JPH04329136A - Method for indicating region of block copy manuscript - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simply indicate a mask region by surrounding a plurality of the line images of a block copy manuscript by markers to indicate mask regions and reading the indicated line images and positions by a scanner and successively displaying the line images and the mask regions on a display means according to the positions indicated by the markers. CONSTITUTION:A plurality of regions desired to be masked are surrounded at the parts of the line images 21 of a block copy manuscript 20 by closed curves 22 due to color markers to indicate a plurality of mask regions. The block copy manuscript 20 is set to a color scanner 1 to read the line images and positions indicated by the color markers. The closed curve data and position data due to the color markers are extracted to confirm the marker regions and the line image data within the range of the marker regions are searched to track the contours the line images and the line image regions are confirmed to be set to the mask regions and the line images and the mask regions are displayed on a CRT 6 according to the positions indicated by the markers.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for specifying an area on a draft original used in a printing plate mask creation system.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in the plate-making process for color printing, there is a retouching process for creating a plate-making film original plate, and a cutting mask is created in this retouching process. These cut-out masks are classified into pattern masks for negative films obtained by color-separated photography of original printing images such as positive films, flat-mesh masks for flat-mesh areas, and character masks used for coloring characters. can do.

[0003] Conventionally, most of the cutting work in this retouching work has been done manually. The general steps for creating a plate-making film original from a printing manuscript are shown in FIG. 10 below. Creating a block version 101 from a manuscript 100
is performed, and a color separation instruction sheet 102 for this original 100 is created.
specifies the color proportion for each color.

Next, a mask is created based on this block and the color separation instructions, and the mask is created depending on the object to be masked.
Picture mask 103, flat mesh mask 104, character mask 10
5 multiple masks are created. Further, a negative image 106 subjected to halftone separation by a scanner is pasted to the picture mask 103, or plain halftones 107 and 108 are pasted to the plain halftone mask 104 and the character mask 105. The type of flat mesh is determined according to the color separation instructions. Finally, by repeatedly exposing the plate-making film from these masks 103 to 105, yellow (
Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), black (K)
One plate-making film original plate 109 for each color is created. Such work requires a great deal of effort and time.

[0005]Recently, a method has been proposed in which the creation of such a cutout mask is performed mechanically rather than manually. An apparatus has been proposed that specifies mask areas and halftones based on the read image information, and directly creates a halftone film for each color (for example, JP-A-62-284360). In such devices, an operator uses an input device such as a mouse or digitizer while looking at a CRT connected to a computer.
You can specify the mask area and proceed with your work.

[0006]

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above-mentioned computer-based apparatus, due to the resolution limitations of the CRT,
In the above-mentioned apparatus, an image is generally divided into a plurality of parts, and each partial image is displayed on a CRT to designate a mask area and a halftone dot. Therefore, when specifying a wide range of mask areas, it is necessary to specify the mask area by displaying each successive partial image. Such repetitive work is very inefficient, and since such a method requires a long working time, that is, the equipment is occupied for a long time, the efficiency of the retouching work using the equipment is reduced.

[0007] Furthermore, designation of a mask area is performed on an image on a display using a keyboard, a mouse, etc., which is cumbersome and time-consuming, and furthermore, it is not possible to specify a mask area in detail.

Therefore, for example, it is conceivable to designate a mask area by enclosing a line image of a draft manuscript in a closed curve with markers, but since the mask area is automatically specified using the markers, the mask can be masked as desired. You need to check whether the specification was successful. In this case, it may not be possible to display all the images of the draft manuscript on the CRT, which may lead to human errors such as forgetting to check.

[0009] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is possible to easily specify a mask area for a line image of a draft manuscript using a marker, and also to check the mask area over a plurality of mask areas. The purpose of this paper is to provide a method for specifying the area of a draft manuscript that saves skills.

0010

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a method for specifying an area of a draft original according to the present invention is to surround a plurality of line images of the draft manuscript with markers to designate a mask area, and to The line image specified by the marker and its specified position are read by a scanner, and the line image and the mask area are sequentially displayed on the display means according to the position specified by the marker.

[0011]

According to the present invention, a mask area is designated by enclosing a plurality of line images on a draft manuscript with markers, and the line images designated by the markers on the draft manuscript and their designated positions are read by a scanner. Then, the line image and the mask area are sequentially displayed on the display means according to the position specified by the marker. In this way, since only the masked areas designated by the markers are sequentially displayed, the operator can judge whether or not it is appropriate, eliminating problems such as forgetting to check. Further, for example, by comparing the number of designated mask regions with the number of confirmed mask regions, it can be determined whether all of the designated mask regions have been designated.

