JPH04259162A - Picture processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the picture memory capacity and to attain high speed transmission of a picture data by selecting a 1st mode storing a picture signal and a picture processing signal or a 2nd mode storing only the picture signal for a picture element memory means. CONSTITUTION:A picture data is sequentially written in an FIFO 605 synchronously with a clock VCLK by timing control of BVE, VE. Then an FIFORE is outputted from an address counter and a picture data is read sequentially from the FIFO 605 synchronously with a clock IVCL. Simultaneously, a data is written to an address as an address (1). When the application software of a host computer does not support a data X, the software takes countermeasure by having only to change an address calculation means. The data X is deleted from a memory resultingly since the data is written again to addresses 3, n+3,... in which the data X is stored for 2nd and succeeding lines of the VE. Thus, the memory is used effectively.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an image processing device that obtains a copy image based on a digitally read image.
In particular, the present invention relates to an image processing apparatus that stores read images in a memory, edits the images using a host computer, and obtains output images.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Digital color copying machines that digitally separate and read original documents and perform color recording based on the read digital color image signals have become widespread. As shown in FIG. 18, this type of device 1801 further includes a dedicated image memory 1802 and a host computer 180.
3 can be connected, the read images can be stored in the memory 1802, and image editing processing can be performed using the host computer 1803. The image-processed data is sent again to the color copying machine 1801 to obtain an image output. All of these operations and processes are configured to be controlled by the host computer 1803.

0003

In the prior art, when recording (reproducing) images that have been edited using a host computer, an electrophotographic color copying machine is generally used as a printer. In the electrophotographic method, due to process limitations, once printing has started, it cannot be stopped midway. Therefore, it is necessary to send all image data from the host computer to a print buffer memory 1802 as shown in FIG. 18 in advance, resulting in a very expensive system requiring a large capacity memory.

On the other hand, there is a serial recording apparatus that prints every line (hereinafter referred to as one band) by scanning a recording head having a predetermined recording width. In this method, each time printing of one band is completed, the image data of the next band is transferred from the host computer to the memory. According to this method, it is sufficient to store image data for at least one band in the memory, so the memory capacity can be reduced compared to the electrophotographic method.

However, even with this serial method, a large capacity memory is required, and further reduction in memory capacity is desired. Furthermore, since the amount of image data to be transferred is large, it is desired to improve the data transfer speed.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing device that can reduce the image memory capacity and can transfer image data at high speed.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, an image processing apparatus of the present invention includes a reading means for scanning an original and reading an image, and an image processing signal for adding an image signal to the image signal read by the reading means. an additional means for adding;
In the image processing apparatus, the image processing apparatus includes a recording means for recording based on the read image signal and the added image processing signal, and an image memory means in which the image signal and the image processing signal can be stored. is characterized by having a first mode in which the supplied image signal and the image processed signal are stored, and a second mode in which only the image signal is stored among the supplied image signal and the image processed signal. shall be.

[0008]

[Operation] According to the above structure, depending on the capability of the connected signal processing means, the image memory means can be stored in the first mode in which the image signal and the image processing signal are stored, and in the first mode in which only the image signal is stored among the image signal and the image processing signal. Since the second mode for storing the data can be switched, the data transfer speed can be improved.

[0009]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the image processing apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 101 denotes a color scanner and an inkjet type printer, and by placing an original under a pressure plate 105 and pressing a copy start key 104, a color copy image can be obtained independently. Further, the read image is simultaneously transmitted as digital data to the image memory unit 102 via the cable 107.
You can also send it to The sent image data is, for example, G
The image is sent to the host computer 103 via a general-purpose I/F 108 such as P-IB, and enables various image editing processes. The processed image data is stored in the memory unit 102
The edited image is sent to the scanner printer 101 via the printer 101, and the edited image can be reproduced.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing the internal configuration of scanner printer 101. As shown in FIG. In the same figure, 201
is a CCD line sensor, and 203 is an enlarged view thereof. As shown in the figure, sensors for each color are lined up in the scanning direction as R, G, B, R, G, B, etc., with R, G, and B as one set.
It is called a pixel.

