JPH07231370A - Picture processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a small facsimile equipment convenient for carrying. CONSTITUTION:To the main body part 12 of an electronic notebook size, a lid part 14 provided with a liquid crystal display panel 18 is openably and closably attached and a pen type CCD camera 16 is connected. A transmission original is read by the CCD camera 16 and displayed at the liquid crystal display panel 18. While looking at the liquid crystal display panel 18, a camera input lightness adjustment variable resistor 31 and a camera input density adjustment variable resistor 32 are operated and picture data for transmission are adjusted in a picture adjustment circuit and a picture generation circuit. The adjusted picture data are stored in a picture storage circuit and the stored picture data are sent out through a modem device to a communication line. Thus, the facsimile equipment 11 is miniaturized, the picture data are easily adjusted and the picture data are read from a three-dimensional object.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus for reading an image and processing the read image data.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a facsimile apparatus provided with a so-called contact type line image sensor has been used. Then, when the transmission original is read by this facsimile apparatus, the single-sheet transmission original is inserted from the original insertion port. The line image sensor sequentially reads and transmits the image data to be transmitted, while the line image sensor conveys the transmitted document in close contact with the line image sensor.

[0003]

However, when the contact type line image sensor is used as in the above-mentioned conventional technique, it is necessary to convey the transmission document while closely contacting the line image sensor. Limited to flat cut sheets. Further, in order to read the transmission document, a line image sensor having a longitudinal dimension equal to or larger than the width dimension of the transmission document is required, so that the facsimile apparatus becomes large. Further, since it takes a long time to read the transmission document, when the adjustment work such as the number of gradations and the density is performed at the time of reading, the reading work must be performed repeatedly, which causes a problem that the work becomes complicated. There is.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and can read images of various types of objects, can downsize the apparatus, and can easily perform adjustment work when reading images. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing device capable of achieving the following.

[0005]

An image processing apparatus according to claim 1 is a non-contact type image pickup means for reading an image, an image adjustment means for adjusting the image data output from the image pickup means, and the image adjustment. Comprising image storage means for storing the image data output from the means, and image display means for displaying at least one of the image data output from the image adjusting means and the image data stored in the image storage means Is.

An image processing apparatus according to a second aspect is the image processing apparatus according to the first aspect.
The described image processing apparatus is provided with a communication control means for sending out the image data stored in the image storage means to a communication line.

An image processing apparatus according to a third aspect is the image processing apparatus according to the first aspect.
Alternatively, in the image processing device described in the paragraph 2, the image adjusting means adjusts the brightness and the contrast of the image data output from the image pickup means.

[0008]

In the image processing apparatus according to claim 1, the operator is
The image of the object is read by the non-contact type image pickup means facing the object. Then, the image data output from the image pickup means is displayed on the image display means. The operator operates the image adjustment means while watching the image displayed on the image display means, adjusts the image data, and stores the desired image data in the image storage means.

According to the image processing apparatus of the second aspect, in addition to the operation of the first aspect, the image data stored in the image storage means is sent to the communication line by the communication control means.

In the image processing apparatus according to the third aspect, in addition to the operation according to the first or second aspect, the image adjusting means adjusts the brightness and contrast of the image data output from the image pickup means.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The configuration of an embodiment of the image processing apparatus of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 to 5, reference numeral 11 denotes a portable facsimile machine as an image processing apparatus, and the facsimile machine 11 has a main body 12 having a substantially rectangular plate shape. A hinge mechanism 13 is provided on one long side of the main body portion 12, and a substantially rectangular plate-shaped lid portion 14 is provided via the hinge mechanism 13.
Is rotatably connected. Further, a camera housing recess 15 is formed on one surface of the main body 12, and a CCD camera 16 as an image pickup means is housed in the camera housing recess 15.

Further, an operating portion 17 is provided on one surface of the main body portion 12.
And a liquid crystal display panel as an image display means is provided on one surface of the lid portion 14 facing the operation portion 17.
18 are provided. Then, with the lid portion 14 opened from the main body portion 12, it becomes possible to see the liquid crystal display panel 18 while operating the operation portion 17 or the CCD camera 16.
In the state where 14 is overlaid on the main body 12 and closed, the CCD camera 16,
While protecting the operation unit 17 and the display panel 18, the facsimile apparatus 11 can be carried or stored.

