Information processing device, control method of information processing device, program, and inspection system

Abstract

To improve an usability when performing setting of an inspection using a template.SOLUTION: An information processing device for inspecting a printed sheet comprises: storage means for storing correct answer character string data to be used for a data reference inspection in association with a template obtained by collecting a content of an inspection setting in the case where a data reference inspection for collating and determining whether or not a specific character string is correctly printed on a printed sheet as a type of an inspection with a correct answer character string; setting means for performing an inspection setting on the basis of the template selected by a user from among the templates stored in the storage means; and control means for controlling a user interface screen for making the user to perform a selection. The control means displays the correct character string data on the user interference screen so as to enable a change of the correct answer character string data associated with the template selected by the user.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technique for inspecting images of printed matter.

Background Art

[0002] An inspection system for inspecting an image of printed matter output by a printing device has been proposed. Specifically, the image quality of the printed matter is inspected based on the result obtained by comparing a scanned image of the printed matter with a reference image (correct image) used for inspection. In the above inspection, there is a pattern inspection for inspecting printing defects such as stains and color bleeding. There are also what are called character string inspections for inspecting character strings read from the characters of printed matter and code inspections for inspecting character strings obtained from codes on printed matter. In character string inspections and code inspections, data collation with correct data is performed, so generally, both are collectively called data collation inspections.

[0003] Before performing various inspections on printed matter, it is necessary to perform various inspection settings according to the inspection content. Specifically, it includes setting the inspection target area, setting parameters such as the threshold of image quality for detecting printing defects, and setting the correct data for data collation. As a technique for easily performing these various inspection settings, Patent Document 1 discloses the following technique. It is a technique for reducing the burden of inspection settings by registering in advance, as a template, the setting of the inspection target area frequently used in pattern inspection and using the pre-registered template when performing the same pattern inspection.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Here, consider the case of applying the technology of Patent Document 1 above to data matching inspection. In this case, a template in which the type of inspection, the inspection target area, and the correct data are combined into one data set needs to be prepared. Then, when it is desired to change the correct data in the template, it is necessary to prepare a new template, which is troublesome for the user. The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to improve the usability when setting an inspection using a template.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] An information processing apparatus according to the present disclosure is an information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, and when a data matching inspection for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet as the type of the inspection is included, storage means for storing the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection in association with a template summarizing the contents of the inspection settings; setting means for performing the inspection settings based on a template selected by a user from among the templates stored in the storage means; and control means for controlling a user interface screen for causing the user to make the selection, wherein the control means displays the data of the correct character string associated with the template selected by the user on the user interface screen so as to be changeable.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to the technology of the present disclosure, it becomes possible to improve the usability when setting an inspection using a template.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the present disclosure, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential for the solution means of the present disclosure. For the same configuration, the same reference numerals will be used for description. Also, each step (step) in the flowchart is indicated by a symbol starting with "S".

[0010] [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is an example of a system configuration including an inspection apparatus according to this embodiment. The inspection system shown in FIG. 1 includes an image forming apparatus (printing apparatus) 110, an inspection apparatus 120, and a finisher 130. The image forming apparatus 110 processes various input data and prints the processed image data on a sheet (recording sheet). The inspection apparatus 120 receives the printed matter output from the image forming apparatus 110 and inspects the output content. In this embodiment, the control unit that controls the inspection settings and the like of the inspection is described as being arranged inside the inspection apparatus 120. That is, although it is assumed that an information processing apparatus is built in the inspection apparatus 120, it is not limited thereto. The inspection apparatus 120 may include a separate information processing apparatus, and the control unit may be included in the separate information processing apparatus. Further, the information processing apparatus including the control unit may be arranged outside the inspection apparatus 120. The finisher 130 receives the printed sheet inspected by the inspection apparatus 120.

[0011] The image forming apparatus 110 is connected to an external print server or a client computer (client PC) via a network. The inspection apparatus 120 is connected to the image forming apparatus 110 in a one-to-one manner via a communication cable. Also, the finisher 130 is connected to the image forming apparatus 110 in a one-to-one manner via another communication cable. Further, the inspection apparatus 120 and the finisher 130 are also connected to each other via another communication cable. This embodiment shows an in-line inspection apparatus that consistently performs image formation, image inspection, and finishing.