0012

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing plate mask creation system. Reference numeral 1 denotes a color scanner as an image reading means, which reads and inputs a draft original 2 in which a mask area A, a mask area B, and a mask area C are designated by markers. 3 is a laser printer as an exposure means, which exposes a designated mouse area onto a predetermined film material. An automatic developing machine 4 as a developing means is connected to the laser printer 3, and the exposed film material is developed to form a mask. Reference numeral 5 denotes a frame memory as a storage means, which stores the image read by the color scanner 1 and displays it on the CRT 6. The position of each piece of image information on the frame memory 5 is determined using an image specifying means, such as a mouse 7 or a keyboard 8, and coloring is specified. Further, image information read from the color scanner 1 is transferred to a magnetic disk 10, which is an auxiliary storage means, via an I/O bus 9.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a CPU, which performs mask area recognition, creation, halftone generation, and controls various peripheral devices. 12 is C
This is the memory of the main storage means of the PU 11, and is used to execute programs for various functions. A system bus 13 provides high-speed access between the CPU 11 and the memory 12. 14 is an I/O module, which is an interface that connects the system bus 13 and the I/O bus 9.

Next, the operation of this printing plate character mask creation system will be explained. First, line drawing manuscript 2
Then, the desired mask areas A, B, and C are specified with a color marker, for example, a red marker, and the mask areas are set at a predetermined position on the color scanner 1 and captured as line image information. Color scanner 1 scans the line image masked with color markers in R and G.
, B, and the dye information of, for example, GR is used as mask information using a red color marker.

As for this image information, the block line drawing information is stored in the frame memory 5 via the I/O bus 9, and the marker information is stored in the magnetic disk 10. Information stored in the frame memory 5 is stored in an external storage device as necessary. The CPU 11 automatically identifies a closed area designated by a color marker. Since various methods of closed region extraction processing are known, their explanations will be omitted here. If a closed area cannot be identified, marker information and line image information are displayed simultaneously, and corrections are made so that the marker designated area becomes a closed area. The reason why the line image information is displayed at the same time is to give an idea of the position when specifying the mask closed area. When creating a character mask, check that the mask closed area specified by the marker is appropriate for the line image information, and then
Specify the color code from the color table.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show examples of color tables. The color table consists of color codes and their corresponding colors, Y (yellow) and M (magenta).
, C (cyan), and K (black). For example, for the color with color code 0,
Halftone percentage data of 10, 20, and 00 for each color is defined. Also, if you do not want to generate a flat screen in the transparent part of the mask,
Set the color separation information to be created instead of halftone % information to 1 (present) or 0 (
Expressed with a flag such as (no). 2 and 3 show an example of a color table. The color table should be made into a table by sequentially numbering the different values for each halftone percentage entered for each area of the image in the color separation instruction sheet attached when draft manuscript 2 is submitted. Created by

The color code and dot % information of the color table can be obtained using the keyboard 8 or mouse 7 connected to the system.
and stored on the magnetic disk 10. In order to specify the defined color code, the operator uses the keyboard 8 and mouse 7 to give an instruction to color the closed area extracted from the specified marker with the desired color code. Based on this instruction, a color value corresponding to the color code is set for the pixel corresponding to the mask extraction area in the frame memory 5, and the operator can check the mask designation status and coloring designation status that he or she has specified on the display. can do.

When all the mask specification work is completed, mask information is created for each color plate according to the color code specified to cut out the inside or outside of the closed area specified by the marker, and is output to the laser printer 3, and each corresponding A mask plate or a mask plate 15 on which desired halftone dots are formed for each color separation plate.
~18 are created.

A method for specifying an area on a draft original used in this printing plate mask creation system will be explained. Figure 4 is the main flowchart for specifying the area of the draft manuscript, Figure 5 is a plan view of the draft manuscript, Figure 6 is a diagram showing the CRT display screen, Figure 7 is a diagram showing the information vectorization method, and Figure 8 is the mask area. It is a flowchart of recognition.

