Color Separation Patents (Class 358/515)
  • Patent number: 11882995
    Abstract: An endoscope system includes a light source that irradiates a predetermined first and second narrowband light; an imaging sensor that captures an image of return light of the first narrowband light and the second narrowband light from the subject, and generates an image signal of the image; and a processor being configured to identify a first color of a first portion and a second color of a second portion based on a difference of an optical density with respect to hemoglobin in the image signal in every frame of the image, the first portion corresponding to a bleeding area, and the second portion corresponding to an area other than the bleeding area within the subject, and correct the first color and the second color based on the identified first and second color while maintaining a color difference between the identified first and second color in a predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: OLYMPUS CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yuji Kutsuma
  • Patent number: 11416661
    Abstract: A method includes generating a first bitmap for a cell. The first bitmap is indicative of mapping constraints of the cell. The method also includes generating a second bitmap for a PSC filler cell. The second bitmap is indicative of the mapping constraints of the PSC filler cell. The method also includes a bitwise logical operation between a portion of the first bitmap and a respective portion of the second bitmap and determining a compatibility between the cell and the PSC filler cell based on at least a result of the bitwise logical operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: Synopsys, Inc.
    Inventors: Kai-Ping Wang, Wencai Zheng, Deepak Sherlekar, Xiaolin Yuan
  • Patent number: 11388432
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to methods and devices for motion estimation which may include a GPU. In one aspect, the GPU may generate at least one first motion vector in a first subset of a frame, the first motion vector providing a first motion estimation for image data in the first subset of the frame. The GPU may also perturb the image data. Also, the GPU may generate at least one second motion vector based on the perturbed image data, the second motion vector providing a second motion estimation for the image data. Moreover, the GPU may compare the first motion vector and the second motion vector. Further, the GPU may determine at least one third motion vector for the motion estimation of the image data based on the comparison between the first motion vector and the second motion vector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2022
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Samuel Benjamin Holmes, Martin Renschler, Jonathan Wicks, Robert John Vanreenen
  • Patent number: 11039040
    Abstract: A display device includes an obtainer and a display controller. The obtainer obtains information on at least one special color to be printed, the information being information on the at least one special color with respect to at least one basic color. The display controller performs control to display a portion where the at least one special color is to be printed in accordance with a color value corresponding to a degree of transparency obtained from the information on the at least one special color, which is obtained by the obtainer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2021
    Assignee: FUJIFILM BUSINESS INNOVATION CORP.
    Inventor: Yuta Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 10996605
    Abstract: Example implementations relate to print zone coordination. For example, a system for print zone coordination may include a plurality of printing zones, and a plurality of fibers, each fiber among the plurality of fibers assigned to a different printing zone among the plurality of printing zones. The system may further include a threading coordination system to coordinate a print job through the plurality of printing zones using the plurality of fibers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Elizabeth Ezetta, Bruce A Axten
  • Patent number: 10979597
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus is provided with a converter to convert a first color image into lightness information and color information other than the lightness information, a lightness compressor to generate compressed lightness information obtained by decimating a pixel value from the lightness information, a reconverter to combine the compressed lightness information and the color information to generate a second color image, an edge extractor to extract an edge included in the first color image, and a pixel value changer to change a pixel value at a position of the edge in the second color image while maintaining similar colors, to generate a third color image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Naoki Takizawa
  • Patent number: 10885103
    Abstract: The cell image search apparatus includes: an image set storage unit; a captured image acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of captured images obtained by imaging cells in time series; an image feature amount extraction unit that extracts an image feature amount from each cell image of the image set and each of the plurality of captured images; an image search unit that searches for a captured image similar to each cell image of the image set, among the plurality of captured images, based on image feature amounts of each cell image of the image set and the plurality of captured images; and a search result output unit that outputs a search result in a case where captured images similar to at least two cell images included in the image set are searched for by the image search unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 10560586
    Abstract: Provided are a controller, a color chart and a non-transitory recording medium. The color chart includes a first patch that is a halftone patch of first color, a second patch that is the halftone patch of the first color underlaid with a solid base of second color, and comparative patches prepared by increasing and decreasing the tone of the first color of the first patch and second patch, where the printed surface of the color chart is finished with transparent material. The controller calculates tone values or dot gains of the first patch and second patch based on the measured color values of the patches in the color chart, and determines the current condition of print and the current condition of a finished surface by using a comparison result of the tone values or dot gains of the first patch and second patch with respective reference values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2020
    Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventor: Takashi Ajioka
  • Patent number: 10475210
    Abstract: An image processing device (10) is for extracting pixels of a specific color from an image to be processed, and includes: a pixel information extraction unit (11) that extracts values of luminance, first chrominance, and second chrominance of pixels composing the image on a pixel-by-pixel basis; a calculation processing unit (12) that calculates, on a pixel-by-pixel basis, a distance from a point defined by the extracted values to a preset reference plane in a space in which the luminance, the first chrominance, and the second chrominance are set along axes that are perpendicular to one another; and a converted image generation unit (13) that generates an image in which pixels satisfying the following condition are emphasized: the distance calculated by the calculation processing unit (12) is larger than or equal to a threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2019
    Assignees: NEC Solution Innovators, Ltd., AISIN SEIKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasutoshi Fukaya, Satoshi Kishima, Masanori Torii, Hiroki Inagaki, Jun Kadowaki
  • Patent number: 10341531
    Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for applying a perceptually uniform color space to image color values within a captured image data. The method includes identifying, via a processor of an image capturing device, a perceptually uniform color space that includes only real colors identified within a plurality of real-world images. The method further includes applying, via the processor, the perceptually uniform color space to a color processing stage of an image processing pipeline. The method further includes in response to receiving, at the image capturing device, image data including image color values associated with a primary color space, converting, via the processor, the image color values to the perceptually uniform color space to generate image data having more perceptual uniformity for colors that are frequent in the real world.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC
    Inventors: Peter A. Matsimanis, Yuta Asano, Lin Chen
  • Patent number: 10319340
    Abstract: A real-time color mapping system includes a memory and a converting module. The memory is configured for storing a mapping table. The converting module is configured for reading the mapping table stored in the memory, and for converting first image grayscale values corresponding to a first image signal into second image grayscale values corresponding to a second image signal according to the mapping table. The converting module utilizes at least part of bits corresponding to each of the first image grayscale values as a memory address to look up in the mapping table, thereby converting the first image grayscale values into the second image grayscale values. A real-time color mapping method is provided herein as well.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2019
    Assignees: DELTA ELECTRONICS, INC., NATIONAL CENTRAL UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Keh-Su Chang, Mang Ou-Yang, Ting-Wei Huang, Jyun-Wei Jhuang, Yu-Ta Chen
  • Patent number: 10248839
    Abstract: In accordance with some embodiments, connected-component labeling is performed in both the screen dimensions (which may be referred to as the x and y dimensions) and a depth dimension to label objects in a depth image. Then the contour of labeled blobs may be used to identify an object in the depth image. Using contours may be advantageous in some embodiments because it reduces the amount of data that must be handled and the extent of computations, compared to conventional techniques which use bit map based operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2019
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Ofir Levy, Maoz Madmony, Orly Weisel
  • Patent number: 10043118
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus that generates a halftone image by quantizing an input image includes: a holding unit configured to hold a threshold value matrix in which different threshold values are arranged; a pixel position determination unit configured to determine a candidate of a pixel position whose threshold value is to be rewritten based on each pixel value of a plurality of pixels included in a predetermined area for the predetermined area in the input image; and a threshold value determination unit configured to determine a threshold value of the pixel position determined to be the candidate by using at least one threshold value of a plurality of threshold values corresponding to the predetermined area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2018
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Naoki Sumi, Akitoshi Yamada, Shinichi Miyazaki, Masao Kato, Hisashi Ishikawa, Akihiro Fujimoto, Yusuke Yamamoto, Yuji Hara
  • Patent number: 10003701
    Abstract: A method for converting a facsimile includes receiving the facsimile via the public-switched telephone network, generating an enhanced portable document format (EPDF) file that includes information in addition to image information and communicating the EPDF file to an e-mail server. The EPDF file can then be communicated as an attachment to an e-mail message addressed to the intended recipient of the facsimile. A facsimile processing system includes a public-switched telephone network interface, a packet-switched network interface, a mail transfer protocol server, an input agent, a job processor and a translator. The input agent identifies and forwards the incoming facsimile to the job processor. The job processor determines when an EPDF file is desired and communicates appropriate instructions to the translator. The translator generates the EPDF file in response to the instructions and the image information from the facsimile.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 19, 2018
    Assignee: Xpedite Systems, LLC
    Inventors: Francis Toscano, Felix Moletteri
  • Patent number: 9992376
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a raster image processing unit configured to convert original image data into image data for image formation being of a raster image; an image forming unit configured to form an image on a paper sheet; a reading unit configured to generate read image data by reading the image formed on the paper sheet; a monitor setting unit configured to set a monitor setting color and an ideal value for the monitor setting color; a color tone monitoring unit configured to monitor a color tone difference between a value of the read image data in the monitor setting color and the ideal value; and a hardware processor configured to perform control to have color correction performed in the image forming unit, wherein the monitor setting color includes at least one of a primary color, a secondary color, a tertiary color, and a tertiary achromatic color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 5, 2018
