JP4654712B2 - Image processing apparatus, program, and image processing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, a program, and an image processing method for reading and processing an image formed on a medium.

  When an image formed on a plurality of media is read by an image processing apparatus, for example, using an automatic document feeder (ADF), the plurality of media are set in the apparatus at once, and the set media are sequentially Reading is usually done.

In addition, when generating image data from a read image, there is a method of specifying an attribute of the data such as a file name using a system using web technology (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-271614 A

  However, in the conventional image processing apparatus, for example, when a plurality of materials are read and each material is given a name and managed as a file, the following operation is required. That is, first, the first document medium is set in the ADF to perform reading, and then the name of the first document is assigned to the group of scanned images using a system using the web technology as described above. And save it as a file. Next, it is necessary to repeat the operation of setting the second material in the ADF.

  For this reason, the conventional image processing apparatus cannot read media related to a plurality of files at a time, and there is a problem that convenience is low.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and one of its purposes is to provide an image processing apparatus, a program, and an image processing method capable of improving convenience.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an image processing apparatus according to the present invention selects a unit that reads images formed on a plurality of media, and sequentially selects the read images as processing targets. An image detection unit that detects whether the instruction image is a predetermined instruction image, and an operation control unit that causes the image processing apparatus to execute a predetermined management process when the instruction image is detected. Yes.

  Here, when the instruction image is detected in the management process, the operation control unit associates common management information with a group of images selected as a processing target before the detected instruction image. May be output.

  Alternatively, the instruction image may include a plurality of types of instruction images, and the operation control unit may execute different management processes that are predetermined according to the type of the detected instruction image. .

  In addition, when the instruction image is detected in the management process, the operation control unit performs the type of the detected instruction image on a group of images selected as a processing target before the detected instruction image. It is also possible to output management information that is determined in advance in association with each other.

  Furthermore, the image processing apparatus according to the present invention selects an e-mail that matches a selection condition specified by a user from the means for receiving an e-mail and the received e-mail, and from the selected e-mail, Information acquisition means for acquiring at least a part of the management information.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling an image processing apparatus, the step of reading images formed on a plurality of media, and sequentially selecting the read images as processing targets. A step of detecting whether or not the selected image is a predetermined instruction image; and a step of causing the image processing apparatus to execute a predetermined management process when the instruction image is detected. Yes.

  In addition, a program according to another aspect of the present invention includes a step of reading, on a computer, images formed on a plurality of media, sequentially selecting the read images as processing targets, and the selected images are stored in advance. It is characterized in that a step of detecting whether or not the instruction image is determined and a step of causing the image processing apparatus to execute a predetermined management process when the instruction image is detected are characterized.

  In this way, by executing a predetermined management process by detecting the instruction image, for example, even when it is desired to change the processing method in the middle, by adding a medium for forming the instruction image at a position to be changed The image processing apparatus can be read at one time, and convenience can be improved when a plurality of materials that need to be processed differently are read.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image processing apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes an image reading unit 11, a control unit 12, a communication unit 13, an operation panel 14, and an image forming unit 15. It is configured. The image processing apparatus 10 is connected to the mail server 30 and the terminal device 20 via a network as shown in FIG.

  In the image processing apparatus 10, the image reading unit 11 has a function of reading an image formed on a medium and outputting the image to the control unit 12.

  The control unit 12 receives image data from the image reading unit 11 based on control information input from the communication unit 13 and the operation panel 14, and performs various image processing such as image format conversion. In addition, image data is output to the communication unit 13 or the image forming unit 15. Here, the processing executed by the control unit 12 is realized as software, and the program is stored in a storage unit (not shown).

  In addition, the control unit 12 has a function of determining whether or not the image received from the image reading unit 11 is the instruction image based on information on the predetermined instruction image. Here, as the predetermined instruction image, for example, a solid image, a specific background color image, an image including a specific color, a specific size image, an image including a specific code such as a barcode, etc. Can be adopted. Alternatively, the user may set the condition of the instruction image by input from the communication unit 13 or the operation panel 14. Furthermore, a plurality of types of images may be set simultaneously as instruction images to be used. The contents of the processing of the control unit 12 in the present embodiment will be described in detail later.

  The communication unit 13 has a function as an interface for connecting the image processing apparatus 10 to a network, and is used for sending and receiving e-mails. The operation panel 14 has a function of displaying information related to the apparatus and receiving input of information necessary for the operation of the apparatus from the user. The image forming unit 15 has a function of forming the image data output from the control unit 12 on a medium. The image forming unit 15 is not always necessary.

  Hereinafter, the contents of processing when a plurality of materials are read at once using the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. Here, as shown in FIG. 3, the medium to be read is a plurality of sheets constituting the document A, one plain sheet (interleaf) I1, a plurality of sheets constituting the document B, 1 Assume that the plain paper I2 and a plurality of sheets constituting the material C are set in the image processing apparatus 10 so as to be read in this order.

