JP6929046B2 - Image processing equipment, image processing methods, and computer programs - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a computer program.

In recent years, it has been practiced to install a photobook creation application on an information device, select a desired image, place it on a page, create a photobook, display it on a screen, or generate print data. (See Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-133967

The photobook creation app allows you to place images from different sources on a single photobook page, such as images taken on different shooting devices or downloaded from social networking service (SNS) sites. It is possible. However, images from different sources such as these often have different image quality from each other. When images of different image quality are arranged close to each other, the difference in image quality becomes conspicuous, and there is a problem that the appearance of the photo book page becomes poor.

In order to solve such a problem, the present invention has an acquisition means for acquiring information on the image quality of an image, an arrangement means for arranging the image on one or a plurality of pages, and a plurality of arrangement means arranged on the page. Provided is an image processing apparatus including a determination means for determining whether or not the image quality of the image is of the same degree, and a notification means for notifying information indicating the same degree when the image quality is not the same.

According to the present invention, when an image of different image quality is assigned to a page, a page printed using the image is printed in order to encourage the user to perform appropriate processing by notifying information indicating that fact. It is possible to prevent the appearance of the image from becoming unattractive.

It is a block diagram which shows typically the structure of the image processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the table which manages each information which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the flowchart for making the photo book which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the photo book new creation screen which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the image selection screen which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the page list display screen which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the page edit screen which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 1 schematically shows the configuration of an image processing device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image processing device 100 includes a control unit 101, a read-only memory (ROM) 102, a random access memory (RAM) 103, an external storage device 104, and an input interface 105. The image processing apparatus 100 further includes a bit move unit (BMU) 106, a video RAM (VRAM) 107, a network interface 108, and a system bus 109. Further, the image processing device 100 is connected to a display 110, a network line 111, and a printer (not shown).

The control unit 101 controls the entire image processing device 100, and is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU). The ROM 102 stores programs and parameters that do not need to be changed. The RAM 103 temporarily stores programs and data supplied from an external storage device 104 or the like. The external storage device 104 is a hard disk, a memory card, or the like fixedly installed in the image processing device 100, and stores a program such as an operating system (OS). The external storage device 104 also stores image data obtained from a local device and image data obtained from a social networking service (SNS) site. The input interface 105 is connected to an input device such as a pointing device or a keyboard for inputting data in response to a user's operation. The BMU 106 controls data transfer between memories (eg, between VRAM 107 and other memory) and between memory and each I / O device (eg, network interface 108). The VRAM 107 holds data necessary for displaying an image on the display 110. The image generated in the VRAM 107 is transmitted to the display 110 according to a predetermined specification, whereby the display 110 displays the image. The network interface 108 is connected to the SNS server 112 or the like via a network line 111 such as the Internet. The system bus 109 communicatively connects the units 101 to 108 included in the image processing device 100.

The image processing device 100 may be realized by a single computer device, or may be realized by distributing each function to a plurality of computer devices as needed. When composed of a plurality of computer devices, they are connected by a communication line such as a local area network (LAN) so that they can communicate with each other.

Focusing on the functional aspect, the image processing device 100 includes acquisition means, arrangement means, determination means, notification means, display means, and the like. The acquisition means acquires the image quality of the image managed by the image processing device 100. The arranging means arranges the image on one or more pages. The determination means determines whether or not the image quality of the plurality of images arranged on the page is about the same. When the determination means determines that the degree is not the same, the notification means notifies the information indicating that fact. The display means displays a thumbnail image corresponding to the plurality of images arranged on the page on the display 110.

Hereinafter, as an embodiment of the present invention, an image processing device 100 that supports the creation of a good-looking photo book and a computer program that can operate on the image processing device 100 (hereinafter, referred to as “the program”) will be described. .. The image processing apparatus 100 and the present program utilize a table stored in the RAM 103 as shown by FIGS. 2A to 2E as necessary. The table as shown by FIGS. 2A to 2E may be stored in the external storage device 104 and used.

