JP6373448B2 - Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a program.

  Conventionally, most of the charging methods for printing are devices that have only two types (color / monochrome two-level image attributes) of charging for printing two or more colors (color printing) and charging for monochrome printing.

  By the way, in some originals to be printed, color printing may be included in only a part of monochrome printing, such as a stamp or a company logo. In such a case, although most of the original document is a monochrome portion, a charge for color printing is charged in the same manner as when the majority is a color portion. This is because, when monochrome printing data and color printing data are mixed in one sheet of output paper, a color printing operation (that is, CMYK printing is rotated four times) is executed.

  Therefore, even if the document to be printed is mostly monochrome, there is a problem that if there is even a small color area, the user will be charged for the color printing fee, which increases the printing cost for the user.

  To solve this problem, a system has been proposed in which charging is performed according to the proportion of the color print area included in one output sheet (see Patent Document 1). This system analyzes the drawing information of the PDL data input via the network, calculates the ratio of the color area, and charges according to the calculated ratio.

JP 2002-009743 A

  In the method of Patent Document 1, the user can know the charge amount for the print target page, but the image attribute and the color pixel ratio of each page used for the charge calculation are not displayed on the operation unit of the apparatus. The image attributes of each page and the color pixel ratio cannot be known.

The image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes at least an attribute indicating the first color amount, an attribute indicating the second color amount, and a third color amount based on the analysis result of the image data of each page generated from the print data. A determination means for determining an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each page from among a plurality of attributes indicating a color amount including an attribute indicating, and an attribute indicating the color amount corresponding to each determined page; Display control means for displaying on the display unit in units , and the determination means performs a color pixel determination process for determining whether each pixel included in the image data is a color pixel, and the result of the determination process And calculating the ratio of the color pixels of each page based on the attribute to determine an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each page, and the display control means performs the color pixel determination process. The determined region and over the pixels, characterized thereby displayed differently from the color pixel determined as not the area.

  According to the present invention, the user can easily grasp which image attribute and charge unit price each page of the printed matter to be output is printed on.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of an image forming system according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of a control unit of the image forming apparatus. FIG. It is a figure which shows the detail of the process in a scanner image process part. It is a figure which shows the detail of the various image processes performed with respect to output image data in a print image process part. 1 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of an image forming apparatus. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of processing when performing copy processing in the image forming apparatus. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a main menu screen displayed when an image forming apparatus is activated. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a condition confirmation screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a job log detailed information screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a job log detailed information (by page) screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a color pixel determination result screen. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen (screen at the time of printing) which shows that it is performing printing. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen (print completion screen) which shows the completion | finish of printing. It is a figure which shows an example of a preservation | save file screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a preservation | save file detailed information screen. It is a figure which shows an example of the image attribute information screen at the time of printing. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message indicating that print processing has not been performed. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process in the case of acquiring image data from a server and printing.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. The configurations shown in the following embodiments are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to the illustrated configurations.

<Example 1>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of an image forming system according to the present embodiment.

  The image forming apparatus 100 capable of color printing includes a control unit 101, a scanner unit 102 that reads a document, a printer unit 103 as a printer engine, an operation unit 104 as a user interface, and a charging unit 105 that performs charging processing. The scanner unit 102, the printer unit 103, the operation unit 104, and the billing unit 105 are each connected to the control unit 101, and the control unit 101 is connected to a network transmission unit such as a LAN 150 and a public line 160. From the public line 160, transmission by G3 or G4 fax including color image transmission is possible. In addition, other image forming apparatuses 110 and 120 having the same configuration as the image forming apparatus 100 are connected to the LAN 150. In addition, a personal computer (PC) 130 is connected, and can send and receive files and e-mails using FTP and SMB protocols. Further, the image forming apparatuses 100, 110, and 120 are connected to the server 140, and can transmit / receive various data and store data in the server 140.

  The billing unit 105 performs billing processing according to billing information described later. Specifically, the usage fee calculated based on the billing information is displayed on the operation unit 104, prompting the user to pay the usage fee, and predetermined money (for example, coins or banknotes) via a receptacle (not shown) or the like. Receive.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the control unit 101 of the image forming apparatus.

  The control unit 101 includes the following units.

  The CPU 201 reads out the control program, executes various processes, and comprehensively controls each unit. The CPU 201 also generates billing information for billing according to the print contents. The generated charging information is sent to the charging unit 105 through the charging unit I / F 229.