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventor: Hiroki Shojaku
  • Patent number: 9838717
    Abstract: The present invention discloses a method and system for filtering image noise; the system includes: an image acquisition unit, a judgment unit, a first filtering unit, a second filtering unit and a selecting unit; the steps includes: selecting a pixel in one of the color channels in YUV image to detect; according to all the pixels in the N*M matrix which centers on the pixel currently detected, judging whether the pixel is in a flat region; and if the pixel is in a flat region, according to the Y-component of all the pixels inside the N*M matrix, calculating and outputting the filtering strength parameter of the pixel, and then filtering the pixel according to the filtering strength parameter; the positive effects of the mentioned technical scheme are: easy in calculation; retaining image details efficiently, restoring the original color of image and improving the quality of the filtered image after filtering.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Spreadtrum Communications (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Wei Wang
  • Patent number: 9836469
    Abstract: An automation plugin to a digital asset editing program. In one embodiment, for example, a method performed by the automation plugin to the digital asset editing program executing on a computing device having at least one processor and memory comprises: allowing a user of the digital asset editing program to filter a library of digital assets by custom metadata associated with the digital assets; receiving custom metadata filtering criteria from the user; and responsive to determining one or more of the digital assets are associated with custom metadata satisfying the custom metadata filtering criteria, allowing the user to select at least one filtering result, corresponding to one of the one or more digital assets, which, when selected, causes the corresponding digital asset to at least be loaded into the digital asset editing program for editing by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
    Inventors: Morgan Knutson, Joshua Puckett, Mike Myers
  • Patent number: 9742963
    Abstract: In embodiments of color rendering on a hue plane, a color rendering module can receive three channels of color information. The color rendering module converts the three channels of color information to two channels of color information and performs a color rendering operation on the two channels of color information to provide two channels of rendered color information. The color rendering module then converts the two channels of rendered color information back to three channels of rendered color information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated
    Inventor: Lars Uno Borg
  • Patent number: 9713342
    Abstract: A web-enabled standalone application may, in selected implementations, prevent received license-controlled image data from unauthorized re-use, editing, or distribution, and permits image processing, such as applying the International Color Consortium's color correction process, at the local control device. The web-enabled standalone application may further generate a printer specific byte stream based on post-image processed data, providing a color managed workflow independent of local control device operating system print drivers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: Decopac, Inc.
    Inventors: Carlos A. Davila, John R. Anderson, Andy Schnoebelen, Kent D. Whitten
  • Patent number: 9547907
    Abstract: Image segmentation utilizing 3D image data. A plurality of pixels of an image frame may be segmented based at least on a function of pixel color and a pixel depth over the spatial positions within the image frame. A graph-cut technique may be utilized to optimize a data cost and smoothness cost in which at least the data cost function includes a component that is a dependent on a depth associated with a given pixel in the frame. In further embodiments, both the data cost and smoothness functions are dependent on a color and a depth associated with each pixel. Components of at least the data cost function may be weighted for each pixel to arrive at most likely segments. Segmentation may be further predicated on a pre-segmentation label assigned based at least on a 3D spatial position clusters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2017
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventor: Gowri Somanath
  • Patent number: 9538100
    Abstract: Systems and methods for receiving image information with spectral components in the visible and near infrared (NIR) spectral ranges and separating the image information in the visible spectral range from the image information in the NIR spectral range is described. The separation of the of the visible and NIR spectral range image information may be performed using a colorimetric calibration matrix. The colorimetric calibration matrix may be determined based at least in part on training image information with a known tristimulus matrix.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Rajeev Ramanath
  • Patent number: 9525802
    Abstract: A system and method are described for enhancing readability of document images by operating on each document individually. Monochromatic light sources operating at different wavelengths of light can be used to obtain greyscale images. The greyscale images can then be used in any desired image enhancement algorithm. In one example algorithm, an automated method removes image background noise and improves sharpness of the scripts and characters using edge detection and local color contrast computation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2016
    Assignee: Georgetown University
    Inventors: Ophir Frieder, Gideon Frieder, Jon Parker
  • Patent number: 9470637
    Abstract: Methods and systems for designing a binary spatial filter based on data indicative of a desired exposure condition to be emulated by an inspection system, and for implementing the binary spatial filter in an optical path of the inspection system, thereby enabling emulation of the desired exposure condition by interacting a light beam of the inspection system with the binary spatial filter. The present method and systems enable on-the-fly and on-demand design and implementation/generation of spatial filters for use in inspection systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS ISRAEL, LTD.
