JP2020082585A - Information processing device, image forming apparatus, image processing system and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an information processing device for enabling a preview display in which an image printed with a special consumption material enhances visibility to an image to be a background, an image forming apparatus, an image processing system and a program.SOLUTION: An information processing device for performing preview display on the basis of print data includes a generation part for generating a preview image for performing a preview display on the basis of the print data including drawing information with a special consumption material, and a setting part for setting a color of a first image drawn with the special consumption material in the preview image in accordance with an operation input to an input part. The generation part re-creates a preview image by overlapping the first image whose color is set by the setting part on an image other than the first image.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an image forming device, an image processing system and a program.

In recent years, in addition to printing on a print medium using color ink, toner, ribbons, etc., printing is performed using a special consumable material called IR (Infrared) toner that transmits visible light and absorbs infrared light. The technology is known. Specifically, the IR toner is a toner that has absorptivity in the wavelength range of infrared light and has a lower absorptivity in the wavelength range of visible light than in the wavelength range of infrared light. Since printing with IR toner has the property of being invisible to the human eye in principle even when printed on a print medium, printing of an identification code (eg, QR code (registered trademark)) of a tag attached to an article in physical distribution It is envisioned that the product is displayed on a tag, printed on a tag, or printed with special information such as an employee ID card. Of these, for example, it is used for the purpose of ensuring the originality of the employee ID card by printing special information on the employee ID card or the like. In principle, an image printed with IR toner cannot be visually recognized by human eyes, and since visible light is transmitted, it cannot be copied by an ordinary copying machine. The image formed by the IR toner printed on the print medium can be read by a special reading device such as an infrared camera.

Examples of special consumable materials other than color toners include the above-mentioned IR toners, decoloring toners that are decolored by irradiation of near infrared rays, and UV (Ultraviolet) inks that are cured by irradiation of ultraviolet rays. For such special consumables, there is a demand to confirm in advance how they will be printed by displaying a preview before printing.

As an image forming apparatus using such a special consumable material, there is an apparatus capable of confirming the state before and after erasing the decoloring toner when printing with the decoloring toner. It is disclosed (see Patent Document 1).

However, the technique described in Patent Document 1 does not disclose how to display the preview when the background color at the time of preview or the normal toner image and the decolorized toner image overlap each other. There is a problem. Also, when performing a preview display when an image printed with normal toner overlaps an image printed with IR toner, or a preview display of an image printed with IR toner depending on the background color, the IR toner However, there is a problem that the visibility of the image is deteriorated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an information processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus that enable preview display of an image printed with a special consumable material with improved visibility with respect to a background image. An object is to provide an apparatus, an image processing system, and a program.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and to achieve the object, an information processing apparatus that performs a preview display based on print data, and performs a preview display based on the print data including drawing information on a special consumable material. And a setting unit configured to set a color of the first image of the preview image drawn by the special consumable material in response to an operation input to the input unit. The generation unit superimposes the first image having the color set by the setting unit on an image other than the first image to regenerate a preview image.

According to the present invention, an image printed with a special consumable material can be preview-displayed with improved visibility with respect to a background image.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the PC according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the PC according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a functional block configuration of the image processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of normal print processing in the image processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the preview screen of the PC according to the embodiment. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of password setting/preview image registration processing in the image processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the image management table. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a preview display process in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a selection screen of files to be previewed by the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of a preview image editing process in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the IR adjustment screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of an IR color setting screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of an information processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, an image processing system, and a program according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and constituent elements in the following embodiments include those that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art, those that are substantially the same, and those that are within a so-called equivalent range. Is included. Furthermore, various omissions, replacements, changes and combinations of the constituent elements can be made without departing from the scope of the following embodiments.

(Overall structure of image processing system)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment. The overall configuration of the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the image processing system 1 includes PCs (Personal Computers) 10 a and 10 b and an image forming apparatus 20. The PCs 10a and 10b and the image forming apparatus 20 can communicate with each other via the network N.

In FIG. 1, the image processing system 1 includes two PCs 10a and 10b, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the number of PCs may be one or more. Further, the PCs 10a and 10b are simply referred to as "PC10" when referring to arbitrary PCs or collectively. Further, the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 are each examples of an information processing apparatus, and the PC 10 may be a different information processing apparatus such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a workstation.

The PC 10 is an example of an information processing apparatus that generates print data from document data created by an application and transmits the print data as a job to the image forming apparatus 20 via the network N. Further, the PC 10 has a preview display function for confirming the print state of the print data in the image forming apparatus 20 in advance. Further, the PC 10 has a function of creating print data for drawing with a special consumable material such as IR toner. Here, the special consumable material such as IR toner is assumed to be invisible to humans. Therefore, UV toner or the like may be used as the invisible consumer material. However, in the following description, it is assumed that the special consumable material is IR toner. The term "invisible" includes not only a state in which a human being cannot be completely seen, but also a state in which the consumer material can be slightly seen when it is printed, but it is not visible what is printed. Therefore, for example, the image formed by the IR toner can be suppressed from being slightly visible by printing the image formed by the IR toner by superimposing the image on the normal color toner.