The book management table 200 shown in FIG. 2A manages the information of the photo book identified by the book ID 201. The book ID 201 is an ID that is issued when the creation of the book is started. The book management table 200 includes a book status 203 and a book creation start date and time 204. In addition, the book management table 200 includes a book title 202, a number of pages 207, and page layout information 208 set by the user at the start of book creation. The page layout information 208 indicates information on the vertical and horizontal size of the page prepared in advance in this program, the number of images and the image arrangement in the page, the size of the image area for each image arrangement, and the like, and is selected from several templates. Corresponds to what is selected by the user. The layout information of the book may be set in common for the entire book, or the setting can be changed for each page, and the present invention is not limited to this. When the editing of the book is completed, the book completion date and time 205 is recorded in the book management table 200. When the book is printed, the book print date and time 206 is recorded in the book management table 200.

The image management table 210 shown in FIG. 2B manages the information of the image identified by the image ID 211. The image ID 211 is an ID that is issued when the user acquires an image from a local device or an SNS cooperation site. The image management table 210 includes an image file path 212, a thumbnail file path 213, and a book ID 214 to which the image management table 210 belongs. The image file path 212 and the thumbnail file path 213 indicate paths that can access the image file and the thumbnail file from this program, respectively. The thumbnail file path 213 is used for display on the display 110, and the image file path 212 is used for printing. The image management table 210 includes image acquisition source information 218 as to whether the user has acquired the image file from the local device or from the SNS site. The image management table 210 also includes an image size 215, an image resolution 216, and a photographing device name 217 included in the meta information of the image file. The image size is a pixel size represented by the number of pixels in each of the vertical and horizontal directions of the image. In addition, this program performs an image quality check on all the images in the book, and if there is a variation, the result is recorded in the item of the image quality check 219 in the book of the image management table 210.

The page management table 220 shown in FIG. 2C manages page information identified by the book ID 223 and the page number 222. The page management table 220 includes an image ID list 221 arranged on the page. Further, this program performs an image quality check on all the images in the page, and if there is a variation, the result is recorded in the item of the in-page image quality check 224 of the page management table 220.

The photographing device management table 230 shown in FIG. 2D manages the information of the photographing device identified by the photographing device name 231. Information on each shooting device is included in this program in advance, and device type 232 such as a smartphone, a compact digital camera, a single-lens reflex camera, etc. is associated with the shooting device name 231. Further, the photographing device management table 230 includes a path 233 to the image file of the device icon so that the device type 232 can be easily identified by the user. The photographing device name 231 may be stored on a network, for example, so that the latest state can be collected in real time.

The SNS site management table 240 shown in FIG. 2E represents information on the SNS site, and can be identified by the SNS site name 241 to which the program can cooperate to acquire images. The SNS site management table 240 provides a uniform resource locator (URL) 242 of the SNS site, account information 243 for logging on to the SNS site and acquiring an image, and a path 244 to the image file of the icon representing the SNS site. include.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure for the image processing device 100 to create a photo book. When there are images on the page that are not of similar quality, the image processor 100 notifies the user by displaying a warning and assists the user in creating a good-looking photobook.

First, in step S301, the image processing device 100 starts executing this program. The image processing device 100 displays, for example, a photobook new creation screen 400 as shown in FIG. 4A on the display 110. The user specifies the title 401 of the photo book, the number of pages 402, and the layout 403, and presses the new creation button 404 to start creating the photo book. Here, the layout 403 refers to the vertical and horizontal size of the page, the number of images in the page, the image arrangement, and the like, and some templates are selected from those prepared in advance in this program. In this embodiment, a case where one image is arranged on each of the left and right sides of the spread page will be described, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to select a different layout 403 for each spread page. It is also possible to create and edit a photo book in units of one page.

The image processing device 100 newly creates the book management table 200 shown in FIG. 2A.
First, the image processing device 100 newly issues and sets the book ID 201. Next, the image processing device 100 sets the title 401, the number of pages 402, and the layout 403 of the photo book specified by the user in the title 202, the number of pages 207, and the layout information 208 of the book management table 200, respectively. .. Then, the image processing apparatus 100 records the current time at the book creation start date and time 204 of the book management table 200. Further, the image processing device 100 stores the book ID 201 in the variable "cBookID" in the program for specifying the book being created.