[0012] [Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus] FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus 110 according to the present embodiment. The image forming apparatus 110 of the present embodiment is an example of the image forming apparatus of the present disclosure, and includes a controller 210, a printer unit 208, and a UI unit 230. Note that the UI unit 230 has various switches for operations, an LED display, and the like.

[0013] An image or a document created by a software application such as a printer driver (not shown) on a client PC on a network or a print server is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 110 via the network as PDL data. The network is assumed to be, for example, the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or the like. In the image forming apparatus 110, the controller 210 receives the transmitted PDL data. The PDL data received here is data to be printed in the image forming apparatus 110, and is data (pre-press data) in which a pattern expected as an actual printed matter, data arrangement, page order, page layout information, and the like are defined.

[0014] The controller 210 is connected to the printer unit 208, receives PDL data from a client PC or a print server, converts it into print data that can be processed by the printer unit 208, and outputs the print data to the printer unit 208. The printer unit 208 prints an image based on the print data output from the controller 210. Note that the printer unit 208 in the description of the present embodiment is an electrophotographic printing engine. However, the printing method is not limited to this, and other methods such as an inkjet method and a thermal transfer method may be used. The UI unit 230 is operated by a user and is used to select various functions and give operation instructions. The UI unit 230 includes a liquid crystal display provided with a touch panel on the surface, and a keyboard or the like on which various keys such as a start key, a stop key, and numeric keys are arranged.

[0015] Next, the details of the controller 210 will be described. The controller 210 includes a network I / F (interface) unit 201, a CPU 202, a RAM 203, a ROM 204, an image processing unit 205, an engine I / F unit 206, and an internal bus 207. The network I / F unit 201 is an interface for receiving PDL data transmitted from a client PC or a print server.

[0016] The CPU 202 controls the entire image forming apparatus 110 using the programs and data stored in the RAM 203 and the ROM 204, and executes the processes described below that are performed by the controller 210. The RAM 203 includes a work area used when the CPU 202 executes various processes. The ROM 204 stores programs, data, and setting data of the controller 210 for causing the CPU 202 to execute various processes described below.

[0017] The image processing unit 205 performs print image processing on the PDL data received by the network I / F unit 201 according to settings from the CPU 202, and generates print data that can be processed by the printer unit 208. The image processing unit 205 generates image data having a plurality of color components per pixel by performing rasterization on the received PDL data. The plurality of color components are independent color components in a color space such as RGB (red, green, blue). The image data has a value of 8 bits (256 gradations) for each color component per pixel. That is, the image data is multi-valued bitmap data including multi-valued pixels. Also, in the above rasterization, in addition to the image data, attribute data indicating the attributes of the pixels of the image data is generated for each pixel. This attribute data indicates to which type of object the pixel belongs, and is a value indicating the type of object such as a character, a line, a graphic, an image, or a background. The image processing unit 205 generates print data by performing image processing such as color conversion from the RGB color space to the CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) color space and screen processing using the generated image data and attribute data.

[0018] The engine I / F unit 206 is an interface that transmits the print data generated by the image processing unit 205 to the printer unit 208. The internal bus 207 is a system bus that connects the above-described units 201 to 206.

[0019] FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the printer unit 208 in the image forming apparatus 110. The image forming apparatus 110 includes a scanner unit 301, a laser exposure unit 302, a photosensitive drum 303, an image forming unit 304, a fixing unit 305, a paper feeding / conveying unit 306, and a printer control unit 308 that controls these units.

[0020] The scanner unit 301 irradiates illumination light onto a document placed on the document table, optically reads the document image, and converts the image into an electrical signal to create image data. The laser exposure unit 302 causes a light beam such as laser light modulated according to the above-described image data to enter a rotating polygon mirror 307 that rotates at a constant angular velocity, and irradiates the photosensitive drum 303 with the reflected scanning light.

[0021] The image forming unit 304 rotationally drives the photosensitive drum 303, charges it with a charger, and develops the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum by the laser exposure unit with toner. This is realized by having four developing units (developing stations) for a series of electrophotographic processes such as transferring the toner image onto a sheet and collecting the minute toner remaining on the photosensitive drum without being transferred at that time. The four developing units arranged in the order of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) sequentially execute the image forming operations of magenta, yellow, and black after a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of image formation at the cyan station.