The image forming apparatus 20 is an example of an information processing apparatus that receives print data from the PC 10 via the network N and prints out (image forms) the print data. Further, the image forming apparatus 20 is assumed to be capable of printing with a special consumable material such as IR toner based on the print data.

The image forming apparatus 20 may be a printer or the like having a printing function, and may be a laser printer by toner printing, an inkjet printer by ink printing, or a printing device by ribbon printing. In the following description, the image forming apparatus 20 is described as a multi-function peripheral (MFP: Multifunction Peripheral) having toner printing, which has at least two functions of a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function. Further, as with the PC 10 described above, it is assumed that the special consumable material that can be printed by the image forming apparatus 20 is IR toner.

The network N is a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), a dedicated line, or the Internet. The network N performs data communication by a communication protocol such as TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)/IP (Internet Protocol). The network N may include either a wired or wireless network.

(PC hardware configuration)
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the PC according to the embodiment. The hardware configuration of the PC 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the PC 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103, a communication I/F (Interface) 104, and an input/output I. /F105, an input device 106, a display device 107, and an auxiliary storage device 108.

The CPU 101 is a computing device that controls the overall operation of the PC 10. The ROM 102 is a non-volatile storage device that stores a program such as firmware for the PC 10. The RAM 103 is a volatile storage device used as a work area of the CPU 101.

The communication I/F 104 is an interface such as a NIC (Network Interface Card) for communicating data via the network N or the like. The communication I/F 104 performs data communication using a communication protocol such as TCP/IP.

The input/output I/F 105 is an interface for connecting various devices (for example, the input device 106 and the display device 107) and the bus 109.

The input device 106 is an input device such as a mouse or a keyboard for inputting characters and numbers, selecting various instructions, and moving the cursor.

The display device 107 is a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), a plasma display, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, which displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, characters, and images.

The auxiliary storage device 108 is a storage device such as an OS (Operating System), an application program, a printer driver, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores various data.

The CPU 101, the ROM 102, the RAM 103, the communication I/F 104, the input/output I/F 105, and the auxiliary storage device 108 are communicably connected to each other by a bus 109 such as an address bus and a data bus.

It should be noted that the hardware configuration of the PC 10 shown in FIG. 2 is merely an example, and it is not necessary to include all of the components shown in FIG. 2, and other components may be included.

(Hardware configuration of image forming apparatus)
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. The hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the image forming apparatus 20 according to the present embodiment, a controller 200, an operation display unit 210, an FCU (Facsimile Control Unit) 220, a plotter 231, and a scanner 232 are provided as a PCI (Peripheral). It is configured to be connected by a component interface bus.

The controller 200 is a device that controls the entire image forming apparatus 20, drawing, communication, control of various engines, and input from the operation display unit 210.

The operation display unit 210 is, for example, a touch panel or the like, receives an input to the controller 200 (input function), and displays the state of the image forming apparatus 20 (display function). The operation display unit 210 is an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated) described later. It is directly connected to the Circuit 206.

The FCU 220 is a device that realizes a fax function, and is connected to the ASIC 206 by a PCI bus, for example.

The plotter 231 is a device that realizes a printing function, and is connected to the ASIC 206 by a PCI bus, for example. The scanner 232 has a function of realizing a scanner function, and is connected to the ASIC 206 by a PCI bus, for example.

The controller 200 includes a CPU 201, a system memory (MEM-P) 202, a north bridge (NB) 203, a south bridge (SB) 204a, a network I/F 204b, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) I/F 204c, It has a Centronics I/F 204d, an ASIC 206, a local memory (MEM-C) 207, and an auxiliary storage device 208.

The CPU 201 controls the entire image forming apparatus 20, is connected to a chip set including a system memory 202, a north bridge 203, and a south bridge 204a, and is connected to other devices via the chip set.

The system memory 202 is a memory used as a storage memory for programs and data, a development memory for programs and data, a drawing memory for a printer, and the like, and has a ROM and a RAM. Among them, the ROM is a read-only memory used as a memory for storing programs and data, and the RAM is a writable and readable memory used as a memory for developing programs and data, a drawing memory of a printer, and the like. ..

The north bridge 203 is a bridge for connecting the CPU 201 to the system memory 202, the south bridge 204a, and the AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus 205, and a memory controller that controls reading and writing to the system memory 202, a PCI master, and a PCI master. With an AGP target.

The south bridge 204a is a bridge for connecting the north bridge 203 to PCI devices and peripheral devices. The south bridge 204a is connected to the north bridge 203 via a PCI bus, and the PCI bus is connected to a network I/F 204b, a USB I/F 204c, a Centronics I/F 204d, and the like.