  A RAM 202 is a system work memory for the CPU 201 to operate, and is also an image memory for temporarily storing image data.

  A ROM 203 is a boot ROM, and stores a system boot program.

  An HDD 204 is a hard disk drive that stores system software and image data.

  An operation unit I / F 205 is an interface unit with the operation unit 104, and outputs image data displayed on the operation unit 104 to the operation unit 104. Also, it plays a role of transmitting information input by the user via the operation unit 104 to the CPU 201.

  A network I / F 206 is connected to the LAN 150 and inputs / outputs various information.

  The modem 207 is connected to the public line 160 and inputs / outputs various information.

  The binary image rotation unit 208 and the binary image compression / decompression unit 209 convert the direction of the image before transmitting the binary image data by the modem 207, or convert the image to a predetermined resolution or a resolution adapted to the other party's ability. Perform the process. Compression and decompression support JBIG, MMR, MR, and MH.

  The DMAC 210 is a DMA controller, reads image data stored in the RAM 202 without passing through the CPU 201, and transfers the image data to the image bus I / F 211. Alternatively, the image data from the image bus is written into the RAM 202 without going through the CPU 201. Each unit described above is connected to the system bus 212.

  An image bus I / F 211 is an interface for controlling high-speed input / output of image data via the image bus 213.

  The compression unit 212 performs JPEG compression processing in units of 32 pixels × 32 pixels before sending image data to the image bus 213.

  The decompressing unit 216 performs processing for decompressing image data sent via the image bus 213.

  A raster image processor (RIP) 217 receives the PDL code from the host computer via the network I / F 207, and the CPU 201 stores it in the RAM 202 through the system bus 212. The CPU 201 converts the PDL code into an intermediate code, inputs it again to the RIP 217 via the system bus 212, and develops it into a bitmap image (multivalue) in the RIP 217.

  The scanner image processing unit 218 performs various image processing such as correction, processing, and editing on the input image data (color image data or monochrome image data) read by the scanner unit 102 (multi-value).

  The print image processing unit 219 performs various types of image processing for print processing on output stage image data (hereinafter referred to as “output image data”) in which print settings and the like are reflected. At the time of printing, binary multilevel conversion is performed by the decompression unit 216, so that binary and multilevel output is possible. The print image processing unit 219 determines whether the output image data is a color pixel (hereinafter referred to as “color pixel determination”). Details of the color pixel determination processing will be described later.

  The image conversion unit 220 performs various image conversions on the image data on the RAM 202 or when returning the image data to the RAM 202.

  The rotation unit 221 performs a process of rotating an image in units of 32 pixels × 32 pixels by a specified angle, and supports binary and multi-value input / output.

  The scaling unit 222 performs processing for converting the resolution of the image (for example, from 600 dpi to 200 dpi) or scaling (for example, from 25% to 400%). Before scaling, the image of 32 pixels × 32 pixels is rearranged into an image in units of 32 lines.

  The color space conversion unit 223 converts, for example, a YUV image on the memory into a Lab image by matrix operation and LUT for the multi-valued input image, and stores it on the memory. Further, the color space conversion unit 223 has a 3 × 8 matrix operation and a one-dimensional LUT, and also performs processing for preventing known background removal and show-through. The converted image data is output in multiple values.

  The binary multi-value conversion unit 224 converts a 1-bit binary image into multi-value 8 bits and 256 gradations.

  The multi-level binary conversion unit 225 converts, for example, an 8-bit, 256-gradation image on the memory into 1-bit, 2-gradation by a technique such as error diffusion processing.

  The synthesizing unit 226 performs a process of synthesizing two multi-value images on the memory to form one multi-value image. For example, by synthesizing a company logo image and a document image on the memory, an output image in which the company logo is added to the document image can be generated.

  The thinning unit 227 performs resolution conversion by thinning out pixels of the multi-valued image. Multi-value images of 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8 can be output. By using it together with the zoom unit 222, a wider range of enlargement and reduction can be performed.

  The moving unit 228 performs processing for adding a margin part to the input binary image or multi-valued image or deleting the margin part.

  The rotation unit 221, the scaling unit 222, the color space conversion unit 223, the binary multi-value conversion unit 224, the multi-value binary conversion unit 225, the synthesis unit 226, the thinning-out unit 227, and the moving unit 228 operate in conjunction with each other. It is possible. For example, when rotating and resolving the resolution of a multi-valued image on a memory, both processes can be performed by connecting them without using a memory.