[0022] The fixing unit 305 is composed of a combination of a roller and a belt, incorporates a heat source such as a halogen heater, and melts and fixes the toner on the sheet onto which the toner image has been transferred by the image forming unit with heat and pressure. When printing on a thick sheet, since the sheet is thick and the thermal conductivity is poor, it is necessary to set the speed of passing through the fixing unit 305, for example, to half of the normal speed. Due to this, when printing on a thick sheet, the sheet conveyance speed of each part other than the fixing unit 305 also becomes half of the speed, so the printing speed of the image forming apparatus 110 becomes half of the speed.

[0023] The paper feeding / conveying unit 306 has one or more sheet storage bins such as a sheet cassette or a paper deck, separates one sheet from a plurality of sheets stored in the sheet storage bin according to the instruction of the printer control unit 308, and conveys it to the image forming unit 304 and the fixing unit 305. The sheet is conveyed, and toner images of each color are transferred by the aforementioned developing station, and finally a full-color toner image is formed on the sheet. When forming images on both sides of the sheet, control is performed so that the sheet that has passed through the fixing unit 305 passes through a conveyance path for conveying it again to the image forming unit 304.

[0024] The printer control unit 308 communicates with the controller 210 that controls the entire image forming apparatus 110 and executes control according to its instruction. Further, the printer control unit 308 manages the states of the aforementioned scanner, laser exposure, image forming, fixing, and paper feeding / conveying units, and gives instructions to each unit so that the entire image forming apparatus 110 operates smoothly while maintaining harmony.

[0025] <Internal Configuration of Inspection Device> FIG. 4(a) is a schematic configuration diagram showing the inside of the inspection apparatus 120. The printed sheet printed and output from the image forming apparatus 110 is conveyed to the inspection apparatus 120 by the paper feed roller 401. Thereafter, while the printed sheet is conveyed by the conveyance belt 402, it is read by the inspection sensor 403 on the conveyance belt 402. Using the image (scanned image) read by this inspection sensor 403, the inspection process is performed in the inspection apparatus control unit 405. Further, the inspection apparatus control unit 405 controls the entire inspection apparatus 120. The inspection result is sent to the finisher 130. After the inspection is performed, the printed sheet is conveyed from the paper discharge roller 404 to the finisher 130. The inspection sensor 403 may be structured to read with an inspection sensor also from below the conveyance belt 402 so as to be compatible with double-sided printed matter.

[0026] FIG. 4(b) is a top view showing a portion of the conveyance belt 402. Here, the inspection sensor 403 is a line sensor that reads an image of the entire surface of the conveyed printed sheet 410 line by line. The light irradiation device 411 for image reading irradiates the printed sheet with light when being read by the inspection sensor 403. The light irradiation device 412 for skew detection reads whether the printed sheet is skewed with respect to the sheet conveyance direction when the printed sheet is conveyed on the conveyance belt 402. By irradiating the conveyed printed sheet with light from an oblique direction, a shadow image of the end portion of the printed sheet is read to detect skew. In the present embodiment, the reading of the shadow image of the printed sheet is performed by the inspection sensor 403. The detection of skew may use another reading sensor other than the inspection sensor 403.

[0027] FIG. 5(a) is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the inspection apparatus control unit 405. The inspection apparatus control unit 405 having a CPU has a control unit 503, and the inspection apparatus 120 is controlled by this control unit 503. The image input unit 501 receives the scan image read by the inspection sensor 403. The received scan image is stored in the memory unit 504. The communication unit 502 communicates with the controller 210 of the image forming apparatus 110. In the communication between the image forming apparatus 110 and the inspection apparatus 120, reception of image data (reference image) used for printing corresponding to the scan image, and transmission and reception of sheet information and inspection control information used for printing are performed. The received reference image and inspection control information are stored in the memory unit 504. One of the inspection control information communicated between the image forming apparatus 110 and the inspection apparatus 120 is synchronization information for taking correspondence between the scan image and the reference image, such as print job information, number of printed copies information, and page order information. Another inspection control information is inspection result information and control information for controlling the operation of the image forming apparatus 110 accompanying the inspection result information. The synchronization information is required when the order in which the inspection apparatus 120 receives the scan image and the reference image used for printing the scan image is different for double-sided printing or multiple-copy printing. It is also required when one reference image corresponds to a plurality of scan images. Communication is also performed between the inspection apparatus 120 and the finisher 130, and transmission and reception of inspection control information are performed. The inspection control information communicated between the inspection apparatus 120 and the finisher 130 is inspection result information and control information for controlling the operation of the finisher 130 accompanying the inspection result information.