As shown in FIG. 3, this line sensor 201 performs CCD main scanning in the horizontal direction and CC main scanning in the vertical direction.
D Perform sub-scanning sequentially to scan the entire document using BVE,
The first scan, second scan, etc. are performed according to a synchronization signal such as VE. The line sensor 201 is driven by, for example, a pulse motor, and is capable of scanning an arbitrary area under the control of a CPU (not shown). Here, the difference in the scanning method when sending the read data to the printer and when sending the read data to the memory unit 102 will be explained.

FIG. 4A is an explanatory diagram for explaining a scanning method when printing on a printer. In the first scan, the CCD reading width is the entire pixel width of the CCD,
132 pixels from pixels 1 to 132 are being read. However, 128 pixels from pixels 2 to 129 are printed as the printer print width, and other pixels are discarded. This is because this printer employs a binarization method, such as an error diffusion method, in which data around the print data is binarized when printing data. In the second scan, an area of 4 pixels is read again as shown in the figure, and used for connection processing during binarization and as print data. In this way, when printing on a printer, several pixels are read over each other for each scan.

FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram illustrating a scanning method when sending read data to the memory unit 102. As shown in the figure, the overlapping portion is eliminated between the first scan and the second scan, and the entire CCD reading width of 132 pixels is read out. This is because the data is only transferred to the memory unit 102 and no binarization processing is performed. This results in
When reading the same area as when printing, the number of scans can be reduced, which is effective for speeding up.

As explained above, in this embodiment, the scanning mode is changed between printing and transferring to the memory unit 102.

The image signal read by the line sensor 201 is converted into a digital signal by the A/D converter 202, and is subsequently processed as a digital signal.

FIG. 5 shows a timing chart for reading the original as described above. BVE in FIG. 5A indicates the start point of CCD main scanning with respect to the document, and VE determines the timing of CCD scanning. The CCD reads images for each VE while moving in the main scanning direction. Figure 5
When one VE is expanded as shown in (B), each pixel is synchronized with the video clock VCLK and the R. G. The data is transferred in point sequence, with B as one pixel.

The image signal is then input to a shading correction circuit 204, where white correction and black correction are performed in accordance with the characteristics of the CCD. The signal output from the shading correction circuit 204 is input to the black character processing circuit (1) 205. Here, black characters in a document are detected, and processing is performed to eliminate color bleeding and sharpen the black characters during printing. To the data input to the black character processing circuit (1) 205, data X for determining the processing is added for each pixel after a black character is detected. The situation is shown in Figure 5 (C).
Shown below. FIG. 6 is a table showing the bit contents of the data X. Regarding black character processing, the presence or absence of the processing is added to bit 0. Furthermore, as shown in the figure, other image processing information is also added.

The image data to which data X has been added is scaled (enlarged or reduced) to a desired size by a scaling circuit 206, and transferred to the memory unit 102 via a cable 107 by a switch unit 207. Furthermore, when the memory unit 102 is not connected, the switch unit 207 can also directly transfer the image data from the scaling circuit 206 to the decoding circuit 208 depending on its selection. As a result, this scanner/printer can function independently as a color copy machine. Note that the memory unit 102 has a capacity that can store image data for three bands.

The image signal output from the memory unit 102 via the variable magnification circuit 206 or the cable 107 is input from the switch unit 207 to the data X decoding circuit 208. The data X decoding circuit 208 decodes the contents of the added data X and outputs a control signal whose contents are shown in FIG. 6 to each processing block. Each processing block performs processing based on the control signal.

