JPH05328092A - Area recognition system for recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To decrease the cost by unnecessitating the setting of the sub scanning scale factor using CPU and to correspond to free registers and the move of the register position by counting a motor clock representing the sub scanning direction of an IIT carriage to take the count value as the sub scanning address of the memory saving the area discrimination result. CONSTITUTION:The recorder having an area recognition function saving the result of the color separation, which is performed on the read image data to fetch area recognition color data by, discriminating it is within or outside the marker area, is provided with a frequency divider 1 reducing the frequency by inputting a carriage motor clock, a cycle circuit 2 providing the synchronization of the frequency-divided clock and the effective picture data range signal VVAD, and a counter 3 counting the effective clock and setting the initial value of the sub scanning address. The count value of the counter 3 is taken as the sub scanning address of reading and writing the memory which saves the discrimination result.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an area recognition system in a recording device such as a digital copying machine or a facsimile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A specific structure of an image reading system, particularly a scanning section in an image processing apparatus such as a digital copying machine or a fax machine, is shown in FIG.

This is a platen 1 on which a document 13 is placed.
A light source 15, a light-guiding member 16 including a rod lens array, and a one-dimensional image sensor 10 such as a CCD are arranged in the lower part of 2, and these are integrated to form a scanning unit. The amount of light received from the image sensor 10 corresponds to the amount of light received from the image sensor 10 in the process of performing optical scanning of the document by moving the scanning unit in parallel (in the direction of the arrow in the figure) with the platen cover 14 placed on the document 13. Based on the detection signal in cell units, image information in a predetermined pixel unit corresponding to a grayscale image, a diagram, characters, etc. drawn on the original 13 is generated. In this way, the pixel information obtained by optically scanning and reading the original is sequentially subjected to correction processing, various pixel editing processings, and the like in pixel units, and then is reproduced as an image on, for example, a print or a display device.

In this type of image processing apparatus, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, for example, a special process, such as a process of shading or coloring, is performed only on the inner region Ei (hatched portion) of the closed loop image L in which one point inside the image drawn in the document 13 is designated. There are things that do
The function of recognizing the image closed loop region for determining whether the pixel whose pixel information has been read is inside or outside the currently specified closed loop L is required. Therefore, for example, the function of recognizing the entire closed-loop L region only by designating an inner point is more advanced in comparison with the function of recognizing the closed-loop region by drawing the closed loop with a marker (AR function: Area Recognition). As a function, for example, an ADAR function (Advanced Area Recognitio)
n), which is conventionally realized as follows.

As shown in FIG. 25, the registration position of the coordinate input device 18 (editor pad) (registration position on the platen 12 is provided by providing plate-shaped input pads corresponding to the respective positions of the document placement permissible area of the platen 12. Corresponding to the inner area of the closed loop image L of the document 13 is designated and input by the pen touch with the editor pen 19 in this state. Then, the information of the designated input position on the input pad is transmitted from the coordinate input device 18 to the image processing device, and the image processing device recognizes the designated position of the corresponding platen 12 in the document placement allowable area. In this state, the document 13 is transferred from the coordinate input device 18 onto the platen 12, and the image information (for example, dot data) obtained by scanning the document by the scanning system is stored in the page memory. Then, the area determination is sequentially performed for each dot starting from the designated position on the page memory where the image dot data is developed, and a special process such as a coloring process (white process) is performed on the dots determined to be in the closed loop L. Convert dots to black dots) as a process on the page memory. Specifically, for example, CRT
C-LSI (for example, Hitachi HD 63484)
Etc.

[0006]

By the way, the CRTC-
Those that use a CRT controller such as LSI are
The CPU writes the data to the VRAM, sends a command to the CRT controller, and instructs the CRAM controller to fill the area surrounded by the marker color of the VRAM.
The RT controller accesses the VRAM and calculates while looking at the data individually to fill the closed loop. When the CPU sends a command to the CRT controller, nothing can be done until the processing ends. As a result, there is a problem that it takes a lot of processing time, and there is a problem that cost is increased because an expensive CRT controller having high versatility is used.

Further, when the area data recognized by the prescan is saved in the memory and output by the copy scan, if the magnification of the copy scan is different from that of the prescan, the enlargement / reduction circuit for the enlargement / reduction in the main scanning direction is performed. Although it is feasible, since the enlargement / reduction is performed in the sub-scanning direction by changing the speed of the carriage, the effective image data range signal (VVAD) is separately counted according to the sub-scanning magnification and the sub-scanning address of the memory is calculated. A circuit for determining is required.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is not necessary to set the sub-scanning magnification by the CPU, which can reduce the cost and can also cope with the free registration and the movement of the registration position. It is an object to provide an area recognition method for a device.

[0009]

According to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, color-separated from read image data and area-recognized color data is fetched, it is judged whether the marker area is inside or outside, and the result is stored in a memory. In a printing apparatus having an area recognition function for saving, a carriage motor clock is input, and a clock divided by a frequency divider 1 and a synchronizing circuit 2 for reducing the frequency is synchronized with VVAD to obtain an effective clock. And a counter 3 for setting an initial value of the sub-scanning address and setting the count value of the counter 3 as a sub-scanning address for reading and writing of the memory in which the determination result is saved. is there.

