Image processing system and storage medium

Abstract

An image processing system and a storage medium are disclosed. The image processing system includes a scanning unit configured to scan a document to generate image data, an obtaining unit configured to obtain character information from the generated image data, and a performing unit configured to perform a process of storing the image data to a folder having a folder name based on the obtained character information.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of patent application No. 201911132925.0 filed on November 19, 2019, entitled "Image Processing Apparatus, Method for Controlling Image Processing Apparatus and Storage Medium". Technical Field

[0002] This invention relates to image processing systems and storage media. Background Technology

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-234708 discusses an image processing apparatus that scans an image of an original document to generate image data, performs character recognition processing on a user-specified region, and sends the image data to a folder with a folder name containing a string obtained through the character recognition processing. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Typing the folder path character by character using the keyboard takes a lot of time.

[0005] By using the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-234708, specifying a region eliminates the need to type the folder path characters one by one. However, in the original document where the string the user wants to use as the name of the target folder is not described in the specified region, it is impossible to set the target string in the folder path.

[0006] In particular, the location of the target string often varies depending on the original document being scanned, so setting up a region for each original document is necessary but cumbersome.

[0007] In view of the above problems, the present invention aims to reduce the work of users when setting folder paths by using strings in the original document.

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, an image processing system includes: a scanning unit for scanning an original document to generate image data; an obtaining unit for obtaining character information from the generated image data; and an execution unit for performing processing to store the image data in a folder having a folder name based on the obtained character information.

[0009] Other features of the invention will become clear from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0010] Figure 1 The diagram illustrates a configuration example for the reading system.

[0011] Figure 2The figure shows an example of a hardware configuration for a multi-functional peripheral device (MFP).

[0012] Figure 3 The illustration shows an example of a personal computer (PC) hardware configuration.

[0013] Figure 4 The diagram shows an example of a screen displayed on the operating unit.

[0014] Figure 5 The image shows an example of a one-touch send scan setup screen displayed on a display device.

[0015] Figure 6 The image shows an example of the settings editing screen for the button used to perform a one-click scan.

[0016] Figure 7 The image shows an example of the keyword string settings screen.

[0017] Figure 8 The image shows an example of an address selection screen.

[0018] Figure 9 The image shows an example of the button settings editing screen when the sending type is "email".

[0019] Figure 10 The image shows an example of the button settings editing screen when the send type is "Universal Serial Bus (USB) memory".

[0020] Figure 11 The image shows an example of a screen displaying character recognition area settings.

[0021] Figure 12A and Figure 12B The image shows an example of a screen used to register an address in the address book.

[0022] Figure 13 The image shows an example of an address registration screen.

[0023] Figure 14 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing flow performed when the one-click send button for file sending is selected on an MFP.

[0024] Figure 15 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of character recognition processing.

[0025] Figure 16 The diagram illustrates an example of a processing flow executed by MFP to generate text objects.

[0026] Figure 17 The image shows an example of a selection screen.

[0027] Figure 18 The image shows an example of the screen transition when the Letter of Introduction button is selected on an MFP.

[0028] Figure 19 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing performed when a user selects the letter of introduction button.

[0029] Figure 20 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of file name assignment processing. Detailed Implementation

[0030] Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The configurations described in the following exemplary embodiments should be considered illustrative, and the invention is not limited to the configurations shown.

[0031] The first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described. Figure 1 The figure illustrates a configuration example of a reading system according to the present invention. The reading system according to this exemplary embodiment includes: a multi-function peripheral device (MFP) 101, exemplified as an image processing apparatus; a file server 102, exemplified as an information processing apparatus; a mail server 103; and an online storage device 106. The MFP 101, file server 102, mail server 103, and online storage device 106 are connected to a local area network (LAN) 100. On the LAN 100, the MFP 101, file server 102, mail server 103, and personal computer (PC) 104 are connected via a network, thus enabling them to communicate with each other. The MFP 101 and online storage device 106 can communicate with each other via the LAN 100 and the Internet 105.

[0032] MFP 101 scans the original image, generates the read image, and sends the generated image data to file server 102, mail server 103, and online storage device 106. The image data according to this exemplary embodiment is not limited to electronic data obtained by converting the image into RAW image format data, but can be electronic data in image formats such as Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) and Joint Image Experts Group (JPEG), as well as electronic data in Portable Document Format (PDF). File server 102 is a file server compliant with File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Server Message Block (SMB) protocols. Mail server 103 is a mail server compliant with Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). Online storage device 106 is an online storage device compliant with Web-based Distributed Authoring and Version Control (WebDAV) (a file-sharing protocol using Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)). PC 104 accesses the web server included in MFP 101 via HTTP and is able to reference and update settings. LAN 100 can include a wired LAN using Ethernet or a wireless LAN.

[0033] Figure 2 The diagram illustrates an example of the hardware configuration of the MFP 101. The MFP 101 includes: CPU 201, ROM 202, RAM 203, storage device 204, operation unit 205, printer 206, scanner 207, network interface (I / F) 208, and external storage device I / F 209.

[0034] CPU 201 controls various hardware components 202 to 208 included in MFP 101 to implement each function of MFP 101. CPU 201 sends signals to various hardware components via bus lines to enable data communication with other hardware components.

[0035] The CPU 201 of the MFP 101 controls the operation of the MFP 101 according to the control program stored in ROM 202. More specifically, the CPU 201 runs the operating system (OS) for controlling the MFP 101 and drivers for controlling the hardware components. The user-expected functional operations and controls are implemented through interoperable applications arranged on the OS. The OS and various programs stored in ROM 202 are read from RAM 203 and then executed.

[0036] ROM 202 is a memory used to store various data and programs to be used by CPU 201. RAM 203 is a working memory used to temporarily store data and programs to be used by CPU 201 for calculations. Storage device 204 is a storage device used to store various data and various programs.

[0037] Although flash memory is assumed to be storage device 204 according to this exemplary embodiment, solid-state drives (SSDs), hard disk drives (HDDs), embedded multimedia cards (eMMCs), and other auxiliary storage devices are also applicable. While in MFP 101, a single CPU 201 performs the processes shown in the flowchart (described below) using a single memory (RAM 203), MFP 101 can use other configurations. For example, the processes shown in the flowchart (described below) can be performed by multiple CPUs, multiple RAMs, multiple ROMs, and multiple storage devices operating in a cooperative manner. Part of the processing can be performed using hardware circuitry systems such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0038] Operation unit 205, serving as a user interface (such as a touch panel) for operating the MFP 101, receives user operations and inputs. Operation unit 205 can also be used as a display unit for displaying screens used to operate the MFP 101.

[0039] Printer 206 is a unit used to implement printing functions. CPU 201 controls printer 206 to execute print jobs received from PC 104, thereby printing images on paper. A print job, as used herein, includes data that causes MFP 101 to perform print processing, image data, and print setting information.

[0040] Scanner 207 is a unit used to implement scanning functions. CPU 201 controls scanner 207 to perform image processing for optically scanning original documents and generating image data.

[0041] The Network I / F 208 performs wired LAN communication, such as Ethernet-based communication. The Network I / F 208 can be a Network I / F for performing wireless LAN communication or a Universal Serial Bus (USB)-LAN I / F.