    Inventors: Shmuel Mangan, Amir Sagiv, Mariano Abramson
  • Patent number: 9423988
    Abstract: A print control apparatus connectable to an image forming apparatus, an image forming apparatus, a print control method, an image forming method, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium are provided. The print control apparatus includes a manipulation inputter configured to receive a command to print a document, a controller configured to calculate a toner amount for each of a plurality of print saving modes applicable to the document, and determine a print saving mode to be applied to the document based on the calculated toner amount, a printer driver configured to generate print data on the document according to the determined print saving mode, and a communication interface configured to transmit the generated print data to the image forming apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Min-ki Cho, Jung-ho Bang, Kyeong-man Kim
  • Patent number: 9418426
    Abstract: A camera outputs video as a sequence of video frames having pixel values in a first (e.g., relatively low dimensional) color space, where the first color space has a first number of channels. An image-processing device maps the video frames to a second (e.g., relatively higher dimensional) color representation of video frames. The mapping causes the second color representation of video frames to have a greater number of channels relative to the first number of channels. The image-processing device extracts a second color representation of a background frame of the scene. The image-processing device can then detect foreground objects in a current frame of the second color representation of video frames by comparing the current frame with the second color representation of a background frame. The image-processing device then outputs an identification of the foreground objects in the current frame of the video.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2016
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Edgar A. Bernal, Qun Li
  • Patent number: 9322235
    Abstract: The present invention generally relates to a weight setting indicator which is used to indicate that an applied force to a tool achieved or exceeded a predetermined amount. In one aspect, a packer actuator for use with a packer is provided. The packer actuator includes a body with a recess. The packer actuator further includes a dog assembly disposed in the recess of the body. The dog assembly is configured to set the packer when a force is applied to the packer actuator. The packer actuator also includes a setting indicator disposed in the recess adjacent an end of the dog assembly. The setting indicator is configured to move from a pre-set position to a post-set position when the force is applied to the packer actuator, wherein the setting indicator is plastically deformed in the post-set position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: WEATHERFORD TECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, LLC
    Inventors: Rocky A. Turley, Kathleen C. Cassard
  • Patent number: 9129423
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes an image input unit for inputting color image data, a first color conversion unit for converting the inputted color image data into first image data of the L*a*b color space having independently brightness component and chromaticity component, a background detection unit for detecting a background color component from the converted first image data of the L*a*b color space, a background removing unit for converting, based on a white value conversion parameter derived based on a ratio of the background color corresponding to the background component to a prescribed reference white color in the L*a*b color space, the first image data into second image data having the background color in white, a second color conversion unit for converting the second image data of the L*a*b color space into third image data of a prescribed color space, and an output unit for outputting the converted third image data of the prescribed color space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: Oki Data Corporation
    Inventor: Takara Iwamoto
  • Patent number: 9013770
    Abstract: In an image processing device, the control device identifies a background color of the image. The control device classifies each of the pixels into either one of a background color pixel group or a non-background color pixel group. The control device determines whether a partial region of the image having the non-background pixel is a chromatic color region or an achromatic color region, without using pixel values corresponding to pixels classified into the background color pixel group. The control device determines that the image is chromatic color image when it is determined that the partial region is the chromatic color region. The control device determines that the image is achromatic color image when it is determined that the partial region is the achromatic color region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Tomohiko Hasegawa
  • Patent number: 9007666
    Abstract: Erroneous determination of an image caused by color shift is prevented. Image data is divided in a sub-scanning direction into a first region where color shift hardly occurs and a second region where color shift easily occurs. There are detected a first color line drawing extending in a main-scanning direction in the first region, a second color line drawing extending in the main-scanning direction and having a width larger than that of the first color line drawing in the second region, and a third color line drawing extending in the sub-scanning direction in the image data. On the basis of the detected first, second, and third color line drawings, it is determined whether a document is a color document or not.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hideo Sato
  • Patent number: 9002108
    Abstract: A color processing device includes a converter that converts a combination of values of N?1 colors obtained by eliminating a specific color included in N colors from an input color signal expressing a color by a combination of values of the N colors, into a corresponding combination of values of M?1 colors, N being 4 or larger, M being larger than N; and an output unit that, if a total value of the values of the M?1 colors after the conversion by the converter and a value of the specific color included in the input color signal exceeds a predetermined limit value, changes a value of at least one of M colors obtained by adding the specific color to the M?1 colors such that the total value becomes the limit value or smaller, and outputs values of the M colors as an output color signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahiko Kubo, Toshifumi Takahira, Jun Koyatsu, Hidetoshi Kawashima
