Abstract: An image processing apparatus extracts an area for each color from an illustration area, specifies an area that is in contact with the boundary of the illustration area, extracts a color around the illustration area, determines whether or not the extracted color around the illustration area is the same as the color of the specified area, and processes vector data that represents an area that has been determined as having the same color.

Abstract: There are cases in which an effective search index cannot be provided to an image data only by extracting character codes from a character object in PDL data. An image processing apparatus of the present invention obtains image data by rendering PDL data, and extracts a character object from the image data. The image processing apparatus performs character recognition processing on the extracted character object to obtain character code information, and provides metadata including the character code information to the image data.

Abstract: An input image is segmented into regions based on attributes of the input image. It is determined whether each segmented region is an illustration region. When it is determined that the segmented region is an illustration region, the color of the determined illustration region is compared with that of a region around the illustration region. When these colors coincide with each other as a result of the comparison, attribute information of the illustration region is changed to that of the region around the illustration region. Print data is generated based on the changed attribute information.

Abstract: In a system that performs object division of a manuscript and adds metadata, a method is provided which can edit the metadata by an intuitive operation when no appropriate metadata is added or when it is desired that the metadata be increased by adding. An image processing device, which divides an manuscript acquired through an input component into a plurality of objects and adds the metadata, has a user interface for editing the metadata of the objects, and switches, after selecting first and second objects, a retouching method of the metadata in accordance with the contents of the respective metadata of the first object and second object.

Abstract: There are cases in which an effective search index cannot be provided to an image data only by extracting character codes from a character object in PDL data. An image processing apparatus of the present invention obtains image data by rendering PDL data, and extracts a character object from the image data. The image processing apparatus performs character recognition processing on the extracted character object to obtain character code information, and provides metadata including the character code information to the image data.

Abstract: An input image is segmented into regions based on attributes of the input image. It is determined whether each segmented region is an illustration region. When it is determined that the segmented region is an illustration region, the color of the determined illustration region is compared with that of a region around the illustration region. When these colors coincide with each other as a result of the comparison, attribute information of the illustration region is changed to that of the region around the illustration region. Print data is generated based on the changed attribute information.

Abstract: In a system that performs object division of a manuscript and adds metadata, a method is provided which can edit the metadata by an intuitive operation when no appropriate metadata is added or when it is desired that the metadata be increased by adding. An image processing device, which divides an manuscript acquired through an input component into a plurality of objects and adds the metadata, has a user interface for editing the metadata of the objects, and switches, after selecting first and second objects, a retouching method of the metadata in accordance with the contents of the respective metadata of the first object and second object.

Abstract: The objective of the preset invention is to easily determine an optimal method for the use of transparent toner. In order to resolve this problem, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes an addition unit for adding, to each of objects that constitute an original document, information indicating either that transparent toner is to be printed for the entire surface of the original document or that transparent toner is to be printed for only part of the original document, a storage unit for storing the object and a generating unit for generating image data by employing the object stored in the storage unit, wherein, based on the information added to the object that is stored in the storage unit, the generating unit controls a number of pixels used for printing the transparent toner.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus extracts an area for each color from an illustration area, specifies an area that is in contact with the boundary of the illustration area, extracts a color around the illustration area, determines whether or not the extracted color around the illustration area is the same as the color of the specified area, and processes vector data that represents an area that has been determined as having the same color.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus has a separation unit for separating objects constituting an image input by an image input unit, a setting unit for setting a criterion to determine whether or not a separated object is stored, and a determination unit for determining whether the separated object is stored based on the criterion set by the setting unit. The image processing apparatus also has a unit for displaying the separated object, responding to a user access via an interface unit, when the separated object is determined to be stored by the determination unit and storing the separated object such that the separated object can be reused.

Abstract: An image processing device includes a dividing unit for dividing objects of an input image, a metadata adding unit for adding metadata to each of the divided objects by performing OCR processing and morpheme analysis, a display unit for displaying at least one of the divided objects and the metadata added to the divided object, and a metadata accuracy determining unit for determining accuracies of the added metadata. The display unit preferentially displays metadata determined as being low in accuracy by the metadata accuracy determining unit.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus which processes input image data of Y lines, each consisting of X pixels, using an SIMD processor, comprises a calculation unit including N (X>N>1, Y>N>1) elemental processors capable of parallel-operating; an input unit for dividing and inputting the image data of one line with respect to every N pixels; a storage for storing the input N-pixel image data of the N lines; and an image processor for supplying, from among the stored N-pixel image data of the N lines, the N image data respectively to the N elemental processors, and causing the respective elemental processors to perform the same-kind calculations in parallel. Thus, the image processing apparatus for performing an image process such as error diffusion by using the SIMD processor without using any auxiliary processor for a sequential process can be provided.

Abstract: An appending method is determined based on the first print density value detected by a printer engine to control switching of the appending method and an add-on pattern, an optimal add-on pattern can be appended by an optimal method.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus which processes input image data of Y lines, each consisting of X pixels, using an SIMD processor, comprises a calculation unit including N (X>N>1, Y>N>1) elemental processors capable of parallel-operating; an input unit for dividing and inputting the image data of one line with respect to every N pixels; a storage for storing the input N-pixel image data of the N lines; and an image processor for supplying, from among the stored N-pixel image data of the N lines, the N image data respectively to the N elemental processors, and causing the respective elemental processors to perform the same-kind calculations in parallel. Thus, the image processing apparatus for performing an image process such as error diffusion by using the SIMD processor without using any auxiliary processor for a sequential process can be provided.

Abstract: It is difficult for a conventional image forming apparatus to append additional information to image information so as not to deteriorate the image quality and to decode the additional information more reliably.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus and method produce, when 600 dpi image data is generated from 300 dpi image data, interpolated data of a pixel of interest by a two-value logical operation in a case where the image data about the periphery of the pixel of interest appertains to binary representation. When the image data is judged to appertain to an image of multivalued representation, the interpolated data of the pixel of interest is produced by a numerical operation. As a result, a 600 dpi picture of the same size can be printed and recorded in such a manner that outline sharpness and smoothness, which are characteristics possessed by a two-value image, are maintained at portions of the input 300 dpi image data that are two-value images while smoothness of the grayscale is maintained at portions of the input 300 dpi image data that are halftone images.

Abstract: An information recording apparatus for recording a color image with improved resolving power and image quality is disclosed. Color image data are temporarily stored in a memory and compared with predetermined patterns in a wide reference area. If they coincide, indicating the presence of a contour of a pattern, an object pixel is modified to finer dots, in order to smooth the contour. There are also provided patterns indicating the features of dither images, in order to identify whether the color image data correspond to such dither image, and to avoid erroneous smoothing process that deteriorates the image quality of such dither image.