[0042] External storage device I / F 209 is an interface for enabling MFP 101 to communicate with external storage device 210. CPU 201 controls external storage device I / F 209 to store image data in external storage device 210. Although the USB interface is assumed to be external storage device I / F 209 and the USB memory is assumed to be external storage device 210 in this exemplary embodiment, external storage device I / F 209 may be an SD card slot for communicating with external storage devices such as a Secure Digital (SD) card.

[0043] Figure 3The figure illustrates an example of the hardware configuration of PC 104. PC 104 includes: CPU 301, ROM 302, RAM 303, HDD 304, network I / F 305, operating device I / F 306, and display device I / F 307.

[0044] The CPU 301 controls the various hardware components 302 to 307 included in the PC 104 to implement each function of the PC 104. The CPU 301 sends signals to the various hardware components via bus lines to realize data communication with other hardware components.

[0045] The CPU 301 of PC 104 controls the operation of PC 104 according to the control program stored in ROM 302. More specifically, the CPU 301 runs an OS for controlling PC 104. The functional operations and controls expected by the user are implemented through interoperable applications arranged on the OS. The OS and various programs stored in ROM 302 are read from RAM 303 and then executed.

[0046] ROM 302 is a memory used to store various data and programs to be used by CPU 201. RAM 303 is a working memory used to temporarily store data and programs to be used by CPU 201 for calculations. HDD 304 is a storage device used to store various data and various programs.

[0047] The Network I / F 305 performs wired LAN communication such as Ethernet-based communication. The Network I / F 305 can be a Network I / F or a USB-LAN I / F for performing wireless LAN communication.

[0048] Operating device I / F 306 is an interface for connecting PC 104 to operating device 310 such as a keyboard and mouse.

[0049] Display device I / F 307 is an interface for connecting PC 104 to display device 311 such as an LCD monitor.

[0050] Although the PC 104 according to this exemplary embodiment is connected to an external operating device and an external display device, for example, the operating unit and the display unit may be built into the PC 104.

[0051] Figure 4The illustration shows an example of a screen displayed on the operation unit 205. The operation unit 205 includes a touch panel 410, a data LED 420, and an error LED 430. The touch panel 410 displays a home screen 400, which appears immediately after the MFP 101 is activated. The home screen 400 is a screen for the user to instruct the MFP 101 to perform its functions. The home screen 400 displays a common settings button 401, a scan button 402, a menu button 403, an address book button 404, a medical questionnaire button 405, and a referral letter button 406. The home screen 400 continuously displays a power-saving button 407, a home button 408, and a stop button 409. The power-saving button 407, home button 408, and stop button 409 can be configured as hardware buttons on the operation unit 205.

[0052] The common settings button 401 is used to display a screen when selected by the user, which is used to perform specific functions when the user has entered the settings.

[0053] The scan button 402, when selected by the user, displays a screen indicating whether to perform a scan to generate image data, send the generated image data via email or file transfer, and store the image data in external storage device 210. Email transfer refers to sending the image data generated from scanning the original document as an attachment to an email. File transfer refers to sending the image data to file server 102 or PC 104 using communication protocols such as SMB and FTP.

[0054] Menu button 403 is used to display a menu screen when selected by the user.

[0055] The Address Book button 404 is used to display a screen showing the registered address (destination information) when selected by the user. The screen displaying the address shows the sending type (such as email sending, SMB sending, FTP sending, and WebDAV sending) and destination information (such as email address, hostname, and server information).

[0056] The consultation form button 405 and the referral letter button 406 are one-click send buttons. When selected by the user, the one-click send button displays a screen indicating that the original image is scanned based on the user-preset scanning settings to generate image data, and that the image data is sent based on the user-preset send type.

[0057] The power-saving button 407 is used to switch the MFP 101 to power-saving mode when selected by the user.

[0058] The home button 408 is used to display the home screen 400 on the operation unit 205 when selected by the user.

[0059] The Stop button 409 is used to cancel the execution of a job (such as a print job currently being performed by the MFP 101) when selected by the user. When selected by the user, this Stop button 409 can cancel the execution of a copy job or a send job.

[0060] Data LED 420 and Error LED 430 notify the user of the status of MFP 101. Data LED 420 illuminates during email or file sending. Error LED 430 illuminates if an error occurs in MFP 101.

[0061] The home screen 400 is a function selection screen where users can choose the function they want to use from multiple functions, including a copy function that performs printing based on image data and a sending function that scans the original to generate image data and sends the image data to an external device.

[0062] Suppose that the original document does not contain a string describing the name the user wants to use as the destination folder in a fixed area. The following problem occurs in the image processing apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-234708 when scanning an image of the original document to generate image data and sending the generated image data.

[0063] Typing the folder path character by character using the keyboard would be time-consuming.

[0064] By using the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-234708, specifying a region eliminates the need to type the folder path characters one by one. However, in the original document where the string the user wants to use as the name of the destination folder is not described in the specified region, the target string cannot be set in the folder path.

[0065] In particular, the location of the target string often varies depending on the original document being scanned, so it is necessary to set up a region for each original document, which would be troublesome.

[0066] To address these issues, the following processing is performed to reduce the amount of work users need to do when setting folder paths by using strings from the original document.

[0067] Figure 5 The figure shows an example of a one-touch send scan settings screen displayed on display device 311.

[0068] For example, the display device 311 connected to the PC 104 displays, as shown in the image. Figure 5 The one-click scan setup screen 500 shown indicates that PC 104 is accessing the web server of MFP 101 via HTTP communication.

[0069] The one-click send scan settings screen 500 displays the application information area 501, the "Register New" button 502, items 503 to 505, the show / hide button 506, and the delete button 507.

[0070] Application information area 501 displays the application's version number. (See reference) Figure 5 The version number is 1.00.

[0071] The "Register New Button" button 502 is used to register a new button to be displayed on the screen displayed by the operation unit 205 when selected by the user, and this new button is used to perform a one-click scan. When the "Register New Button" button 502 is selected, it is displayed on the display device 311. Figure 6 The settings editing screen shown is 600. A detailed description follows. Figure 6 The settings editing screen shown is 600.

[0072] Item 503 indicates the name of the button registered in MFP 101 for performing a one-click send scan.

[0073] Item 504 indicates the send type set for each button registered in MFP 101 for performing a one-click send scan.

[0074] Item 505 indicates the display status of the button registered in MFP 101 for performing a one-touch send scan. The one-touch send scan settings screen 500 also displays a show / hide button 506 and a delete button 507 for changing the button's display status. For example, when the letter of introduction button's display status is "show," the button is displayed on the home screen 400 on the touch panel 410, as shown below. Figure 4 As shown in the introduction letter button 406. The show / hide button 506 allows the user to toggle between "showing" and "hide".

[0075] The delete button 507 deletes information about the button registered in MFP 101 when selected by the user.

[0076] The button named "Application Form A" is an example of a button registered in MFP 101 for performing a one-click send scan. For this button, the send type is "email" and the display status is "not displayed". Figure 6 The settings editing screen 600 shown is displayed on the display device 311 not only when the "Register New Button" button 502 is selected, but also when the name of the "Application Form A" button is selected.

[0077] exist Figure 5Four buttons named "Application Form A," "Application Form B," "Letter of Introduction," and "Consultation Form" have been registered. The "Letter of Introduction" and "Consultation Form" buttons are displayed on the homepage 400. The "Application Form A" and "Application Form B" buttons are not displayed on the homepage 400.