[0010]

According to the present invention, the region recognition color data is fetched by the forward scan of the prescan to determine whether it is inside or outside the region, the result is saved in the memory, and the memory is read from the reverse direction again by the backscan of the prescan. Then, the result is saved while making a determination, and when the contents of the memory are read and output during the copy scan, the motor clock indicating the position of the carriage of the IIT in the sub-scanning direction is counted, and the count value is read and written in the memory. Since the scan address is used and the CPU does not need to set the sub-scanning magnification, the cost can be reduced.

[0011]

EXAMPLES Examples of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration to which the present invention is applied.

In FIG. 2, 10 is a one-dimensional full-color sensor of the original scanning unit, 20 is a read signal output from the full-color sensor 10 on a cell-by-cell basis in a time-division manner, and color component data (green: G, blue) in a predetermined pixel unit. : B, red: R) and efficiently output them, and the full color sensor 10 and the sensor interface circuit 20 constitute an image input unit. Fifty
Is a color separation circuit for generating density information and color information in pixel units from each color component data (GBR) from the sensor interface circuit 20 and further marker color information for designating a closed loop, and density information D of 256 gradations and color information. As a sub color flag SCF corresponding to the sub color "red" and a main color flag MCF corresponding to the main color "black" are generated. Reference numeral 70 denotes an area recognizing circuit. The area recognizing circuit 70, based on the mark color information (ARCF1, ARCF2) output from the color separation circuit 50, reads a pixel of a closed loop image on the original document designated by the marker. The inside or outside is determined, and the result is output for each pixel. The determination result here is ARDT1 in the first AR area indicating the inside of the closed loop area specified by the first AR color marker, and ARDT2 in the second AR area indicating the inside of the closed loop area specified by the second AR color marker. , Out-of-area A showing outside of both the first AR area and the second AR area
There are three types of ROUT. 150 is a color separation circuit 50
A correction / filter circuit for performing various corrections and filter processes on the density information D and the color information (SCF, MCF) from the reference numeral 160, for the density information and color information (SCF, MCF) passed through the correction / filter circuit 150. Expansion, reduction,
An editing / processing circuit that performs editing and processing such as color inversion. In the correction / filter circuit 150 and the editing / processing circuit 160, the area recognition circuit 70 is specified by an area specified by a CPU (not shown). Judgment information from (A
Based on (RDFT1, ARDT2, AROUT), it has a function of performing predetermined editing and processing only on the designated area.

As described above, the correction / filter circuit 1
The density information D and the color information (SCF, MCF) 50 which have undergone various processes in the editing circuit 50 and the editing / processing circuit 160 are supplied to a specific image forming apparatus via the interface circuit 230. The image forming apparatus includes a laser printer 240 that reproduces two colors and an image transceiver 270.
Furthermore, the density information D and the color information are provided to the computer 280, stored in an auxiliary storage device (magnetic disk device, etc.) of the computer 280, and the information is used by various end devices. Aspects are also possible. When the laser printer 150 is connected, a two-color copying machine is configured as a whole, and when the image transceiver 270 is connected, a facsimile is configured as a whole.

The specific structure of the editing / processing circuit 160 is as shown in FIG. 3, for example. In this example, the editing / processing circuit 160 performs a color inversion circuit 161 that performs processing such as conversion of the main color (black) and sub color (red), a whitening circuit 190 that converts black characters into white characters, and a shading process. The editing / processing circuit 1 includes a shaded circuit 200 for performing, and a negative / positive inversion circuit 210 for inverting the main color (black) or the sub color (red) and white.
The density data D, the sub color flag SCF, and the main color flag MCF that are supplied to each pixel for 60 are serially processed in each circuit. If the process is not necessary, the process for the density data D in the corresponding circuit is not performed and the data path is used as it is.

It is of course possible to include another processing circuit for editing / processing in the editing / processing circuit 160.
A CPU (not shown) for each processing circuit (color inverting circuit 161, white circuit 190, halftone circuit 200, negative / positive inverting circuit 210) of the editing / processing circuit 160.
From the first area setting signal (closed loop area designated by the marker of the first AR color) AR1, the second area setting signal (second AR)
A closed loop area AR2 designated by a color marker and an out-of-area setting signal (outer area of both the first AR area and the second AR area) AROUT are given. Further, the area recognition circuit 70 sends the first area data ARDT1, the second area data ARDT2 and the out-of-area data AROUT to each processing circuit. Out-of-area data A
ROUT is created as a signal that becomes active when both the first area data ARDT1 and the second area data ARDT2 become 0. In each processing circuit, when the area setting signal is input from the CPU, only the area set based on the area data from the area recognition circuit 70 is set and the data is passed to the other areas.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of the area recognition circuit 70. The area recognition circuit 70 performs an input / output processing unit 70-1 that performs input / output processing of the first AR color data obtained through the color separation circuit 50, a determination processing unit 70-2 that performs area determination, and an input / output processing of the second AR color data. Input / output processing unit 70-
3. The determination processing unit 70-4 is provided so that the two-color markers can be recognized. Further, the area recognition circuit 70 is CP
Controlled by the CPU 30 via the U interface 75,
An AR enable circuit 71, a line timing control circuit 72, a clock timing control circuit 73, a line counter 76, a determination address counter 74, and a page buffer address counter 77, which will be described later, are provided.

