `` Standard Test Methods for Measurement of Gloss of High-Gloss Surfaces by Abridged Goniophotometry '' JIS Z 8730 `` Color Display Method-Color Difference of Object Color ''

  An object of the present invention is to eliminate a mismatch between the texture of the object to be reproduced and the texture reproduction range.

  The present invention has the following configuration as one means for achieving the above object.

  According to the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus that performs processing for reproducing a texture of an object on a recording medium, an input unit that inputs color information and gloss information of the object to be reproduced, and the color information of the texture reproduction apparatus. A color mapping unit that maps to a color reproduction range; a determination unit that determines a gloss reproduction range in which the texture reproduction device can reproduce gloss for each area of the recording medium based on the color information after the mapping; Output means for outputting a signal indicating an amount of a gloss adjusting agent to be recorded on the recording medium based on gloss information and the gloss reproduction range.

  According to the present invention, by mapping the texture data of the object to be reproduced to the texture reproduction range, the mismatch between the texture of the object and the texture reproduction range is eliminated, and the reproduction of the texture of the object is more appropriately reproduced. You can get things.

9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a texture reproduction process. The figure explaining gloss mapping. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an information processing apparatus that executes image processing according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an overview diagram illustrating a configuration example of a texture reproduction device. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating multi-pass printing in which an image is formed by scanning the same line of a printing sheet a plurality of times by a printing head. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a head cartridge. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a processing configuration example in the texture reproduction system. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a device characteristic table of the texture reproduction device. The figure which shows an example of a path mask. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of a texture reproduction process according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a processing configuration example in the texture reproduction system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a processing configuration example in the texture reproduction system according to the third embodiment. The figure which shows an example of a texture reproduction table. The figure explaining the condition of the texture signal for verification. FIG. 4 is a view showing typical variable-angle reflected light characteristics.

  Hereinafter, an image processing apparatus and an image processing method according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the embodiments do not limit the present invention according to the claims, and all combinations of the configurations described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution of the present invention.

[Texture reproduction]
First, texture reproduction will be described. In the following, an object to be reproduced including a texture is referred to as an “object”, and an object obtained by a texture reproducing apparatus for reproducing the object is referred to as a “reproduced object”. Texture reproduction is to obtain a reproduction that looks the same as the object.Here, when the object and the reproduction are compared and observed, a series of characteristics that must be matched between the two because they both look the same. Called "texture".

  If the texture can be quantitatively expressed by numerical values, a reproduction that looks the same as the object can be obtained by generating the reproduction so that the numerical value matches the object. Hereinafter, the numerical value representing the texture is referred to as a “texture signal”.

  In the following, it is assumed that the texture is composed of elements such as color, gloss, internal scattering, and shape. In the case where the target is a printed matter that is flat and has sufficiently small surface irregularities, by reproducing an image on the same kind of flat medium, a reproduced matter whose shape substantially matches the shape of the target can be obtained. Also, the difference in internal scattering in an opaque object has little effect on the difference in appearance. In these cases, the important factors as the texture are color and gloss, and it can be considered that the texture is composed of these two factors. In other cases, color and gloss are also major factors in texture.

  For a color signal that is a numerical representation of a color, for example, a CIELAB value measured according to Non-Patent Document 1 and calculated according to Non-Patent Document 2 can be used. CIELAB mainly represents characteristics relating to brightness and chromaticity of diffuse reflection light. Assuming that the direction excluding the specular reflection direction and the direction near the specular reflection direction is the diffuse reflection direction, the diffuse reflection light corresponds to the reflection light in the diffuse reflection direction. If the reproduction is formed so that the CIELAB value matches the object, the appearance of the diffuse reflection direction can be made to substantially match the object.

  The gloss signal, which is a numerical expression of gloss, includes, for example, specular glossiness measured according to Non-Patent Document 3, image sharpness measured according to Non-Patent Documents 4 and 5, Non-Patent Documents 6 and The value of the reflection haze measured according to Reference 7 can be used.

  The specular gloss represents characteristics relating to the brightness of specularly reflected light, and the value obtained by dividing the image sharpness and the specular gloss by the reflection haze represents characteristics relating to the sharpness of an illumination image reflected on a sample. Hereinafter, the characteristic relating to the sharpness of the illumination image is referred to as “image clarity”. The large image clarity means that the image sharpness is large and the value obtained by dividing the specular glossiness by the reflection haze is large.

  If the reproduction is formed so that the specular gloss value and the image clarity value, that is, the value obtained by dividing the image sharpness and / or specular gloss by the reflection haze, match the target object, the appearance of specular reflection It can be almost matched with an object.

  In the following, for example, data composed of a texture signal corresponding to the CIEALB value, the specular glossiness, and the image clarity measured according to the above-described standard is referred to as “texture data”. The texture data is a kind of image data including at least color information and gloss information of the object, and has a texture signal for each minute area. The texture signal has, for example, a color signal corresponding to CIEALB and a gloss signal corresponding to mirror glossiness and image clarity. The image clarity may be image sharpness or a value obtained by dividing specular glossiness by reflection haze. In the following, the minute area corresponding to the texture signal is referred to as “area” or “pixel”.

[Texture reproduction processing]
An example of the texture reproduction process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, texture data of an object is input (S101). If the texture of the target object differs depending on the region, texture data corresponding to the texture signal for each region is input. For example, color image data has a texture signal corresponding to a CIELAB value for each area.

  Next, a texture signal (color signal and gloss signal) is obtained from the input texture data (S102), and information indicating the texture reproduction range of the texture reproduction device is obtained (S103). The texture reproduction range of the texture reproduction device is stored in advance in the storage device as information indicating a combination of CIELAB values, specular glossiness, and image clarity values that can be reproduced by the device (hereinafter, reproduction range information).

  Next, based on the color reproduction range indicated by the reproduction range information, the color signal of the texture signal is converted into a color signal corresponding to a color reproducible by the texture reproduction device (S104). The conversion in this step is “color mapping”. Note that the color mapping in step S104 does not refer to a gloss signal. Therefore, if the color signals are the same, they are converted into the same color signal even if the gloss signals are different.

  Color mapping may be performed by a known method. For example, the color signal of the texture signal is converted to a color signal corresponding to a color that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device and has the minimum color difference ΔE while maintaining the hue angle. For the hue angle and the color difference ΔE, the value of the ab hue angle defined in Non-Patent Document 2 and the value of CIEDE2000 defined in Non-Patent Document 8 can be used, respectively.