[0078] Figure 6 The diagram illustrates an example of a button setting editing screen used to edit the button to be used for performing a one-click scan. For example, it is displayed on a display device 311 connected to PC 104 as follows: Figure 6 The button shown is set to edit screen 600. PC 104 is accessing the web server of MFP 101 via HTTP communication.

[0079] When the user selects Figure 5 When the user selects the "Register New Button" button 502 or the button name shown, the button settings editing screen 600 is displayed. When the user selects the button name, the button settings editing screen 600 is displayed with the final setting value entered for each item. When the user selects the "Register New Button" button 502, the button settings editing screen 600 is displayed without any setting values ​​entered for any item. Default values ​​can be pre-entered for each item in the button settings editing screen 600.

[0080] Input field 601 is used to set the name of the one-click send button. The string "Letter of Introduction" is entered into input field 601. The one-click send button performs a one-click send scan when selected by the user.

[0081] Drop-down menu 602 is an object used to set the file name. Drop-down menu 602 includes the options "Button Name" and "Automatic". When "Button Name" is selected, the button name entered into input field 601 becomes the name of the file to be sent. When "Automatic" is selected, an automatically determined string becomes the file name. For example, by having the user select to register in... Figure 6 The one-click send button shown in the image executes a scan, and the date and time are used as the file name.

[0082] When checkbox 603 is selected, keywords are enabled for file output. See below for reference. Figure 7 Describe the keywords in detail.

[0083] The keyword string setting button 604 is used to display something like this when selected by the user. Figure 7 The keyword string setting screen shown is 700.

[0084] Drop-down menu 605 is used to set how and whether to organize the files being sent. Users can choose from "Don't Organize," "Organize (Files)," "Organize (Folders)," and "Organize (Files and Folders)" in drop-down menu 605. When "Don't Organize" is selected, no keyword is used. When "Organize (Files)" is selected, the keyword will be included in the output file name. When "Organize (Folders)" is selected, the keyword will be included in the folder name where the files will be stored. When "Organize (Files and Folders)" is selected, the keyword will be included in both the file name and the folder name to which the files will be output. See below for reference. Figure 16 and Figure 17 Describe in detail the processing performed when the corresponding settings are made from drop-down menu 605.

[0085] Drop-down menu 606 is used to select the sending type when sending image data generated from scanned originals. The user can select from "File," "Email," and "USB Storage" in drop-down menu 606. When "File" is selected and then the change button 607 is pressed, the image data is sent to a folder on PC 104 or file server 102 using protocols such as SMB, FTP, WebDAV, and Secure Shell File Transfer Protocol (SFTP). When "Email" is selected, the image data is sent to its destination using SMTP. When "USB Storage" is selected, the image data is stored in a USB storage device 210 connected to MFP 101 as an external storage device.

[0086] The Change button 607 is used to change the send type setting to the send type displayed in the drop-down menu 606. When the Change button 607 is selected after a send type has already been selected from the drop-down menu 606, the information corresponding to the selected send type is displayed in item 608 and area 609.

[0087] For item 608, various settings can be entered, including scanning settings when scanning the original using one-click send scan and sending settings during transmission. For example, item 608 includes destination, read size, file format, and original orientation settings as shown in area 609.

[0088] Area 609 is used to display the destination for the image data generated from scanning the original document. The destination set here is the folder path to be combined with a string of text objects (described below). Area 609 is a text area where text cannot be entered or edited, and it displays the address selected in the address selection screen.

[0089] When selected by the user, the "Select from address book" button 610 is used to display the address selection screen 800, where an address can be selected from the address book stored in the MFP 101.

[0090] Drop-down menu 611 is used to set the file format to be used when generating a file of image data generated from an image of a scanned original. The file is generated in the format selected by using drop-down menu 611.

[0091] The OK button 612 is used to store the settings for the one-click send button in the storage device 204 using the settings made in the button settings editing screen 600. When the OK button 612 is selected, the settings are stored in the storage device 204. The Cancel button 613 is used to cancel the settings. When the OK button 612 or the Cancel button 613 is pressed, the following is displayed: Figure 5 The one-click send scan settings screen shown is 500.

[0092] Figure 7 The image shows an example of a keyword string settings screen. When in, for example... Figure 6 When the keyword string setting button 604 is selected in the button setting editing screen 600 shown, the keyword string setting screen 700 is displayed. For example, on the display device 311 connected to the PC 104, the following is displayed: Figure 7 The keyword string setting screen 700 shown indicates that PC104 is accessing the web server of MFP 101 via HTTP communication.

[0093] Drop-down menu 701 is an object used to select the type of keyword string. For the keyword string type, you can choose "Numbers Only" or "Alphanumeric".

[0094] Input field 702 is used to set the number of characters in the keyword string. According to this exemplary embodiment, the maximum settable number of characters is 16. By setting the number of characters in the keyword string here, if the string recognized in the set character recognition area differs from the string expected by the user, it prevents the different string from being displayed as the recognition result. When button 706 is selected in the specified area and... Figure 11 When a specified area is shown in the character recognition area setting screen 1100, the keyword string setting is reflected.

[0095] Input field 703 is used to enter the string to be displayed when the keyword string is entered. The maximum number of characters that can be set is 64.

[0096] Drop-down menu 704 is used to select whether to perform optical character recognition (OCR) processing as the object of character recognition processing.

[0097] Area 705 displays information indicating whether a character recognition area has been specified. The initial value of this area is "Unspecified". When the Specify Area button 706 is selected and... Figure 11 When a rectangular area is specified in the character recognition area setting screen 1100, "Specified" is displayed. When the clear button 1102 is selected to delete the rectangular area in the character recognition area setting screen 1100 and then the apply button 1103 is selected, "Unspecified" is displayed in area 705.

[0098] Figure 11 The diagram illustrates when the selection is as follows: Figure 7 This is an example of a character recognition area setting screen displayed when the designated area button 706 is shown. The character recognition area setting screen 1100 can be displayed and set for each of the original document sizes A4 and A3. For example, it can be displayed on a display device 311 connected to a PC 104. Figure 11 The character recognition area setting screen 1100 shown is being accessed by PC 104 via HTTP communication to the web server of MFP 101. Character recognition area setting screen 1100 displays an area specification canvas 1101 with an aspect ratio corresponding to the reading paper size set via item 608. The user can use a pointer to specify the start and end points of a rectangular area. In this case, the start and end coordinates are converted into actual spatial distances, which are temporarily stored. As a specific example of the setting values, the start point (X, Y) = (10, 10) and the end point (X, Y) = (50, 20) can be set in millimeters. When the clear button 1102 is selected, the character recognition area setting values ​​can be returned to the initial values. When the apply button 1103 is selected, the temporarily stored coordinate information of the two points is set to the character recognition area 705. More specifically, the coordinate information is stored in storage device 204 as the character recognition area 705. After selecting the clear button 1102 and the apply button 1103, the display returns to the previous state. Figure 7 The keyword string setting screen shown is 700.

[0099] The OK button 707 stores the settings made in the keyword string setting screen 700 in the storage device 204. The Cancel button 708 cancels the settings. When the OK button 707 or the Cancel button 708 is pressed, the following is displayed: Figure 6 The button shown is set to edit screen 600.