The AGP bus 205 is a bus interface for a graphics accelerator card proposed for speeding up graphics processing. The AGP bus 205 is a bus that speeds up the graphics accelerator card by directly accessing the system memory 202 with high throughput.

The ASIC 206 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) for image processing use having a hardware element for image processing, and has a role of a bridge that connects the AGP bus 205, the PCI bus, the auxiliary storage device 208, and the local memory 207. The ASIC 206 includes a PCI target and an AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) that forms the core of the ASIC 206, a memory controller that controls the local memory 207, and a plurality of DMACs (Direct Memory Access) that rotate image data by hardware logic or the like. Controller) and a PCI unit that transfers data between the plotter 231 and the scanner 232 via the PCI bus. For example, the FCU 220, the plotter 231, and the scanner 232 are connected to the ASIC 206 via the PCI bus. The ASIC 206 is also connected to a host PC, a network, and the like (not shown).

The local memory 207 is a memory used as a copy image buffer and a code buffer.

The auxiliary storage device 208 is a storage device such as an HDD, SSD, SD (Secure Digital) card or flash memory, and is a storage for storing image data, programs, font data, forms, and the like. Is.

The hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 illustrated in FIG. 3 is an example, and it is not necessary to include all the constituent devices, and other constituent devices may be included.

(Software configuration of PC)
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the PC according to the embodiment. The software configuration of the PC 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, an application 151, a printer driver 152, and a preview application 153 are installed in the PC 10.

The application 151 is software that creates data including an image to be printed.

The printer driver 152 is software that generates print data to be sent to the image forming apparatus 20 as a job from the data to be printed created by the application 151.

The preview application 153 is software that performs a preview display for confirming the print state in the image forming apparatus 20 in advance from the print data generated by the printer driver 152.

Note that the printer driver 152 and the preview application 153 do not have to be separate software, and may be configured as one piece of software.

(Functional block configuration of image processing system)
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a functional block configuration of the image processing system according to the embodiment. The configuration of the functional blocks of the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

<Functional block configuration of PC>
As shown in FIG. 5, the PC 10 of the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a communication unit 301, a password setting unit 302, an image generation unit 303, a storage unit 311, an input unit 312, and a display control unit. A display unit 314 and a display unit 314 are included.

The communication unit 301 is a functional unit that performs data communication with the image forming apparatus 20 via the network N. The communication unit 301 is realized by, for example, the communication I/F 104 shown in FIG. 2 and a program (printer driver 152 or preview application 153) executed by the CPU 101.

The password setting unit 302 determines whether the print data to be printed by the image forming apparatus 20 has a preview screen (a preview screen 1000 shown in FIG. 7 or the like, which will be described later) of the print data, and the print data includes drawing information by IR toner. A functional unit for setting an ID and a password as authentication information for displaying an image based on the drawing information by the IR toner in a preview. The password setting unit 302 is realized by a program (printer driver 152 or preview application 153) executed by the CPU 101 shown in FIG.

The image generation unit 303 is a functional unit that generates, from print data, a preview image for confirming a print state in the image forming apparatus 20 in advance on a preview screen (a preview screen 1000 shown in FIG. 7, which will be described later). The image generation unit 303 is realized by a program (printer driver 152 or preview application 153) executed by the CPU 101 shown in FIG.

The storage unit 311 is a functional unit that stores document data, print data, and other information. The storage unit 311 is realized by at least one of the auxiliary storage device 108 and the RAM 103 shown in FIG.

The input unit 312 is a functional unit that allows the user to input characters and numbers, select various instructions, and perform operation input such as cursor movement. The input unit 312 is realized by the input device 106 shown in FIG.

The display control unit 313 is a functional unit that controls the display operation of the display unit 314. The display control unit 313 is realized by, for example, a program (printer driver 152 or preview application 153) executed by the CPU 101 shown in FIG.

The display unit 314 is a functional unit that displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, characters, an image (a preview image or the like), various screens, and the like under the control of the display control unit 313. The display unit 314 is realized by the display device 107 shown in FIG.

Note that the communication unit 301, the password setting unit 302, the image generation unit 303, the storage unit 311, the input unit 312, the display control unit 313, and the display unit 314 of the PC 10 illustrated in FIG. However, the configuration is not limited to this. For example, a plurality of functional units illustrated as independent functional units in the PC 10 shown in FIG. 5 may be configured as one functional unit. On the other hand, in the PC 10 shown in FIG. 5, the function of one functional unit may be divided into a plurality of units and configured as a plurality of functional units.

Further, part or all of the password setting unit 302, the image generation unit 303, and the display control unit 313 may be realized by a hardware circuit such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC instead of a program that is software. Good.

<Functional block configuration of image forming apparatus>
As shown in FIG. 5, the image forming apparatus 20 of the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a communication unit 401, a first acquisition unit 402, an image setting unit 403 (setting unit), and an image generation unit 404 ( An example of a generation unit), a registration unit 405, a second acquisition unit 406, a determination unit 407, a collation unit 408, an image forming unit 409, a storage unit 411, an input unit 412, and a display control unit 413. And a display portion 414.