  Next, based on the reproduction range information, a gloss reproduction range that can be reproduced while maintaining the color after color mapping is obtained (S105). That is, a combination of the specular gloss and the image clarity value including the CIELAB value of the color signal after color mapping is extracted from the reproduction range information. The combination of the extracted specular gloss and the image clarity value corresponds to a gloss reproduction range that can be reproduced while maintaining the color after color mapping.

  Next, the gloss signal of the texture signal is converted into a gloss signal corresponding to the gloss within the gloss reproduction range (S106). The conversion in this step is called “glossy mapping”. That is, based on the gloss reproduction range acquired in step S105, the gloss signal is converted into a gloss signal within the gloss reproduction range. In other words, the gloss signal is converted to a gloss signal corresponding to reproducible gloss while maintaining the color after color mapping.

  Since the gloss mapping in this embodiment is performed based on the color mapping result, even if the gloss signal of the texture data is the same, if the color signal of the texture data is different, the gloss data is not converted to the same gloss signal. There are cases.

  Next, an output signal to be output to the texture reproduction device is generated based on the color signal after the color mapping and the gloss signal after the gloss mapping (S107). The texture reproducing device is, for example, an image recording device such as a printer, and the output signal is, for example, a signal relating to the amount of a color material provided in the image recording device, which will be described in detail later.

  Next, a reproduction is generated by the texture reproduction device based on the output signal (S108). Note that data composed of output signals is called "control data" with respect to "texture data" composed of texture signals. In other words, steps S104 to S106 are steps of converting the input texture data to texture data corresponding to a texture that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device. Step S107 is a step of converting the texture data obtained in steps S104-106 into control data of the texture reproduction device.

  The above procedure is an example, and for example, the reproduction range information may be obtained before the input of the texture data.

● Gloss mapping The gloss mapping will be described with reference to FIG. The horizontal axis of the graph shown in FIG. 2 indicates the image clarity value, the vertical axis indicates the specular gloss value, the area 21 indicates the gloss reproduction range, and the point 22 indicates the gloss signal of the texture signal. For example, when performing reproduction with emphasis on specular gloss, the gloss signal is converted into a gloss signal having the closest specular gloss in the gloss reproduction range 21. In the example of FIG. 2, the gloss signal 22 is mapped to a point 23, and a gloss signal close to the specular gloss of the input texture data is output. As a result, a reproduced product having a small difference from the specular glossiness indicated by the input texture data is obtained.

  In addition, when performing reproduction with emphasis on image clarity, the gloss signal is converted into a gloss signal having the closest image clarity value in the gloss reproduction range 21. In the example of FIG. 2, the gloss signal 22 is mapped to a point 24, and a gloss signal close to the image quality of the input texture data is output. As a result, a reproduction having a small difference from the image clarity indicated by the input texture data is obtained.

  If it is desired to bring both the specular gloss and the image clarity closer to the texture data, the gloss signal 22 is mapped to the closest point on the boundary of the gloss reproduction range 21.

[Device configuration]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing apparatus that executes image processing according to the embodiment. A microprocessor (CPU) 201 executes a program stored in a storage unit 203 such as an HDD or SSD or a ROM 204 using a main memory 202 such as a RAM as a work memory, and controls a configuration described below via a system bus 205. . The storage unit 203 and the ROM 204 store programs and various data for realizing the above-described texture reproduction process (S101 to S1067) for reproducing the texture of the object.

  A general-purpose interface (I / F) 206 such as a USB includes an instruction input unit 207 such as a keyboard and a mouse, a recording medium (a computer-readable recording medium) 208 such as a USB memory and a memory card, and a texture reproducing device 209. Connected. Further, on the monitor 211 connected to the video card (VC) 210, the CPU 201 displays a user interface (UI), information indicating the progress of processing and the processing result.

  For example, the CPU 201 loads an application program (AP) stored in the ROM 204, the storage unit 203, or the recording medium 208 into a predetermined area of the main memory 202 according to a user instruction input via the instruction input unit 207. Then, the AP is executed, and the UI is displayed on the monitor 211 according to the AP.

  Next, the CPU 201 loads various data stored in the storage unit 203 or the recording medium 208 into a predetermined area of the main memory 202 according to a user instruction. Then, predetermined arithmetic processing is performed on various data loaded into the main memory 202 according to the AP. Then, the CPU 201 displays the calculation processing result on the monitor 211, stores the calculation processing result in the storage unit 203 or the recording medium 208, or outputs the calculation processing result to the texture reproduction device 209 according to the user's instruction. Further, the CPU 201 can acquire various information from the texture reproduction device 209 via the general-purpose I / F 206.

  Note that the CPU 201 can also transmit and receive programs, data, and arithmetic processing results to and from a computer device or server device on a wired or wireless network via a network I / F (not shown) connected to the system bus 205. it can. Further, the monitor 211 and the instruction input unit 207 may be a touch panel on which the monitor 211 and the instruction input unit 207 are overlapped. In this case, the information processing apparatus is a computer device such as a tablet device or a smartphone.

[Configuration of texture reproduction device]
An example of the configuration of the texture reproduction device 209 will be described with reference to the schematic diagram of FIG. FIG. 4 shows an example of an ink-jet type image forming apparatus as the texture reproducing apparatus 209.

  A head cartridge 3201 exchangeably mounted on the carriage 3202 has a print head having a plurality of print elements corresponding to a plurality of print material discharge ports, and an ink tank for supplying ink to the print head. Further, the head cartridge 3201 has a connector for transmitting and receiving a signal of a recording head such as a driving signal of each recording element.

  The carriage 3202 has a connector holder for transmitting a signal to the head cartridge 3201 via a connector, and can reciprocate along a guide shaft 3203. That is, the position and movement of the carriage 3202 are controlled by a drive mechanism including a motor pulley 3205 and a driven pulley 3206 driven by the main scanning motor 3204, a timing belt 3207, and the like. The ejection port surface of the head cartridge 3201 projects downward from the carriage 3202 and is held so as to be parallel to the recording paper 3208. The movement of the carriage 3202 along the guide shaft 3203 is “main scanning”, and the moving direction is “main scanning direction”.