  First, the user transmits a list of image file names to be set according to the material to be read from the terminal device 20 to the image processing device 10 by e-mail. The transmitted e-mail is sent to the communication unit 13 of the image processing apparatus 10 via the mail server 30 and stored in the image processing apparatus 10.

  Next, the user sets paper to be read in the ADF of the image processing apparatus 10 and inputs his / her mail address from the operation panel. Furthermore, information necessary for image processing, such as a reading mode and an image file format, is input from the operation panel, and an instruction to start the reading process is given.

  When the start of the reading process is instructed, the image reading unit 11 sequentially reads images formed on the set paper. Then, the read image data is output to the control unit 12.

  Processing executed by the control unit 12 will be described below. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the processing of the control unit 12.

  First, the control unit 12 reads the image data sent from the image reading unit 11 (S101). Then, various corrections are performed as necessary (S102). Further, it is determined whether or not the image data is an instruction image (S103). If the result of determination is that the image is an instruction image, predetermined management processing is performed (S104). Here, as the management process, a process of associating management information that belongs to a common material with a group of images received as a processing target before the instruction image is performed. That is, a plurality of image data constituting a common material is output as one image file. Here, in the present embodiment, a plain image is used as the instruction image, and this processing is executed when the slip sheet I1 is read. Further, the control unit 12 performs processing such as image format conversion on the read image data.

  Furthermore, the control unit 12 sets a file name for the generated image file. Here, the file name to be set is determined as follows. That is, an image generated by the control unit 12 selecting an email whose transmission email address matches a user's email address input in advance from among emails already received by the apparatus, and referring to the content of the email. Retrieve a list of file names for a file. Then, the file name at the top of the file name list is determined as the file name to be set for the image file.

  Thereafter, when there is still image data sent from the image reading unit 11, the control unit 12 further continues the processing of the image data (S105). When the instruction image is detected again, a process for generating one image file is performed on the group of image data read after the previous instruction image is detected, as in the case where the previous instruction image is detected. . In that case, the instruction image when the previous instruction image is detected is excluded from the object to be associated with the management information, and the management information belonging to the common material is associated with the group of images read after that. . Further, from the list of file names described above, the file name next to the previously used file name is used as the file name to be set in the image file.

  By repeating the processes from S101 to S105, the control unit 12 sequentially processes all the image data while generating a new image file each time an instruction image is detected. When all the image data has been sent from the image reading unit 11, finally, processing for data output is performed (S106). Specifically, the same processing as when the instruction image is detected is executed, and an image file including a group of image data constituting the last material C is generated. Then, an e-mail attached with the generated image file is generated with the mail address of the user input in advance as a destination address. The generated electronic mail is transmitted from the communication unit 13 and distributed to the terminal device 20 via the mail server 30.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention described above, it is possible to generate a plurality of image files divided for each material by a single process for a plurality of materials separated by slip sheets. Furthermore, an appropriate file name can be set for the generated image file. Also, by using an e-mail for specifying a file name, it is possible to easily set the file name by a method that is usually used by the user without preparing an original system.

  In the present embodiment, the user can use paper of a specific size or paper of a specific background color different from the paper composing the material to be read instead of plain paper. Or you may use what was written in the marker pen of a specific color in the paper used as reading object. In this case, if the color is not used in the material to be read, an image indicating the separation position can be appropriately detected by using an image including the color as the instruction image. In this case, the instruction image is also included in the output image file.

  Next, contents of processing when the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is used, and the whole is composed of a plurality of chapters, and each chapter reads a medium constituting a document composed of a plurality of sections at a time. Will be described. Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the medium to be read is set in the image processing apparatus 10 so that a plurality of sheets constituting one document as a whole are sequentially read. Assume that a paper having a red background color is placed in front of the paper constituting the first page, and a paper having a blue background color is placed in front of the paper constituting the first page of each section.

  First, the user transmits a list of titles of each chapter and each section to be set according to the content of the document to be read from the terminal device 20 to the image processing apparatus by electronic mail. Thereafter, the operation performed by the user is the same as that for reading the plurality of materials described above.

  When the reading process is started, the image reading unit 11 sequentially reads the images formed on the set paper. Then, the read image data is output to the control unit 12.

  Processing executed by the control unit 12 will be described below. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the processing of the control unit 12.

  First, the control unit 12 reads the image data sent from the image reading unit 11 (S201). Then, various corrections are performed as necessary (S202). Further, it is determined whether or not the image data is an instruction image (S203). If the result of the determination is that the image is an instruction image, the process further branches depending on the type of the instruction image (S204), and a different management process predetermined according to the type of the instruction image is executed (S205). Here, as the management processing, when the read image is an image having a blue background color, it is determined that the image indicates a section break, and a group of images read after the previous instruction image is detected is grouped. Management information that is considered to constitute a section is associated. On the other hand, when the read image is an image having a red background color, the management information regarding the group of images read after reading the image having the red background color as a previous chapter is associated. As a result, information indicating the start positions of chapters and sections is added to the image file. Further, the control unit 12 performs processing such as image format conversion on the read image data.