The communication unit 401 is a functional unit that performs data communication with the PC 10 via the network N. The communication unit 401 is realized by, for example, the network I/F 204b shown in FIG. 3 and a program executed by the CPU 201.

The first acquisition unit 402 is a functional unit that acquires, via the communication unit 401, an ID and a password for displaying an image based on the drawing information by the IR toner for previewing, which is set in the PC 10, and print data. The first acquisition unit 402 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The image setting unit 403 displays a color image on a preview screen displayed on the display unit 414 (a preview screen 1600 shown in FIG. 13, which will be described later) and an image drawn with IR toner (hereinafter, simply referred to as an IR image). There is a case)) and a functional unit for adjusting and setting the color and density. The image setting unit 403 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The image generation unit 404 is a functional unit that generates a preview image for preview display on a preview screen 1600 described below from the print data acquired by the first acquisition unit 402. The image generation unit 404 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The registration unit 405 associates the ID and password acquired by the first acquisition unit 402 with the preview image generated by the image generation unit 404 with a table stored in the storage unit 411 (described later in FIG. 9). It is a functional unit registered in the image management table 2001) shown. The registration unit 405 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The second acquisition unit 406 is a functional unit that acquires, from the storage unit 411, a preview image corresponding to the job selected and operated by the user from the input unit 412. The second acquisition unit 406 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The determination unit 407 is a functional unit that refers to an image management table 2001, which will be described later, and determines whether the ID and password corresponding to the preview image acquired by the second acquisition unit 406 exist. The determination unit 407 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The collation unit 408 is a functional unit that collates the ID and password input by the user on the preview screen 1600 described below with the ID and password corresponding to the preview image acquired by the second acquisition unit 406. The matching unit 408 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The image forming unit 409 is a functional unit that prints out the print data acquired by the first acquisition unit 402. The image forming unit 409 is realized by the plotter 231 shown in FIG. 3 and a program executed by the CPU 201.

The storage unit 411 is a functional unit that stores print data, a preview image, an image management table 2001 described later, and the like. The storage unit 411 is realized by at least one of the auxiliary storage device 208, the system memory 202, and the local memory 207 shown in FIG.

The input unit 412 is a functional unit that allows the user to input characters, numbers, and the like, and input operations such as selecting various instructions. The input unit 412 is realized by the input function of the operation display unit 210 shown in FIG. 3, for example.

The display control unit 413 is a functional unit that controls the display operation of the display unit 414. The display control unit 413 is realized by a program executed by the CPU 201 shown in FIG.

The display unit 414 is a functional unit that displays various information such as characters, images (preview images, etc.), various screens, etc. under the control of the display control unit 413. The display unit 414 is realized by the display function of the operation display unit 210 shown in FIG.

The communication unit 401, the first acquisition unit 402, the image setting unit 403, the image generation unit 404, the registration unit 405, the second acquisition unit 406, the determination unit 407, the collation unit 408, and the image of the image forming apparatus 20 illustrated in FIG. The forming unit 409, the storage unit 411, the input unit 412, the display control unit 413, and the display unit 414 conceptually show the functions, and are not limited to such a configuration. For example, a plurality of functional units illustrated as independent functional units in the image forming apparatus 20 illustrated in FIG. 5 may be configured as one functional unit. On the other hand, in the image forming apparatus 20 shown in FIG. 5, the function of one functional unit may be divided into a plurality of units and configured as a plurality of functional units.

Further, some or all of the first acquisition unit 402, the image setting unit 403, the image generation unit 404, the registration units 405 and 406, the determination unit 407, the collation unit 408, and the display control unit 413 are not software programs, It may be realized by a hardware circuit such as FPGA or ASIC.

(Normal printing process)
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of normal print processing in the image processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the preview screen of the PC according to the embodiment. The flow of normal print processing in the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

<Step S11>
The image generation unit 303 of the PC 10 generates a preview image for preview display on the preview screen 1000 shown in FIG. 7 from the print data to be printed by the image forming apparatus 20. Then, the display control unit 313 of the PC 10 displays the preview image generated by the image generation unit 303 in the preview display area 1001 of the preview screen 1000 displayed on the display unit 314. Then, the process proceeds to step S12.

<Step S12>
After confirming the preview image displayed on the preview screen 1000, the user performs a print execution operation via the input unit 312. Then, the communication unit 301 of the PC 10 transmits the print data corresponding to the preview image displayed on the preview screen 1000 to the image forming apparatus 20 via the network N. Then, the process proceeds to step S13.

<Step S13>
When the image forming unit 409 of the PC 10 receives print data from the PC 10 via the communication unit 401, the image forming unit 409 generates a print image to be printed out from the print data. Then, the process proceeds to step S14.

<Step S14>
The image forming unit 409 prints out (prints) the generated print image. This completes the normal printing process in the image processing system 1.