  • Publication number: 20150062674
    Abstract: A color separation apparatus comprising: a target value acquisition device; a dot threshold data candidate selection device; a print profile acquisition device which acquires a print profile showing correspondence between device signal values and color system values in the printer for each of the candidates of dot threshold data; and a color separation device which allows the printer to calculate candidates of the device signal values on the basis of the target values of colors acquired by the target value acquisition device and the print profile, and determines dot threshold data for reproducing colors corresponding to the target values on the basis of the candidates of dot threshold data and the print profile from among the candidates of dot threshold data, as well as determines device signal values for reproducing colors corresponding to the target values from among the candidates of device signal values.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 22, 2014
    Publication date: March 5, 2015
    Inventor: Shuhei HORITA
  • Publication number: 20150062673
    Abstract: A color separation apparatus comprising: a target value acquisition device; a dot threshold data acquisition device which acquires dot threshold data including information on a threshold for each of the dots for converting the continuous-tone image data into binary image data for each of the color materials; a print profile acquisition device which acquires a print profile showing correspondence between a device signal value and a value of a color system in the printer; and a color separation device which allows the printer to calculate candidates of the device signal value on the basis of the target values of colors acquired by the target value acquisition device and the print profile, and determines a device signal value for reproducing colors corresponding to the target values from among the candidates of the device signal value on the basis of the dot threshold data and the print profile.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 22, 2014
    Publication date: March 5, 2015
    Inventor: Shuhei HORITA
  • Patent number: 8970932
    Abstract: A decolorizing device includes a first reading section, a decolorizing section, a second reading section and a controller. The first reading section reads a first side of the sheet. The decolorizing section performs a decolorizing process on the sheet and the second reading section reads the first side of the sheet. The controller is configured to determine if the decolorizing process is necessary or not on the first side based on first image data of the first side read by the first reading section, to read the first side of the sheet having been subjected to the decolorizing process at the decolorizing section by the second reading section if it is determined that the decolorizing process is necessary, and to avoid reading of the first side of the sheet by the second reading section if it is determined that the decolorizing process is unnecessary.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2015
    Assignees: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Shunichi Megawa
  • Patent number: 8958081
    Abstract: This disclosure provides spot color control methods, apparatus and systems. According to one exemplary embodiment, disclosed is a method of generating device dependent color recipes for a plurality of printing devices. The method includes generating a first device dependent recipe for a target color for rendering on a first printing device, and generating a second device dependent recipe for the target color for rendering on a second printing device, whereby the second device dependent recipe is a function of the first device dependent color recipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Alvaro Enrique Gil, Lalit Keshav Mestha
  • Publication number: 20150043046
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus processes an image. An image obtaining section receives a color image. A region extracting section extracts a character region from the color image. A character color determining section determines whether the characters in the extracted character region have a non-highlight color or a different color from the non-highlight color. A highlighting section performs a highlight process on the characters if the characters have a color different from the non-highlight color. A de-highlighting section performs a de-highlight process on the characters if the characters have the non-highlight color. An image generating section produces a color-reduced image in which a number of colors has been reduced as a result of either the highlight process or the de-highlight process performed on extracted character region. A transmitting section transmits the color-reduced image to an external apparatus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 28, 2014
    Publication date: February 12, 2015
    Inventor: Takara IWAMOTO
  • Patent number: 8947738
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a conversion unit and a determination unit to convert image data into color material data including color material data indicating a color material amount of a chromatic color material and color material data indicating a color material amount of an achromatic color material. The conversion unit converts image data of a region of interest in an image into the color material data of the chromatic color material. The determination unit determines the color material data of the achromatic color material corresponding to the image data so that a color indicated by coloring information corresponding to the image data of the region of interest in the image approaches an achromatic color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akira Shibasaki, Hiromitsu Nishikawa, Takayuki Jinno, Takashi Ochiai
  • Patent number: 8947729