  The recording paper 3208 is mounted on an automatic sheet feeder (ASF) 3210. During image formation, the pickup roller 3212 is driven by a paper feed motor 3211 via a gear, and the recording paper is separated from the ASF 3210 one by one and fed. Then, the recording paper 3208 is conveyed to a recording start position on the carriage 3202 facing the ejection opening surface of the head cartridge 3201 by the rotation of the conveyance roller 3209. The transport roller 3209 is driven by a line feed (LF) motor 3213 via a gear. The determination as to whether or not the recording paper 3208 has been conveyed to the recording start position is made by detecting the passage of the recording paper 3208 by the paper end sensor 3214.

  After the recording paper 3208 is conveyed to the recording start position, the carriage 3202 moves on the recording paper 3208 along the guide shaft 3203, and at the time of movement, ink is ejected from each ejection port of the recording head according to a drive signal. You. When the moving carriage 3202 reaches one end of the guide shaft 3203, the conveyance roller 3209 conveys the recording paper 3208 by a predetermined distance in a direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction. The transport of the recording paper 3208 is “paper feed” or “sub-scan”, and the transport direction is “paper feed direction” or “sub-scan direction”.

  When the feeding of the recording paper 3208 is completed, the carriage 3202 moves along the guide shaft 3203 again, and ink is ejected from each ejection port of the recording head in accordance with the drive signal. As described above, the main scanning and the paper feeding (sub-scanning) by the carriage 3202 are repeated, and an image is formed on the recording paper 3208.

  Referring to FIG. 5, multi-pass printing in which an image is formed by scanning the same line of the printing paper 3208 multiple times by a printing head will be described. FIG. 5 shows two-pass printing.For example, in the main scanning, an image is recorded for the recording width L of the recording head, and the recording paper 3208 is moved in the sub-scanning direction by a distance L / 2 each time recording for one main scanning is completed. Transport by minutes. The printing in the area A shown in FIG. 5 is completed by the m-th main scanning and the (m + 1) -th main scanning, and the printing in the area B is completed by the (m + 1) -th main scanning and the (m + 2) -th main scanning.

  In the case of performing n-pass printing, the recording paper 3208 is conveyed by a distance L / n in the sub-scanning direction every time printing for one main scan is completed, and the recording head performs main scanning n times on the same line of the recording paper 3208. As a result, an image is formed. The recording width L corresponds to the length of the ejection opening array in the sub-scanning direction, and corresponds to the length in the sub-scanning direction of an area where the texture reproduction device 209 can record in one main scan.

  In general, the larger the number of printing passes, the longer the time required for image formation, but the effect of variations in the ejection amount and ejection direction of each ink ejection port of the recording head is suppressed, and density unevenness is less noticeable. Further, as the number of recording passes increases, the texture reproduction range can be expanded. Further, the amount of ink recorded in one pass is reduced, and the dots formed in one pass are dispersed. Then, by printing a plurality of passes, fine dots are formed on the surface of the recording paper 3208 by superimposing the granular dots. As a result, the scattering of the surface reflected light increases, and gloss with low image clarity can be reproduced.

  Conversely, if the number of printing passes is limited and an image is formed with a small number of printing passes, the amount of ink to be printed in one pass increases, and the ink forms a layer and contributes to the smoothing of the surface of the recording paper 3208. As a result, scattering of surface reflected light is reduced, and gloss with high image clarity can be reproduced. However, the level of the formed surface irregularities depends on the physical properties of the recording material, and differs depending on the type of the recording material. Further, the amount of the coloring material changes depending on the color to be reproduced. Therefore, the controllable range of image clarity differs depending on the color. In other words, the reproduction range of the image clarity changes depending on the color.

  When performing n-pass printing in the multi-pass printing shown in FIG. 5, the printing paper 3208 is conveyed by the distance L / n in the sub-scanning direction for each main scan, so that the printing width in one main scan is L / n. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, although the details will be described later, the texture reproduction device generates a reproduction by performing main scanning a plurality of times in the same unit recording region, with an area recordable in one main scanning as a unit recording region. Become.

● Recording head FIG. 6 shows a configuration example of the head cartridge 3201. The head cartridge 3201 has an ink tank 601 for storing ink as a recording material, and a recording head 602 for discharging ink supplied from the ink tank 601 according to a discharge signal. The head cartridge 3201 independently includes, for example, ink tanks for yellow Y, magenta M, cyan C, black K, a first gloss adjusting material A, and a second gloss adjusting material B. Each of the ink tanks 601 is detachable from the recording head 602 as shown in FIG.

  The gloss adjusting material A and the gloss adjusting material B are desirably colorless and transparent materials having different refractive indexes. However, the gloss adjusting material may be a slightly colored material that is not completely transparent or a material that is nearly colorless and transparent. The refractive index of the gloss adjusting material A is larger than the refractive index of the gloss adjusting material B.

  The area where the gloss adjusting material A having a large refractive index is recorded on the uppermost surface (outermost surface) of the recording surface has a large reflectance and can reproduce gloss with a large specular gloss. Conversely, a region where the gloss adjusting material B having a small refractive index is recorded on the outermost surface has a small reflectance and can reproduce gloss having a small specular gloss. Then, by adjusting the use ratio of the gloss adjusting materials A and B in the region, it is possible to reproduce an intermediate specular gloss level of the specular gloss level when using them alone.

  However, there is a limit to the total amount of recordable recording material. Further, since the amount of the color material used varies depending on the color to be reproduced, the amount of the gloss adjusting material that can be used varies depending on the color. Therefore, the range of specular glossiness that can be controlled differs depending on the color. In other words, the reproduction range of the specular gloss changes depending on the color.

[Process Configuration of Texture Reproduction System]
An example of the processing configuration in the texture reproduction system will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. The processing configuration and functions illustrated in FIG. 7 are realized by the operation of the image processing apparatus 1100 realized by executing the above-described program for image processing (S101 to S107) by the CPU 201, and the texture reproduction apparatus 209 based on the instruction of the CPU 201. Is done.

  The data input unit 1101 inputs texture data composed of texture signals from the storage unit 203, the recording medium 208, a server device (not shown), or the like. The texture signal is composed of a color signal and a gloss signal, and each pixel of the texture data has a gloss signal GlSp in addition to the general color signal RGB. The gloss signal Gl is a signal corresponding to specular gloss, and the gloss signal Sp is a signal corresponding to image clarity.

  The texture signal RGBGlSp constituting the texture data is, for example, a digital signal having a total of 40 bits, each element being 8 bits. The format of the texture data is not limited to the above. For example, two types of data, that is, image data composed of the color signal RGB and gloss data composed of the gloss signal GlSp may be input.