  The above is the internal configuration of the control unit 101.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating details of processing in the scanner image processing unit 218.

  The RGB 8-bit luminance signals input from the scanner unit 102 are first converted into standard RGB color signals that do not depend on the CCD filter color by the masking 301.

  The filter 302 uses, for example, a 9 × 9 matrix and performs a process of blurring or sharpening an image.

  The histogram 303 samples image signal data in the input image. In this module, the RGB data in the rectangular area surrounded by the specified start and end points in the main scanning direction and sub-scanning direction are sampled at a constant pitch in the main scanning direction and sub-scanning direction. Is created. The created histogram is read when background skipping or show-through prevention is specified, and the background of the original is inferred from the histogram, and is stored and managed in the memory or HDD along with the image data as the background skipping level. Used for image processing during transmission.

  In the gamma 304, processing for increasing or decreasing the density of the entire image is performed. For example, the color space of the input image is converted into an arbitrary color space, or correction processing related to the color of the input system is performed. For example, in order to determine whether the read original is a color original or a black and white original, the image signal before scaling is converted into a known Lab color space by the color space conversion 305.

  The comparator 306 compares the color signal components a and b in the image signal converted into the Lab color space with a predetermined threshold value, and determines whether the color represented by the image signal is a chromatic color or an achromatic color. Is processed, and a 1-bit determination signal is output.

  The counter 307 measures the determination signal from the comparator 306.

  The character / photo determination 308 performs processing for extracting a character edge from an input image and separating the input image into characters and a photo, and outputs a character / photo determination signal. This character / photo determination signal is also stored in the memory or HDD together with the image data, and is used during printing.

  The specific document determination unit 309 compares the input image signal with a predetermined pattern prepared in advance to determine how much they match, and outputs a matching or mismatching determination result. In accordance with the determination result, the input image is processed and the like, and counterfeiting of banknotes and securities is prevented.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing details of various image processing performed on the output image data in the print image processing unit 219. In the present embodiment, a case where the output image data at the stage expanded by the expansion unit 216 is RGB data will be described as an example.

  The background removal 401 removes the ground color of the output image data (RGB data) and removes the background fogging that is not necessary. For example, background removal is performed by a 3 × 8 matrix operation or a one-dimensional LUT.

  The monochrome creation 402 converts color image data expressed in RGB into monochrome data, and converts the color image data into Gray single color when printing as a single color. For example, it is composed of a 1 × 3 matrix operation that multiplies RGB by an arbitrary constant to obtain a Gray signal.

  The output color correction 403 performs color correction on the color image data in accordance with the characteristics of the printer unit 103. For example, it includes processing by 4 × 8 matrix calculation or direct mapping. In the output color correction 403, processing for converting RGB data into CMYK data is also performed.

  The filter process 404 performs a process of arbitrarily correcting the spatial frequency of the output image data. For example, it comprises processing for performing a 9 × 9 matrix operation.

  A gamma correction 405 performs processing for performing gamma correction on output image data in accordance with the characteristics of the printer unit 103. Usually, it is composed of a one-dimensional LUT.

  The halftone correction 406 is an arbitrary halftone process for the output image data in accordance with the number of gradations of the printer unit 103, specifically, an arbitrary screen process such as binarization or binarization, or error diffusion. Process. Each process can be switched by a character / photo determination signal (not shown).

  The inter-drum delay memory 407 is configured to accurately superimpose CMYK images by shifting the CMYK printing timing by a time corresponding to the interval between the photosensitive drums in a color printer including the CMYK photosensitive drums. This is the memory used to As a result, the output image data is subjected to delay processing in accordance with the drum arrangement, and is sequentially sent to the printer unit 103.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of the image forming apparatus.

  A scanner unit 102 as an image input device illuminates an image on a document and scans a CCD line sensor (not shown) to convert it into an electrical signal as raster image data. A document is set on the tray 502 of the document feeder 501, and in response to a user instruction via the operation unit 104, the control unit 101 gives an instruction to read the document to the scanner unit 102, and feeds document sheets one by one from the tray 502. And perform the reading operation.