The input / output processing units 70-1 and 70-3 store the AR color data separated by the color separation circuit 50 in the line buffer 60 and perform the input correction described later. Further, the determination processing units 70-2 and 70-4 determine the inside / outside of the area in the prescan and the forward scan for the data written in the line buffer 60, and the determination result is the address designated by the determination memory address counter 74. Is stored in the determination line memory 61. That is, in the forward scan, while sequentially reading the contents of the determination line memory 61, the determination process for the determination pixel is performed by referring to the data one line before and the data adjacent to one pixel, and the result is stored in the page buffer memory 62. Store. Next, during the back scan of the prescan, the page buffer memory 6
The contents of 2 are read and the judgment is made again. Then, the contents of the page buffer memory 62 are determined again by the AR color data obtained through the color separation circuit 50 during the copy scan.
The result of rough judgment by the prescan is finely corrected by the copy scan, and fine area recognition is performed.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the AR enable circuit of FIG. In the present invention, the result is roughly determined by the pre-scan, the result is stored, and the determination result in the pre-scan is corrected by the data read at a fine interval during the copy scan. It cannot be corrected if the position changes. However, if the number of lines is counted as an address during copy scanning, the position will change depending on the magnification. Therefore, in the present invention, the reduction rate is fast, the enlargement rate is slow, the distance per clock is changed, and the total number of motor clocks does not change depending on the magnification. The sub-scanning address is used. So 1
The motor clock for every / 16 mm is passed through the inverter 80 and divided by the frequency divider 88 by 16 to obtain an address signal in units of 1 mm. Then, the scan 1 (prescan forward scan) and scan 3 (copy scan) are selected by the selectors 81 and 82 by the page synchronization signal (page sync, PS), and the motor clock signal is latched by the signal obtained through the OR circuit 90. , To obtain the sub-scanning address. Further, the scan 2 (pre-scan back scan) signal is latched by the latch circuit 91 by the VVAD signal indicating the effective range of the data, and the scan 2 signal is obtained.

Next, an outline of the area recognition algorithm will be described. In the present invention, it is possible to perform the area determination for the two colors of the first AR color and the second AR color, and the AR mode is set by the CPU before the prescan starts. As shown in FIG. 6, the AR mode in the present invention is surrounded by a free-type mode for recognizing a specified color image data and a closed loop area by the color image data, and a specified color image data and surrounded by the color image data. There are four AR modes: a fill mode for recognizing the image data area, a rectangular mode for recognizing a circumscribed quadrangle area of the specified color image data, and a one-point instruction mode for recognizing an image closed loop area containing the specified color. 2 bit data is (00) in free mode and (0 in fill mode).
1), the rectangular mode is (10), and the one-point instruction mode is (1
1), default (00), first AR
Different AR modes can be set for two colors, the color and the second AR color.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the processing during the prescan forward scan. The copy cycle starts from the forward scan of the pre-scan, and when the carriage advances to the position of the tip of the platen glass, the AR color data and the image data start to be fetched, and the page sync signal input to the area recognition circuit is the data fetch It stands up at the start point (of FIG. 7).
After that, each time the carriage advances a certain distance, the inside / outside of the area for one line is determined from the AR color data and the image data by an algorithm described later, and the result is saved in the page memory (see FIG. 7). Area). The above processing is performed until the carriage reaches the position of the last end (for example, 432 mm in the case of the platen glass for A3 original) when the data is fetched from the front end of the platen glass or the page sync signal becomes LOW (in FIG. 7). As described with reference to FIG. 5, the carriage position is detected by counting the carriage motor clock after the page sync signal rises. In this copying machine, the accuracy of the page memory in the sub-scanning direction is 1 mm. The inside / outside of the area for one line in the main scanning direction is determined every time the motor clock count reaches 1 mm.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the process at the time of the back scan of the pre-scan. No image data comes in during pre-scan back scan, and the judgment result of the forward scan saved in the page memory is read from the rear edge of the platen glass and the judgment is made from the direction opposite to that of the forward scan. , Save the result again in page memory. In this case, since input data such as AR color data does not come in, when the back scan starts and the back scan signal rises, the determination from the final line (431) starts immediately (FIG. 8).
of). After that, unlike the forward scan,
The determination processing of each line is performed according to the internal processing timing regardless of the position of the carriage (FIG. 8). This processing is performed until the processing of all lines is completed (in FIG. 8). During the back scan, the determination process proceeds regardless of the position of the carriage, so that the actual determination process ends earlier than the carriage returns to the leading end position of the platen glass as illustrated.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the processing during the forward scan of the copy scan. During the copy scan, the AR color data and the image data are taken in from the leading edge of the document (the rising edge of the page sync signal).
The area inside / outside is judged from the AR color data and the black image data for every two lines (VVAD) of the input data and the judgment result read from the page memory, and the result is output. Note that VVAD is a signal indicating a valid range as image data in the sub scanning direction. With such a process, the determination result at the time of back scanning is rough with an accuracy of 1 mm, but the reading at the time of copy scanning is fine, so that the correction of smoothing the contour of the area is performed. In this case, the read line address of the page memory is different from the number of lines of the input data, and it is necessary to count the carriage motor clock from the rising edge of the page sync signal and increment the line address by 1 mm.