[0100] Figure 8 The image shows an example of an address selection screen. When a user selects an address... Figure 6 When the "Select from Address Book" button 610 is selected in the button settings editing screen 600 shown, the address selection screen 800 is displayed. For example... Figure 8The address selection screen 800 shown is displayed, for example, on a display device 311 connected to a PC 104, which is accessing the web server of the MFP 101 via HTTP communication.

[0101] Drop-down menu 801 is a list used to change the type of address book to be displayed in the address selection screen 800. Drop-down menu 801 allows selection of either "Best Member" or "Short Dial" (not shown).

[0102] The Change Display button 802 is used to change the type of address book to be displayed in the address selection screen 800 when selected by the user, so that it is displayed in the drop-down menu 801.

[0103] Area 803 is the display area for the names of addresses in the address book. List 804 is the area for displaying the list of addresses. Each row in List 804 includes a selection (optional checkbox), number, type, name, and destination. For selection, either a checkbox or a non-checkable checkbox is displayed. For number, the address management number is displayed. For the type of icon, different icons are displayed based on the address type. For name, the name assigned to the address is displayed. For destination, the address is displayed.

[0104] When the "OK" button 805 is selected with the checkbox checked, the address is displayed in area 609. The MFP 101 receives the address from the PC 104 via HTTP communication and stores the address in storage device 204 as the destination address of the image data.

[0105] The following describes additional information about displaying checkboxes and uncheckable checkboxes. Figure 8 The diagram illustrates when a user is in, for example Figure 6 The screen shown in drop-down menu 606 displays the screen when selecting an address from the "Best Members" list in the address book while "File" is selected. The "Best Members" list contains two addresses with the "File" sending type and two addresses with the "Email" sending type. In address selection screen 800, the destination corresponding to the set sending type can be selected using checkboxes. Checkboxes are displayed for addresses whose types match those in drop-down menu 606. More specifically, uncheckable checkboxes are displayed for addresses numbered 01 and 02, while checkboxes are displayed for addresses numbered 03 and 04.

[0106] The OK button 805 is used to determine the address selection based on the settings in the address selection screen. The Cancel button 806 is used to cancel the settings. When either the OK button 805 or the Cancel button 806 is selected, the following will be displayed: Figure 6 The button shown is set to edit screen 600.

[0107] The settings of the consultation form button 405 according to this exemplary embodiment will now be described. Figure 6 In the button settings editing screen 600 shown, the consultation form button 405 is registered when "Consultation Form" is entered into input field 601, "Button Name" is selected from drop-down menu 602, and checkbox 603 is checked. Figure 6 In the button settings editing screen 600 shown, the consultation form button 405 is registered when "Organize (Folder)" is selected from drop-down menu 605 and "File" is selected from drop-down menu 606. In the following... Figure 7 In the keyword string setting screen 700 shown, with "Number Only" selected from the drop-down menu 701, "7" entered in input field 702, and "Enter Patient Number" entered in input field 703, the consultation form button 405 is registered. With "Enable" selected from the drop-down menu 704, and the "Do Not Select Area" button 706 selected, and... Figure 8 When the destination "\\file server\consultation form" (number 04) is selected in the address selection screen 800, the consultation form button 405 is registered.

[0108] The configuration of the letter of introduction button 406 according to this exemplary embodiment will now be described. Figure 6 In the button settings editing screen 600 shown, when the letter of introduction is entered into the input field 601, "Button Name" is selected from the drop-down menu 602, and the checkbox 603 is checked, the letter of introduction button 406 is generated. Figure 6 In the button settings editing screen 600 shown, when "Organize (Files and Folders)" is selected from drop-down menu 605 and "File" is selected from drop-down menu 606, the consultation form button 405 is generated. Additionally, in... Figure 7 In the keyword string setting screen 700 shown, when "Number Only" is selected from the drop-down menu 701, "7" is entered into input field 702, and "Enter Patient Number" is entered into input field 703, the referral letter button 406 is generated. When "Enable" is selected from the drop-down menu 704, the specified area button 706 is selected, and "Start Point (X, Y) = (10, 10) and End Point (X, Y) = (50, 20)" is set, the referral letter button 406 is generated. Figure 8 In the address selection screen 800 shown, when the destination "\\file server\letter of introduction" (number 03) is selected, the "Register Letter of Introduction" button 406 appears.

[0109] Figure 9 The image shows an example of a button settings editing screen with the "email" sending type option. The following description uses the settings for the application form A button as an example. Figure 9The button settings editing screen 900 is shown. For example, on the display device 311 connected to the PC 104, the following is displayed: Figure 9 The button shown is set to edit screen 900. PC104 is accessing the web server of MFP101 via HTTP communication.

[0110] Input field 901, dropdown menus 902, 905 and 906, checkbox 903, and keyword string setting button 904 are respectively related to... Figure 6 The input field 601, drop-down menus 602, 605 and 606, checkbox 603, and keyword string setting button 604 shown are similar, and their repeated descriptions will be omitted.

[0111] When “email” is selected from the drop-down menu 906 and the change button 907 is selected, the sending settings for item 908 are displayed as shown in the button settings editing screen 900.

[0112] Input field 909 is used to enter the email address of the destination for sending the image data generated by scanning the original document.

[0113] When selected by the user, the Add button 910 adds the email address entered into the input field 909 to the destination list 911.

[0114] Destination list 911 is a text display area from which each email address can be selected. Destination list 911 displays the field name and email address when sending an email. When sending an email, any of "To", "Cc", and "Bcc" is displayed as the field name. When an email address is added to destination list 911, the initial value of the field name is "To".

[0115] When selected by the user, the "Select from address book" button 912 is used to display the address selection screen 800, which is used to select an email address from the address book to be added to the destination list 911.

[0116] When selected by the user, the "Select To / Cc / Bcc" change button 913 changes the field of the email address selected in the destination list 911. Each time this button is selected, To, Cc, and Bcc will cycle through and change in this order.

[0117] When selected by the user, the delete button 914 removes the email address selected in the destination list 911 from the destination list 911.

[0118] Input field 915 is used to enter the subject of the email to be sent. When the "Add Button Name" button 916 is selected, the button name entered in input field 901 is entered into input field 915.

[0119] Input field 917 is used to enter the body of the email to be sent. When the "Add Button Name" button 918 is selected, the button name entered in input field 901 is entered into input field 917.

[0120] The OK button 919 and Cancel button 920 are similar to the OK button 612 and Cancel button 613, respectively. When a one-click send button with the "email" send type is selected, character recognition processing is not performed.

[0121] Figure 10 The image shows an example of the button settings editing screen displayed when the sending type is "USB memory". The settings for the "Application Form B" button will be described below as an example. Figure 10 The button settings are shown in screen 1000. For example, on display device 311 connected to PC 104, the following is displayed: Figure 10 The button shown sets up the editing screen 1000, and PC 104 is accessing the web server of MFP 101 via HTTP communication.

[0122] Input field 1001, dropdown menus 1002, 1005 and 1006, checkbox 1003, and keyword string setting button 1004 are respectively similar to Figure 6 The descriptions of the input fields 601, drop-down menus 602, 605 and 606, checkbox 603, and keyword string setting button 604 shown will be omitted.

[0123] When USB storage is selected from drop-down menu 1006 and the change button 1007 is selected, the send settings of item 1008 are displayed as shown in the button settings editing screen 1000. Item 1008 allows the user to make scanning settings when scanning originals to generate image data, such as read size, color settings, and the format of the generated file.