In step S302, the image processing device 100 sets the status 203 of the book management table 200 to the "creating" status. Further, the image processing apparatus 100 creates the page management table 220 shown in FIG. 2C for the number of pages of the book, and sets the page numbers 222 in ascending order. Then, the image processing apparatus 100 records the book ID 201 in the item of the book ID 223. Further, the image processing device 100 stores a default 1 (page) in the variable "cPageNO" in the program for specifying the page to be edited.

In step S303, the image processing apparatus 100 displays the image selection screen 410 as shown in FIG. 4B, for example, on the display 110. First, the image processing device 100 acquires thumbnails of each image locally stored in the external storage device 104 and copies them to a storage destination accessible from this program. Then, the image processing apparatus 100 lists those thumbnails in the thumbnail display area 412 arranged under the heading 411 of the "local device".

Next, if there is an external SNS site capable of providing an image registered in the SNS site management table 240 shown in FIG. 2E, the image processing device 100 displays the site name 241 of each SNS site in the SNS site name display area 413, Displayed at 415. In this embodiment, it is assumed that two external SNS sites that can provide images are registered, but the present invention is not limited to this. The image processing device 100 uses the URL 242 and the account information 243 for each SNS site, and uses the application program interface (API) provided from the SNS site to provide thumbnails of the provided images. get. The image processing device 100 copies the acquired thumbnails to a storage destination accessible from this program, and displays them in a list in the thumbnail display areas 414 and 416 of the SNS site.

For example, on the image selection screen 410 as shown in FIG. 4B, the user uses the images displayed in the thumbnail display area 412 of the local device and / or the thumbnail display areas 414 and 416 of the SNS site for the photo book. Select the image you want. Then, the user presses the selection completion button 417.

In step S304, the image processing device 100 detects the user's image selection, stores the selected image list in the variable "sImageList" in the program, and acquires the image selected by the user.

When acquiring an image from a local device, the image processing device 100 copies the image stored in the external storage device 104 to a storage destination accessible from this program.

When acquiring an image from the SNS site, the image processing device 100 uses the URL 242 of the SNS site and the account information 243, and uses the API provided by the SNS site to acquire an image of a size required for printing. do. The image processing device 100 copies the acquired image to a storage destination accessible from this program.

In step S305, the image processing apparatus 100 creates the image management table 210 shown in FIG. 2B for each image included in the selected image list variable “sImageList”. The image processing device 100 newly issues the image ID 211, and sets the value of the variable "cBookID" indicating the book being created in the book ID 214.

When the image is acquired from the local device, the image processing device 100 sets the “local device” in the image acquisition source information 218. When the image is acquired from the SNS site, the image processing device 100 sets the SNS site name 241 in the image acquisition source information 218.

The image processing device 100 stores the paths to the storage destinations of the images and thumbnails accessible from this program in the image file path 212 and the thumbnail file path 213, respectively. The image processing device 100 extracts image information from the acquired metadata of the image and stores it in the image size 215, the image resolution 216, and the photographing device name 217.

In step S306, the image processing apparatus 100 arranges the images specified by the selected image list variable “sImageList” on each page according to the layout information 208 of the book. The image processing device 100 lists the image IDs 211 of the images arranged on the page in the item of the image ID list 221 of the page management table 220 of each page.

In step S307, the image processing apparatus 100 displays the page list display screen 420 as shown in FIG. 4C, for example, on the display 110. That is, the image processing device 100 creates a thumbnail preview for each page based on the thumbnail file path 213 in the image management table 210 of the images arranged on each page, and displays the thumbnails in the page list area 421. Since thumbnails for display display differ from the images actually printed by the printer depending on the display size and display capability of the display, the user can see the image quality of the images in the page that may occur after printing at this point. The difference is difficult to notice. That is, the thumbnail image displayed in the thumbnail preview is a reduced image, and since the image size is smaller than the original image, all images tend to be displayed coarsely, and the image quality of any image is not good for the user. It looks the same. On the other hand, since the original image actually output to the printing device has various image sizes, there is a difference in the image quality of the image on the printed matter. Therefore, it is difficult for the user to recognize the difference in image quality of the image generated in the printed matter only by comparing the thumbnail images of the thumbnail preview.