The operation section 17 of the main body section 12 has an input section 2 having 20 push buttons such as a ten-key pad.
Cursor key 22 having 1, 4 push buttons, power button 23, stop button 24, start button 25, menu call button 26, enlarge button 27, rotation button 28, camera input button 29, camera input brightness adjustment volume 31 , Camera input darkness adjustment volume 32, LCD display panel contrast adjustment volume 33, LCD display panel backlight brightness adjustment volume 34, and image mode selection switch
35 are equipped.

The input unit 21 includes ten numeric buttons, an asterisk (*) button, a sharp (#) button, a redial (RD) button 21a, and an end (EN) button.
D) button 21b, affirmative (YES) button 21c, negative (N)
O) It has a button 21d, etc., and is used for inputting data.

The cursor key 22 is used to select a function from a menu displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 18 by pressing the menu call button 26.

The power button 23 is the power button.
Each time 23 is pushed, the entire power source of the facsimile device 11 is alternately turned on and off.

The start button 25 is adapted to start facsimile transmission by pushing the start button 25. Also, the stop button 24
By pushing the stop button 24, the transmission of the facsimile and the operation in process are stopped midway.

By pushing the camera input button 29, the CCD camera 16 is activated, and the CCD camera 16 is activated.
The image read by is displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 18.

The image data output from the CCD camera 16 is adjusted by operating the camera input brightness adjusting volume 31 and the camera input darkness adjusting volume 32. And after this adjustment,
By pressing the camera input button 29 again, the image is locked and can be stored in the image storage means described later.

Further, in the display of the liquid crystal display panel 18, the contrast of the image data is adjusted by operating the liquid crystal display panel contrast adjustment volume 33, and the liquid crystal display panel backlight brightness adjustment volume 34 is operated. The brightness of the backlight is adjusted, and by pressing the enlargement button 27, the display is partially enlarged, and by pressing the rotation button 28, for example, the display can be increased by 90 degrees. It is designed to be rotated.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, at one end surface of the main body portion 12, a printer connector 41 for connecting to a printer,
An image gradation number changeover switch 42 and a transmission density changeover switch 43 are provided.

By switching the image gradation number changeover switch 42 and the image mode changeover switch 35 of the operation section 17, it is possible to set the gradation expression of the image data at the time of facsimile transmission at the time of capturing an image. By switching the transmission density switching switch 43, the density of image data at the time of facsimile transmission can be adjusted.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, on the other end face of the main body portion 12, a telephone connector 44 for connecting to a telephone, a line connector 45 for connecting to a communication line P such as a general public line, Mobile phone connector 46 to connect to a mobile phone, DC power supply terminal to connect to an external DC power supply
47, a dial mode changeover switch 48 for switching between 10 PPS and 20 PPS of a dial pulse line and a touch-tone line, and an automatic reception on / off changeover switch 49 for switching between automatic reception and manual reception are provided.

Further, as shown in FIG.
The CCD camera 16 housed in 15 has a pen-shaped camera body 51 having a substantially cylindrical shape. A solid-state image pickup device (CCD) (not shown) is built in the camera body 51, and a lens facing the solid-state image pickup device is attached to a tip portion 52 of the camera body 51. Further, from the rear end portion 53 of the camera body 51, a flexible curl cord 54 that is bent in a spiral shape in a natural state is led out.
And the main body 12 are electrically and mechanically connected.

Then, as shown in FIG. 5, in the main body 12, an image adjusting circuit 61 as an image adjusting means electrically connected to the CCD camera 16, a telephone connecting connector 44 and a line connecting connector 45 are electrically connected. A modem device (facsimile communication control unit) 62, R as communication control means connected to
An image storage circuit (image data storage unit) 63 as an image storage unit configured by AM, an image creation circuit 64 for creating data for facsimile transmission, a control unit 65 including a CPU and a ROM, and the like. It is built in. The control unit 65 includes an operation unit 17, a liquid crystal display panel 18,
It is connected to the image adjusting circuit 61, the modem device 62, the image storing circuit 63, the image creating circuit 64 and the like and controls them.

Further, the main body 12 has a built-in battery device (not shown) so that it can be operated for a predetermined time even when it is disconnected from an external power supply device.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

First, the operator activates the facsimile machine 11 by pushing the power button 23 of the facsimile machine 11 with the cover 14 open.