The image data is subjected to density conversion and masking calculation processing in accordance with the characteristics of the ink in the LOG conversion circuit 209 and masking circuit 210, and then the image is sharpened in the edge processing circuit 211, and then the head The signal is input to the shading circuit 212. Here, print head 2
Since the ink ejection amount, direction, etc. are not constant among each pixel due to variations in the number of pixels, these corrections are performed by signal processing. The γ table 213 is a conversion table that determines the density of printing, and can be adjusted to a desired density. In the binarization circuit 214, the control signals MIXDATA,
Conversion is performed from multivalued image data to binary image data based on NEGA and PHOTO. Black character processing circuit (2)
At 215, black character processing is performed under control based on the control signal KB, and printing is performed using an inkjet print head 216. The operation timing of this print head 216 also follows synchronization signals such as BVE and VE, similarly to the line sensor 203 described above.

FIG. 7 shows a schematic block diagram for explaining the flow of image data in the image memory unit 102. Image data transferred from the scanner printer 101 is input to the input masking circuit 601 via the cable 107. Since the transmitted image data has the characteristics of the color separation filter of the CCD, calculations are performed here to make it conform to the characteristics of a general standard, for example, the NTSC standard. Through the above calculation, the handling of color data in the host computer 103 can be unified, and it is also possible to standardize color reproduction during printing. At this time, data X is not processed and is passed through.

The image data after input masking is input to a smoothing circuit 602 and a composition circuit 603. The composition circuit 603 will be described later. Smoothing circuit 6
In step 02, smoothing processing is performed to prevent image deterioration due to moiré. At this time, the matrix used for smoothing can be selected in three stages: 2x1, 2x2, and 3x3, and although not shown, it can be selected based on the data set from the CPU. At this time as well, no calculation is performed on the data X.

The gamma table circuit 604 modulates the scanner input image into an image that matches desired gradation characteristics. This is also configured so that a table can be set freely from the CPU in the same way as described above. Both the smoothing circuit 602 and the gamma table circuit 604 are connected to the host computer 1.
The user can freely select the processing mode by commands from 03 via the CPU.

The image data corrected by the gamma table circuit 604 is stored in the image memory 607 via the FIFO 605 at the address specified by the address counter 608. The image memory 607 and address counter 608 are not controlled by the image synchronization clock VCLK from the scanner printer 101.
The clock IVCLK obtained from the OSC circuit 609 in the memory unit 102 performs control, for example, memory refresh timing control. In order to perform this clock conversion, FIFO6 is used for inputting and outputting image data.
05,606 is provided. Therefore, if the scanner
Even if there is an abnormality in the printer and the clock VCLK is stopped, recovery can be made without losing the contents of the memory.

FIG. 8 shows a detailed diagram of the image memory 607. In the figure, the memory addresses are linear in the BVE direction when viewed from the CPU. Because it differs from the image data format used by scanners and printers,
Input/output mode for scanners and printers (hereinafter referred to as Vid
(referred to as eo mode), address calculation becomes more complicated. On the other hand, from the host through I/O 611, CPU 6
When transferring to image memory under the control of 10 (hereinafter referred to as CPU
The image file format of the host is often line-sequential horizontally, line by line, which makes address calculation easy and effective.

(Writing data from the scanner to the image memory) FIG. 9 shows a timing chart of the image data input from the scanner and the address output from the address generation circuit 608. By timing control of BVE and VE, image data is transferred to FIFO6 in synchronization with clock VCLK.
05 sequentially. After that, after a while, the address counter 608 outputs FIFORE, and the FIFO
Image data is sequentially read out from the FO 605 in synchronization with the clock IVCLK. At the same time, address counter 60
8 also sequentially counts up or performs calculations, and data is written to the address specified by address .

Here, if the application software of the host computer 103 does not support data X, it can be dealt with simply by changing the address calculation means. In other words, by sequentially outputting addresses such as those shown at address (3) in the figure, the storage area for data X can be closed and other data can be stored in the memory 607. VE
From the second line onwards, R data is written again to the address (3, n+3,...) where data X is stored, so data X is eventually erased from memory 607 as shown in FIG. (not stored). As a result, if the host computer does not support data X, the memory 607 can be used effectively. In this embodiment, if data X is not supported, data for four bands can be stored.