  The printer unit 103 serving as an image output device is a part that forms an image represented by raster image data on a sheet. In this embodiment, the electrophotographic method is described as an example of the method, but the method is not limited to this, and another method such as an ink jet method may be used. In the electrophotographic system, a latent image is formed on a photosensitive drum using a laser beam, developed with a plurality of charged color materials (for example, four colors of CMYK toners), and an image of the developed toner. Is a system in which an image is recorded by transferring the toner image onto a transfer sheet and fixing it. The inkjet method uses a heating element or a piezoelectric element as an ejection energy generating element, ejects a plurality of color materials (for example, four colors of CMYK ink) from a nozzle, and attaches the ink to a recording medium. This is a recording method. The printing operation is started by a printing instruction from the control unit 101. The printer unit 103 has a plurality of paper feed stages so that different paper sizes or different paper orientations can be selected, and corresponding paper cassettes 503, 504, and 505, and a paper discharge tray 506 that receives printed paper. There is.

  Next, color pixel determination processing in this embodiment will be described.

  Regardless of the type of job, in order to perform color pixel determination processing in one place and limit the input color space to one, filter processing up to output color correction 403 that handles RGB data or CMYK data It is necessary to carry out at any timing after 404. Rather than using RGB data, it is preferable to use CMYK data corresponding to the CMYK colors of the photosensitive drum because a highly accurate color pixel determination result can be obtained. That is, it is desirable to perform color pixel determination on image data composed of color components corresponding to a plurality of color materials used for image formation. Even when it is performed on CMYK data, it is considered that a color pixel determination result with higher accuracy can be obtained at a timing closer to the stage immediately before being sent to the printer unit 103. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the color pixel is determined immediately before the halftone correction 406 (that is, for CMYK data subjected to gamma correction processing).

  The procedure for determining a color pixel in this embodiment is as follows.

  First, a raster image data string that is output image data is scanned, and the number of pixels in which any one of CMY colors has a gradation value equal to or greater than a predetermined value (for example, 1 or greater) is counted. Then, the ratio of the counted pixels (color pixel ratio) in all the pixels of the raster image is calculated. Then, the calculated color pixel ratio is compared with a threshold value stored in advance to determine the image attribute of the raster image. Such processing is performed for each page of output image data. In this embodiment, the image attributes are classified into three types of image attributes of “low area color”, “middle area color”, and “full area color”, and which image attribute belongs is determined using two threshold values. The first threshold value corresponds to the separation position between the low area color and the middle area color, and the second threshold value corresponds to the separation position between the middle area color and the full area color. The delimiter position can be arbitrarily changed. For example, a low area color is a page in which the ratio of color pixels in one page is 1% to 10%, and a middle area color is a page in which the ratio of color pixels to one page is 10% to 80%. A color is a page where the ratio of color pixels to one page is 80% to 100%. Note that the number of image attributes is not limited to three, and it goes without saying that the number of threshold values serving as delimiter positions changes depending on how many stages the image attributes are classified.

  The image attribute determined in this way is used for generating charging information as a charging unit price. For example, it is assumed that the charging unit price is set such as “low area color”: 10 yen / page, “middle area color”: 20 yen / page, “full area color”: 30 yen / page. In this case, an amount obtained by multiplying the charging unit price corresponding to the determined image attribute by the number of output pages is determined as the charging amount, which is sent to the charging unit 105 as charging information.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the color pixel determination process is performed by the print image processing unit 219, but the present invention is not limited to this. An independent processing unit that performs color pixel determination processing using output image data may be provided separately from the print image processing unit.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing when the image forming apparatus 100 performs copy processing (processing for forming an image on a recording medium such as paper using the printer unit 103 using image data read by the scanner unit 102). It is. This series of processing is performed by reading a computer-executable program describing the following procedure from the HDD 204 or the like onto the RAM 202 and then executing the program by the CPU 201.

  When the user makes a predetermined print setting (for example, 2in1, 4in1, single-sided, double-sided, etc.) and instructs execution of copying via the operation unit 104, the CPU 201 instructs the scanner unit 102 in step 601. Instructs scanning of the document. Image data read by the scanner unit 102 is stored in the HDD 204.

  In step 602, the print image processing unit 219 reads out output image data for one page from the HDD 204, and starts the above-described image processing for printing.

  In step 603, the print image processing unit 219 performs the above-described color pixel determination process on the read output image data for one page immediately before the halftone correction 406, and outputs the output image data for the one page. Determine the image attributes. The determined image attribute information is sent to the CPU 201.

  In step 604, the CPU 201 sends output image data for one page to the printer unit 103 (printer engine). The printer unit 103 executes print processing using the received output image data.