Further, even if the document is placed at an arbitrary position, a function such as "free registration" for aligning the registration position with the leading end of the document, "moving" for moving the register to a designated position, or "centering" is selected. In this case, since the rising edge of the page sync signal is not always the position of the line address = 0, which is the tip of the platen glass, from the end of the prescan back scan to the start of the copy scan forward scan (page sync Until the signal rises), the page memory read line address (A
RSLA) is set from the CPU. Therefore, the read line address of the page memory is ARSLA, every time the carriage advances 1 mm from the rise of the page sync signal.
ARSLA + 1, ARSLA + 2, ... And increase, and such line address is performed until 432 is reached or the page sync signal becomes LOW.

Next, a basic determination algorithm will be described. The basic algorithm is common to all cases of the free mode, the fill mode, the rectangular mode, and the one-point instruction mode. First, in the forward scan of the prescan, the main scanning direction, the anti-main scanning direction, and the sub-scanning direction are three directions. The input data is judged from and the judgment result is saved in the page memory. During the back scan of the pre-scan, the determination result saved in the page memory is read, the determination is performed again from the three directions of the main scanning direction, the anti-main scanning direction, and the anti-sub scanning direction, and the determination result is saved in the page memory. Finally, the input data and the determination result saved in the page memory during the forward scan of the copy scan are finally determined from the main scanning direction, the anti-main scanning direction, and the sub-scanning direction to determine the inside / outside of the area. .. As described above, the determination from the three directions is basic in any scan, and the determination from the three directions is performed by the primary determination and the secondary determination as described below.

FIG. 10 is for explaining the primary judgment. First, primary determination is performed from two directions, the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction (or the anti-sub-scanning direction). That is, FIG.
As shown in (a), the primary determination result adjacent to one pixel obtained by latching the primary determination result and the determination line memory 61.
Judgment of the judgment pixel one line before and the input data is performed, and the judgment pixel indicated by diagonal lines as shown in FIG. 10B is the judgment result one line before and one pixel next to the one pixel. The inside / outside of the area is determined with reference to the next determination result, and the result is written in the determination line memory 61.

FIG. 11 is for explaining the secondary judgment. In the secondary determination, information from the anti-main scanning direction is added to the result of the primary determination to determine the determination result for one line. In this case, since there is no input data from the anti-main scanning direction, the determination line memory 6 that saves the result of the primary determination
Information from the anti-main scanning direction is added by rereading 1 from the anti-main scanning direction, contrary to the time of saving. That is, as shown in FIG. 11B, in order to make a determination from the secondary determination result adjacent to the determination pixel by one pixel,
As shown in 1 (a), the primary determination result read from the determination line memory 61 and the secondary determination result are latched 1
Judgment is made from the secondary judgment result next to the pixel, and the result is written in the judgment line memory.

From such a determination algorithm, at least in the main scanning direction, reading of the line memory, determination,
The line memory write requires 3 VCLK (VCLK: a signal indicating the period during which the data of one image is fixed), and 2 VVAD processing time for the primary determination and the secondary determination in the sub-scanning direction. Considering simplification and memory cost, the accuracy of judgment / output is main scanning direction = 4VCLK,
Sub-scanning direction = 2VVAD. Therefore, the capacity of the judgment line memory 61 required for the judgment data to be 2 bits per color is 4672/4 × 2 × 2 = 116.
Since it is 8 words × 4 bits, a 2K word × 8 bits SRAM is used. On the other hand, the precision of the page memory 62 for saving the determination result of the pre-scan is set to correspond to the main scanning direction = 8 VCLK and the sub-scanning direction = 1 mm in order to reduce the cost. As a result, the required capacity of the page memory 62 is 46.
72/8 × 432 × 2 × 2 = 246 K words × 4 bits, so 256 K words × 4 bits DRAM is used.

Basically, each of the algorithms for the above-described primary determination and secondary determination is "marker color pixels and non-density pixels (white pixels) adjacent to the marker color pixels are in a closed loop".
However, the specific judgment result is "O" ...
Outside the image closed loop, "M" ... area including marker, "I"
… In the image closed loop. The determination result is handled in the system as status information, and finally, the pixel with the status "I" is inside the image closed loop designated by the marker, and the other pixels are outside the image closed loop.