In step S308, in response to a predetermined user operation, the image processing apparatus 100 performs a quality comparison of all the images in the photo book. The predetermined user operation is, for example, a selection operation of an image comparison button (not shown) displayed in the page list display screen 420 of FIG. 4C. Further, when performing quality comparison, the image processing apparatus 100 stores in advance a reference value (%) of the difference in image size as a constant "fRate" in this program. The difference in image size is the ratio of the image size of each image to the maximum image size of the images in the photo book. Further, the image processing device 100 stores in advance a threshold value of the ratio of the number of images used as a constant "alert Rate" in this program, which is used for determining whether or not to give a warning about the image quality difference in the photo book. The ratio of the number of images is the ratio of the number of images having different image quality to the total number of images in the photo book.
When printing a photo book, "fRate" is also a numerical value that depends on the printing device, the printing medium, and the print size of the image area in which the image is arranged, and therefore may be changed depending on the printing conditions and the printing profile.

The image processing device 100 acquires image information for all the images in which the value of the book ID 214 in the image management table 210 matches the value of the variable "cBookID" indicating the book being created. The image processing device 100 compares the image size 215 and the image resolution 216 with reference to the image information of each image in the book. As a result of comparison, if the image resolutions 216 are equal and the difference between the image sizes 215 is less than the constant "fRate", it is determined that all the images in the photobook are of the same quality. As a result of comparison, if the difference between the image resolutions 216 is within a predetermined allowable range, the image resolutions 216 may be regarded as equal. In that case, if the image resolutions 216 are substantially equal and the difference between the image sizes 215 is less than the constant "fRate", it is determined that the image quality is about the same.
If the image processing apparatus 100 determines that all the images in the photobook are of the same quality (YES in step S308), there is no need for editing, so the process proceeds to step S309 and the photobook creation process is completed. ..

On the other hand, if the image processing apparatus 100 determines that all the images in the photobook are not of the same quality (NO in step S308), in step S310, the image processing apparatus 100 selects all the images in the photobook. Group items of similar quality. When the ratio of the number of images in the group is less than the threshold "alertRate", the image processing apparatus 100 considers that the images belonging to the group are a minority with respect to the entire book. Then, the image processing device 100 sets the item of the in-book image quality check 219 to "ON" in the image management table 210 of the image. On the other hand, when the ratio of the number of images in the group is equal to or more than the threshold value "alertRate", the image processing apparatus 100 considers that the images belonging to the group are the majority with respect to the entire book. Then, the image processing device 100 sets the item of the in-book image quality check 219 to "OFF" in the image management table 210 of the image.

The image processing device 100 refers to the item of the in-book image quality check 219 set for each image. When the item of the image is set to "ON", the image processing device 100 displays information indicating that the image quality is different from the image quality of other images in the vicinity of the thumbnail of the image. For example, on the page list display screen 420 as shown in FIG. 4C, the warning mark 422 is displayed on the thumbnail of the image.

In step S311 the image processing apparatus 100 sets the book status 203 to "editing".
In step S312, the image processing apparatus 100 displays the page list area 434 of the page editing screen 430 on the display 110 as shown in FIG. 4D, for example. The user selects a page to be edited from the page list displayed in the page list area 434, and the image processing device 100 stores the page number in the variable "cPageNO" in this program. The image processing apparatus 100 displays the mark 435 in the page list area 434 so that the selected page can be identified.

Further, the image processing device 100 creates a control list 436 that collects and lists the photographing device name 217 and the SNS site name of the image acquisition source information 218 in the image management table 210 of all the images included in the book. The image processing device 100 displays the control list 436 on the page list area 434. When the user selects a specific photographing device or SNS site from the control list 436, the image processing device 100 displays only images having the same photographing device name or SNS site name.