  In step 605, the CPU 201 determines whether printing for one page has been completed. If printing for one page is completed, the process proceeds to step 607.

  In step 606, the CPU 201 causes the operation unit 104 via the operation unit I / F 205 to receive information about printing for one page for which printing processing has been completed, specifically, information on the ratio of color pixels (color pixel rate information). And the above-mentioned image attribute information (image attribute information). Then, on the UI screen of the operation unit 104, the received information related to printing for one page is displayed. Details of the display will be described later.

  In step 607, the CPU 201 determines whether printing of all pages of the output image data has been completed. If all pages have been printed, the process proceeds to step 608. If there is a page that has not been printed yet, the process returns to step 602.

  In step 608, the CPU 201 calculates a charge amount for the output image data for all pages based on the image attribute information for each page. For example, if the output image data consists of 5 pages, and the determined image attribute is all pages “middle area color (billing unit price: 20 yen / page)”, 5 × 20 = 100 (yen) It becomes. Information on the calculated charging amount is sent to the charging unit 105 via the charging unit I / F 229.

  In step 609, the CPU 201 obtains the number of output sheets for each image attribute based on the image attribute information of all pages. Then, the obtained information on the number of output sheets for each image attribute (output count information for each image attribute), the total number of output pages, and information on the charge amount for all pages are sent to the operation unit 104 via the operation unit I / F 205. These pieces of information are displayed on the UI screen of the operation unit 104.

  In step 610, the CPU 201 transmits the above-described color pixel ratio information, image attribute information, and image attribute-specific output number information to the server 140, which is an external device, via the network I / F 206. The server 140 stores the received information. In the server 140, the above three pieces of information are held in a job history information management table for managing a history of job execution. The user can access the server 140, which is an external device, obtain a job history information management table, and check the job history on the UI screen of the operation unit 104. The job history information management table may be stored in the image forming apparatus (for example, the HDD 204).

  Here, a UI screen displayed on the operation unit 104 when the user checks job history information or the like will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 11.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a main menu screen displayed when the image forming apparatus is activated. The main menu screen 700 is provided with buttons according to functions of “copy”, “scan and send”, “scan and save”, and “use of saved file”. In addition, there is a status confirmation button 701 as a button for confirming information during job execution or information after the job is completed. When the user confirms the job history information, this status confirmation button 701 is pressed. When the status confirmation button 701 is pressed, the screen transitions to a status confirmation screen. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a status confirmation screen. The status confirmation screen 800 is provided with buttons for each function of “copy / print”, “send”, “save”, and “consumables confirmation”. When the user confirms the job history information after copying is completed, a pull-down display that allows the user to select the job history button 802 while selecting the “copy / print” button 801 and select either “copy” or “print”. In the area 803, “Copy” is selected. Then, items such as “time” at the time of copying, “user name”, “number of copies / copies”, and “result” indicating whether printing has been completed normally are displayed in a list for each job. A feature of the present embodiment is that “number of image attributes” 804 is provided for items displayed in a list. In the “number of image attributes” item, the number of low area colors, the number of middle area colors, and the number of full area colors are simply displayed. If the number of jobs displayed in the job history list does not fit on one screen, the page is divided, the total number of pages and the page number currently being checked are displayed, and you can move between pages. (805). By pressing the OK button 806, the status confirmation screen 800 is closed and the screen returns to the main menu screen 700. Also, when a detailed information button 807 is pressed, a transition is made to a screen (job history detailed information screen) for confirming detailed information of the currently selected job. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of the job history detailed information screen. In the present embodiment, since color pixel determination is performed by the printer device, the number of output attributes is displayed in the item “number of output pages” 901. Further, in this embodiment, a detailed information (by page) button 902 for confirming more detailed information for each page is provided in the item “number of output pages”. When the detailed information (by page) button 902 is pressed, the screen transitions to a “job history detailed information (by page) screen”. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the job history detailed information (by page) screen. The job history detailed information (by page) screen 1000 displays a list of image attributes and color pixel ratios for each page of the output printed matter. When an arbitrary item is selected from the list displayed and the determination result image button 1001 is pressed, the screen transits to a screen (color pixel determination result screen) for confirming the result of the color pixel determination processing for the page. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a color pixel determination result screen. On the color pixel determination result screen 1100, an image 1101 indicating an area determined to be a color pixel in the page is displayed together with information on the image attribute and color pixel ratio that are the result of the color pixel determination process on the page. Thus, the area determined as a color pixel is displayed separately from the area not determined as a color pixel.