FIG. 11 shows a detailed circuit diagram of the address generation circuit 608 that generates the above address, and FIG. 12 shows its timing chart. As shown in Figure 12, the scanner
When the printer 101 needs to be started to read an image, the selector 919 selects the read start address set in advance in the register 901 by the signal SET controlled by the CPU while BVE is Low. do. When the HS signal generated by the OSC circuit 609 based on the VE signal becomes Low during this period, the start address is selected by the selector 902, and the start address is loaded into the counter 903 according to the clock IVCLK (time t1). At this time, the start address is also set in flip-flop 904. At the same time that BVE becomes High, the image request signal REQ also becomes Low (time t2).

Generation of the line enable signal LE that defines the data read period for one line will be explained. H
The output of the counter 905 reset by the S signal is input to a comparator 906 and compared with the line enable start value set in advance in the register 907, and if the values match, a match pulse is output to the flip-flop 908 ( Time t3). Similarly, when the comparator 909 matches the line enable end value set in the register 910, it outputs a match pulse to the flip-flop 908. flip flop 90
8 is a JK flip-flop, and the period of these two coincidence pulses, that is, register 907 and register 91
The line enable signal LE can be output for a period determined by the value set to 0. This line enable signal LE is
The counters 911, 903 and FIFO 605 are enabled for reading, and the sequentially read data is stored at the designated address.

A counter 911 that counts the clock IVCLK and a set value of the register 913 are sent to the comparator 9.
12, the comparator 912 generates a load signal LD every four clocks IVCLK. The generated load signal LD becomes a load signal for the counter 903, and the output address of the counter 903 and the value set in advance in the register 915 are added to the adder circuit 9.
The value added in step 14 is loaded into the counter 903 via the selector 902. Taking FIG. 8 as an example, the value set in the register 915 is "m" (see address (2) in FIG. 9), and in the case of FIG. 10, it is "n" (see address (2) in FIG. 9).

[0032] When the count advances and the next HS is input,
The value set in the aforementioned flip-flop 904 and the value set in the register 916 are added to the adder circuit 917.
and is loaded into the counter 903 as the starting address of the next line through selectors 918, 919, and 902. The value set in the register 916 changes depending on whether or not data X is supported, as described above. In the case of FIG. 8, it is "4" (see address ■ in FIG. 9), and in the case of FIG. 9, it is "3" (see address ■ in FIG. 9). As explained above, the address output from the counter 903 is given to the image memory 607 via the selector 1201, so that the read image is transferred to the memory 607.
is stored in Note that details of the selector 1201 will be described later.

(Reading data from image memory to host) The image data stored in the image memory 607 is read by the CPU.
It is sent to the I/O 611 by DMA transfer under the control of the I/O 610 and sent to the host computer 103 via the cable 108.
will be forwarded to. The method will be described below.

FIG. 13 shows a control circuit block diagram when the image memory 607 is accessed from the DMA and CPU. The image memory 607 is used when transferring image data between the scanner/printer 101 (hereinafter referred to as video mode) and when transferring data between the CPU 610 or the host computer 103 (hereinafter referred to as CPU mode).
・The address generation means are different depending on the mode (referred to as DMA mode). This is because the video mode has a fast transfer rate and cannot use the same access means as the CPU mode.

The selector 1201 is a selector for switching between Video mode and CPU/DMA mode, and can be selected by the CPU 610 according to the desired mode. The selector 1202 can select a mode that can be accessed directly from the CPU 610 (hereinafter referred to as CPU mode) and a mode that performs DMA transfer (hereinafter referred to as DMA mode). For example, if you select CPU mode, CPU610
The adder 1203 outputs an address obtained by adding the address output from the adder 1203 and the value set in the register 1204. This is because, in this embodiment, when supporting data X, image data for only three bands is stored, but the image memory still has a large capacity, so it deviates from the space that can be accessed by the CPU. Therefore, the accessible memory space is expanded by adding data.