[0124] When the send type is "USB memory", the image data generated by scanning the image of the original is stored in the USB memory.

[0125] The following will describe, for example Figure 8 The address registration screen shown in the address selection screen 800 is the address registration screen.

[0126] Figure 12A and Figure 12B The illustration shows an example of a screen used for registering an address in the address book. When PC 104 accesses the web server of MFP 101 via HTTP using a web browser, a screen like the one shown on display device 311 connected to PC 104 is displayed. Figure 12A and Figure 12BThe image shown.

[0127] Figure 12A The diagram shows an example of an address registration screen. The address registration screen 1200 displays the address book selection area 1201, checkboxes 1202, an OK button 1203, and a Cancel button 1204.

[0128] In address book selection area 1201, you can choose "Shortcut Dial" and "Best Member". Figure 12A and Figure 12B The diagram illustrates the selection of the "best member".

[0129] The type of destination to be registered can be selected using checkbox 1202. When selected by the user, the OK button 1203 displays the following: Figure 12B The destination registration screen 1210 shown reflects the selected destination type.

[0130] When selected by the user, the cancel button 1204 is used to cancel the settings and address book registration process.

[0131] Figure 12B The diagram illustrates an example of a destination registration screen. Destination registration screen 1210 displays input fields 1211, 1213, 1214, 1215, and 1216, a drop-down menu 1212, an OK button 1217, and a Cancel button 1218. Destination registration screen 1210 is used to register a destination when the sending type is "file".

[0132] Input field 1211 is used to enter the name of the destination. Drop-down menu 1212 is an object used to select the protocol to use when sending image data to the destination. Drop-down menu 1212 allows selection of a protocol from SMB, FTP, and WebDAV.

[0133] Input field 1213 is for entering the hostname of the destination, i.e., a name-resolvable server name or Internet Protocol (IP) address. Input field 1214 is for entering the folder path of the destination.

[0134] Input fields 1215 and 1216 are input fields for entering a username and password, which are used to access the server specified by the hostname entered into input field 1213.

[0135] When the user selects the OK button 1217, the CPU 201 stores the entered settings in the storage device 204 as the new destination. When selected by the user, the Cancel button 1218 cancels the settings and address book registration process.

[0136] Figure 13The diagram illustrates an example of an address registration screen. Address registration screen 1300 displays input fields 1301 and 1302, an OK button 1303, and a Cancel button 1304. Address registration screen 1300 is used to register an address when the sending type is "email". For example, it is displayed on a display device 311 connected to a PC 104 that is accessing a web server of MFP 101 via HTTP communication. Figure 13 The address shown is the registration screen 1300.

[0137] Input field 1301 is for entering the name of the address. Input field 1302 is for entering the email address of the destination.

[0138] When the user selects the OK button 1303, the CPU 201 stores the entered setting value as a new address in the storage device 204. When selected by the user, the Cancel button 1304 cancels the setting and address book registration process.

[0139] This completes the description of the button pre-registration process. The following describes the process performed when a user uses a registered button. Some or all of the above screens can be displayed on the operation unit 205 of the MFP 101 and used to receive operations, or displayed on a PC 104 connected to the web server of the MFP 101 and used to receive operations.

[0140] Figure 14 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing flow executed when the one-touch send button for file transfer is selected on the MFP 101. The CPU 201 loads the program stored in ROM 202 into RAM 203 and executes the program to achieve the following: Figure 14 The flowchart shown illustrates the processing. When the MFP 101 is powered on, it begins as follows: Figure 14 The flowchart shown illustrates how to execute the following steps when the send type of the one-click send button is set to "File" send. Figure 14 The flowchart shown illustrates that character recognition processing may not be performed when the sending type is "email" or "USB storage," as... Figure 14 As shown.

[0141] In step S1401, CPU 201 determines whether a one-touch send button has been selected. If CPU 201 determines that a one-touch send button has been selected ("Yes" in step S1401), the process proceeds to step S1402. If CPU 201 determines that a one-touch send button has not been selected ("No" in step S1401), the process returns to step S1401. Here, the case where the consultation form button 405 is selected as the one-touch send button will be described below.

[0142] In step S1402, CPU 201 reads the scan settings made in the settings editing screen 600 from storage device 204.

[0143] In step S1403, based on the scanning settings read in step S1402, CPU 201 controls scanner 207 to scan the image of the original document to generate image data.

[0144] In step S1404, CPU 201 performs character recognition processing using the generated image data. (Refer to the following...) Figure 15 Describe character recognition processing in detail.

[0145] Figure 15 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of character recognition processing. The CPU 201 loads the program stored in ROM 202 into RAM 203 and executes the program to achieve the following: Figure 15 The flowchart shown illustrates the processing. When "Enable" for character recognition is selected from drop-down menu 704, as... Figure 15 The flowchart shown begins, and in step S1403, CPU 201 scans the image of the original document to generate image data.

[0146] In step S1501, CPU 201 generates binarized image data using the image data generated in step S1403. The generated binarized image data is stored in RAM 203.

[0147] In step S1502, CPU 201 reduces the resolution of the binarized image data generated in step S1501. Reducing the resolution reduces the processing load used to search for character regions in the binarized image data.

[0148] In step S1503, the CPU 201 searches for character regions in the image represented by the reduced-resolution binarized image data. The range for searching the character regions can be the entire range of the image data or a region set by the user.

[0149] In step S1504, CPU 201 performs character clipping processing on the regions identified as character regions in step S1503. Character clipping processing is based on projecting from the horizontal direction and the vertical direction to clip the bounding rectangle of each character into a character clipping rectangle. This character clipping processing is performed on all regions identified as character regions.

[0150] In step S1505, CPU 201 compares each character clipping rectangle with dictionary data stored in ROM 202 and obtains the character code of the most similar character and the coordinate information of the clipping rectangle for that character. This dictionary comparison process is performed on all character clipping rectangles. In this process, in addition to the character code and coordinate information, CPU 201 can also obtain font information.

[0151] In step S1506, CPU 201 stores the character information obtained in step S1505, namely, character code and coordinate information, in RAM 203.

[0152] The following will describe again Figure 14 The flowchart shown is illustrated. In step S1405, CPU 201 generates a text object using character information. The following will refer to... Figure 16 Describe in detail the processing used to generate text objects.

[0153] Figure 16 This is an example of a processing flow executed by MFP 101 to generate text objects. The program stored in ROM 202 is loaded into RAM 203 by CPU 201 and executed to achieve the following: Figure 16 The flowchart shown illustrates the processing. In step S1404, after completing the character recognition processing for one page, the process begins as follows: Figure 16 The flowchart shown.

[0154] In step S1601, CPU 201 retrieves the character information stored in step S1506. In step S1602, CPU 201 determines whether a character (character clipping rectangle) exists to the right of the character clipping rectangle at the top-left coordinate of the image represented by the image data. If CPU 201 determines that a character exists (step S1602 is "yes"), then the process proceeds to step S1603. If CPU 201 determines that no character exists (step S1602 is "no"), then the process proceeds to step S1604.

[0155] In step S1603, CPU 201 determines whether the distance to the character on the right (character clipping rectangle) is at or below a threshold. If CPU 201 determines that the distance is at or below the threshold ("Yes" in step S1603), then the process proceeds to step S1607. If CPU 201 determines that the distance is greater than the threshold ("No" in step S1603), then the process proceeds to step S1604.