  FIG. 12 is a view showing an example of a screen (printing screen) indicating that printing is being executed, which is displayed on the operation unit 104 in step 607. The print screen 1200 displays information such as the document type, magnification, paper size, document page number, number of output pages, number of copies, and print density, which are conventional display contents. Further, on the print screen 1200, information 1201 of image attributes, color pixel ratios, and charging unit prices of pages that have already been printed, and information 1202 of the page number currently being printed are also displayed. A cancel button 1203 is a button for canceling the job being executed.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen indicating the end of printing (print end screen) displayed on the operation unit 104 in step 609. The print end screen 1300 displays information on the number of output pages, the number of image attributes, and the total amount. When the detailed information button 1301 in the print end screen 1200 is pressed, the screen shifts to the above-described job history detailed information screen 900 (FIG. 9), and the user can confirm the details of the printed matter that has been output.

  In this embodiment, the case where print processing is performed according to a copy job has been described as an example. However, it goes without saying that the present invention can be similarly applied to the case of print processing according to a PDL print job. In that case, instead of scanning the original (step 601), processing necessary for execution of the PDL print job such as rendering of PDL data is performed.

  In step 610, instead of the above three pieces of information, for example, an image indicating the result of the color pixel determination process (an image in which a color area is visualized in units of pages: see FIG. 11 described later) is stored for all pages. May be. In that case, for example, on the job history detailed information screen, necessary alterations are made, such as displaying thumbnail images of images indicating the result of color pixel determination processing for all pages.

  According to this embodiment, image attributes and color pixel rate information of each output page are displayed at the time of printing, and it is possible to know which image attribute and charge unit price each page of the output printed matter is printed on. In addition, by storing image attribute information and color pixel ratio information of each output page as a history, the user can check these information later.

<Example 2>
In the first embodiment, a case has been described in which print processing is performed as it is using image data obtained by the scanner unit or PDL data input via the LAN. In the second embodiment, a case will be described in which image data obtained by a scanner unit is stored in a server, image data is acquired from the server, and printing processing is performed.

(Saving image data obtained by scanning)
The user selects “Scan and Save” on the main menu screen 700 described above, and performs various settings such as a save destination (here, the server 140), a save file format, and a scan resolution on a setting screen (not shown). Instruct the execution of the scan above. In response to this scan execution instruction, the image forming apparatus reads the document by the scanner unit 102 to acquire image data, and sends the acquired image data to the server 140 which is an external apparatus. Then, the server 140 saves the received image data in a predetermined storage area, and saves the detailed information of the saved image data in the “saved data management table”. Here, the information stored in the “stored data management table” includes information on image attributes at the time of printing in addition to the file format, file name, storage time, and the like of the stored image data. Print image attributes include information such as the print time when print processing is executed for the saved image data, print settings (2in1, 4in1, single-sided, double-sided, etc.), and the number of images by image attribute. The contents are updated whenever it is done. In addition, the image attribute at the time of printing of the image data that has been stored in the server 140 and has not been printed once is stored as “not yet printed”.

(Print saved image data)
When the user prints image data stored in the server 140, which is an external device, or when confirming the detailed information of the image data in the server 140, the “use of saved file” is displayed on the main menu screen 700 described above. "Button. As a result, the screen transits to the save file screen.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a save file screen. The saved file screen 1400 displays a list of saved image data (saved files). When arbitrary image data is selected from the list display and the print button 1401 is pressed, print processing is executed. Also, when a detailed information button 1402 is pressed, a transition is made to a screen for confirming the detailed information of the currently selected image data (saved file detailed information screen).

  FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the saved file detailed information screen. The item “color / monochrome” on the saved file detailed information screen 1500 is a result of the color / monochrome judgment determined by the scanner unit 102 during the scan processing of the saved image data. Note that the user can also specify whether to save the image data in color or black and white, and in this case, the content specified by the user. When the image data stored in the server 140 is printed, the image data whose “color / monochrome” item is “monochrome” is printed out in low area color. In addition, image data in which the item “color / monochrome” is “color” is printed according to the image attribute determined by the color pixel determination described above.

