Patents by Inventor Hitoshi Hirohata

Hitoshi Hirohata has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10484559
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus 10a includes (i) an image input apparatus 1, (ii) a control section 5a, (iii) a document detecting section 24 including a blank page detecting section and a separator sheet detecting section, and (iv) a file creating section 31 for creating a file of image data. The image input apparatus 1 has a double-side reading function. The file creating section 31 has a blank page skipping function and a separating function. The control section 5a includes a function setting section 51 for enabling the double-side reading function and the blank page skipping function when enabling the separating function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2019
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Naoto Fukushima
  • Patent number: 10088994
    Abstract: When displaying a N-up image view in which a plurality of thumbnail images displayed in given windows are grouped and displayed in a single window by using a detecting section for detecting a contact position on a display screen of a display section, position specifications for the N-up image view of thumbnail images in the windows are received based on a contact position in the window in selecting thumbnail images to be displayed in the N-up image view by making contact with the thumbnail images, and the thumbnails images are displayed in the N-up image view based on the received position specifications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2018
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Kazuhisa Kubota
  • Publication number: 20160291853
    Abstract: When displaying a N-up image view in which a plurality of thumbnail images displayed in given windows are grouped and displayed in a single window by using a detecting section for detecting a contact position on a display screen of a display section, position specifications for the N-up image view of thumbnail images in the windows are received based on a contact position in the window in selecting thumbnail images to be displayed in the N-up image view by making contact with the thumbnail images, and the thumbnails images are displayed in the N-up image view based on the received position specifications.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 15, 2016
    Publication date: October 6, 2016
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hitoshi HIROHATA, Kazuhisa KUBOTA
  • Patent number: 9398179
    Abstract: When displaying a N-up image view in which a plurality of thumbnail images displayed in given windows are grouped and displayed in a single window by using a detecting section for detecting a contact position on a display screen of a display section, position specifications for the N-up image view of thumbnail images in the windows are received based on a contact position in the window in selecting thumbnail images to be displayed in the N-up image view by making contact with the thumbnail images, and the thumbnails images are displayed in the N-up image view based on the received position specifications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2016
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Kazuhisa Kubota
  • Publication number: 20150248777
    Abstract: A file information generation section generates a draw command for causing a computer to carry out a process for switching, in accordance with an instruction from a user, between a first display state in which, in a case where the user specifies a part of an original text, the original text and translation information corresponding to the part of the original text, which part is specified by the user, are displayed; and a second display state in which the original text and the translation information corresponding to the original text are displayed at all times. This allows a browsing user to generate an image file in which a display mode of a translated word can be easily switched.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 21, 2013
    Publication date: September 3, 2015
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yohsuke Konishi, Akihito Yoshida, Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Patent number: 8941864
    Abstract: Disclosed is an image processing apparatus which (i) determines whether or not characters to be subjected to a character recognition process in image data have a size larger than a predetermined size, (ii) in a case where the characters is determined as larger than the predetermined size, reduces at least a region including the characters so that the size of the characters fits within the predetermined size, and (iii) performs a character recognition process of the characters with use of the reduced image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Akihito Yoshida, Atsuhisa Morimoto, Yohsuke Konishi
  • Publication number: 20150015917
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus (3) includes: a detection processing section which detects, for each page of an original document with a plurality of pages, the feature of image data of each page; a detection result calculation section (51) which (i) accumulates the feature detected and (ii) calculates a frequency of the feature of the original document; and a setting section (52) which sets a common feature, as the feature, to the image data of the plurality of pages of the original document in accordance with the frequency.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 29, 2013
    Publication date: January 15, 2015
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Yohsuke Konishi, Makio Gotoh, Masakazu Ohira
  • Publication number: 20150009541
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus 10a includes (i) an image input apparatus 1, (ii) a control section 5a, (iii) a document detecting section 24 including a blank page detecting section and a separator sheet detecting section, and (iv) a file creating section 31 for creating a file of image data. The image input apparatus 1 has a double-side reading function. The file creating section 31 has a blank page skipping function and a separating function. The control section 5a includes a function setting section 51 for enabling the double-side reading function and the blank page skipping function when enabling the separating function.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2014
    Publication date: January 8, 2015
    Inventors: Hitoshi HIROHATA, Naoto FUKUSHIMA
  • Publication number: 20140337008
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus (3) includes: a translation section (32) carrying out a translation process of a language contained in image data; and a formatting process section (34) generating an image file, in accordance with the image data and a result of the translation process. The formatting process section (34) embeds, in the image file, a command for causing a computer to switch between a first display state in which the language and the translated word are displayed together and a second display state in which the language is displayed without the translated word in a case where a user gives, with respect to the image file, a switching instruction to switch between the first display state and the second display state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 15, 2013
    Publication date: November 13, 2014
    Inventors: Atsuhisa Morimoto, Yohsuke Konishi, Hitoshi Hirohata, Akihito Yoshida
  • Patent number: 8854641
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus 10a includes (i) an image input apparatus 1, (ii) a control section 5a, (iii) a document detecting section 24 including a blank page detecting section and a separator sheet detecting section, and (iv) a file creating section 31 for creating a file of image data. The image input apparatus 1 has a double-side reading function. The file creating section 31 has a blank page skipping function and a separating function. The control section 5a includes a function setting section 51 for enabling the double-side reading function and the blank page skipping function when enabling the separating function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Naoto Fukushima
  • Patent number: 8848240