[0028] The inspection processing unit 514 is a processing unit whose operation is controlled by the control unit 503. The inspection processing unit 514 performs inspection determination processing on a pair of a corresponding scanned image and a reference image based on synchronization information, which is one of the inspection control information communicated between the above-described image forming apparatuses 110. Details of the inspection processing unit 514 will be described later. When the inspection determination processing is completed, the determination result is displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505. If an image defect is determined in the determination result, the control of the image forming apparatus 110 and the finisher 130 is switched via the communication unit 502 in a method specified in advance by the user on the operation unit / display unit 505. For example, control is performed to stop the image forming apparatus 110 and switch the paper discharge tray of the finisher 130 to an escape tray.

[0029] <Internal Configuration of Inspection Processing Unit> Next, the internal configuration of the inspection processing unit 514 will be described. The skew detection unit 506 is a module that detects the skew angle of a scanned image. The scanned image is scanned so that a shadow is formed at the end of the printed sheet. Light is irradiated onto the printed sheet that is drawn into the inspection apparatus 120 and conveyed on the conveyance belt 402 by the light irradiation device 412 for skew detection. The inspection sensor 403 scans the shadow at the end of the printed sheet generated when the light is irradiated. The skew angle is detected using this shadow. Based on the detected skew angle, correction processing is performed in the image deformation unit 509 described later.

[0030] The color conversion unit 507 is a module that performs intermediate color conversion of the reference image. The reference image is rasterized in the CMYK color space by the image processing unit 205, and the scan image to be inspected is read in the RGB color space by the inspection sensor 403. Therefore, it is necessary to perform color conversion from the CMYK color space to the RGB color space. However, the read RGB values vary greatly depending on the sheet type. Here, the RGB values common to the sheets are converted, and the sheet type corresponding unit 511 described later converts them into the RGB values for each sheet. The RGB values common to the sheets are, for example, three-layer data that expresses each signal of RGB corresponding to sRGB, which is an RGB color space independent of the printer engine, in 256 gradations. Note that sRGB in this embodiment refers to the standard specification of the RGB color space defined by the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission).

[0031] The color conversion unit 507 converts the reference image into an RGB image. For example, conversion may be performed using a CMYKtoRGB lookup table as shown in Table 1. In this case, for pixels on the grid points, color conversion to RGB is performed by referring to the conversion table, and for pixels not on the grid points, the RGB values are obtained by interpolation from adjacent grid points.

[0032]

Table 1

[0033] The image deformation unit 509 is a module that performs image deformation on the scanned image and the reference image. There are geometric differences between the scanned image and the reference image due to paper expansion and contraction during printing, skew during printing, and skew during scanning. The image deformation unit 509 corrects the geometric differences by performing image deformation based on the information obtained by the skew detection unit 506 and the alignment unit 510 described later. For example, the geometric differences are linear transformation (rotation, enlargement / reduction, shear) and translation. This geometric difference can be expressed as an affine transformation, and correction can be performed by obtaining the affine transformation parameters from the skew detection unit 506 and the alignment unit 510. Note that the information obtained from the skew detection unit 506 is only the parameter related to rotation (skew angle information).

[0034] <Internal configuration of the alignment unit 510> The alignment unit 510 is a module that performs alignment between a scanned image and a reference image. It is assumed that the scanned image and the reference image input to this module are images with the same resolution. Note that the higher the input resolution, the higher the alignment accuracy, but the computational load increases. Based on the parameters obtained by the alignment, correction is performed by the image deformation unit 509, thereby making it possible to obtain the scanned image and the reference image used by the collation unit 512 described later. As alignment methods, various alignment methods can be considered. In this embodiment, in order to reduce the computational load, a method is used in which alignment of the entire image is performed using the region information of a part of the image instead of the entire image. The alignment in this embodiment consists of three steps: selection of alignment patches, alignment for each patch, and estimation of affine transformation parameters. Each step will be described below.