  In addition, when a print image attribute information button 1501 in the save file detailed information screen 1500 is pressed, a screen (image attribute information screen for print) for confirming information such as an image attribute when the save file is printed is displayed. The FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image attribute information screen for printing. The print image attribute information screen 1600 displays a list of information such as the print time when printing the stored image data, print settings (2in1, 4in1, single-sided, double-sided, etc.), and the number of images by image attribute. Furthermore, information such as a color pixel ratio for each page, image attributes, and a charge amount for all pages may be included. In the case of image data for which printing processing has never been executed, a message indicating that printing processing has not been performed is displayed instead of the printing image attribute information screen 1600. FIG. 17 shows an example of a message indicating that the printing process has not been executed. In this example, a message “print not executed (currently there is no information at the time of print execution)” is displayed. Further, when the detailed information button 1601 in the image attribute information screen 1600 at the time of printing is pressed, the above-described job history detailed information screen 900 (FIG. 9) is displayed, and the user can confirm the detailed information of the selected job history. it can.

  Next, the processing flow in the image forming apparatus when the stored image data is acquired from the server and printed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that the flowchart of FIG. 18 is almost the same as the flowchart of FIG. 6 in the first embodiment, and therefore, the difference will be mainly described below.

  When printing is instructed by the user for specific image data (stored file) in the server 140 via the operation unit 104, in step 1801, the CPU 201 accesses the server 140 to acquire the image data specified by the user. And stored in the HDD 204. Then, the printing process using the image data stored in the HDD 204 is executed, and when the printing process is completed up to the last page, the color pixel rate information and the like related to the print job are stored in the job history information management table (step S1). 601-step 610). Steps 601 to 610 are the same as those described in the first embodiment, and a description thereof is omitted here.

  In step 1802, the CPU 201 accesses the server 140 via the network I / F 206 and instructs to update “image attribute information at printing” of the corresponding image data in the “stored data management table”. When the “image attribute information at printing” is updated in the server 140, it is reflected in the display of the image attribute information screen 1600 at the time of printing.

  According to the present embodiment, when printing is performed using image data stored in a server or the like, the user predicts what image attribute and charge unit price will be used for what print settings. be able to.

(Other embodiments)
The object of the present invention can also be achieved by executing the following processing. That is, a storage medium that records a program code of software that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or apparatus is stored in the storage medium. This is the process of reading the code. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the program code and the storage medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

Claims (9)

A plurality of color amounts including at least an attribute indicating the first color amount, an attribute indicating the second color amount, and an attribute indicating the third color amount based on the analysis result of the image data of each page generated from the print data Determining means for determining an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each page from the attributes indicating
Display control means for displaying an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each determined page on a display unit in units of pages ;
The determination unit performs a color pixel determination process for determining whether each pixel included in the image data is a color pixel, and calculates a ratio of the color pixels of each page based on a result of the determination process. To determine the attribute indicating the color amount corresponding to each page,
The display control unit displays an area determined as a color pixel in the color pixel determination process in distinction from an area not determined as the color pixel . The attribute indicating the first color amount is a ratio of color pixels in the image data being less than a first threshold,
The attribute indicating the second color amount is such that a ratio of color pixels in the image data is not less than the first threshold and less than a second threshold,
The attribute indicating the third color amount has a ratio of color pixels in the image data equal to or greater than the second threshold value.
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first threshold value is smaller than the second threshold value. Based on the attributes indicating the color amount the determined image processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in, further comprising means for calculating a billing amount. The image data, the image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a plurality of color materials used for forming the image is image data composed of color components corresponding. The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a storage means for storing information to be displayed by said display control means. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the color pixel determination processing determines a pixel in which any one of CMY has a predetermined value or more as a color pixel.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the ratio of the color pixels is a ratio of the number of color pixels in the image data to the number of all pixels in the image data. A plurality of color amounts including at least an attribute indicating the first color amount, an attribute indicating the second color amount, and an attribute indicating the third color amount based on the analysis result of the image data of each page generated from the print data A determination step for determining an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each page from the attributes indicating
An attribute indicating a color value corresponding to each page the determined, see contains a display control step of displaying on the display unit in units of pages,
In the determining step, a determination process is performed to determine whether each pixel included in the image data is a color pixel, and the ratio of the color pixels of each page is calculated based on a result of the determination process. Determining an attribute indicating a color amount corresponding to each page;
In the display control step, an area determined as a color pixel in the determination process is displayed separately from an area not determined as the color pixel . A program for causing a computer to function as the image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 .

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