  The texture signal acquisition unit 1102 converts the input texture signal into a color signal Lab corresponding to CIELAB, a gloss signal g corresponding to specular gloss, and a gloss signal s corresponding to image clarity. The texture signal Labgs output by the texture signal acquisition unit 1102 is preferably a device-independent signal corresponding to the measured value.

  The conversion from the color signal RGB to the color signal Lab may be performed using a conversion method defined for a standard color space such as sRGB or AdobeRGB. Alternatively, the color corresponding to the color signal RGB is obtained by using a known interpolation operation that refers to a color table (three-dimensional lookup table) describing the correspondence between the color signal RGB and the color signal Lab stored in the storage unit 203 or the like. The signal Lab may be calculated.

  The conversion from the gloss signal Gl to the gloss signal g and the conversion from the gloss signal Sp to the gloss signal s may use a defined standard conversion method. Alternatively, the conversion may be performed by an interpolation calculation referring to a gloss table describing the correspondence between the gloss signal Gl and the gloss signal g and the correspondence between the gloss signal Sp and the gloss signal s stored in the storage unit 203 or the like.

  When a color table or a gloss table is used, preferably, a color table or a gloss table is prepared for each type of texture data and for each texture acquisition device that has generated the texture data, for example, identification information described in a header of the texture data. Selects a table to be used for conversion based on. Of course, a table used for conversion may be selected based on a user instruction.

  The texture mapping unit 1103 performs color mapping and gloss mapping with reference to the reproduction range information of the texture reproduction device 209 stored in the storage unit 203 or the like. The color mapping unit 1111 converts the color signal Lab into a color signal L'a'b 'corresponding to a color reproducible by the texture reproduction device 209 based on the color reproduction range indicated by the reproduction range information. The gloss reproduction range obtaining unit 1112 obtains a gloss reproduction range of the texture reproduction device 209 capable of maintaining the color signal L'a'b 'after color mapping with reference to the reproduction range information. The gloss mapping unit 1113 converts the gloss signal gs into a gloss signal g's' within the gloss reproduction range.

  The signal conversion unit 1104 converts the texture signal L'a'b'g's' into a recording material amount signal (color material amount signal CMYK and gloss adjusting material amount signal AB) corresponding to the amount of recording material of the texture reproducing device 209, and The signal is converted into a recording method signal (hereinafter, a pass number signal P) indicating the recording method of the reproduction device 209. The conversion of the signal conversion unit 1104 is performed with reference to the device characteristic table of the texture reproduction device 209 stored in the storage unit 203 or the like.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of a device characteristic table of the texture reproduction device 209. In the device characteristic table, a texture signal Labgs corresponding to the discrete recording material amount signal CMYKAB and the pass number signal P are described. The color material amount signal CMYK is a signal related to the color material amount, and is, for example, an 8-bit digital signal for each color. The gloss adjusting material amount signals AB are signals relating to the amounts of the gloss adjusting materials A and B, for example, each being an 8-bit digital signal. The pass number signal P is a signal related to the recording pass number n. The pass number signal P takes a value from 1 to 16, for example, the pass number signal P = 1 performs one-pass printing, the pass number signal P = 2 performs two-pass printing,. Each record is shown.

  The halftone processing unit 1105 performs a halftone process on the recording material amount signal CMYKAB output by the signal conversion unit 1104 by an error diffusion method or an organized dither method, and outputs a binary signal C′M corresponding to the resolution of the texture reproduction device 209. Outputs 'Y'K'A'B'. The binary signal C'M'Y'K'A'B 'indicates recording or non-recording of the color material and the gloss adjusting material dot, in other words, indicates the recording position of the color material and the gloss adjusting material dot. For example, the dot is recorded at a position where the signal value is “1”, and is not recorded at a position where the signal value is “0”.

  The output signal generation unit 1106 performs pass decomposition based on the pass number signal P and the binary signal C′M′Y′K′A′B ′ after halftone processing indicating the dot arrangement of the color material and the gloss adjustment material. Processing is performed to generate an output signal to be output to the texture reproduction device 209. By the pass decomposition processing, the logical product of the pass mask and the binary signal C'M'Y'K'A'B 'is calculated, and the dot arrangement signal C "M" Y "indicating the dot arrangement of the recording material to be recorded in each pass. K "A" B "is generated as an output signal.

  The pass mask is composed of, for example, 16 sets from 1 pass printing to 16 pass printing, and the output signal generation unit 1106 selectively uses a pass mask set corresponding to the pass number signal P. For example, when the number-of-passes signal P = 2, the dot arrangement of the cyan color material of the first pass includes the pass mask for the first pass of the pass mask set for two-pass printing and the dot recording position of the cyan color material. It is generated by a logical product with the value signal C ′.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of the path mask. For simplicity, FIG. 9 shows an example in which the pass mask is 4 × 4 (an example in which the number of nozzles per recording material of the recording head is 4 and a maximum of 4-pass recording is performed). When performing 16-pass printing from 1-pass printing, at least the number of nozzles per printing material is 16, and the pass mask is 16 × 16.

  FIG. 9A shows a pass mask for the first pass for one-pass printing. In one-pass printing, all dots are printed in the first pass, so "1" is set in all cells of the pass mask.

  9 (b) and 9 (c) show path mask sets for two-pass printing. FIG. 9 (b) shows a path mask for the first pass, and FIG. 9 (c) shows a path mask for the second pass. In the two-pass printing, since the dots are printed in the first pass and the second pass, the value obtained by inverting the value of each cell of the pass mask for the first pass is set in each cell of the pass mask for the second pass. .

  9 (d) to 9 (g) show a path mask set for 4-pass printing, FIG. 9 (d) shows a path mask for a first pass, FIG. 9 (e) shows a path mask for a second pass, and FIG. 9 (f) is a path mask for the third pass and FIG. 9 (g) is a path mask for the fourth pass. In four-pass printing, dots are printed in four passes from the first to the fourth pass, so that cells of value '1' do not overlap between pass masks and are evenly arranged in each pass mask. , The value of the cell is set.

  As described above, in the n-pass printing, since the dots are printed in the n-th pass from the first pass to the n-th pass, the cells having the value '1' do not overlap between the pass masks and are uniformly arranged in each pass mask. The cell value is set so that Note that a different pass mask may be prepared for each type of recording material.