[0035] First, the selection of alignment patches will be described. Here, a "patch" refers to a rectangular area within an image. In the selection of alignment patches, a plurality of patches suitable for alignment are selected from a reference image. As patches suitable for alignment, patches with large corner feature amounts within the patch can be considered. A corner feature is a feature (the intersection of two edges) where there are two prominent edges with different directions in a certain local neighborhood. The corner feature amount is a feature amount representing the strength of this edge feature. Based on differences in the modeling of "edge features", various methods have been devised. As one method for calculating the corner feature amount, there is a known method called Harris' corner detection method. Harris' corner detection method calculates a corner feature amount image from a differential image in the horizontal direction (edge feature amount image in the horizontal direction) and a differential image in the vertical direction (edge feature amount image in the vertical direction). This corner feature amount image is an image representing the amount of the weaker edge among the two edges constituting the corner feature. Even if both of the two edges are strong edges, the magnitude of the corner feature amount is expressed based on whether the relatively weaker edge has a large edge amount or not. Calculate the corner feature amount image from the reference image, and select as alignment-suitable patches the portions having large corner feature amounts. If regions simply with large corner feature amounts are sequentially selected as patches, patches may be selected only from biased regions. In such a case, the number of regions without patches in the vicinity increases, and the image deformation information of those regions cannot be utilized, so it is not a suitable state for aligning the entire image. Therefore, when selecting patches, not only the magnitude of the corner feature amount but also the fact that the patches are distributed and arranged within the image is considered. Specifically, even if the corner feature amount value of a certain patch candidate region is not large among the values in the entire image, if the value is large within a local region of the image, it is selected as a patch. By selecting patches in this way, it becomes possible to distribute and arrange patches within the reference image. Parameters in patch selection include the size of the patch and the number (or density) of patches.As the patch size increases and the number of patches increases, the alignment accuracy improves, but the computational load increases.

[0036] Next, the alignment for each patch will be described. The alignment for each patch is performed between the alignment patch in the reference image selected as described above and the corresponding patch in the scanned image. As a result of the alignment, there are two types of information obtained. The first is the center coordinates (refpXi, refpYi) of the alignment patch in the i-th (i = 1 to N, N is the number of patches) reference image. The second is the position (scanpXi, scanpYi) of the center coordinates in the scanned image. The alignment method may be any method as long as it is a shift amount estimation method that can obtain the relationship between (refpXi, refpYi) and (scanpXi, scanpYi). For example, a method of converting the data of the alignment patch and the data of the corresponding patch into the frequency space using FFT, taking the correlation in the frequency space, and estimating the shift amount can be considered.

[0037] Finally, the estimation of the affine transformation parameters will be described. Affine transformation is a coordinate transformation method expressed by the following formula (1).

[0038]

Equation

[0039] <Internal Structure of Sheet Type Corresponding Unit 511> The sheet type corresponding unit 511 is a module that performs processing according to the sheet type on the reference image. Specifically, it performs color conversion according to the sheet type and rotation according to the orientation of the sheet. In this module, based on the inspection control information previously stored in the memory unit 504 and the sheet information used for printing transmitted from the controller 210, image processing is performed on the reference image according to the type and orientation of the sheet. For color conversion, based on the reference image converted to the RGB color space common to the sheets by the color conversion unit 507, color conversion according to the sheet type is performed. The color conversion performs conversion targeting the RGB values read by the inspection sensor 403 for each sheet type. The color conversion according to the sheet type may be performed using, for example, an RGB-to-RGB look-up table as shown in Table 2 below. There may be a plurality of look-up tables, and they may be switched according to the sheet type.

[0040]

Table 2

[0041] <Internal Structure of Collation Unit 512> The matching unit 512 is a module that performs matching between the scanned image and the reference image processed by the sheet type corresponding unit 511. The scanned image and the reference image input to this module are images with the same resolution. Also, based on the information obtained by the alignment unit 510, the reference image or the scanned image is corrected by the image deformation unit 509 so that image comparison is possible. The matching unit 512 creates a matching image using the reference image and the scanned image. The matching process is performed based on the parameters notified from the operation unit / display unit 505 via the control unit 503. Details of the matching process will be described later.

[0042] <Regarding the data recognition unit 513> The data recognition unit 513 is a module that executes character recognition processing and code recognition processing on the character string inspection area and the code inspection area included in the scanned image, respectively, based on the inspection settings described later.