(Password setting/preview image registration process)
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of password setting/preview image registration processing in the image processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the image management table. The flow of password setting/preview image registration processing in the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9.

<Step S21>
The image generation unit 303 of the PC 10 generates a preview image for preview display on the preview screen 1000 shown in FIG. 7 from the print data to be printed by the image forming apparatus 20. Then, the display control unit 313 of the PC 10 displays the preview image generated by the image generation unit 303 in the preview display area 1001 of the preview screen 1000 displayed on the display unit 314. At this time, when the preview image includes an IR image, the display control unit 313 displays an image excluding the IR image in the preview display area 1001. Further, when the preview image includes an IR image, the display control unit 313 sets and inputs an ID and a password required to display the IR image on the image forming apparatus 20 side, and an ID setting area shown in FIG. 1002, a password setting area 1003 and a decision button 1004 are displayed. It should be noted that the ID setting area 1002, the password setting area 1003, and the enter button 1004 are originally displayed, and if the preview image does not include the IR image, the input operation is invalid due to a display mode such as gray-out. You can do it.

When the cancel button 1005 on the preview screen 1000 is pressed, the ID and password settings are canceled. Then, the process proceeds to step S22.

<Step S22>
The user inputs a desired ID in the ID setting area 1002 on the preview screen 1000 via the input unit 312, inputs a desired password in the password setting area 1003, and presses the enter button 1004. The password setting unit 302 of the PC 10 confirms (sets) the ID and password input in the ID setting area 1002 and the password setting area 1003, respectively. In this case, the password setting unit 302 may store the confirmed (set) ID and password in the storage unit 311. Then, the process proceeds to step S23.

<Step S23>
The password setting unit 302 transmits the confirmed (set) ID and password, and the print data corresponding to the preview image displayed in the preview display area 1001 to the image forming apparatus 20 via the communication unit 301. Then, the process proceeds to step S24.

<Step S24>
The first acquisition unit 402 of the image forming apparatus 20 has an ID and a password for displaying an image (IR image) (first image, special image) based on drawing information by the IR toner set in the PC 10 as a preview, and printing. The data is acquired via the communication unit 401. The image generation unit 404 of the image forming apparatus 20 generates a preview image to be preview-displayed on a preview screen 1600 described later from the print data acquired by the first acquisition unit 402. Then, the process proceeds to step S25.

<Step S25>
The registration unit 405 of the image forming apparatus 20 associates the ID and password acquired by the first acquisition unit 402 with the preview image generated by the image generation unit 404 with the registration unit 405 shown in FIG. 9 stored in the storage unit 411. The image management table 2001 (an example of association information) is registered. As a result, the preview image including the IR image is stored in association with the ID and password. In the image management table 2001 shown in FIG. 9, for example, a preview image “DDAAEE3344... ”Is registered in association with the ID “C7896” and the password “T83H”.

In the image management table 2001 shown in FIG. 9, the preview image data is directly registered in the table in association with the ID and password, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the image management table 2001, instead of the data of the preview image, a path indicating the storage area of the storage unit 411 in which the preview image is stored may be registered.

Further, the image management table 2001 shown in FIG. 9 is information in a table format, but it is not limited to this, and if the values of each column of the table can be managed in association with each other, any format can be used. May be information

This completes the password setting/preview image registration processing in the image processing system 1.

Although the process of pressing the enter button 1004 after setting and inputting the ID and password on the preview screen 1000 in step S22 is shown, it is assumed that the enter button 1004 can be pressed without inputting the ID and password. Good. That is, in this case, the password setting unit 302 transmits only the print data corresponding to the preview image displayed in the preview display area 1001 to the image forming apparatus 20 via the communication unit 301. Then, the first acquisition unit 402 of the image forming apparatus 20 acquires only the print data via the communication unit 401, and the registration unit 405 stores the preview image generated by the image generation unit 404 in the storage unit 411. The image management table 2001 shown in FIG. 9 may be registered.

(Preview display process)
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a preview display process in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a selection screen of files to be previewed by the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. The flow of preview display processing in the image forming apparatus 20 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 13.

<Step S31>
The display control unit 413 of the image forming apparatus 20 causes the display unit 414 to display the selection screen 1500 shown in FIG. 11 according to the operation input to the input unit 412 by the user.

As shown in FIG. 11, the selection screen 1500 includes a list display area 1501, a delete button 1502, a preview button 1503, a setting change button 1504, and a print execution button 1505. The list display area 1501 is an area for displaying a list of jobs of print data received by the image forming apparatus 20, and the user can select a job for preview display or print execution from these lists. .. The delete button 1502 is a button for deleting a job selected from the list of jobs displayed in the list display area 1501. The preview button 1503 is a button for displaying a preview image corresponding to the job selected from the list of jobs displayed in the list display area 1501 on the preview screen 1600 shown in FIG. The setting change button 1504 is a button for transitioning to a screen for making settings such as print settings for a job selected from the job list displayed in the list display area 1501. The print execution button 1505 is a button for executing printing of print data corresponding to the job selected from the list of jobs displayed in the list display area 1501.