[0156] In step S1607, CPU 201 combines the target character with the character to its right to generate a string. Then, CPU 201 selects the character to its right as the target character. Processing returns to step S1602.

[0157] In step S1604, CPU 201 stores a string or a combination of strings in RAM 203 as a string to be used for a text object.

[0158] In step S1605, CPU 201 generates a text object using the string stored in RAM 203 in step S1604. In this case, the text object refers to the button in which the string is displayed.

[0159] In step S1606, CPU 201 determines whether all character information has been checked. If CPU 201 determines that all character information has been checked ("Yes" in step S1606), then the process exits the flowchart. If CPU 201 determines that not all character information has been checked ("No" in step S1606), then the process proceeds to step S1608.

[0160] In step S1608, CPU 201 selects the next character as the target character. Then, processing returns to step S1602. When processing returns to step S1602, CPU 201 selects the character to the right as the next character, and after checking the rightmost character, selects the character at the left end of the next line as the next character. CPU 201 can change the position of the next character to be selected based on the character writing direction of the original document.

[0161] Return to such Figure 14 The flowchart shown illustrates the process. In step S1406, CPU 201 determines whether the page that has undergone character recognition processing and text object generation processing is the last page of the image scanned in step S1403. If CPU 201 determines that the page is the last page ("Yes" in step S1406), the process proceeds to step S1407. If CPU 201 determines that the page is not the last page ("No" in step S1406), the process returns to step S1404 for the next page.

[0162] In step S1407, CPU 201 displays a screen for selecting a text object. Figure 17 The image in the middle shows an example of the selection screen displayed here.

[0163] Figure 17The illustration shows an example of selection screen 1700. Area 1701 displays the folder path selected in address selection screen 800. Preview image 1702 is an image of the scanned original document.

[0164] List 1703 is a list used to display, for example, the text objects generated in step S1605. This list displays text objects ranging from the text object corresponding to the top-left character clipping rectangle to the text object corresponding to the bottom-right character clipping rectangle.

[0165] Area 1704 displays the string represented by the text object selected from list 1703. The string represented by the selected text object is stored in RAM 203. (See reference) Figure 17 Text object 1705 was selected, so the "123" represented by text object 1705 is displayed in area 1704. As in text object 1705, the selected text object is highlighted. The string in the preview image will also be highlighted in area 1710.

[0166] When selected by the user, the "Previous Page" button 1706 is used to change the currently displayed preview image and list to the preview image and list corresponding to the previous page.

[0167] When selected by the user, the "Next Page" button 1707 is used to change the currently displayed preview image and list to the preview image and list corresponding to the next page.

[0168] When selected by the user, the Apply button 1708 is used to send the generated image data to a folder path that is a combination of strings displayed in areas 1701 and 1704 when the Apply button 1708 is selected. More specifically, the image data is sent to a folder indicated by a folder path and a folder name, the folder path being the folder path displayed in area 1701 and the folder name being a string displayed in area 1704, wherein the folder name is appended to the next level of the folder path displayed in area 1701.

[0169] The clear button 1709 is used to delete the string currently displayed in area 1704 from area 1704 and RAM 203.

[0170] return Figure 14The flowchart shown is described below. In step S1408, CPU 201 determines whether a text object in list 1703 has been selected, that is, whether the character represented by the text object has been selected. If CPU 201 determines that a text object has been selected (step S1408 is "Yes"), then the process proceeds to step S1409. If CPU 201 determines that a text object has not been selected (step S1408 is "No"), then the process proceeds to step S1420.

[0171] In step S1409, CPU 201 highlights the selected text object and the corresponding string in the preview image. The highlighted string in the preview image allows the user to easily identify which part of the original document the selected string represents. For example, when a user views the preview image, the highlighted string makes it easy to identify whether the title of the original document or the value of a specific item, such as a patient ID, has been selected.

[0172] In step S1410, CPU 201 stores the string represented by the selected text object in RAM 203.

[0173] In step S1411, CPU 201 determines whether application button 1708 has been selected. If CPU 201 determines that application button 1708 has been selected (yes in step S1411), the process proceeds to step S1412. If CPU 201 determines that application button 1708 has not been selected (no in step S1411), the process proceeds to step S1430.

[0174] In step S1412, CPU 201 obtains the hostname (folder path) currently displayed in region 1701. (See reference...) Figure 17 The hostname (folder path) is "\\file server\diagnosis form\".

[0175] In step S1413, CPU 201 combines the folder path obtained in step S1412 with the string stored in step S1410, and sets the resulting folder path as the destination for sending the image data generated in step S1403. (Reference) Figure 17 The resulting folder path is "\\file server\consultation form\123".

[0176] In step S1414, CPU 201 generates a file based on the generated image data and assigns a file name to the file. The following will refer to... Figure 20 Please describe this process in detail.

[0177] Figure 20This is a flowchart illustrating an example of file name assignment processing. The CPU 201 loads a program stored in ROM 202 into RAM 203 and executes the program to achieve the following: Figure 20 The process shown in the flowchart. After the processing in step S1413 is completed, the process begins as follows: Figure 20 The flowchart is shown. Upon completion of the processing in step S1911 (described below), the process also begins as follows... Figure 20 The flowchart shown.

[0178] In step S2001, the CPU 201 retrieves information from the storage device 204 indicating the setting selected from the drop-down menu 602 in the button setting editing screen 600, and stores the information in the RAM 203.

[0179] In step S2002, the CPU 201 obtains information from the storage device 204 indicating the settings of the checkbox 603 in the button setting editing screen 600, and stores the information in the RAM 203.

[0180] In step S2003, the CPU 201 retrieves information from the storage device 204 indicating the setting selected from the drop-down menu 611 in the button setting editing screen 600, and stores the information in the RAM 203.

[0181] In step S2004, CPU 201 determines whether file organization has been set. If "Organize (Files)" or "Organize (Files and Folders)" is selected in the button setting editing screen 600, that is, CPU 201 determines to perform file organization ("Yes" in step S2004), then the process proceeds to step S2005. If "Do not organize" or "Organize (Folders)" is selected in the button setting editing screen 600, that is, CPU 201 determines not to perform file organization ("No" in step S2004), then the process proceeds to step S2007.

[0182] In step S2005, CPU 201 determines whether to use a keyword (the string of the selected text object) to determine the file name based on the information obtained in step S2002. More specifically, if checkbox 603 is checked, i.e., CPU 201 determines to use a keyword (step S2005 is "Yes"), then the process proceeds to step S2006. If checkbox 603 is not checked, i.e., CPU 201 determines not to use a keyword (step S2005 is "No"), then the process proceeds to step S2007.

[0183] In step S2006, CPU 201 stores in RAM 203 a flag indicating that the keyword should be included in the file name.

[0184] In step S2007, CPU 201 stores in RAM 203 a flag indicating that the keyword is not included in the file name. In this process, CPU 201 may not store the flag.

[0185] In step S2008, CPU 201 determines whether to use the button name to determine the file name based on the settings obtained in step S2001. More specifically, if "Button Name" is selected from the drop-down menu 602, i.e., CPU 201 determines to use the button name (step S2008 is "Yes"), then the process proceeds to step S2009. If "Automatic" is selected from the drop-down menu 602, i.e., CPU 201 determines not to use the button name (step S2008 is "No"), then the process proceeds to step S2010.