In the case of DMA mode, the register 1206 for setting the DMA start address and the read signal IO
Data obtained by adding the output of the flip-flop 1207 clocked by RD or the write signal IOWR is output as an address. The flip-flop 1207 is
The output of the adder 1209 is latched for each pulse of the signals IORD and IOWR, and the output is returned to the adder 1209, which adds the set value of the register 1208. With this, for example, if the setting of the register 1208 is "3", the number is a multiple of 3, and if the setting of the register 1208 is "4", the number is a multiple of 4.
It is obtained as the output of 07. The resulting address is the start address plus a certain integer multiple for each pulse of the signals IORD and IOWR. This is because, as shown in FIG. 8, image data is stored dot-sequentially in the linear address direction. For example, in the case of line-sequential transfer in which only R data is desired, 4 is stored at the start address "0". This is because it is necessary to generate an address by adding multiples. Furthermore, when setting the start address, the flip-flop 1207 is reset.

Further, the IOWR pulse is input to the rate multiplier 1210, and by thinning out the IOWR pulse itself by this output, the host computer 10
When transferring images from 3.3, reduced size transfer is also possible. this is,
This is possible because the address is not updated by thinning out the IOWR pulses.

By the means described above, the image data stored in the memory 607 is read every time scanning is completed, as shown in FIG.
It is being transferred to the host computer 103. The above description concerns the case where data is transferred from the scanner to the host computer 103.

(Writing data from host to image memory) Next, the operation from the host to the printer will be explained with reference to FIG. Image data edited by the host computer 103 is sequentially transferred to the I/O 611 via the cable 108. The transferred image data is stored in the image memory 607 within the memory unit 102 by DMA transfer. At this time, as described above, addresses are sequentially generated from the start address set in the start register 1206 of FIG. 13 by the signal IORD. For example, in the case of line sequential, the value of register 1208 is set to generate an address every "3" or "4". Here, if the host computer 103 supports data X, the setting value is set to "4" and the storage is performed as shown in FIG. ”, data X is not stored as shown in FIG.

(Reading data from image memory to printer) When the data transfer from the host is completed, the counter 903 is selected by the selector 1201 shown in FIG. 13, and the address bus is set to the video mode. Video
Image reading in this mode is similar to writing, as shown in Figure 1.
Addresses are sequentially calculated from the start address set in register 901 of 1 by timing control of BVE, VE, and IVCLK, and reading is performed according to this address.

FIG. 14 shows a read timing chart when the host does not support data X as shown in FIG. At the same time that the LE signal becomes Low (time t11), counters 903 and 911 in FIG. 11 start counting and generate addresses. At this time, as shown in the timing chart, extra data R is always read out. at the same time,
A 2-bit counter 920 is also operated to generate a 2-bit signal γSEL. The signal γSEL is input to the γ table 610 in FIG. 7 to select a γ table for each color, and enables, for example, adjustment of color balance or function as a color palette. γ
When SEL is 0, it is R table, when it is 1, it is G, and when it is 2, it is B.
becomes. When γSEL is 3, data X generation table is selected, and if host computer 103 supports data The data is set to be output as data X. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, an extra amount of R is always read out and this is converted into data X.

When data transfer for the first scan is completed, printing is performed by sequentially reading and printing while calculating addresses as described above. When the printing for the first scan is completed, the data for the second scan is transferred, and by repeating the above,
i Obtain a printout of the image.

At this time, connection processing as shown in FIG. 4(A) is also necessary, and this processing will be explained below. Figure 15
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between print pixels and images stored in a memory. When the data transfer of the first transfer image from the host computer 103 to the memory 607 of the memory unit 102 is completed, data is transferred from the memory 607 to the memory 13 in the VE direction.
Reading is performed two pixels at a time. Print head 2
16, printing is performed from pixel 2 to pixel 129.
This is 128 pixels. Other pixels are processed as connection processing, as explained using FIG. 4(A).
No printing will be done.