Next, referring to FIG. 12, a case will be described where the sub-scanning direction is M lines and the main scanning direction is the Nth pixel (target pixel). For example, in the determination in the forward scan of the pre-scan, first in the main scanning direction, as shown in FIG. 12A, the image data (density data) of the target pixel, the marker color information, and the determination result of the pixel further adjacent to the image data, That is, the main scanning direction determination result (temporary status) of the previous pixel (N-1th) of the same line (M line)
Based on the determination result of the same one pixel (Nth) of the previous line (M-1), the target pixel (hatched portion in the figure) is determined. The determination result in the main scanning direction becomes the primary determination result and is stored in the memory as the temporary status (KS).
After the determination of each pixel in the main scanning direction is completed in this way, the determination from the opposite side, that is, the determination in the anti-main scanning direction is performed. As shown in FIG. 12B, the target pixel (hatched portion) is determined based on the determination result of the previous pixel (N + 1th) in the same line of the target pixel, and the determination result is the secondary determination result. Then, the temporary status (KS) of the target pixel stored in the memory is rewritten into status (S) information. In this way, the determination from both the main scanning direction and the anti-main scanning direction is sequentially performed for each line, and the determination from the 0th line to the 431th line ends the determination at the time of back scanning.

In the back scan of the pre-scan, the determination is made in the main scan direction as shown in FIG. 12C, at the pixel (N-1) th previous pixel on the same line (M line).
The target pixel is determined based on the main scanning direction determination result (temporary status) and the determination result of the same position pixel (Nth) of the previous line (M + 1 line). The determination result in the main scanning direction becomes the temporary status (KS), and the determination result stored in the memory is rewritten to this temporary status (KS). After the determination of each pixel in the main scanning direction is completed, the determination in the anti-main scanning direction is performed. As in the case of the forward scan, as shown in FIG. 12D, the target pixel (hatched portion) is determined based on the determination result of the previous pixel (N + 1th) in the same line of the target pixel, and The determination result becomes the secondary determination result and becomes the final status (S) information.

According to such a determination method, the main scanning direction and the anti-main scanning direction are determined at the time of forward scanning and back scanning, respectively. Therefore, one pixel is determined from the four directions of up, down, left and right. , An accurate determination result can be obtained.

Based on the above determination, for example, FIG.
For the closed loop as shown in (a), the status "M" is given to the pixel on the marker, the status "I" is given to the inside of the area, and the status "O" is given to the outside of the area. Note that, as shown in FIG. 13B, in the main scanning direction, for example, for the pixels in the shaded area, the pixel at the same position one line before and the pixel one pixel before both have the status “M”.
Therefore, it is determined that the area is within the area, and the status is “I”.
May be given, and status “I” may be sequentially given to the pixels following it. In this case, FIG.
As shown in (c), since the status "I" cannot occur from the first pixel in the anti-main scanning direction, this is rewritten to the status "O", and the correct determination is guaranteed.

Next, noise removal and connection correction will be described. For example, in the one-point designating mode, it is not preferable to recognize even small points such as dust.
Therefore, in order to recognize only a marker having a certain size or more as a marker, for example, as shown in FIG. 14A, one dot is delayed by the latch circuits 101 and 102 in the main scanning direction, and three dots are delayed. AND circuit 100 when continuous
To detect noise. Of course, the number of dots is not limited to three, and may be two dots in succession or may be detected when more dots are continuous. By such a process, it is possible to prevent a marker having a size of 1 mm or less from being recognized as a marker. Further, as shown in FIG. 14B, the FIFOs 105 and 106 shift the lines one line at a time in the sub-scanning direction so that the output can be obtained when a plurality of lines are continuous.
By doing so, for example, it is possible to prevent a marker of 1 mm or less in the sub-scanning direction from being picked up.

In addition, a free mode, a fill mode,
In the case of rectangular mode, if a marker of 1 mm or less is not recognized, a thick marker must be prepared. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14C, the latch circuits 111 and 112 shift the pixels one pixel at a time in the main scanning direction, and the OR circuit 110 takes an OR of, for example, three pixels. For F, as shown in FIG.
It is possible to recognize thin markers of 1 mm or less by shifting the IFOs 115 and 116 one line at a time and ORing several lines. As described above, according to the present invention, the input / output unit of the area recognition circuit changes the correction method according to the AR mode to perform the input correction suitable for the mode.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 15 (a), even if the closed loop area is designated by the marker, if the black image data is under the marker, the AR color cannot be detected on the black image data, and as a result, As shown in FIG. 15B, the marker may be interrupted and an incomplete closed loop may not be detected. Therefore, free mode,
In the case of the fill mode and the rectangular mode, FIG.
The OR circuit of (d) is used to simply take the OR of 1 mm to correct the break in the AR color data.

Next, a free type mode determination algorithm will be described. In the free mode, the AR color detects the input area and the closed loop area by the AR color. When a plurality of AR colors are adjacent to each other or intersect with each other, the closed loop is detected by the outermost AR color data. For example, when there is AR color data as shown in FIG. 16A, a prescan forward scan is first performed to recognize a rough area and store it in a page memory as shown in FIG. 16B. In this case, the area surrounded by the AR color is detected when viewed from the three directions of the main scanning direction, the anti-main scanning direction, and the sub-scanning direction. I will erroneously judge that. However, during the back scan of the pre-scan, as described above, the determination result of the forward is read from the page memory, the determination as viewed from the anti-sub-scanning direction is performed again, and the inside / outside of the area is determined to determine the shadow of the AR color. The erroneous determination of the part of is eliminated. However, since the pre-scan determination accuracy is a coarse unit of 1 mm, the output is not output as it is, but the read data is compared with the read data at fine intervals during the copy scan, and the determination is made as shown in FIG. 16 (d). Fine area recognition can be performed.