  Furthermore, the control unit 12 sets chapter and section titles for the generated image file. Here, the title to be set is determined as follows. That is, the control unit 12 selects, from among e-mails that have been received by the device, one that matches the e-mail address of the user whose transmission e-mail address has been input in advance, and is given with reference to the contents of the e-mail Take out the list. Then, the titles of the chapters or sections are determined in the order of the title list.

  Thereafter, when there is still image data sent from the image reading unit 11, the control unit 12 further continues the processing of the image data (S206).

  By repeating the processes from S201 to S206, the control unit 12 sequentially processes all the image data while giving the title of the chapter or section to the image file each time an instruction image is detected. When all the image data has been sent from the image reading unit 11, finally, data output processing is performed (S207). Specifically, the generated image file is output. Here, if necessary, an image for displaying the table of contents of the document may be added to the generated image file. Further, the file name of the image file to be generated may be acquired from the above-described e-mail. Subsequently, an e-mail attached with the generated image file is generated using the mail address transmission destination address of the user input in advance. The generated electronic mail is transmitted from the communication unit 13 and distributed to the terminal device 20 via the mail server 30.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention described above, it is possible to generate an image file with chapter and section titles attached to a document divided by paper having a plurality of types of background colors in a single process. . Furthermore, an appropriate file name can be set for the generated image file. In addition, by using e-mail for title designation, titles can be easily set by a method that is usually used by the user without preparing an original system.

  In the present embodiment, the user can also read a document having a more detailed hierarchical structure using three or more types of instruction images. In the present embodiment, the user may use paper of a plurality of sizes different from the paper constituting the document to be read instead of the paper of a plurality of background colors. Alternatively, the paper to be read may be written with a plurality of color marker pens. In this case, if the color is not used in the material to be read, an image indicating the separation position can be appropriately detected by using an image including the color as the instruction image. In this case, the instruction image is also included in the output image file.

  In the present embodiment, as an example of management processing performed when an instruction image is detected, an example of dividing a file and an example of setting a title of a chapter or section has been shown. Not limited to. For example, processing such as changing an image format to be generated or changing a reading mode (such as a reading mode optimized for a text document or a reading mode optimized for a photograph) may be executed.

It is a figure which shows the functional block of the image processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the first example of the present embodiment, it is a diagram showing an example of an arrangement of a plurality of materials to be read. It is a flowchart figure which shows the processing content of the control part in the 1st example of this Embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an arrangement of documents to be read in the second example of the present embodiment. It is a flowchart figure which shows the processing content of the control part in the 2nd example of this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image processing apparatus, 11 Image reading part, 12 Control part, 13 Communication part, 14 Operation panel, 15 Image formation part, 20 Terminal device, 30 Mail server.

Claims (4)

A receiving means for receiving an email containing list information indicating chapter and section titles;
Means for reading images formed on a plurality of media,
Image detecting means for sequentially selecting the read image as a processing target and detecting whether the selected image is one of a plurality of types of instruction images each indicating a predetermined chapter or section break ; ,
Every time one of the plurality of types of instruction images is detected, a chapter or images sequentially acquired from the list information for a group of images read after the previous detection of the same type of instruction image as the detected instruction image and operation control means for executing a management process to associate the title of the section,
An image processing apparatus comprising: The image processing apparatus according to claim 1.
The email further includes file name information;
The image processing apparatus , wherein the operation control unit generates an image file including a plurality of images read by the reading unit, sets and outputs a file name acquired from the e-mail . A computer receiving an email containing list information indicating a chapter and section title;
An image reading unit respectively reading images formed on a plurality of media;
A step in which the computer sequentially selects the read images as processing targets, and detects whether the selected images are any of a plurality of types of instruction images indicating predetermined chapter or section breaks. When,
Each time the computer detects any of the plurality of types of instruction images , it is sequentially acquired from the list information for a group of images read after the previous detection of the same type of instruction image as the detected instruction image. method of controlling an image processing apparatus characterized by comprising executing a management processing to associate that chapter or section titles, the. On the computer,
Receiving an email containing list information indicating chapter and section titles;
Reading each image formed on a plurality of media;
Sequentially selecting the read image as a target of processing, and detecting whether the selected image is one of a plurality of types of instruction images each indicating a predetermined chapter or section break ;
Every time one of the plurality of types of instruction images is detected, a chapter or images sequentially acquired from the list information for a group of images read after the previous detection of the same type of instruction image as the detected instruction image Executing a management process for associating section titles ;
A program characterized by having executed.

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