During the second scan of the print head 216, the memory 6
The read start address of the data read from 07 corresponds to pixel 129 during the first scan, but since the data up to pixel 132 has already been transferred from the host 103 to the memory 607,
The data transfer start address of the second transfer image is for 132 pixels starting from pixel 133, and the data is transferred to the empty area of the memory where printing has been completed. As described above, from the host 103 to the memory 607
By sequentially performing transfer processing, memory can be used efficiently and the number of transfers can be reduced.

After the image data read out from the memory 607 as described above is enlarged to a desired size through the γ table 610 and the enlargement interpolation circuit 611 in FIG.
606. Here, the clock is converted and input to the synthesis circuit 612. At this time, if data is being read from the scanner of the scanner printer 101 at the same time, the combining circuit 612 can obtain a combined output of the memory image and the scanner image. The timing of this synthesis is based on the SEL generated by the area signal generation circuit 613.
This is performed based on the ECT signal, and can be synthesized at a desired position.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be explained. In the first embodiment, the case where the error diffusion method was used as the binarization method during printing was explained.
This embodiment uses a dither matrix method, and the same processing as in the first embodiment is effective in this case as well.

An explanatory diagram thereof is shown in FIG. 16, and will be explained below. Here, a case will be described in which a 127-pixel print head is used and an 8×8 dither matrix such as 1702 is used. In this case, 127 pixels are 8
Therefore, when printing the area 1703 in the same figure, it is necessary to read the joint processing area again. Therefore, even in the case of a printer using a dither matrix, the first
As explained in the embodiment, changing the image reading means between printing and reading into memory is effective in improving the reading speed.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, when an image is captured when the host does not support data X, data X is overwritten (overwritten) so that it is not captured (stored) as a result. In this third embodiment, the counter and write pulse are stopped only when data X is sent, so that data X is not written.

FIG. 17 shows an explanatory diagram for explaining this, and the explanation will be given below. Note that the same parts as in FIG. 10 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. Comparator 9 is written to register 913 every 4 counts, that is, only when writing X data.
Set the value so that pulse 2 is output from 12. The pulse output from the comparator 912 becomes a data load signal for the counter 903 and is simultaneously input to the gate 1711 to gate the signal LE. Therefore, the counter 903 is stopped only during the output period of the pulse, that is, during the write period of data X, and at the same time, the write enable signal (MEMWE) of the memory 607 is not output. By doing this, in the first embodiment, data X remained without being double-written at the time of the last VE line, but in the third embodiment, data X is not written, so the memory capacity can be further saved. .

The present invention provides excellent effects particularly in inkjet recording heads and recording apparatuses that eject ink using thermal energy, among inkjet recording systems.

For its typical configuration and principle, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
Preferably, it is carried out using the basic principles disclosed in the '796 specification. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type, but
In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, an electrothermal transducer is placed corresponding to the sheet or liquid path that holds the liquid (ink), and the electrothermal converter is placed in correspondence with the recorded information and rapidly reaches a temperature exceeding nucleate boiling. By applying at least one drive signal that provides a rise, the electrothermal transducer generates thermal energy that causes film boiling on the thermally active surface of the recording head, resulting in a liquid ( This is effective because it can form air bubbles within the ink. The growth and contraction of the bubble causes liquid (ink) to be ejected through the ejection opening to form at least one drop. It is more preferable to use this drive signal in a pulse form, since the growth and contraction of bubbles can be carried out immediately and appropriately, so that ejection of liquid (ink) with particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved. This pulse-shaped drive signal is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,359 and U.S. Pat.
Suitable are those described in No. 62 specification. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 concerning the temperature increase rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, even more excellent recording can be achieved.