When sending a facsimile,
While pressing the camera input button 29, the lens of the tip portion 52 of the CCD camera 16 pulled out from the main body 12 is photographed toward an object such as a document, a photograph, or a landscape to be transmitted.

In this state, the image data output from the CCD camera 16 is adjusted in image level by the image adjusting circuit 61, converted into facsimile transmission data by the image creating circuit 64, and displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 18. Is displayed.

Therefore, the operator is required to use the liquid crystal display panel 18
The brightness of the image data output from the CCD camera 16 is operated by operating the camera input brightness adjustment volume 31 and the camera input density adjustment volume 32 connected to the image adjustment circuit 61 while checking the image displayed on the screen. Adjust image levels such as contrast, contrast, and document density.

Further, the operator is required to use the liquid crystal display panel 18
While confirming the image displayed on, the image mode changeover switch 35, the image gradation number changeover switch 42, the transmission density changeover switch 43 and the like connected to the image forming circuit 64 are switched.

That is, the final transmission data output to the communication line P has two gradations, and as shown in FIG. 6, the color level at which the transmission document changes from a light color to a dark color is black and white with a constant threshold value. Will be assigned to. Then, when reading a character or the like, the image mode changeover switch 35 is switched to the “character” side to convert each pixel of the transmission data corresponding to the read image data. In this case, the resolution of the transmission data can be increased. Further, in this case, the color level itself of the image data input to the image creating circuit 64 is changed by appropriately adjusting the camera input brightness adjustment volume 31 and the camera input density adjustment volume 32, or By switching the transmission density switch 43 to adjust the threshold,
You can adjust the brightness and density of the sent document.

Further, in the case of reading and transmitting an original such as a photograph which has a gray scale of three or more gray scales and has a halftone, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, one pixel at the time of reading and one pixel at the time of transmission 6A correspond to four pixels, and as shown in FIG. 6A, all four pixels at the time of transmission are black, and from 100% black, as shown in FIG. 6B, three pixels are black. 75% dark gray with white pixels, 2 as shown in FIG.
50% gray with black pixels and 2 white pixels, Figure 6 (d)
As shown in FIG. 6, 25% light gray in which one pixel is black and three pixels are white, and as shown in FIG. 6E, up to 0% white in which all four pixels are white, Five gradations as shown in (f) are expressed. As described above, by associating one pixel at the time of reading with a plurality of pixels at the time of transmitting, it is possible to express gradations of, for example, 3 gradations, 5 gradations, and 7 gradations. In this case, the resolution of the transmitted document is slightly lowered.

The image data thus adjusted is stored and held in the image storage circuit 63 by pushing the camera input button 29 again.

Further, when transmitting a facsimile document, first, the menu call button 26 is pressed to display the menu, and the cursor key 22 is used to select a mode for selecting a document to be transmitted. From here, the one to be transmitted is selected from the transmission originals stored in the image storage circuit 63, and the start button 25 is pressed. Then, the original is transmitted from the communication line P connected to the line connection connector 45 or the mobile phone connected to the mobile phone connector 46 via the modem device 62.

On the other hand, when the facsimile original is received, if the automatic reception ON / OFF switching switch 49 is set to the automatic receiving side, the original is automatically received and stored in the image storage circuit 63 in the state of receiving the facsimile. Remember. Further, when the automatic reception ON / OFF changeover switch 49 is switched to the manual reception side, a ringing sound is generated in the state of receiving a facsimile, and by pressing the start button 25, a document is received and the image storage circuit 63 is received. Remember. The original received and stored in the image storage circuit 63 can be displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 18 using a menu or the like, and can be confirmed while scrolling. Further, by connecting the printer to the printer connector 41, the original document stored in the image storage circuit 63 can be ejected from this printer. Further, the received and stored original document is transmitted to a stationary facsimile apparatus having a printer via a cable connected to the telephone connector 44 to print the original document received from the printer of the stationary facsimile apparatus. be able to.

Thus, the facsimile apparatus of this embodiment
According to 11, since the pen-type CCD camera 16 is provided, the operator directs the CCD camera 16 toward an object to be a transmission document and adjusts the distance between the CCD and the transmission document.
With this CCD camera 16, desired image data can be read from objects of various sizes and shapes.
That is, since the CCD camera 16 does not need to be in close contact with the object to be read, the image data can be easily read from a non-cut sheet such as a landscape or a three-dimensional object, and C
The reading range can be freely set by adjusting the distance between the CD camera 16 and the transmitted document.