In step S313, the image processing apparatus 100 searches the page management table 220 associated with the variables “cBookID” and “cPageNO” for specifying the book and page to be edited. Then, the image processing device 100 stores the image ID list 221 arranged on the page in the variable “pImageList”.

In step S314, the image processing device 100 searches each image management table 210 associated with each image ID extracted from the variable “pImageList”. The image processing device 100 acquires the thumbnail file path 213, the image size 215, the image resolution 216, the photographing device name 217, and the image acquisition source information 218 for each image.

In step S315, the image processing apparatus 100 displays the page image area 431 of the page editing screen 430 on the display 110, for example, as shown in FIG. 4D. In the page image area 431, the appearance of the images in the page to be edited arranged according to the layout information 208 is displayed by using the thumbnails of the respective images.

In step S316, the image processing device 100 performs a quality comparison of the images in the page to be edited in response to a predetermined user operation. The predetermined user operation is, for example, a selection operation of an image comparison button (not shown) displayed in the page edit screen 430 of FIG. 4D. That is, the image processing device 100 compares the image size 215 and the image resolution 216 with reference to the image information of each image in the page. As a result of comparison, if the image resolutions 216 are equal and the difference between the image sizes 215 is less than the constant "fRate", it is determined that the images on the page are of the same quality.

When the image processing apparatus 100 determines that all the images on the page are of the same quality (YES in step S316), there is no need to warn about the difference in image quality of the individual images. Therefore, the image processing device 100 sets the item of the in-page image quality check 224 of the page management table 220 to "OFF", and proceeds to step S319.

When the image processing apparatus 100 determines that the images in the page are not of the same quality (NO in step S316), the image processing apparatus 100 sets the item of the in-page image quality check 224 of the page management table 220 to "ON". , And the process proceeds to step S317.

In step S317, the image processing device 100 displays a message in the warning area 433 of the page editing screen 430, for example, as shown in FIG. 4D, to the effect that images having different image quality are used in the page.

In step S318, the image processing device 100 displays an image acquisition source icon 432 in the vicinity of the thumbnail image for each image in the page to be edited.
That is, the image processing device 100 determines whether or not the image acquisition source information 218 of each image is a “local device”. If it is a "local device", the image processing device 100 searches the photographing device management table 230 of FIG. 2D associated with the photographing device name 217 in the image management table 210 related to the image. Then, the image processing device 100 acquires the device type (smartphone, compact digital camera, single-lens reflex camera, etc.) 232 and the image file path 233 of the device icon. The image processing device 100 displays the image acquisition source icon 432 based on the image file path 233.

The image processing device 100 may add an area such as a pop-up or a balloon in association with the device icon, and display the photographing device name 231 or the photographing date and time on the area. The display method of the photographing device is not limited in the present invention.

Further, in this embodiment, it is described that the difference in image quality due to the image resolution and the image size is due to the difference in the shooting device, and the icon of the shooting device is displayed in the vicinity of the thumbnail image. However, even if the shooting devices are common, the image quality may differ depending on the shooting mode. In that case, an icon representing the characteristics of the image such as the shooting mode, the presence / absence of zoom, and the one derived from the moving image may be displayed by going further, and the design and type of the icon are not limited in the present invention.

On the other hand, if the image acquisition source information 218 is other than the "local device", the image processing device 100 considers the image to be an image acquired from the SNS site. The image processing device 100 searches the SNS site management table 240 of FIG. 2E associated with the SNS site name stored in the image acquisition source information 218, and acquires the image file path 244 of the SNS icon. Then, the image processing device 100 displays the image acquisition source icon 432 based on the image file path 244.

The image processing device 100 may add an area such as a pop-up or a balloon in association with the SNS icon and display the SNS name or the like there. The display method of the SNS name and the like is not limited in the present invention.

The image processing device 100 provides the user with the image acquisition source icon 432 and the control list 436, so that when there are images having different image quality in the page, the user replaces the images to edit the page. To support.