[0043] <Regarding the operation unit / display unit 505> The operation unit / display unit 505 is a user interface of the touch screen and accepts settings of the processing in the inspection processing unit 514 from the user. For example, the operation unit / display unit 505 displays a setting screen and accepts settings of the image processing by the inspection processing unit 514 from the user.

[0044] <Control flow of the inspection device> Hereinafter, the inspection processing performed in the inspection device 120 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10. All the processes and flows described using these figures are integrally executed by the control unit 503 including an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU executing a predetermined program stored in the memory unit 504. Also, the results processed by each processing unit are held in the memory unit 504 and used in subsequent processes.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 5(b), the control unit 503 includes an inspection setting unit 551 that performs various settings necessary for inspection, a display control unit 552 that controls the operation unit / display unit 505, and a registration unit 553 that registers a specific inspection setting as a favorite (template). The operation unit / display unit 505 displays various user interface screens. Further, the control unit 503 also includes a determination unit 554 that determines whether the inspection setting specified by a user operation is stored in the memory unit 504 as a favorite. The determination unit 554 also determines whether the specified character string data in the inspection setting specified by the user operation is already stored in the memory unit 504. In the following, the control unit 503 will be described as being built into the inspection apparatus 120. That is, it is assumed that an information processing apparatus is built into the inspection apparatus 120, but it is not limited to this. The control unit 503 may be included in a separate information processing apparatus installed in the inspection apparatus 120. Further, the control unit 503 may be included in an information processing apparatus disposed outside the inspection apparatus 120.

[0046] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the entire inspection process. In S601, the control unit 503 displays, via the display control unit 552, an inspection job management screen for creating an inspection job according to the startup of the inspection apparatus 120 on the operation unit / display unit 505. When the "New" button is pressed on the inspection job management screen, the process proceeds to S602.

[0047] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the inspection job management screen 700 displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 in S601. The inspection job management screen 700 is a screen displayed when the inspection apparatus 120 is started up, and by operating the screen by the user, it is possible to perform reference image registration, inspection setting, inspection execution, duplication or deletion of the created inspection job, which will be described later. The button 701 is a button for canceling the display of the inspection job management screen 700. The button 702 is a button for newly creating an inspection job. When the button 702 is pressed, the reference image registration, which will be described later, is executed.

[0048] Button 703 is a button for duplicating an already created inspection job. When button 703 is pressed, among the inspection jobs displayed in the inspection job list 707, the selected inspection job is duplicated. By performing the duplication, it is possible to duplicate the reference image or inspection settings and newly conduct an inspection. Button 704 is a delete button. When button 704 is pressed, among the inspection jobs displayed in the inspection job list 707, the selected inspection job is deleted. Here, when multiple inspection jobs are selected and button 704 is pressed, it is also possible to delete multiple inspection jobs simultaneously.

[0049] Button 705 is an inspection settings button. When button 705 is pressed, the inspection settings described later are executed. Button 706 is an inspection execution button. When button 706 is pressed, an inspection is executed for an inspection job for which the reference image registration and inspection settings described later are completed.

[0050] Return to the description of FIG. 6. Next, in S602, the control unit 503 registers the reference image for inspection settings selected by the user via the registration unit 553. Specifically, the inspection device 120 starts reading the reference image, and on the client PC, a print job for registering the reference image used for inspection settings is executed in S603. Here, although the reference image uses a read image obtained by reading a printed sheet, it is not limited to this. The reference image may be registered with the RIP image received by the inspection device 120 as the reference image. When the reference image for inspection settings is registered, the process proceeds to S603.

[0051] In S603, the control unit 503 receives inspection settings from the user via the inspection setting unit 551. In the inspection settings, various inspection parameters, inspection areas, and inspection levels are set. Details will be described later. When the processing of the inspection settings is completed, the process proceeds to S604. In S604, when the user presses the button 706 ("Inspection" button) on the inspection job management screen 700, the control unit 503 starts the inspection using the inspection device 120 and executes a printing job for inspection on the client PC. When the printing is executed, the inspection device 120 detects the conveyance of the printed sheet and scans the printed sheet with the inspection sensor 403. The scanned image is stored in the memory unit 504. The stored image is compared with the reference image, and the inspection result is output. The inspection is executed based on the setting values specified by the user in the inspection settings in S603. When the inspection is completed, the processing flow of the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 ends.