By operating the input unit 412, the user selects a job for which a preview display is requested from the list of print data jobs displayed in the list display area 1501 of the selection screen 1500, and presses the preview button 1503. Then, the display control unit 413 of the image forming apparatus 20 causes the display unit 414 to display the preview screen 1600 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 12, preview screen 1600 includes a preview display area 1601, an ID input area 1602, a password input area 1603, a display button 1604, and an edit button 1605. The preview display area 1601 is an area for displaying a preview image. The ID input area 1602 is an area for inputting an ID for displaying the IR image included in the preview image. The password input area 1603 is an area for inputting a password for displaying the IR image included in the preview image. The display button 1604 is a button for displaying the IR image included in the preview image. The edit button 1605 is a button for editing (adjusting) the preview image. The check box 1606 is a check box for checking when an IR image is to be displayed on the preview image. However, at this stage, the ID input area 1602, the password input area 1603, the display button 1604, and the edit button 1605 are not displayed.

Then, the process proceeds to step S32.

<Step S32>
The second acquisition unit 406 of the image forming apparatus 20 searches for and acquires the preview image corresponding to the job selected by the user in the image management table 2001 stored in the storage unit 411. The display control unit 413 of the image forming apparatus 20 causes the preview display area 1601 of the preview screen 1600 to display an image other than the IR image among the preview images acquired by the second acquisition unit 406. That is, in this state, only the normal color toner image other than the IR image is displayed. Then, the process proceeds to step S33.

<Step S33>
When the user performs a check operation on the check box 1606 of the preview screen 1600 via the input unit 412, the determination unit 407 of the image forming apparatus 20 refers to the image management table 2001 and causes the second acquisition unit 406 to perform the check. It is determined whether or not the ID and password corresponding to the acquired preview image are present. When the ID and the password are present (step S33: Yes), the display control unit 413 causes the preview screen 1600 to display the ID input area 1602, the password input area 1603, the display button 1604, and the edit button 1605 shown in FIG. Control goes to step S34. On the other hand, if the ID and password do not exist (step S33: No), the display control unit 413 displays the ID input area 1602, the password input area 1603, the display button 1604, and the edit button 1605 shown in FIG. 12 on the preview screen 1600. If not, the process proceeds to step S36.

In the preview screen 1600, the ID input area 1602, the password input area 1603, the display button 1604, and the edit button 1605 are originally displayed, and the preview image acquired by the second acquisition unit 406 in the image management table 2001 is displayed. When the corresponding ID and password do not exist, the input operation may be invalidated by a display mode such as gray-out.

<Step S34>
The user inputs an ID into the ID input area 1602 on the preview screen 1600 via the input unit 412, inputs a password into the password input area 1603, and presses the enter button 1004. Then, the process proceeds to step S35.

<Step S35>
The collating unit 408 of the image forming apparatus 20 refers to the image management table 2001 and acquires the ID and password (an example of the second authentication information) input by the user on the preview screen 1600 and the second acquisition unit 406. The ID and password (an example of the first authentication information) corresponding to the preview image are collated. If both IDs and passwords match (step S35: Yes), the process proceeds to step S36, and if at least one does not match (step S35: No), the preview display process ends.

<Step S36>
The display control unit 413 superimposes the IR image of the preview images acquired by the second acquisition unit 406 on an image (second image) other than the IR image already displayed in the preview display area 1601 and displays the IR image. For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the display control unit 413 displays the image in the preview display area 1601 by superimposing the IR drawing unit IR1 on the already displayed image. This allows the IR image to be displayed when the ID and password entered on the preview screen 1600 match the previously registered ID and password, so that only the person who knows the ID and password can use the IR image. The image can be browsed and the security for the IR image can be improved. Then, the preview display process ends.

(Preview image editing process)
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of a preview image editing process in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the IR adjustment screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of an IR color setting screen of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. The flow of the preview image editing process in the image forming apparatus 20 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 to 16.

<Step S41>
By the preview display processing shown in FIG. 10 described above, in the state where the preview image including the IR image is displayed in the preview display area 1601, the user presses the edit button 1605 on the preview screen 1600 via the input unit 412 ( Edit selection for the preview image). Then, the process proceeds to step S42.