The calculation rule for determining the free type mode is shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), the status “O” (outside the closed loop), “M” (above the AR color) of the secondary determination result one line before,
A combination of "I" (in a closed loop except on the AR color) and statuses "O", "M", and "I" of the primary determination result of one pixel left, as shown in FIG. The next primary judgment result is "O", and the judgment result at the same position one line before is "M"
17C, the determination pixel is “O”, and as shown in FIG. 17C, when the determination result of one line before is “M” and the primary determination result of one pixel next is “M”, the determination pixel is Is "I" and 1
If the determination result before the line is “I”, and the primary determination result next to the one pixel is “I”, the determination pixel is “I”, the determination result before the one line is “O”, the primary determination next to the pixel is When the determination result is “O” or “M”, the determination pixel is set to “O”, and the status of the determination pixel is sequentially determined.

The judgment operation in this free mode is shown in FIG.
The tables shown in (a) to (e) are used.

During the forward scan of the prescan: In the case of the primary judgment, the AR color data = 1, that is, when the data on the marker comes in, the calculation table of FIG. The status of the determination result, the status of the primary determination result of 1 pixel left is “O”, “M”,
Whether the status is "I" or not, the operation for setting the status of the determination pixel to "M" is performed. When the AR color data = 0, that is, when the marker color is not detected, the secondary determination result of one line before is “O” or the primary determination of one pixel left according to the calculation table of FIG. When the resulting status is "O", the determination pixel is "O", and the other pixels are 1
If the status of the secondary determination result before the line and the status of the primary determination result on the left of one pixel are “M” or “I”, the determination pixel is determined to be “I”. Therefore, if one line before or one pixel left is outside the closed loop, the decision pixel is always outside.

In the case of the secondary judgment, the calculation table of FIG. 18 (e) is used. Since the secondary determination is performed in the anti-main scanning direction, a determination is made from the status of the secondary determination result on the right of one pixel and the status of the primary determination result of the determination pixel, and the status of the primary determination result of the determination pixel is " If “O”, the determination pixel is “O” regardless of the status of the secondary determination result to the right of the one pixel, and 1 if the primary determination result status of the determination pixel is “M”. “M” is set regardless of the status of the secondary determination result on the right side of the pixel.
However, the status of the secondary determination result on the right of one pixel is "O".
If the status of the primary determination result of the determination pixel is “I”, it is rewritten as “O”.

At the time of pre-scan back scan, the determination result stored in the page memory is read out to perform the primary determination and the secondary determination. First, in the primary determination, when the content of the page memory is “M”, the operation table of FIG. 18A is used, and when the content of the page memory is “I”, the operation table of FIG. 18B is used. If the content of the page memory is “O”, the calculation table of FIG. 18C is used. Figure 1
8 (a) and 8 (b) is the same as the case of the forward scan of the prescan, but in the operation table of FIG. 18 (c), when the content of the page memory is "O", the previous line is It is set to "O" regardless of the status of the secondary determination result and the status of the primary determination result of the pixel left. Therefore, a pixel that has been determined to be "O" in the prescan forward scan is always determined to be "O" in the prescan back scan. For the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 18E is used as in the case of the forward scan.

During forward scan of copy scan When the AR color data is 1 in the primary determination, that is, when the data on the marker comes in, the status is always set to "M" using the calculation table of FIG. 18 (a), When the AR color data is 0, that is, there is no marker color, the page memory content is “M”, and the image data is 1, the calculation table of FIG. Status, 1
Only when both of the statuses of the primary determination results on the left side of the pixel are "O", "O" is set, and otherwise, "M" is set. Also, A
When the R color data is 0, the content of the page memory is “M”, and the image data is 0, the calculation table of FIG.
The determination pixel is set to "O" only when the secondary determination result of one line before is "O" or the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left is "O", and the other secondary determination result of one line before If the status of 1) and the status of the primary determination result on the left of one pixel are “M” or “I”, the determination pixel is determined to be “I”. When AR color data = 0, the content of the page memory is “I”
18B, the calculation table of FIG. 18B is used. When AR color data = 0 and the content of the page memory is “O”, FIG.
All are set to "O" using the calculation table of (c). In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 18 (e) is used as in the case of the prescan.

FIG. 19 is for explaining the algorithm for judging the filling mode. In the fill mode, the AR color data area and the black or red image data area surrounded by the AR color data are areas filled with the AR color, and the image data is filled with the AR color data as shown in FIG. 19A, for example. And FIG. 19 (b)
A region as shown in is recognized. In this case, the area filled with the marker is different from the area in which the marker color is detected.For example, even if the user intends to fill the black image with the blue marker, only black is detected on the black image.
It is unknown whether the color detected when the color image is filled with the blue marker is blue, the color of the original document image, or the combined color of the marker and the document image. Therefore, in the fill mode, the AR color data area and the black or red image data area surrounded by the AR color data are areas filled with the AR color. In this case, when the free type mode is detected, it is recognized as shown in FIG. 19C, and when it is ANDed with the image data, it becomes as shown in FIG. 19D, but the fill mode is different from such detection. I understand that.