  The processing of the texture signal acquisition unit 1102, the texture mapping unit 1103, the signal conversion unit 1104, the halftone processing unit 1105, and the output signal generation unit 1106 is performed for each pixel. Therefore, the output signal generation unit 1106 switches the pass mask set applied to the pass decomposition in accordance with the pass number signal P for each pixel, so that the dot arrangement signal C "M" Y "in which the number of recording passes is controlled for each pixel. K "A" B "is generated.

  The output signal generation unit 1106 stores the dot arrangement signals C "M" Y "K" A "B" for each recording pass in the pass buffer 1107 assigned to the main memory 202 or the storage unit 203. The pass buffer 1107 is similar to a line buffer capable of storing a plurality of lines of data, and can store dot arrangement signals C "M" Y "K" A "B" of a plurality of recording passes.

  For example, when performing 1-pass printing to 16-pass printing, the data in the storage area corresponding to the first pass of the pass buffer 1107 indicates the position where each printing material should be ejected in the first pass. Similarly, the data in the storage area corresponding to the second pass indicates the position where each recording material should be ejected in the second pass,..., The data in the storage area corresponding to the sixteenth pass indicates the position of each recording material in the sixteenth pass. Indicates the position to be ejected. In other words, the logical sum of the data stored in the storage area corresponding to each print pass of the pass buffer 1107 indicates the position where each print material should be ejected in the unit print area corresponding to the print width L of the print head. Become.

  The recording unit 1108 of the texture reproduction device 209 performs main scanning on the unit recording area 16 times, for example. At that time, dot arrangement signals C "M" Y "K" A "B" are sequentially output from the storage area of the pass buffer 1107 corresponding to main scanning as output signals of the image processing apparatus 1100. The recording unit 1108 drives the recording head based on the dot arrangement signals C "M" Y "K" A "B" to cause each nozzle to eject a recording material. When the recording of the unit recording area is completed, the recording unit 1108 conveys the recording paper 3208 by the recording width L, and records the next unit recording area. The recording operation of such a unit recording area is repeated to generate a reproduction 1109.

  When the logical sum of the data stored in each storage area of the pass buffer 1107 is “0”, it is not necessary to discharge the printing material in a printing pass corresponding to the storage area. In such a case, the printing unit 1108 can skip the main scan of the printing pass and proceed to the processing of the next printing pass. That is, even when the pass number signal P is set to take a value of, for example, 1 to 16, it is not always necessary to perform 16 main scans per unit print area. In other words, the main scanning of the unit recording area is repeated from once to a predetermined number of times corresponding to the maximum value of the pass number signal P.

  The output order of the dot arrangement signals may be ascending order or descending order from the first pass to the n-th pass. Alternatively, a random output order is also possible. Each storage area of the pass buffer 1107 is cleared after the processing of the printing unit 1108 regarding the main scan for n-pass printing (the movement of the printing head for n-pass is not always necessary) is completed. Alternatively, the storage area may be cleared when the processing of the printing unit 1108 regarding the main scan of the print path corresponding to the storage area (the movement of the print head is not necessarily required in the print path) ends.

  As described above, after the color signal of the texture signal is color-mapped to the color reproduction range of the texture reproduction device 209, the gloss signal of the texture signal is gloss-mapped to a gloss reproduction range capable of maintaining the color after the color mapping. In other words, the color to be reproduced is determined from the color reproduction range of the texture reproduction device, and thereafter, the gloss to be reproduced is determined from the gloss reproduction range that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device while maintaining this color. Further, the image clarity is controlled for each pixel by controlling the number of recording passes n for each pixel, and a reproduction 1109 that appropriately reproduces the texture of the target object indicated by the texture data is generated.

  Therefore, even when the texture of the target object is out of the texture reproduction range of the texture reproduction device 209 or the gloss reproduction range of the texture reproduction device 209 differs depending on the color, the reproduction material that appropriately reproduces the texture of the target object indicated by the texture data. 1109 can be generated. In particular, when a painting is reproduced, the color difference between the object and the reproduced object greatly affects the appearance.However, according to the present embodiment in which color maintenance is prioritized, the color of the object is reproduced well. can do.

  Also, in the texture reproduction procedure shown in FIG. 1, step S101 is a process performed by the data input unit 1101, step S102 is a texture signal acquisition unit 1102, and step S103 is a process performed by the texture mapping unit 1103. Step S104 is processing performed by the color mapping unit 1111, step S105 is processing performed by the gloss reproduction range acquisition unit 1112, and step S106 is processing performed by the gloss mapping unit 1113. Similarly, step S107 is processing performed by the signal conversion unit 1104, the halftone processing unit 1105, and the output signal generation unit 1106 included in the signal generation unit 1110, and step S108 is processing performed by the recording unit 1108.

  FIG. 7 illustrates an example in which the data input unit 1101 to the output signal generation unit 1106 of the image processing device 1100 are implemented by the information processing device illustrated in FIG. 3 that performs the image processing illustrated in FIG. 1, These processing units can be incorporated in the texture reproduction device 209.

[Modification]
In the above description, gloss mapping that emphasizes specular gloss and gloss mapping that emphasizes image clarity have been described.Whether mirror gloss or image clarity is emphasized depends on user instructions, texture data and image areas. Switching may be performed in response. Alternatively, emphasis on specular gloss or emphasis on image clarity may be switched according to a color reproduction error in color mapping.

  Hereinafter, an image processing apparatus and an image processing method according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof may be omitted.

  In a second embodiment, an example will be described in which a gloss signal is corrected based on a color mapping result, and gloss correction is performed on the corrected gloss signal. An example of the procedure of the texture reproduction process according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

  By the same processing (S101-S105) of the first embodiment, a color signal after color mapping is generated, and when a color reproduction range is obtained, a color reproduction error is calculated from the color signals before and after color mapping (S111). . As the color reproduction error, for example, a lightness difference ΔL between the two is calculated.

  Next, the gloss signal of the texture signal is corrected according to the color reproduction error (S112). This correction is a process for compensating a color reproduction error by gloss. For example, a gloss signal corresponding to mirror gloss is corrected according to the calculated lightness difference ΔL. Then, the corrected gloss signal is converted into a gloss signal corresponding to the gloss within the gloss reproduction range (S106). Subsequent processing is the same as in the first embodiment, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  Generally, the higher the specular gloss, the brighter the reproduction is observed. For example, if the brightness indicated by the input texture data is higher than the brightness that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device, and a color that is darker than the color that you want to reproduce is reproduced, the gloss signal is reproduced so as to reproduce with higher specular gloss. Is corrected. Conversely, if the brightness indicated by the texture data is smaller than the brightness that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device, and if a color that is lighter than the color that you originally want to reproduce is reproduced, the gloss signal is corrected so that it is reproduced with smaller specular gloss. Is done.