<Step S42>
The display control unit 413 of the image forming apparatus 20 causes the display unit 414 to display the IR adjustment screen 1700 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 15, the IR adjustment screen 1700 includes an adjustment content display area 1701, a check box 1702, a C adjustment unit 1703C, an M adjustment unit 1703M, a Y adjustment unit 1703Y, an IR adjustment unit 1703IR, and an IR. A color button 1704 and an apply button 1705 are included. The adjustment content display area 1701 is an area for displaying a preview image, and the color density is changed and displayed by the adjustment of the C adjustment unit 1703C and the like. The check box 1702 is a check box for switching whether to display the IR image superimposed on the preview image displayed in the adjustment content display area 1701. The C adjustment unit 1703C is a slider for adjusting the shading of the C (cyan) component of the background including the color image in the preview image. The M adjustment unit 1703M is a slider for adjusting the shading of the M (magenta) component of the background including the color image in the preview image. The Y adjustment unit 1703Y is a slider for adjusting the shade of the Y (yellow) component of the background including the color image in the preview image. The IR adjustment unit 1703IR is a slider for adjusting the shade of the IR image in the preview image. The IR color button 1704 is a button for transitioning to the IR color setting screen 1800 shown in FIG. 16 for determining the color of the IR image. The apply button 1705 is a button for regenerating a preview image in a state after adjustment of each color by the C adjustment unit 1703C, the M adjustment unit 1703M, the Y adjustment unit 1703Y, and the IR adjustment unit 1703IR. The C adjustment unit 1703C, the M adjustment unit 1703M, and the Y adjustment unit 1703Y can adjust the shading of each of the C (cyan), M (magenta), and Y (yellow) components. There may be a slider that can adjust the shade of the (black) component.

When the user presses the IR color button 1704 via the input unit 412, the display control unit 413 causes the display unit 414 to display the IR color setting screen 1800 shown in FIG.

The IR color setting screen 1800 is a screen for setting the color of the IR image so that the preview display makes the IR image visible. The IR color setting screen 1800 includes a hue circle selection unit 1801, a selection color display area 1802, an adjustment button 1803, and an application button 1804. The hue circle selection unit 1801 is an area for selecting the color of the IR image displayed in the form of the hue circle, and the user selects one of the colors drawn on the hue circle to select the color of the IR image. You can decide the color. The selected color display area 1802 is a display area for displaying the color selected by the hue circle selection unit 1801. The adjustment button 1803 is a button for transiting to the IR adjustment screen 1700. The apply button 1804 is a button for determining the color selected by the hue circle selection unit 1801 as the color of the IR image, and the determined color is the color of the IR drawing unit IR2 displayed in the adjustment content display area 1701. Reflected in the color. Therefore, the color of the IR drawing unit IR2 whose shade is adjusted by the IR adjusting unit 1703IR on the IR adjusting screen 1700 is the color selected and determined on the IR color setting screen 1800.

The image setting unit 403 of the image forming apparatus 20 adjusts and selects the C adjustment unit 1703C, the M adjustment unit 1703M, the Y adjustment unit 1703Y, the IR adjustment unit 1703IR, and the hue circle selection unit 1801 via the input unit 412 by the user. By operation, the shade of each color of the preview image displayed in the adjustment content display area 1701 is set. When the user presses the apply button 1705 via the input unit 412, the image generating unit 404 of the image forming apparatus 20 causes the image display unit 404 of the image forming apparatus 20 to display a preview display after adjustment (after editing) displayed in the adjustment content display area 1701. Is regenerated as a new preview image. As a result, in the preview image, the IR image can be displayed in a preview with improved visibility with respect to the image of the background (background color or color image). Then, the process proceeds to step S44.

<Step S44>
The registration unit 405 of the image forming apparatus 20 re-generates the preview image after color adjustment by the image generation unit 404 as a preview image corresponding to the ID and password input and collated to display the IR image in FIG. 10. Is updated and registered in the image management table 2001. Then, the preview image editing process ends.

As described above, in the image processing system according to the present embodiment, when displaying a preview image based on print data including drawing information by IR toner, it is possible to freely adjust the color type and shading of the IR toner image. Is. Therefore, an image printed with IR toner, which is a special consumable material, can be preview-displayed with improved visibility with respect to an image serving as a background (background color or color image). Furthermore, not only the IR image but also the shade of the background (background color or color image) can be adjusted, so that the toner image can be previewed with higher discriminability with respect to the background. It is possible to display a preview of the image with higher visibility.

Further, when the ID and password input on the preview screen 1600 match the ID and password registered in advance, the IR image is displayed. Thereby, only the person who knows the ID and the password can browse the IR image, and the security for the IR image can be improved.

The image setting unit 403 of the image forming apparatus 20, the image generation unit 404 that regenerates the adjusted preview image, the registration unit 405 that updates and registers the adjusted preview image, the second acquisition unit 406, the determination unit 407, and the collation. The PC 10 may have at least one of the functions of the display control unit 413 that displays the unit 408, the selection screen 1500, the preview screen 1600, the IR adjustment screen 1700, and the IR color setting screen 1800.

Each function of the above-described embodiments can be realized by one or a plurality of processing circuits. Here, the “processing circuit” is a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, an ASIC or a DSP (Digital) designed to execute each function described above. Such devices include devices such as Signal Processors, FPGAs, SOCs (Systems on a Chip), GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), and conventional circuit modules.