    Abstract: There is provided a color processing apparatus comprising: a calculation unit configured to calculate, for each of a plurality of light sources, a first colorimetric value that is obtained by measuring a color having a spectral reflectance indicated by spectral reflectance information under the light source; a mapping unit configured to obtain, for each of the plurality of light sources, a second colorimetric value by mapping the first colorimetric value of the light source within a gamut under the light source; a color separation unit configured to obtain the output information from a plurality of the second colorimetric values, by adjusting the output information such that an error between a colorimetric value obtained by measuring a color output by the image output apparatus according to the output information under each of the light sources and the second colorimetric value for the light source is minimized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Ayato Imai
  • Patent number: 8937751
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an image evaluating apparatus, an image evaluating method, and a non-transitory storage medium. In the present invention, two-dimensional relative positions between the image formation position of one color plate of a plurality of color plates and the image formation positions of other color plates are calculated based on known positional information of registration marks formed by the color plates and positional information of the registration marks that are actually formed as images on a recording medium. A position expressing image is generated which represents the calculated relative positions by way of two-dimensional positional coordinates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Fumito Takemoto, Toshiki Inoue
  • Patent number: 8922835
    Abstract: A color conversion method is utilized for converting a plurality of source information in a source color space to a plurality of destination information in a destination color space. The color conversion method includes obtaining a first color value and a plurality of second color values of a pixel; performing a computation on at least one converting parameter, the plurality of second color values, a plurality of maximum values and minimum values corresponding to the plurality of destination information to obtain a source maximum value and a source minimum value; generating an adjustment value according to the first color value, the source maximum value, and the source minimum value; and performing a computation for obtaining a plurality of destination color values of the pixel according to the at least one converting parameter, the adjustment value, and the plurality of second color values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: NOVATEK Microelectronics Corp.
    Inventor: Jian-Chao Wang
  • Patent number: 8917424
    Abstract: Data processing methods provide a work flow for producing custom screen printed products based on digital images. Disclosed techniques include a work flow for receiving user-supplied images and transforming the images into color separation data and related metadata that can drive screen printing, including previewing the appearance of the products as they will appear when screen printed, for user approval; finding key color components using a filtering and grouping approach; image resolution limiting; structured error diffusion halftoning with an improved random number generator for use in adding blue noise; error diffusion dot spread correction; and others.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Zazzle.com, Inc.
    Inventor: Young Harvill
  • Patent number: 8908230
    Abstract: Provided is a control apparatus for controlling an image forming apparatus including an inline sensor. The control apparatus includes: a data analyzing section configured to extract color information contained in an image of a target page positioned a predetermined number of pages after a certain page, where the predetermined number of pages are pages to be printed during at least a period from print processing for the certain page to measurement of color information on the printed image of the certain page; a color patch creating section configured to create a color patch corresponding to the color information contained in the image of the target page and arrange the color patch in the certain page; and a control section configured to send image data of the certain page to the image forming apparatus so as to make the image forming apparatus perform print processing and measuring color information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventor: Tatsuro Yamamuro
  • Patent number: 8902482
    Abstract: A first color conversion unit converts non-subtractive image data into subtractive image data. An overprint detection unit detects whether overprinting is specified for the subtractive image data. A drawing processing unit performs overprint processing for the subtractive image data if a color value of a foreground object, for which overprinting is specified, indicates that a region where the foreground object overlaps a background object is colored, and an underlying region of the background object behind the foreground object is colored. The color value of an overlapping region is overwritten with the color value of the foreground object. The overlapping region is not overwritten if the region where the foreground object overlaps the background object is colorless. A second color conversion unit converts image data subsequent to the overprint processing into image data having output colors in accordance with characteristics of the image forming apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2014
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Yuki Shinohara
  • Patent number: 8873106
    Abstract: A method for enabling halftoning of an image based on its color separation content is provided. The method provides better image quality and includes: analyzing image data to determine whether one or more pixels of a plurality of input pixels are separation overlay pixels having colorant requests from multiple contone planes; and halftoning the pages of the color image to produce an output color image based on the following: if a page of the color image includes more than a threshold amount of separation overlay pixels and if a property of the separation overlay pixels exceeds a predetermined threshold value, then a first halftoning model of the image printing device is used to halftone that page of the color image, else a second halftoning model, which includes an adjustment of a property of a halftone dot in the output image, is used to halftone that page of the color image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventor: David Robinson