  The above procedure is an example.For example, the reproduction range information may be obtained before inputting the texture data, or the color reproduction error is calculated and the gloss signal is corrected before the gloss reproduction range is obtained. Is also good.

[Process Configuration of Texture Reproduction System]
An example of the processing configuration in the texture reproduction system according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. The processing configuration and functions shown in FIG. 11 are performed by the image processing apparatus 1100 realized by execution of the image processing (S101-S107) program shown in FIG. 10 by the CPU 201, and the operation of the texture reproduction apparatus 209 based on instructions from the CPU 201. Is realized by:

  The image processing apparatus 1100 according to the second embodiment has a configuration of a texture mapping unit 1103 that is different from the configuration of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, but the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and a detailed description of those configurations is omitted. . The texture mapping unit 1103 includes a color reproduction error calculation unit 1114 and a gloss signal correction unit 1115 in addition to the color mapping unit 1111, the gloss reproduction range acquisition unit 1112, and the gloss mapping unit 1113, which are the same as those in the first embodiment.

The color reproduction error calculation unit 1114 executes the process of step S111 for calculating a color reproduction error from color signals before and after color mapping. The gloss signal correction unit 1115 executes the process of step S112 for correcting the gloss signal of the texture signal according to the color reproduction error. The correction of the gloss signal g corresponding to the specular gloss is performed using, for example, the following equation.
ΔL = L-L ';
g "= g + α × ΔL;… (1)
Where L is the brightness value before mapping,
L 'is the lightness value after mapping,
α is a predetermined constant,
g "is the gloss signal after correction.

  Also, the gloss mapping unit 1113 executes the process of step S106 of converting the gloss signal g "s into a gloss signal g's' within the gloss reproduction range. That is, the gloss signal g" after correction and the texture signal acquisition unit 1102 The output gloss signal s is converted to a gloss signal g's' within the gloss reproduction range.

  As described above, since the gloss signal is corrected based on the color reproduction error of the color mapping result, and the gloss mapping is performed on the corrected gloss signal, it is possible to reduce the overall difference in appearance between the target object and the reproduced object. it can.

[Modification]
In the above, an example in which the gloss signal g is corrected based on the lightness error ΔL has been described, but the saturation error ΔC = C−C ′, which is the difference between the saturation value C before mapping and the saturation value C ′ after mapping, has been described. The gloss signal g may be corrected based on the gloss signal g. In general, the higher the specular gloss is, the more the illumination light becomes biased and enters the eyes, so that the color saturation of the reproduced object is felt lower. Therefore, if the saturation represented by the input texture data is larger than the saturation that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device and the color reproduced is duller than the color originally desired to be reproduced, it is reproduced with a smaller specular gloss. To correct the gloss signal g.

  Similarly, the gloss signal g may be corrected based on the hue error Δh. In this case, the gloss signal g corresponding to the specular glossiness includes not only the brightness information but also the color information. Then, the correction is performed so that the hue error of the color before and after the color mapping is compensated by the hue difference of the gloss. For example, when the hue indicated by the input texture data is red stronger than the hue reproducible by the texture reproducing device, the gloss signal g is corrected so that the red of the specularly reflected light is reproduced more greatly. Similarly, when the hue indicated by the texture data is stronger in yellow than the hue that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device, the gloss signal g is corrected so that the yellow of the specularly reflected light is reproduced more greatly.

  Further, a configuration in which the correction of the gloss signal g is applied only to a specific color is also possible. In this case, for example, an area extraction unit that extracts a gold area or a metal color area is added, and only when the chroma reproducible by the texture reproducing device is lower than the chroma indicated by the texture data input in the extracted area. The gloss signal g of the area is corrected so that a larger specular gloss is reproduced.

  Hereinafter, an image processing apparatus and an image processing method according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the third embodiment, the same components as those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof may be omitted.

  In a third embodiment, an example will be described in which texture data is directly converted into a control signal of the texture reproduction device 209. A processing configuration example in the texture reproduction system of the third embodiment will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. The processing configuration and functions shown in FIG. 12 are realized by the image processing device 1100 realized by executing the image processing program for converting the texture data into the control signal by the CPU 201, and the operation of the texture reproduction device 209 based on the instruction of the CPU 201. Is achieved.

  The data input unit 1101 inputs texture data RGBGlSp composed of texture signals from the storage unit 203, the recording medium 208, or a server device (not shown), as in the first embodiment. The signal conversion unit 1201 converts the texture data RGBGlSp into a recording material amount signal (color material amount signal CMYK and gloss adjustment material amount signal AB) corresponding to the amount of recording material of the texture reproduction device 209 and a recording method of the texture reproduction device 209. The signal is converted into the indicated recording method signal (pass number signal P). The processing configuration after the signal conversion unit 1201 is the same as the processing configuration of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 7, and the description is omitted.

  The conversion of the signal conversion unit 1201 is performed with reference to a texture reproduction table of the texture reproduction device 209 stored in the storage unit 203 or the like. FIG. 13 shows an example of the texture reproduction table. The texture reproduction table describes a control signal CMYKABP corresponding to the discrete texture signal RGBGlSp.

  The texture reproduction table is created using the texture signal acquisition unit 1102, the texture mapping unit 1103, and the signal conversion unit 1104 described in the first embodiment. That is, the texture signal acquisition unit 1102 converts the discrete texture signal RGBGlSp described in the texture reproduction table into a device-independent texture signal Labgs. Next, the texture mapping unit 1103 converts the texture signal Labgs into a texture signal L'a'b'g's' corresponding to the texture reproducible by the texture reproducing device 209. Then, the signal conversion unit 1104 converts the texture signal L'a'b'g's' into the control signal CMYKABP of the texture reproduction device 209, and stores the conversion result in the texture reproduction table in association with the corresponding texture signal RGBGlSp.

[Verification of texture reproduction table]
The signal generation unit 1110 according to the third embodiment performs steps S102 to S107 of the texture reproduction procedure illustrated in FIG. 1 with reference to the texture reproduction table. Therefore, in order to obtain a reproduction 1109 that appropriately reproduces the texture of the target object, it is premised that an appropriate texture reproduction table is created. Hereinafter, a method of verifying whether the texture reproduction table is appropriate will be described.