[0186] In step S2009, CPU 201 stores in RAM 203 a flag indicating that the button name should be included in the file name.

[0187] In step S2010, CPU 201 stores in RAM 203 a flag indicating that the button name is not included in the file name. In this process, CPU 201 may not store the flag.

[0188] In step S2011, CPU 201 obtains the current date and time and stores them in RAM 203.

[0189] In step S2012, CPU 201 checks a flag stored in RAM 203 and determines a file name based on that flag and the current date and time stored in step S2011. While this process has been described as including keywords and button names in the file name, it is not limited to this. For example, CPU 201 could simply obtain the current date and time and assign them to the file name.

[0190] return Figure 14 The flowchart shown is described below. In step S1415, CPU 201 sends the file generated in step S1414 to the destination set in step S1413.

[0191] In step S1420, CPU 201 determines whether it has received an instruction to switch between the preview image and the list via the selected "Previous Page" button 1706 or "Next Page" button 1707. If CPU 201 determines that an instruction has been received ("Yes" in step S1420), then the process proceeds to step S1421. If CPU 201 determines that no instruction has been received ("No" in step S1420), then the process returns to step S1408.

[0192] In step S1421, CPU 201 displays a preview image and a list of text objects for the page corresponding to the selected button.

[0193] In step S1430, CPU 201 determines whether the clear button 1709 has been selected. If CPU 201 determines that the clear button 1709 has been selected (yes in step S1430), the process proceeds to step S1431. If CPU 201 determines that the clear button 1709 has not been selected (no in step S1430), the process returns to step S1411.

[0194] In step S1431, CPU 201 deletes the string currently displayed in region 1704 from region 1704 and RAM 203.

[0195] By performing the above processing, a reduction in user workload is achieved in the image processing apparatus, which scans the image of the original document to generate image data and sends the image data to a destination folder based on a string obtained by performing character recognition processing on the image data.

[0196] Although in this exemplary embodiment, when the one-touch send button is selected, the MFP 101 scans the image of the original document to generate image data and performs character recognition processing and text object generation processing, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the MFP 101 can receive image data sent from an external device, perform character recognition processing and text object generation processing on the image data, and display as shown in the example. Figure 17 The screen shown. When the scan button 402 is selected, the MFP 101 can scan the image of the original document to generate image data, and perform character recognition processing and text object generation processing.

[0197] While an example of displaying a settings screen such as a button settings editing screen 600 on a display device 311 connected to a PC 104 via HTTP communication has been provided in this exemplary embodiment, the invention is not limited thereto. For example, a settings screen such as the button settings editing screen 600 may be displayed on a touch panel 410 on an operation unit 205 of an MFP 101 and receive operations.

[0198] A second exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described. (The following is an illustration for showing...) Figure 17 The first exemplary embodiment is described with a focus on the selection screen shown and the process of determining the destination of image data when a text object on the selection screen is selected. This exemplary embodiment will now be described with an example of pre-specifying a region to be processed for character recognition and determining the string recognized in that region as the destination of the image data.

[0199] Figure 18 The image shows an example of the screen transition when the letter of introduction button 406 is selected on the MFP 101. Figure 18 The diagram illustrates the processing flow for sending image data generated from an image of an original being scanned by scanner 207. Figure 18 The screen shown is displayed on the touch panel 410 of the operation unit 205.

[0200] After placing the original document on scanner 207, the user selects the letter of introduction button 406 on the homepage 400. When the letter of introduction button 406 is selected, CPU 201, based on... Figure 6 The screen shown pre-registers the scanning settings to the button to begin scanning the original document, and performs character recognition processing on the scanned original document within the area set in the character recognition area setting screen 1100 based on character type and character count limitations. In this case, the CPU 201 only extracts characters that match the data in the area set in the character recognition area setting screen 1100. Figure 7 The drop-down menu 701 shown displays the string corresponding to the character type set, and stores it in RAM 203. Then, CPU 201 displays, for example, the string stored in RAM 203 on the letter of introduction button screen 1800, suitable for... Figure 7 The string entered in input field 702 is a string containing the number of characters. If multiple strings that meet the above two conditions are extracted, CPU 201 can prioritize displaying the string recognized at the top of the setting area. In the letter of introduction button screen 1800, the string entered is as follows: Figure 7 The string "Enter Patient Number" from input field 703 is displayed in area 1804. Input field 1801, used for entering the patient number, is also displayed. The patient number, determined through character recognition processing, is automatically entered into input field 1801. In this case, using... Figure 7 The dropdown menu 701 shown narrows the search range by limiting the character type. This allows for high-precision processing with reduced recognition errors to be performed in a short time. Recognition accuracy is further improved by limiting the number of characters in the input field 702. For example, when the number of characters is limited to 1, the error of recognizing "cl" as "d" will not occur for the string "d". When a character recognition area is set, recognition processing does not need to be performed on the entire area of ​​the original document, thus enabling processing to be performed in a short time.

[0201] If the user selects the "No" button (1803), the display will return to the homepage. If the patient number ( Figure 18The string "0123456" shown meets the conditions for character type and number of characters, and if the user selects the "Yes" button 1802, the image data is sent to the destination set in the button setting editing screen 600. If not, a pop-up screen appears to draw attention. Based on this screen transition, the user can perform data transmission with at least two touch operations.

[0202] Figure 19 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing performed when the user selects the letter of introduction button 406. The CPU 19 loads the program stored in ROM 202 into RAM 203 and then executes the program to achieve the following: Figure 19 The flowchart shown illustrates the processing. When the home screen 400 is displayed on the touch panel 410 of the operation unit 205 of the MFP101, and the one-touch send button is selected on the home screen 400, the process begins. Figure 19 The flowchart shown below focuses on the process executed when the letter of introduction button 406 is selected.

[0203] In step S1901, CPU 201 determines whether "Enable" for the "Character Recognition" setting in the keyword string setting screen 700 is selected from the drop-down menu 704 for the keyword introduction letter button 406. When "Enable" is selected ("Yes" in step S1901), the process proceeds to step S1902. If "Enable" is not selected ("No" in step S1901), the process proceeds to step S1920.

[0204] In step S1902, CPU 201 controls scanner 207 to scan the image of the original document. In step S1903, based on the image scanned in step S1902, CPU 201 generates image data based on the scanning settings set for the letter of introduction button 406.

[0205] In step S1920, the CPU 201 displays the following on the touch panel 410 of the operation unit 205: Figure 18 The introduction letter button shown at 1800 is used as a keyword input screen.

[0206] In step S1921, CPU 201 determines whether the user has selected the "No" button 1803 on the introduction letter button screen 1800. If CPU 201 determines that the "No" button 1803 has been selected (which was "Yes" in step S1921), then the process returns to step S1901. If the "Yes" button 1802 has been selected (which was "No" in step S1921), then the process proceeds to step S1922.

[0207] In step S1922, CPU 201 determines whether the string input to input field 1801 meets the conditions for the number of characters and character type set in the keyword string setting screen 700. If CPU 201 determines that the conditions are met (step S1922 is "Yes"), then the process proceeds to step S1902. If CPU 201 determines that the conditions are not met (step S1922 is "No"), then the process returns to step S1920.