In addition to the configuration of the recording head that combines the ejection ports, liquid paths, and electrothermal converters (straight liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 4 disclose a configuration in which a heat acting part is arranged in a bending region.
A configuration using the specification of No. 459600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 123670 of 1982 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge part for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and a hole that absorbs pressure waves of thermal energy is disclosed. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 138461 of 1982, which discloses a configuration in which the discharge portion corresponds to the discharge portion.

In addition, a replaceable chip-type recording head that is attached to the apparatus main body enables electrical connection with the apparatus main body and ink supply from the apparatus main body, or a print head that is integrated into the print head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge type recording head is used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means, preliminary auxiliary means, etc. for the recording head, which are provided as a configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. Specifically, these include capping means, cleaning means, pressure or suction means, preheating means for the recording head using an electrothermal transducer or another heating element, or a combination thereof. ,
It is also effective to perform a preliminary ejection mode in which ejection is performed separately from printing in order to perform stable printing.

Furthermore, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to a recording mode of only mainstream colors such as black, but may also include recording heads that are integrally configured or a combination of a plurality of them; The present invention is also extremely effective for devices equipped with at least one of the following: , full color by color mixing.

Although the embodiments of the present invention described above are explained using liquid ink, the present invention can be applied to ink that is solid at room temperature or ink that is soft at room temperature. Can be used. In the above-mentioned inkjet devices, the temperature of the ink itself is generally adjusted within the range of 30°C to 70°C to keep the viscosity of the ink within a stable ejection range. It is sufficient if the ink is liquid. In addition, the temperature rise caused by thermal energy can be actively prevented by using the energy to change the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or an ink that solidifies when left standing is used to prevent ink evaporation. In any case, the ink may be liquefied by application of thermal energy in accordance with the recording signal and ejected as liquid ink, or the ink may have already begun to solidify by the time it reaches the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to the use of ink that is liquefied for the first time. In such a case, the ink is held in a liquid or solid state in the recesses or through holes of the porous sheet, as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260. It may also be in a form that faces the electrothermal converter. In the present invention, the most effective method for each of the above-mentioned inks is to implement the above-mentioned film boiling method.

[0057]

As described above, according to the present invention, an image processing system can be constructed with a small memory capacity, and the transfer speed of image data can be improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing the configuration of a scanner printer.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining scanning of a line sensor.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining details of scanning by a line sensor.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart when reading a document.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing bit contents of data X.

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram showing the configuration of a memory unit.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of an image memory when supporting data X.

FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing the operation of the address generation circuit.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an image memory when data X is not supported.

FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram showing details of an address generation circuit.

12 is a timing chart showing the operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 11. FIG.

FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram showing details of an address generation circuit.

14 is a timing chart showing the operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 13. FIG.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between print head scanning and data transfer.

FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conventional image processing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

102 Memory unit 201 Line sensor 216 Recording head 607 Image memory 608 Address generation circuit

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. Reading means for scanning an original to read an image; addition means for adding an image processing signal to the image signal read by the reading means; and the read image signal and the added image processing signal. In the image processing apparatus, the image processing apparatus includes a recording means for recording based on the image signal and the image processing signal, and an image memory means capable of storing the image signal and the image processing signal. An image processing apparatus having a first mode in which the image signal is stored, and a second mode in which only the image signal is stored among the image signal and the image processing signal that are supplied. 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising signal processing means for processing image signals stored in said image memory means. 3. The image memory means has a third mode in which the image signal and the image processing signal supplied from the signal processing means are stored, and a fourth mode in which only the image signal supplied from the signal processing means is stored. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: an image processing apparatus according to claim 2; 4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording means includes an inkjet recording head that discharges ink from a plurality of discharge ports. 5. The recording head is provided for each corresponding ejection port, causes a state change in the ink due to heat, and ejects the ink from the ejection port based on the state change to form flying droplets. 5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a thermal energy generating means for generating an image.