AR is used as a calculation rule for determining the filling mode.
The status is defined as "M" on the color, "I" inside the filled area (except on the AR color), and "O" outside the filled area, and determined using the operation table of FIG. 18 as in the free type mode. I do.

Pre-scan forward scan When AR color data = 1 in the primary determination, FIG.
Calculation table of (a), when AR color data = 0 and image data = 1, calculation table of FIG. 18 (b), calculation table of AR color data = 0 and image data = 0, calculation table of FIG. 18 (c) To use. Two
For the next determination, the calculation table of FIG. 18 (e) is used.

At the time of pre-scan back scan When the content of the page memory is "M" in the primary judgment,
The operation table of FIG. 8A, the operation table of FIG. 18B when the content of the page memory is “I”, and the operation table of FIG. 18C when the content of the page memory is “O” are used. The secondary judgment is shown in FIG.
The calculation table of (e) is used.

During forward scan of copy scan When AR color data is 1 in the primary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 18A shows that AR color data = 0, image data = 1, and page memory content is “M”. 18 (d), if the AR color data = 0, the image data = 1, and the content of the page memory is “I”, the calculation table of FIG.
When the R color data = 0 and the image data = 1 and the content of the page memory is “O”, the calculation table of FIG. 18C is shown. When the AR color data = 0 and the image data = 0, the calculation table of FIG. Use the calculation table. The calculation table of FIG. 18E is used for the secondary determination.

FIG. 20 is for explaining the rectangular mode determination algorithm. In the rectangular mode, since the rectangular area that can be detected only by the forward scan and the rectangular area that can be detected by the back scan are different, the page memory is always required. That is, FIG.
When AR color data such as 0 (a) is detected, the area indicated by the diagonal lines in FIG. 20 (b) is recognized in the prescan forward scan, and the determination result is further rescanned in the area from the back scan direction. By determining the inside / outside, the shaded area as shown in FIG. 20D is determined. However, as described above, since the determination accuracy of the pre-scan is rough, this area is not output as it is, and it is the data acquired during the forward scan of the copy scan.
The determination result of 0 (d) is corrected, and a fine area determination as shown in FIG. 20 (c) is performed.

This rectangular mode determination algorithm is 4
Two statuses are defined, "M" on the AR color, "I" inside the rectangular area (except on the AR color), "O" outside the rectangular area, and "O"("I") that may be "I". Exists only in the primary judgment, and is determined to be "O" or "I" in the secondary judgment)
Is defined as "O '", and the determination is performed using the calculation table as shown in FIG.

Pre-scan forward scan In the primary judgment, when AR color data = 1, FIG. 21 (a)
The calculation table is used, and the determination pixel is set to “M” regardless of the status of the secondary determination result one line before and the status of the primary determination result one pixel left. AR color data = 0
In this case, the calculation table shown in FIG.
When the status of the secondary determination result before the line is “O”, it is determined as “O” regardless of the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left, and the status of the secondary determination result one line before is “M”. , “I”, and the status of the primary determination result on the left of one pixel is “O” or “O ′”, the status of the secondary determination result of one line before is “M”. ],
When the status of the primary determination result of "I" and one pixel left is "M" and "I", the determination pixel is "I".

Then, in the secondary judgment, the operation table of FIG. 21 (e) is used, and the area judged as "O '" is rewritten as "O" or "I", as shown in FIG. 20 (b). The area is determined by the secondary judgment.

At the time of pre-scan back scan In the primary judgment, when the content of the page memory is "M", the operation table of FIG. 21A is used, and when the content of the page memory is "I". The calculation table of FIG. 21C is used. In the calculation table of FIG. 21C, if the status of the primary determination result on the left by one pixel is “I”, the status is “I” regardless of the status of the secondary determination result of one line before.
In (b), the missing part (“O”) of the rectangular area is rewritten as “I”. When the content of the page memory is “O”, the calculation table of FIG. 21B is used. In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 21 (e) is used similarly.

During forward scan of copy scan When the AR color data is 1 in the primary determination and the content of the page memory is "M" or "I", the determination is made using the calculation table of FIG. 21 (a). All pixels are set to "M" and AR color data 1
If the content of the page memory is “O” in FIG.
According to the status of the secondary determination result of one line before, regardless of the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left, the calculation table of (d) is used, "O" for "O" and "M" Is "M", and in the case of "I", it is determined to be replaced with "M". When the AR color data = 0 and the page memory is “M” or “I”, the calculation table of FIG. 21C is used, and when the AR color data is 0 and the page memory is “O”, FIG. The calculation table of (b) is used. In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 21 (e) is similarly used.