  A plurality of texture signals having the same specular gloss and different colors are prepared as the texture signal RGBGlSp for verification. Note that a color that can be reproduced by the texture reproduction device 209 is set as the color of the texture signal. Also, the specular gloss is a mirror gloss that cannot be reproduced by the texture reproduction device 209 when combined with a part of the set color, and the texture reproduction device 209 can be reproduced when combined with other colors A high specular gloss.

  The conditions of the texture signal for verification will be described with reference to FIG. The example of FIG. 14 shows an example in which five colors reproducible by the texture reproduction device 209 are combined with three levels of specular glossiness reproducible by the texture reproduction device 209, and in each combination, whether the specular glossiness can be reproduced is determined. Is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 14, in the fifth color, none of the specular glossiness is reproducible and does not satisfy the above-described condition of the texture signal for verification. On the other hand, the first and second colors can reproduce the first and second specular gloss levels, and the third and fourth colors can reproduce the second specular gloss level.

  On the other hand, from the viewpoint of specular gloss, the second specular gloss can be reproduced in combination with the first to fourth colors, and the third specular gloss cannot be reproduced in any combination of colors. It is. Therefore, the combination that satisfies the condition of the texture signal for verification is a combination of the first specular gloss and the first to fourth colors.

  For each texture signal satisfying the condition of the texture signal for verification, patch data for forming a patch of a measurable size is prepared. Then, the patch data group is input to the texture reproduction system shown in FIG. 12, and the specular glossiness of the patch is measured.

  If the texture reproduction table is set appropriately, color mapping is performed before gloss mapping, so that the texture data patch that cannot reproduce both color and specular gloss at the same time It is reproduced with a specular gloss level different from the gloss level. For example, the texture data patches corresponding to the third and fourth colors shown in FIG. 14 are reproduced with a specular gloss different from the first specular gloss.

  On the other hand, a texture data patch capable of simultaneously reproducing both color and specular gloss is reproduced with the specular gloss indicated by the texture data. For example, the texture data patches corresponding to the first and second colors in FIG. 14 are reproduced with the first specular gloss.

  In other words, although the specular glossiness indicated by each texture data matches, the mirror glossiness of the patch formed by the texture data does not match, and the patch specular gloss varies. Therefore, if the standard deviation of the specular glossiness of the patch is larger than the standard deviation of the specular glossiness unique to the texture reproduction device 209 (hereinafter, inherent deviation), it is determined that the texture reproduction table is appropriately set. can do. Conversely, if the standard deviation of the specular glossiness of the patch is substantially equal to the intrinsic deviation, it can be determined that the texture reproduction table is not set appropriately. As the intrinsic deviation, the formation of a patch having the same specular gloss as the texture signal for verification is repeated a plurality of times by the texture reproducing device 209, and the standard deviation of the specular gloss measured from these patches may be used.

  Assuming that a set of texture data having the same gloss signal and different color signals is a verification data group, the texture signal for verification is a subset of the verification data group. It can be said that the signal conversion unit 1201 generates the following control signal in at least one of the subsets of the verification data group. That is, the signal conversion unit 1201 generates a control signal in which the standard deviation of the specular gloss of the reproduction 1109 when the texture data included in the subset is input is larger than the intrinsic deviation of the texture reproduction device 209. . In other words, the texture reproduction table calculates the standard deviation of the specular gloss of the reproduction 1109 formed by the texture reproduction device 209 based on the output signal generated from the texture data included in the subset, and the intrinsic deviation of the texture reproduction device 209. It has the characteristic of making it larger than

  As described above, with reference to the texture reproduction table describing the correspondence between the discrete texture signal RGBGlSp and the control signal CMYKABP of the texture reproduction device 209, a plurality of processes in the first embodiment are realized by one conversion process. be able to. In other words, the processing of the texture signal acquisition unit 1102, the color mapping unit 1111, the gloss reproduction range acquisition unit 1112, the gloss mapping unit 1113, and the signal conversion unit 1104 in the first embodiment is realized by a single conversion process, and a high-speed texture Reproduction processing becomes possible.

[Modification]
In the above, CIELAB was described as the color signal, but the present invention is not limited to this, and any numerical expression and measurement conditions may be used. For example, CIEXYZ may be used, or reflectance data for each spectral wavelength may be used. The measurement condition of the texture data is not limited, and the incident angle and the light receiving angle representing the positional relationship between the illumination and the light receiving sensor at the time of the measurement may be set arbitrarily. Further, a condition for integrating a plurality of light receiving angles as in an integrating sphere measuring device may be used. Further, in the case of a recording medium such as a film having high transparency, light after incident light has passed through the recording medium may be received.

  The gloss signal corresponding to the specular gloss is not limited to a value measured under standard conditions, but may be a value measured under other conditions or a function thereof. For example, the illumination direction of the measurement may be 30 degrees, and the opening angles of illumination and light reception are not limited to the standard conditions. Further, the signal corresponding to the specular glossiness may be a signal including color information as well as brightness information. For a signal including color information, for example, a CIELAB value calculated by a method defined in Non-Patent Document 1 by measuring the amount of specular reflection for each wavelength can be used. In this case, the conversion of the signal corresponding to the specular gloss in the gloss mapping is a conversion in a three-dimensional color space. As the conversion method, a known color mapping method can be used as in the case of the color signal conversion.

  The gloss signal corresponding to image clarity is not necessarily limited to a value measured under standard conditions, but may be a value measured under other conditions or a function thereof. For example, near the specular reflection direction, the angle φ at which the direction in which the amount of reflected light is half of the specular reflection light forms the specular reflection direction, and an inverse function of the angle may be used.

  FIG. 15 shows typical variable-angle reflected light characteristics. In FIG. 15, a curve 1501 indicates the amount of reflected light from the point A of the sample 1502. The direction of the angle θ where the amount of reflected light is large is the direction of regular reflection with respect to illumination, and the length of the line segment AB indicates the amount of reflected light in the direction of regular reflection. Point C is a point where the length of the line segment AC is half the length of the line segment AB, and the angle formed by the line segment AB and the line segment AC is an angle φ. A sample having high image clarity has a small light diffusion near the specular reflection direction, and the angle φ shows a small value. Conversely, the angle φ of the sample having low image clarity shows a large value.