In the main flowchart for specifying the area of the draft manuscript in FIG. 4, in step A-1, a plurality of regions to be masked in the line image portion of the draft manuscript are each surrounded by closed curves using color markers, and a plurality of masked regions are defined. Specify. FIG. 5 shows a draft manuscript 20 with a designated mask area,
For example, line images 21 are formed at three locations on this draft original 20, each of which is surrounded by a color marker, and a mask area is designated by a closed curve 22. This draft manuscript 2
The displayable range T of the 0 CRT 6 is shown in FIG. 5 by a two-dot chain line M. The original 20 with this mask area specified is set on the color scanner 1, and the line image specified by the marker on the original 20 and its designated position are read by the color scanner 1 (step A-2). ), the closed curve data and its position data based on this color marker are extracted to recognize the mask area (step A-3), and the line image data within the range of this mask area is searched to trace the outline of the line image 21. Then, each line image area is recognized and set as a mask area (step A-4). The image is processed in this way, and the line image and the mask area are sequentially displayed on the CRT 6 as a display means according to the positions specified by the markers (step A-5).

Next, the flowchart of mask area recognition shown in FIG. 8 will be explained. In step a, image scanning of mask information on the draft manuscript shown in FIG. 5 is started, and by this scanning, it is checked whether the mask information is a closed area, and this closed area is set as a mask area (step b). Next, in order to vectorize the area recognized as a mask area, the outline of the area is determined along the image trajectory X as shown in FIG. 7 at vector reference points T1, T2, T3...
. . . The mask area is vectorized while determining (step c).

In this vectorization, an arbitrary point on the marker line image recognized as a mask area is set as a vector scanning start reference point T1. The vector reference point T scans the marker line, measures the change in the angle between the vector reference points T, T1, and the horizontal line, and determines the preset angle tolerance range from the vector reference point T.
If it is exceeded by scanning, it is set as the vector reference point T2. Thereafter, the angle between the line segment connecting the vector reference points T1 and T2 and the next vector reference point T is sequentially measured, and the marker area is vectorized.

Then, the recognized mask is displayed as shown in FIG. 6 (step d), and the mask is confirmed (step e). If the mask is not confirmed, it is determined whether or not the scanning has ended, and if not, the process moves to step b and is repeated (step f). Once the mask is verified,
A color code is input using the keyboard 8 or mouse 7 according to this mask (step g), and the mask address, vector data, and color code are stored (step h), and the above operations are repeated until the scanning is completed. .

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of mask area recognition according to another embodiment. In step a of FIG. 9, as in the case of FIG. 8, scanning of the image of the draft original shown in FIG. 5, for example, is started, and the mask area is identified by scanning this original image (step b). Then, the recognized mask is vectorized using reference points T1, T2, T3, . . ., found along the image trajectory X, as shown in FIG. 7 (step c). Next, the address of the mask,
Vector data is stored (step d), and steps b to d are repeated until the scanning is completed (
Step e). When this scanning is completed, the stored mask data is called up (step f), and the recognized masks are sequentially displayed as shown in FIG. 6 to confirm the masks (step g). If the mask is not confirmed, it is determined whether it is the final mask or not, and if it is not finished, step f
(Step h). Once the mask is confirmed, a color code is input using the keyboard 8 or mouse 7 according to the mask (step i), and the mask address, vector data, and color code are stored (step j), and the final mask is created. Steps f to h are repeated until the process is completed.

[0025]

Effects of the Invention As described above, the present invention encloses a plurality of line images of a draft manuscript with markers to designate a mask area, and displays the line images designated by the markers of the draft draft and their designated positions. is read by a scanner and the line image and mask area are sequentially displayed on the display means according to the position specified by the marker, so the operator can judge whether it is appropriate or not, eliminating problems such as forgetting to check. Further, for example, by comparing the number of designated mask regions with the number of mask regions that have been confirmed, it can be determined whether all of the designated mask regions have been designated.

[0026] Furthermore, since the mask area is specified without using a keyboard or mouse for the image on the CRT, the operation is simple and the mask area can be specified in detail in a short time. It is possible to appropriately designate a mask area using a marker in a line image of the line image, saving skills and speeding up the work.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a character mask creation system for a printing plate.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a color table.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another example of a color table.

FIG. 4 is a main flowchart for specifying an area of a draft manuscript.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a draft manuscript.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a CRT display screen.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an information vectorization method.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of mask area recognition.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of mask area recognition.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the general process of creating a plate-making film original from a printing manuscript.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Color scanner 2,20　Print version manuscript 3 Laser printer 4 Automatic developing machine 5 Frame memory 6 CRT 7 Mouse 8 Keyboard 10 Magnetic disk 11 CPU 12 Memory 21 Line image 22 Closed curve

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: A mask area is designated by enclosing a plurality of line images on a draft manuscript with markers, and the line images designated by the markers on the draft manuscript and their designated positions are read with a scanner,
A method for specifying an area of a draft manuscript, characterized by sequentially displaying a line image and a mask area on a display means according to a position specified by a marker.