Further, by using the non-contact type CCD camera 16 as described above, the image data can be read from an object larger than the CCD camera 16, so that the facsimile apparatus can be made compact and easy. You will be able to carry it.

Further, on the liquid crystal display panel 18, the image data photographed by the CCD camera 16 and adjusted by the image adjusting circuit 61 and the image creating circuit 64 can be displayed in real time. Therefore,
While viewing the image displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 18, the operator operates the camera input brightness adjustment volume 31 and the camera input darkness adjustment volume 32 connected to the image adjustment circuit 61, and the image creation circuit 64. Brightness, density, gradation, etc. can be adjusted appropriately by switching the connected image mode switch 35, image gradation number switch 42, transmission density switch 43, etc. and adjusting the image data. The image data can be easily obtained.

Further, since the image storage circuit 63 is provided, it is possible to easily hold a plurality of appropriately adjusted image data of the transmission original and also to hold the received image data of the original. Therefore, these image data can be displayed and confirmed on the liquid crystal display panel 18 at any time, and the image data can be transmitted to the communication line P via the built-in modem device 62 or the printer connection connector.
You can also output from the printer connected to the 41.

In this way, for example, the size is reduced to a so-called electronic notebook size, the manuscript can be read by the pen-type CCD camera 16 and connected to a public phone, a mobile phone, a normal phone, etc. to perform transmission / reception. A convenient small-sized facsimile machine 11 can be realized.

Although the CCD camera 16 is used as the image pickup means in the above embodiment, an image pickup tube or the like may be used. In addition, by separately providing input terminals, video signals from video cameras and video cassette recorders, and signals from various scanners can be input,
You can also enter the computer data directly.

A CCD camera used as an image pickup means
As the lens 16, a lens with a fixed angle of view can be used, or a so-called zoom lens that can change the angle of view can be used. Regarding the focal length, in addition to a fixed focus, a manual focus lens that manually focuses, a so-called autofocus lens that automatically focuses, or the like can be used.

Further, in the above embodiment, the liquid crystal display panel 18 is used as the display means, but a cathode ray tube or the like may be used.

In the above embodiment, the modem device 62
A facsimile machine 11 having a built-in is configured, but a copy machine (copy machine) having a built-in black and white or color printer,
It may be configured as a black and white or color camera (still camera), or may have both a modem device 62 and a printer built therein.

[0048]

According to the image processing apparatus of the first aspect,
The operator directs the non-contact type image pickup means toward the target object and adjusts the position of the image pickup means with respect to the target object, so that the non-contact type image pickup means allows objects of different sizes and different shapes. The desired image data can be read from the object. Then, by using the non-contact type image pickup means, image data can be read from an object having a size larger than that of the image pickup means, so that the apparatus can be downsized. Further, the operator can operate the image adjusting means while watching the image displayed on the image display means, adjust the image data, and easily store the appropriately adjusted image data in the image storage means. . Then, the image data stored in the image storage means can be used for printing, communication and the like.

According to the image processing apparatus of the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the image data stored in the image storage means can be sent to the communication line by the communication control means. Therefore, a miniaturized portable facsimile device can be configured.

According to the image processing apparatus of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, the image adjusting means adjusts the brightness and contrast of the image data output from the image pickup means to obtain the image data. Can be easily and appropriately adjusted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of an image processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view of one end of the image processing apparatus of the above.

FIG. 3 is an end view of the other end of the image processing apparatus of the above.

FIG. 4 is an end view of the other end of the image processing apparatus in the closed state.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of the above image processing apparatus.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a gradation expression of two gradations of the image processing apparatus.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining gradation expression of 5 gradations of the image processing apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Facsimile device as image processing device 16 CCD camera as image pickup means 18 Liquid crystal display panel as image display means 61 Image adjustment circuit as image adjustment means 62 Modem device as communication control means 63 Image storage circuit as image storage means P communication line

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A non-contact type image pickup means for reading an image, an image adjustment means for adjusting the image data output from the image pickup means, and an image storage means for storing the image data output from the image adjustment means. An image processing apparatus comprising: an image display unit that displays at least one of the image data output from the image adjustment unit and the image data stored in the image storage unit. 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising communication control means for sending the image data stored in the image storage means to a communication line. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image adjusting means adjusts the brightness and contrast of the image data output from the image pickup means.