  • Publication number: 20140293382
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes an achromatization determination portion, an achromatization processing portion, and a line designation portion. If a black pixel is present within a predetermined peripheral range from a target pixel in a sub-scanning direction, the achromatization determination portion determines whether to achromatize the target pixel, on the basis of an attribute of a background determination pixel present in an opposite direction from the target pixel with respect to the black pixel and within a range of a predetermined number of pixels from the black pixel. If no black pixel is present within the predetermined peripheral range from the target pixel in the sub-scanning direction, the achromatization determination portion determines not to achromatize the target pixel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 24, 2014
    Publication date: October 2, 2014
    Applicant: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Masaki Miyashita
  • Patent number: 8842910
    Abstract: In a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, an automated, computerized method is provided for processing an image. According to a feature of the present invention, the method comprises the steps of providing an image file depicting an image defined by image locations, in a computer memory, generating a bi-illuminant chromaticity plane in a log color space for representing the image locations of the image in a log-chromaticity representation for the image, providing a set of estimates for an orientation of the bi-illuminant chromaticity plane and calculating a single orientation for each one of the image locations as a function of the set of estimates for an orientation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2014
    Assignee: Tandent Vision Science, Inc.
    Inventor: Jean-Francois Lalonde
  • Patent number: 8824014
    Abstract: A method of operating a printer includes reducing a first plurality of coverage parameters in a first continuous tone (contone) pixel by a predetermined amount if a combination of at least two of the coverage parameters is below a predetermined threshold and reducing a second plurality of coverage parameters in a second pixel by a smaller amount if the combination of coverage parameters in the second pixel is greater than the predetermined threshold. The method further includes generating half-tone image data from the first and second pixels and forming printed marks corresponding to the first and second pixels on an image receiving surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: David Robinson, Katherine Loj
  • Patent number: 8824006
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, a color correction apparatus includes an input portion, a storing portion and a correction portion. The input portion inputs color image signals which correspond to recording color material amounts. The storing portion stores a standard color reproduction parameter for calculating a standard color reproduction chromaticity and reference chromaticity deviation amounts at a plurality of reference color points in recording color material amount coordinate space. The correction portion estimates chromaticity deviation amounts of the input color image signals on the basis of the reference chromaticity deviation amount, calculates a standard chromaticity which corresponds to the input color image signals on the basis of the standard color reproduction parameter and corrects the input color image signals on the basis of the estimated chromaticity deviation amounts and the standard chromaticity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2014
    Assignees: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takayuki Sawada, Naofumi Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8804205
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes: a memory unit; a read-out image processing unit that performs read-out image processing on input image data and stores the image data on which the image processing has been performed in the memory unit; an output attribute determining unit that performs determination image processing on the image data stored in the memory unit and determines an attribute of the image data on which the determination image processing has been performed; an output image processing unit that performs output image processing on the image data according to the determined attribute; and an output unit that outputs the image data on which the output image processing has been performed by the output image processing unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Limited
    Inventors: Masato Ishii, Taira Matsuoka
  • Patent number: 8773723
    Abstract: To generate a color separation table for an image forming apparatus which has relatively dark/light color materials with high/low relative densities, a gamut boundary for limiting the use of the relatively dark color material is set. One of relatively dark color materials is selected, and at least a grid point which satisfies a condition that the color material value of the selected relatively dark color material is nonzero and a color value to be reproduced based on color material values set to the grid point exists in a region brighter than the gamut boundary is determined. The color material value of the selected relatively dark color material set to the grid point which satisfies the condition is replaced by the color material value of the relatively light color material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hiromitsu Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 8760739
    Abstract: A scanner apparatus and method includes an optical scanner, at least one movable carriage associated with the optical scanner, and a point sensor that rides the movable carriage to measure a slow scan document width associated with a document scanned by the optical scanner. The point sensor moves in a slow scan direction with respect to the document scanned by the optical scanner. The point sensor also includes a single moving size sensor that improves a resolution by which a size associated with the document is determinable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Paul Simon Golding, Michael John Wilsher