[0052] Next, the details of the inspection settings described in the section of S603 will be described with reference to FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8C, 9, and 10. The processing of the inspection settings starts triggered by the selection of the reference image registered by the user in S602 on the operation unit / display unit 505.

[0053] FIGS. 8A to 8C are an example of an inspection setting screen that receives an execution operation of inspection settings from the user. These inspection setting screens are displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505. The user arranges the inspection areas on the preview of the reference image for inspection settings displayed on the inspection setting screen, and further performs detailed inspection settings for each inspection area arranged on the preview.

[0054] Area 801 is a preview display screen where a reference image for inspection settings is displayed. When multiple-page printing is instructed in a print job, the display control unit 552 accepts a user operation to switch the page of the reference image for inspection settings to be previewed. As a result, it becomes possible to display the reference images of each page on the operation unit / display unit 505. Areas 802 to 804 are frames indicating inspection areas arranged on the preview. The inspection areas are arranged by an inspection area arrangement button 806 described later, and area information such as the size and position of the inspection area can be changed by a drag operation by the user. Area 802 shows an example where a pattern inspection area is arranged. Area 803 shows an example where a character string inspection area is arranged. Area 804 shows an example where a code inspection area such as a barcode is arranged.

[0055] When the user presses the inspection area selection button 805, the control unit 503 accepts the user's selection operation of the inspection area by the user clicking or tapping on areas 802 to 804 indicating the inspection area. When the user presses the inspection area arrangement button 806, the user can select the type of inspection area from a pull-down menu and arrange the selected type of inspection area on the preview display by a drag operation.

[0056] The setting item 807 is a setting item for the user to select the correct character string data used in data matching inspections such as the character string inspection and code inspection described above by the file selection method. Here, the correct character string data means a data file that summarizes character string information indicating the correct answer, such as the store name when the printed matter is a supermarket flyer, in the CSV file format. This reference CSV file is prepared in advance by the user. The control unit 503 extracts the area corresponding to the character string and / or code to be the target of the data matching inspection from the scanned image obtained by reading the printed sheet during the data matching inspection. Then, the control unit 503 collates the character string (OCR result or decoding result) obtained by analyzing the area with the correct character string indicated by the reference CSV file.

[0057] The setting item 808 shows the detailed setting values of the selected inspection area. These setting values include the setting values used in the pattern inspection and the data matching inspection. The setting values of the inspection area selected by the inspection area selection button 805 are displayed. The setting item 809 is a setting item for the page range. When the user presses each button within the setting item 809, the display control unit 552 accepts the "page range setting" for the selected inspection area. If nothing is set for the "page range", the selected inspection area is arranged only on the page currently displayed on the preview display screen. When "the same page as the current page" is selected for the "page range", the selected inspection area is arranged on the pages of the same side according to whether the selected inspection area is arranged on the front or back surface of the sheet. When "all pages" is selected for the "page range", the selected inspection area is arranged on all pages. At this time, when changing the "page range" to "all pages", there may be a situation where the inspection area of a certain page does not match the area that the user wants to inspect. When the above-described situation occurs, the user visually corrects the position of the inspection area with reference to the preview display screen so that the inspection area is arranged at the desired position.

[0058] In the setting item 810, setting items corresponding to the type of inspection selected by the inspection area selection button 805 are displayed. The setting items shown in FIG. 8A are the setting items for the pattern inspection displayed when the area 802 indicating the pattern inspection area is selected. The setting items for the pattern inspection include items for setting what kind of defects to inspect when inspecting printed matter, and levels such as the level of how fine defects are to be detected. The inspection items are, for example, round-shaped defects (dots) and linear defects (streaks). The inspection levels are, for example, five levels from level 1 to level 5, and levels 5 can detect smaller-sized defects than level 1. Also, levels can be set for each inspection item, such that dots are inspected at inspection level 5 and streaks are inspected at inspection level 4.