In the above-described embodiment, when at least one of the functional units of the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 is realized by executing the program, the program is provided by being incorporated in the ROM or the like in advance. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the programs executed by the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 are CD-ROMs (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), flexible disks (FD), files that are installable or executable. It may be configured to be recorded and provided in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-R (Compact Disk-Recordable) or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc). Further, in the above-described embodiment, the program executed by the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 may be stored in a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. Good. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the programs executed by the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the program executed by the PC 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 has a module configuration including at least one of the functional units described above, and the CPU is the actual hardware described above. By reading the program from the storage device and executing the program, the above-described functional units are loaded and generated in the main storage device.

1 Image processing system 10, 10a, 10b PC
20 image forming apparatus 101 CPU
102 ROM
103 RAM
104 Communication I/F
105 Input/output I/F
106 Input Device 107 Display Device 108 Auxiliary Storage Device 109 Bus 151 Application 152 Printer Driver 153 Preview Application 201 CPU
202 MEM-P
203 NB
204a SB
204b Network I/F
204c USB I/F
204d Centronics I/F
205 AGP
206 ASIC
207 MEM-C
208 auxiliary storage 210 operation display unit 220 FCU
231 Plotter 232 Scanner 301 Communication unit 302 Password setting unit 303 Image generation unit 311 Storage unit 312 Input unit 313 Display control unit 314 Display unit 401 Communication unit 402 First acquisition unit 403 Image setting unit 404 Image generation unit 405 Registration unit 406 Second Acquisition unit 407 Judgment unit 408 Collation unit 409 Image formation unit 411 Storage unit 412 Input unit 413 Display control unit 414 Display unit 1000 Preview screen 1001 Preview display region 1002 ID setting region 1003 Password setting region 1004 Enter button 1005 Cancel button 1500 selection screen 1501 List display area 1502 Delete button 1503 Preview button 1504 Setting change button 1505 Print execution button 1600 Preview screen 1601 Preview display area 1602 ID input area 1603 Password input area 1604 Display button 1605 Edit button 1606 Check box 1700 IR adjustment screen 1701 Adjustment content display area 1702 Check box 1703C C adjustment unit 1703M M adjustment unit 1703Y Y adjustment unit 1703IR IR adjustment unit 1704 IR color button 1705 Apply button 1800 IR color setting screen 1801 Hue ring selection unit 1802 Select color display area 1803 Adjust button 1804 Apply button 2001 Image management Table IR1, IR2 IR drawing unit N network

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2016-062143

Claims (11)

An information processing device for displaying a preview based on print data,
A generation unit that generates a preview image for preview display, based on the print data including drawing information for a special consumable material;
A setting unit for setting the color of the first image drawn by the special consumable material in the preview image in response to an operation input to the input unit;
Equipped with
The information processing apparatus, wherein the generation unit regenerates a preview image by superimposing the first image having the color set by the setting unit on an image other than the first image. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit sets the color type and the density of the first image according to an operation input of the input unit. The setting unit sets the color of the second image other than the first image in the preview image according to the operation input of the input unit,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generation unit regenerates a preview image by superimposing the first image on the second image having the color set by the setting unit. A collating unit that collates the first authentication information preset in association with the preview image with the second authentication information input via the input unit;
As a result of the matching by the matching unit, when the first authentication information and the second authentication information match, a display control unit that causes the display unit to display the preview image including the first image,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a registration unit that registers the preview image in association information that is associated with the first authentication information. It is determined whether or not there is the first authentication information associated with the preview image including the first image in the association information, in response to an operation input requesting display of the first image on the input unit. Further comprising a determination unit for
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the collation unit collates the first authentication information determined to exist by the determination unit with the second authentication information. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the special consumable material is an invisible consumable material. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the invisible consumer material is IR (Infrared) toner. A generation unit that generates a preview image for preview display based on print data including drawing information for a special consumable material,
A setting unit for setting the color of the first image drawn by the special consumable material among the preview images according to the operation input to the input unit;
Equipped with
The image forming apparatus, wherein the generation unit regenerates a preview image by superimposing the first image whose color is set by the setting unit on an image other than the first image. An image processing system including an information processing device and an image forming device,
The image forming apparatus,
A generation unit that generates a preview image for preview display based on print data including drawing information for a special consumer material,
A setting unit for setting the color of the first image drawn by the special consumable material in the preview image in response to an operation input to the input unit;
Equipped with
The generation unit regenerates a preview image by superimposing the first image whose color is set by the setting unit on an image other than the first image,
The information processing device,
An acquisition unit for acquiring the preview image generated by the generation unit,
A display control unit for displaying the preview image acquired by the acquisition unit on the display unit;
Image processing system equipped with. On the computer,
A generation step for generating a preview image for preview display, based on print data including drawing information for a special consumable material;
A setting step of setting a color of a special image drawn by the special consumable material among the preview images according to an operation input to the input unit;
A regenerating step of regenerating a preview image by superimposing the color-set special image on an image other than the special image;
A program to execute.

Images