[0208] In step S1904, CPU 201 determines whether "Character Recognition" is selected as "Enabled" in the keyword string setting screen 700 of the introduction letter button 406. If "Enabled" is selected ("Yes" in step S1904), the process proceeds to step S1905. If "Enabled" is not selected ("No" in step S1904), the process proceeds to step S1911.

[0209] In step S1905, CPU 201 will Figure 11 The area set in the character recognition area setting screen 1100 shown is the area to be processed by character recognition (OCR). If the character recognition area setting screen 1100 is not set ("Unspecified" is selected for "Character Recognition Area"), the CPU 201 determines the entire original image area as the target area for character recognition.

[0210] In step S1906, CPU 201 performs character recognition processing in the area determined in step S1905. The character recognition processing is similar to the processing in step S1404, so its repeated description will be omitted.

[0211] In step S1907, CPU 201 determines whether the string (keyword) indicated by the character information obtained in step S1906 satisfies the character count condition. If the character count of the identified string is greater than the condition value ( Figure 7 If the string is "7" (as shown), then CPU 201 removes characters from the end until the condition value is reached. Conditions not only apply to the number of characters but also to the character type. For example, a condition can specify whether to include numbers or letters. A string recognized without such a condition can be used as a keyword.

[0212] In step S1908, the CPU 201 displays the letter of introduction button screen 1800 on the touch panel 410 of the operation unit 205, wherein the string identified in step S1905 is input to... Figure 18 The input field shown is 1801. If character recognition fails, the user can change the patient number on this screen.

[0213] In step S1909, CPU 201 determines whether the user has selected the "No" button 1803 on the introduction letter button screen 1800. If CPU 201 determines that the "No" button 1803 has been selected (if "Yes" was selected in step S1909), then the process returns to step S1901. If CPU 201 determines that the "Yes" button 1802 has been selected (if "No" was selected in step S1909), then the process proceeds to step S1910.

[0214] In step S1910, CPU 201 determines whether the patient number entered by the user when displaying the referral letter button screen 1800 meets the conditions for character type and number of characters. If CPU 201 determines that the conditions are met ("Yes" in step S1910), the process proceeds to step S1911. If CPU 201 determines that the conditions are not met ("No" in step S1910), the process returns to step S1908.

[0215] In step S1911, CPU 201 sets the folder path, which is a combination of hostname and keyword, as the destination. The method of combination is similar to that in the process of step S1413.

[0216] In step S1912, CPU 201 performs a process similar to that in step S1414.

[0217] In step S1913, CPU 201 controls network I / F, and network I / F sends image data to the destination set in step S1911. CPU 201 can store the set destination in association with the button and send image data to the stored destination each time the button is selected without performing character recognition processing.

[0218] Performing the above processing allows the character recognition results to be automatically set as part of the folder path, thus reducing the user's workload. Setting conditions (such as the number of characters in the keyword) prevents unrecognizable strings from being used as targets.

[0219] Other embodiments

[0220] One or more embodiments of the present invention can also be implemented by a computer that reads and executes computer-executable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on a storage medium (which may also be more fully referred to as a "non-transient computer-readable storage medium") to perform the functions of one or more embodiments described above and / or includes one or more circuits (e.g., application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs)) for performing the functions of one or more embodiments described above, and by a method executed by a computer of a system or device, for example, by reading and executing computer-executable instructions from a storage medium to perform the functions of one or more embodiments described above and / or controlling one or more circuits to perform the functions of one or more embodiments described above. The computer may include one or more processors (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor unit (MPU)) and may include a network of individual computers or individual processors to read and execute computer-executable instructions. The computer-executable instructions may be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or a storage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, a hard disk, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a storage device for a distributed computing system, an optical disc (such as a CD, DVD, or Blu-ray disc), or a digital versatile disc (BD). TM ), flash memory devices, memory cards, etc.

[0221] Other embodiments

[0222] The embodiments of the present invention can also be implemented by providing software (programs) that perform the functions of the above embodiments to a system or device via a network or various storage media, and the computer or central processing unit (CPU) or microprocessor unit (MPU) of the system or device reads out and executes the program.

[0223] While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the appended claims should be given the broadest interpretation to cover all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

Claims

1. An image processing system, comprising: A scanner that scans the original document to generate image data; A storage unit is used to store multiple groups of area information indicating a user-specified area and a user-specified folder path, wherein the multiple groups include a first group and a second group, the first group includes first area information and a first folder path, and the second group includes second area information different from the first area information and a second folder path different from the first folder path; The display unit is used to display a first object corresponding to the first group and a second object corresponding to the second group on the scanner's display. The selection receiving unit is used to receive the selection of an object from the first displayed object and the second displayed object; An acquisition unit is configured to obtain character information from a region of the generated image data, the region being indicated by region information corresponding to a group of selected objects; and The execution unit is used to perform the process of storing the generated image data into a folder with a folder name based on the obtained character information, which is located under the folder path indicated by the folder path of the group corresponding to the selected object.

2. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, The execution unit performs the process of storing image data into a folder having a folder name that includes one or more characters indicated by the obtained character information.

3. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, The obtaining unit obtains character information by recognizing one or more characters included in the generated image data.

4. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, The area information indicates the location of the area.

5. The image processing system according to claim 1, further comprising: The sending unit is used to send the generated image data to a folder for storage through the execution of the processing.

6. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, The specified folder path is the folder path entered by the user.

7. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, The group includes settings for specifying file names, and The execution unit performs the process of storing the generated image data as a file in a folder, the file having a filename specified based on the setting information of the group corresponding to the selected object.

8. The image processing system according to claim 1, in, Based on the selection of the first object, the scanner scans the original to generate image data. Then, the execution unit performs the process of storing the generated image data in a folder specified based on character information obtained from the region of the generated image data and the path of the first folder of the first group corresponding to the selected first object. The region of the generated image data is the region indicated by the first region information of the first group corresponding to the selected first object.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing a stored program that causes a computer to perform a method, the method comprising: Character information is obtained from image data generated by scanning the original document; Perform the process of storing image data into a folder with a folder name based on the obtained character information; The system stores multiple groups of region information and folder paths specified by the user, wherein the multiple groups include a first group and a second group. The first group includes first region information and a first folder path, and the second group includes second region information and a second folder path that are different from the first region information. The scanner displays the first object corresponding to the first group and the second object corresponding to the second group on its monitor; Receive the selection of objects from the first displayed object and the second displayed object; Character information is obtained from a region of image data generated by scanning the original document using a scanner, the region being indicated by region information corresponding to a group of selected objects; and Perform the process of storing the generated image data in a folder with a folder name based on the obtained character information, which is located under the folder path indicated by the folder path of the group corresponding to the selected object.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, Perform the process of storing image data in a folder with a folder name that includes one or more characters indicated by the obtained character information.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, Character information is obtained by identifying one or more characters included in the generated image data.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, The area information indicates the location of the area.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, further comprising: The generated image data is sent to a folder for storage during the execution of the process.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, The specified folder path is the folder path entered by the user.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, The group includes settings for specifying file names, and The process involves storing the generated image data as a file in a specified folder, with the filename specified based on the settings information of the group corresponding to the selected object.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9, in, Based on the selection of the first object, the scanner scans the original to generate image data, and then performs the process of storing the generated image data in a folder specified based on character information obtained from the region of the generated image data and the path of the first folder of the first group corresponding to the selected first object, wherein the region of the generated image data is the region indicated by the first region information of the first group corresponding to the selected first object.

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