FIG. 22 is for explaining the determination algorithm in the one-point instruction mode. In the 1-point instruction mode,
A closed loop is detected in the binarized data of the image, and the white image area adjacent to the AR color data in the closed loop and the AR
The color area is detected as the inside of the area. In the one-point instruction mode as well as in the rectangular mode, the area that can be detected only by the forward scan and the area that can be detected only by the back scan are different, so a page memory is required, and the determination result of the forward scan is determined in the back scan direction. The inside / outside of the area is determined by making a determination again from. That is, when the AR color is present in the image data in the closed loop as shown in FIG. 22A, the diagonally shaded area determined by the image data and the AR color is first shown in FIG. 22B by forward scanning. Recognized,
Next, the white area in FIG. 22B is detected as the inside of the area by the back scan determination, and the area as shown in FIG. 22D is determined. Then, in the forward scan of the copy scan, the determination result of the prescan is corrected, and a fine area is determined as shown in FIG.

The status defined in the one-point designating mode is "I" for the area including the AR color in the image closed loop,
The image area is defined as “M”, the area outside the image closed loop is defined as “O”, and the area within the image closed loop but not including the AR color is defined as “O ′”, and the determination is performed using the calculation table shown in FIG.

During prescan forward scan When the image data = 1 in the primary determination, the conversion table of FIG. 23A is used and all the determination pixels are set to “M”. When the image data = 0 and the AR color data = 1, FIG.
The calculation table of (b) is used, and the determination pixel is set to “I” unless either the status of the secondary determination result of one line before or the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left is “O”. When image data = 0 and AR color data = 0, FIG.
When the status of the secondary determination result of one line before is “I”, the calculation table of (c) is used, and the determination pixel is “I” unless the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left is “O”. If the status of the primary determination result on the left of one pixel is "I", it is determined to be "I" unless the status of the secondary determination result one line before is "O". In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 23 (d) is used.

During prescan backscan When the content of the page memory is "M" in the primary determination, the operation table of FIG. 23A is used, all the determination pixels are set to "M", and the page memory If "I" is shown in FIG.
The operation table of (b) is used, and in the case of the page memory “O”, the operation table of FIG. 23 (c) is used. The calculation table of FIG. 23D is similarly used for the secondary determination. In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 23 (d) is used.

When the forward scan of the copy scan: In the primary judgment, when the image data = 1, FIG.
All the determination pixels are set to “M” by using the operation table of (a), and when the image data = 0 and the content of the page memory is “I”, the operation table of FIG. 23 (b) is used, All determination pixels are set to “I” except when the status of the secondary determination result of one line before is “O” and the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left is “O”. If the image data = 0 and the page memory is not “I”, FIG. 23C is used.
If the status of the secondary determination result of one line before is "I", the determination pixel is "I" unless the status of the primary determination result of one pixel left is "O", and the primary determination result of one pixel left Is "I", the determination pixel is "I" unless the status of the secondary determination result one line before is "O". In the case of the secondary determination, the calculation table of FIG. 23 (d) is used.

As described above, the present invention is provided with a plurality of AR modes, which can be arbitrarily selected only by changing the algorithm (selection of the calculation table), and the area can be recognized independently for two designated colors. , You can select different area recognition mode for each specified color.
For example, if the first AR color is blue and the free mode is selected, the second AR
It is possible to set the R color to green and set it to the rectangular mode.

[0061]

As described above, according to the present invention, the motor clock indicating the position of the carriage of the IIT in the sub-scanning direction is counted, and the count value is used as the sub-scanning address of the memory in which the area determination result is saved. Area recognition can be performed without any setting even if the magnification is changed. Moreover, by setting the initial value of the sub-scanning address as the movement amount data in motor clock units, free registration and registration can be performed. It is possible to deal with the movement of the position.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an area recognition circuit of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of an area recognition circuit and an editing / processing circuit.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of an area recognition circuit.

5 is a block diagram of the AR enable circuit of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an AR mode.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a process during a prescan forward scan.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a process during a prescan back scan.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a process during a forward scan of a copy scan.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a primary determination.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating secondary determination.

FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the determination of the M line in the sub-scanning direction and the Nth pixel in the main scanning direction.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an area recognition method.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating input correction.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating connection correction.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a free mode.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a determination method.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an operation table used in the free mode.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a fill mode.

FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a rectangular mode.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an operation table used in the rectangular mode.

FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a one-point instruction mode.

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a calculation table used in the 1-point instruction mode.

FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating a conventional scanning optical system and area recognition.

FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating a conventional editor pad.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 ... Divider, 2 ... Synchronous circuit, 3 ... Counter.

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] May 27, 1992

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be corrected] Drawing

[Correction target item name] All drawings

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Figure 1]

FIG. 25

[Fig. 2]

[Figure 3]

[Figure 4]

[Figure 5]

[Figure 6]

FIG. 19

[Figure 7]

[Figure 8]

[Figure 9]

[Figure 10]

FIG. 15

FIG. 11

[Fig. 12]

[Fig. 13]

FIG. 16

FIG. 14

FIG. 17

FIG. 20

FIG. 22

FIG. 18

FIG. 24

FIG. 21

FIG. 23

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A recording apparatus having an area recognition function, wherein a color separation is performed from read image data to acquire area recognition color data, it is determined whether the area is inside or outside a marker area, and the result is saved in a memory. Of the recording apparatus, which is provided with a counter that counts a motor clock indicating a position in the sub-scanning direction of the memory and sets an initial value of the sub-scanning address, and uses the count value of the counter as the sub-scanning address of the memory. Area recognition method.