    Abstract: An object area containing a text or a graphic is extracted from a document image containing the text or the graphic. Then, on the basis of the extracted object area and stored size information, a cropping area is determined that surrounds the object area with given margins. Further, setting of margins is received. Then, on the basis of the object area and the received setting of the margins, the cropping area is determined. Then, the cropping area determined on the basis of the object area and the size information or alternatively the cropping area determined on the basis of the object area and the setting of the margins is cropped from the document image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Atsuhisa Morimoto, Yohsuke Konishi, Hitoshi Hirohata, Akihito Yoshida
  • Patent number: 8351706
    Abstract: Document data corresponding to each page included in a document is stored, and furthermore, feature data indicative of a feature of the document data and a document index indicating the document are associated with the document data. A document extracting apparatus obtains input document data, calculates feature data from the input document data, judges similarity between the input document data and the document data based on the feature data, obtains a document index associated with document data similar to the input document data, and extracts a plurality of pieces of document data associated with the document index. Thus, document data concerning the document including a page corresponding to the document data similar to the input document data is extracted for a plurality of pages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Patent number: 8260061
    Abstract: In an image data output processing apparatus of the present invention, an image matching section is capable of determining whether a similarity exists between each image of an N-up document and a reference document when input image data is indicative of the N-up document. An output process control section is capable of regulating an output process of each image in accordance with a result of determining whether the similarity exists between each image of the N-up document and the reference document. This allows detecting with high accuracy a document image under regulation on the output process and regulating the output process, when the input image data is indicative of an N-up document and includes the document image under regulation on the output process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Publication number: 20120120432
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus 10a includes (i) an image input apparatus 1, (ii) a control section 5a, (iii) a document detecting section 24 including a blank page detecting section and a separator sheet detecting section, and (iv) a file creating section 31 for creating a file of image data. The image input apparatus 1 has a double-side reading function. The file creating section 31 has a blank page skipping function and a separating function. The control section 5a includes a function setting section 51 for enabling the double-side reading function and the blank page skipping function when enabling the separating function.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2011
    Publication date: May 17, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hitoshi HIROHATA, Naoto FUKUSHIMA
  • Publication number: 20120120444
    Abstract: Disclosed is an image processing apparatus which (i) determines whether or not characters to be subjected to a character recognition process in image data have a size larger than a predetermined size, (ii) in a case where the characters is determined as larger than the predetermined size, reduces at least a region including the characters so that the size of the characters fits within the predetermined size, and (iii) performs a character recognition process of the characters with use of the reduced image data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2011
    Publication date: May 17, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hitoshi Hirohata, Akihito Yoshida, Atsuhisa Morimoto, Yohsuke Konishi
  • Patent number: 8154513
    Abstract: At least two infrared light-emitting areas are displayed within a display screen of a liquid crystal display apparatus. The infrared light-emitting areas are areas for emitting light having a wavelength in the infrared region. Then, an image is captured by an operating device in the direction of a position pointed by the operating device. A position on the display screen that is pointed by the operating device is calculated based on the positions of the infrared light-emitting areas that are included in the captured image. This arrangement makes it possible to appropriately calculate the position on the display screen that is pointed by the operating device, independently of the distance between the operating device and the display screen of the liquid crystal display apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masakazu Ohira, Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Patent number: 8107728
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a feature point calculating section for extracting two or more connected components from a document image of interest and calculating the feature point from the centroid defined in each of the connected components, a features calculating section for calculating the features of the document image from the distance between the feature points, a voting processing section for voting one of the registered images which is similar to the document image as reviewing the features, and a similarity judging process section for judging the similarity from the result of the voting, wherein the description of the processing to be executed for the output is determined from the result of the similarity judgment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Haruo Yamamoto, Makoto Ohtsu, Masakazu Ohira, Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Publication number: 20110310414
    Abstract: An object area containing a text or a graphic is extracted from a document image containing the text or the graphic. Then, on the basis of the extracted object area and stored size information, a cropping area is determined that surrounds the object area with given margins. Further, setting of margins is received. Then, on the basis of the object area and the received setting of the margins, the cropping area is determined. Then, the cropping area determined on the basis of the object area and the size information or alternatively the cropping area determined on the basis of the object area and the setting of the margins is cropped from the document image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2011
    Publication date: December 22, 2011
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Atsuhisa MORIMOTO, Yohsuke KONISHI, Hitoshi HIROHATA, Akihito YOSHIDA
  • Patent number: 8077146
    Abstract: A plurality of infrared-light-emitting areas are displayed in a display screen of a liquid crystal display apparatus in a method that allows each of the infrared-light-emitting areas to be distinguished. Then, an image in a direction of a pointed position is captured by an operating device. Based on a result of distinguishing each of the infrared-light-emitting areas and a position of each of the infrared-light-emitting areas, a pointed position on the display screen is calculated. This makes it possible to properly detect the pointed position on the display screen pointed by the operating device, regardless of (i) a distance between the operating device and the display apparatus and (ii) a rotation angle of the operating device around an axis in an image capture direction of the operating device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Atsuhisa Morimoto, Masakazu Ohira, Hitoshi Hirohata
  • Patent number: 8073262
    Abstract: In an image matching apparatus of the present invention, only a connected region in which the number of pixels included therein exceeds a threshold value, among connected regions that are specified by a labeling process section, is sent to a centroid calculation process section from a threshold value processing section, and a centroid (feature point) of the connected region is calculated. When it is determined that a target document to be matched is an N-up document, the threshold value processing section uses, instead of a default threshold value, a variant threshold value that varies depending on the number of images laid out on the N-up document and a document size that are found and detected by an N-up document determination section and a document size detection section. This makes it possible to determine a similarity to a reference document with high accuracy even in a case of an N-up document, i.e., a case where each target image to be matched is reduced in size from an original image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hitoshi Hirohata