In step S319, the image processing apparatus 100 receives the input from the user and determines whether or not there is still a page to be edited. If there is still a page to be edited (YES in step S319), the image processing apparatus 100 stores the new page number selected by the user in the variable "cPageNO" and returns to step S313. If there are no more pages to edit (NO in step S319), the process proceeds to step S309, and the book creation is completed. The user can print the book.
In the present embodiment, the image quality of the image arranged on the same spread page is compared, but the image quality of the image arranged on the same page may be compared.
Further, in the present embodiment, after the page list display screen 420 is displayed on the display 110 in step S307, it is determined in response to the user's operation whether or not the image quality of the images in the book is about the same, and the image quality is changed. If there is a difference, a warning is displayed in step S310. Further, after displaying the page edit screen 430 on the display 110 in step S315, it is determined in response to the user's operation whether or not the image quality of the images in the page is the same, and if there is a difference in image quality, step S317 Changed to display a warning. Not limited to this, after judging whether the image quality of the image in the book and the image quality in the page are the same, the page list display screen 420 with warning and the page edit screen 430 are displayed according to the judgment result. You may try to do it. As a result, even if the user does not perform an operation, if there is a difference in image quality, it is possible to notify that fact.

Although the present invention has been described in detail based on the preferred embodiments thereof, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various embodiments within the scope of the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. included. Some of the above-described embodiments may be combined as appropriate. Further, when a software program that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment is supplied to a system or device having a computer capable of executing the program directly from a recording medium or by using wired / wireless communication, and the program is executed. Is also included in the present invention. Therefore, in order to realize the functional processing of the present invention on a computer, the program code itself supplied and installed on the computer also realizes the present invention. That is, the computer program itself for realizing the functional processing of the present invention is also included in the present invention. In that case, the form of the program does not matter, such as the object code, the program executed by the interpreter, the script data supplied to the OS, etc., as long as it has the function of the program. The recording medium for supplying the program may be, for example, a hard disk, a magnetic recording medium such as a magnetic tape, an optical / optical magnetic storage medium, or a non-volatile semiconductor memory. Further, as a method of supplying the program, a method in which the computer program forming the present invention is stored in a server on the computer network and the connected client computer downloads and programs the computer program can be considered.

100 Image processing device 110 Display 215 Image size 216 Image resolution 217, 231 Shooting device name 218 Image acquisition source information 432 Image acquisition source icon

Claims (8)

It is an image processing device
An acquisition method for acquiring information on image quality, and
Arrangement means for arranging the image on one or more pages, and
A determination means for determining whether or not the image quality of a plurality of images arranged on a page is the same, and
When it is determined that the degree is not the same, a notification means for notifying information indicating that fact and
A display means for displaying thumbnail images corresponding to a plurality of images arranged on the page on a display is provided .
The notification means displays an icon in the vicinity of the thumbnail image corresponding to an image different from other images.
The icon represents the type of shooting device used to acquire the image.
Image processing device. The image processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the icon represents a social networking service (SNS) site from which the image is acquired. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the information regarding the image quality includes at least one of an image size, an image resolution, a photographing device name, and an image acquisition source. The determination means, the image resolution is equal properly, when the difference of the image size is smaller than a predetermined reference value, it determines that the quality of the plurality of images are comparable, images according to claim 3 Processing equipment. The image processing device according to claim 4 , wherein the predetermined reference value depends on the printing device from which the image is output and the printing medium. The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the determination means determines whether or not the image quality of a plurality of images arranged on the same spread page or the same single page is the same. .. It is a control method of an image processing device.
Steps to get information about image quality and
The step of arranging the image on one or more pages,
A step of determining whether or not the image quality of a plurality of images arranged on a page is the same, and
When it is determined that the degree is not the same, a step to notify information indicating that fact and
Look including the <br/> the step of displaying the thumbnail images corresponding to a plurality of images arranged in the page on the display,
The notifying step includes displaying an icon in the vicinity of the thumbnail image corresponding to an image different from other images.
The icon represents the type of shooting device used to acquire the image.
Control method. A computer program that causes a computer to function as each means of the image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

Images