  Further, as a gloss signal corresponding to the image clarity, a measured value of surface unevenness or a function thereof may be used. An object having a smooth surface with small surface irregularities has high image clarity, and an object having large surface irregularities has low image clarity.

  Further, the gloss signal may include a “maximum reflection direction” which is an element relating to a direction in which the amount of reflected light is maximum. Depending on the object, the maximum reflection direction may change depending on the region. In this case, in order to obtain a reproduction that matches the appearance, information on the maximum reflection direction is required as information held by each area in addition to the specular gloss and the image clarity. As this information, for example, a signal corresponding to the angle θ shown in FIG. 15 or a signal corresponding to the difference between the angle θ and the reference angle can be used.

  When the maximum reflection direction is included in the gloss signal, information on the amount of reflected light in the direction in which the reflected light is maximum may be used as the gloss signal corresponding to the specular gloss. In other words, a gloss signal corresponding to a different direction depending on the area may be used as the gloss signal corresponding to the specular gloss. Similarly, as the gloss signal corresponding to the image clarity, information on an angle formed by a direction in which the amount of reflected light is half of the maximum amount of reflected light near the direction of maximum reflection and the direction of maximum reflection may be used. The maximum reflection direction can be reproduced by controlling the surface unevenness, and the surface unevenness can be formed by using, for example, a UV inkjet printer or a 3D printer.

  Further, the halftone processing method is not limited, and any known gradation conversion method can be applied. The signal after the gradation conversion may be a signal having three or more values. Also, a method using a path mask as the path decomposition processing has been described, but the method of the path decomposition processing is not limited, and for example, a known method of performing a halftone processing for each pass may be used.

  Further, the designation of the texture mapping method is not limited to the entire image. For example, different texture mapping methods may be specified or set according to the image area or the object. As a method for extracting a specific image area or an object, an automatic identification method based on user designation or an image feature amount can be applied.

  In the above description, a serial type ink jet printer has been exemplified as the texture reproduction device. However, a full line type ink jet printer, an electrophotographic printer, a sublimation printer, silk printing, or the like can be used as the texture reproduction device. Further, a UV printer that forms a surface shape or a 3D printer that forms a three-dimensional shape may be used as the texture reproducing device. Further, the texture reproduction process may be applied to an image display device such as a display or a projector without being limited to the printer.

  Also, in the above description, an example was described in which the recording material of the texture reproduction device is six types of CMYKAB. May be. Further, in a texture reproducing apparatus other than the ink jet printer, a toner or a film may be used as a recording material. Further, the head cartridge that ejects ink may be configured to be capable of ejecting droplets of a plurality of sizes.

  A medium other than paper, such as glossy paper or plain paper, may be used as the recording medium. For example, a material such as cloth or film may be used, or the surface may have irregularities. When the reproduction is not a sheet like a three-dimensional object, a mechanism corresponding to the conveyance of the recording medium may be provided in the texture reproduction device.

  Further, it is not essential to perform the texture reproduction process on the entire area of the image represented by the texture data. The present invention includes a case where the texture reproduction process is not applied to some regions or a case where the texture reproduction process is applied only to some regions. For example, a process may be performed such that a partial region of an image represented by the texture data is reproduced using a specific color material without performing the texture reproduction process.

[Other Examples]
The present invention supplies a program realizing one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or an apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or the apparatus read and execute the program. Processing can also be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, an ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

  1101… Data input unit, 1111… Color mapping unit, 1112… Gloss reproduction range acquisition unit, 1113… Gloss mapping unit, 1110… Signal generation unit

Claims (14)

An image processing apparatus that performs processing for reproducing a texture of an object on a recording medium,
Input means for inputting color information and gloss information of an object to be reproduced,
Color mapping means for mapping the color information to a color reproduction range of a texture reproduction device,
Determining means for determining, for each area of the recording medium, a gloss reproduction range in which the texture reproduction device can reproduce gloss based on the color information after the mapping,
Output means for outputting a signal indicating an amount of a gloss adjusting agent to be recorded on the recording medium, based on the gloss information and the gloss reproduction range,
An image processing apparatus comprising:   The determining unit acquires the color information after the mapping for each area of the recording medium, and determines the gloss reproduction range for each area of the recording medium based on the acquired color information. The image processing device according to claim 1.   The image according to claim 1, wherein the output unit outputs a signal indicating an amount of a plurality of color materials to be recorded on the recording medium based on the color information after the mapping. Processing equipment. Halftone processing means for performing a halftone process on the signal indicating the amount of the gloss adjusting agent and the signal indicating the amount of the color material,
Generating means for generating a signal indicating a dot arrangement of the gloss adjusting agent and the color material based on the signal after the halftone processing;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:   The generation unit generates a signal indicating a dot arrangement for each recording pass of the gloss adjusting agent and the color material by performing a pass separation process on the signal after the halftone process. Item 5. The image processing device according to item 4.   The texture reproducing apparatus repeats a main scan for recording the dots of the gloss adjusting agent and the color material in a unit recording area in a range of once to a predetermined number of times based on a signal indicating a dot arrangement for each recording pass. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein:   The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the unit recording area corresponds to an area where the texture reproducing apparatus can perform recording in one main scan.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the texture reproduction device includes a plurality of color materials and a plurality of gloss adjusting materials.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit configured to store at least information indicating a texture reproduction range and a device characteristic table. Calculating means for calculating the difference between the color information before mapping and the color information after mapping by the color mapping means,
Correction means for correcting the gloss information based on the difference;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: The calculating means calculates, as the difference, a brightness difference between the color information before mapping by the color mapping means and the color information after mapping,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the correction unit corrects a mirror glossiness indicated by the gloss information based on the brightness difference. The calculation means calculates, as the difference, a saturation difference between color information before mapping by the color mapping means and color information after mapping,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the correction unit corrects a mirror glossiness indicated by the gloss information based on the saturation difference. An image processing method for performing processing for reproducing a texture of an object on a recording medium,
Enter the color information and gloss information of the object to be reproduced,
Mapping the color information to a color reproduction range of a texture reproduction device,
Based on the color information after the mapping, for each region of the recording medium, the texture reproduction device determines a gloss reproduction range in which gloss can be reproduced,
An image processing method, comprising: outputting a signal indicating an amount of a gloss adjusting agent to be recorded on the recording medium based on the gloss information and the gloss reproduction range.   A program for causing a computer to function as each unit of the image processing apparatus according to claim 1.

Images