[0059] The setting items shown in FIG. 8B are the setting items for character string inspection that are displayed when the area 803 indicating the character string inspection area is selected. For each inspection area, set the angle of the inspection area, the font of the character string, whether to perform data collation inspection, and which column of the reference CSV file to collate with when performing data collation inspection. In addition, an item for selecting the font of the character string is displayed, and the selection of the font from the user is accepted. In this embodiment, the file in which the correct character string for the data collation inspection is described is used as the reference CSV file, but it is not limited to this. The file in which the correct character string for the data collation inspection is described may be, for example, a text file in which one correct character string is described in one line.

[0060] The setting items shown in FIG. 8C are the setting items for code inspection that are displayed when the area 804 indicating the code inspection area is selected. In FIG. 8C, as an example, the setting items for barcode inspection are displayed. For each inspection area, set the angle of the inspection area, the type of code, whether to perform collation inspection, and which column of the reference CSV file to collate with when performing collation inspection. In addition, the types of codes include two-dimensional codes in addition to barcodes.

[0061] Note that in this embodiment, by displaying the setting items according to the type of the selected inspection area, irrelevant items are not displayed, but it is not limited to this. For example, all items may be displayed and irrelevant items may be invalidated, or irrelevant items may be folded and hidden.

[0062] Button 811 is a display button for the inspection area list. When the user presses button 811, the inspection area list shown in FIG. 9 is displayed. Button 812 is an inspection setting completion button. When the user presses button 812, the inspection setting process ends, and the control unit 503 saves the specified inspection settings in the memory unit 504 and ends the inspection setting process. If there is an inconsistency in the inspection settings, button 812 may be disabled. An inconsistency in the inspection settings means, for example, a case where there is an inspection area for which a collation inspection is to be performed, but the setting item 807 of the collation inspection data is not set.

[0063] Button 813 is a cancel button for the inspection settings. When the user presses button 813, the specified inspection settings are discarded and the inspection setting process ends. Button 814 is a button for loading the inspection settings already registered as favorites, which will be described later. When the user presses button 814, the control unit 503 displays, via the display control unit 552, a favorite-registered inspection setting selection screen on the operation unit / display unit 505. Check box 815 is a check box for instructing whether the user registers the currently set inspection settings as favorite settings. When the user completes the inspection settings with check box 815 checked and presses button 812, the currently set inspection settings are registered as favorite settings according to the processing flow described later.

[0064] FIG. 9 is an example of an inspection area list screen that is displayed on the operation / display unit 505, displays a list of currently set inspection areas, and accepts change operations for inspection settings from the user. Each row in the list corresponds to areas 802 to 804 that indicate the arranged inspection areas. The items set by setting items 809 and 810 correspond to display columns 905 to 909. The user can select each inspection area on the inspection settings screen to confirm and change the set values, but it takes a lot of time to operate to confirm the settings of multiple inspection areas. On the other hand, on the inspection area list screen shown in FIG. 9, changes can be made while collectively confirming the set values of multiple inspection areas. When the user presses button 811 to display the inspection area list screen, the inspection area list screen is displayed on the operation / display unit 505. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the inspection area list screen is displayed in a floating window separate from the inspection settings screen, but the inspection area list screen may be displayed by transitioning from the inspection settings screen.

[0065] Display column 901 is a row that displays the set value of each inspection area. When the user clicks or taps on the row they want to select, the selection to that row is accepted. A context menu may be opened by an operation such as a right click to accept duplication or deletion of the selected inspection area. Display column 902 is a display column for the type of inspection area. Display column 903 is a display column for setting the page range of the inspection area. The inspection area list screen does not have a preview function. Therefore, the inspection area list screen does not accept operations for setting the page range. Display column 904 is a display column for the sheet on which the inspection area is arranged. Display column 905 is a display column for the surface on which the inspection area is arranged. Display column 906 is a display column for setting the angle of the inspection area. In the present embodiment, similar to the inspection area, the angle is determined while confirming the state on the preview screen. Therefore, the inspection area list screen without a preview function does not accept operations for setting the angle.

[0066] The display column 907 is a display column for setting the font of the inspection area. The user can perform operations for changing the font in the display column 907. The display column 908 is a display column for setting the type of barcode in the inspection area. The user can perform operations for changing the type of barcode in the display column 908. In FIG. 9, a barcode is taken as an example, but other codes such as two-dimensional codes may also be accepted. The display column 909 is a display column for setting whether to execute data collation inspection in the inspection area. The user can perform operations for changing the setting of whether to execute data collation inspection for each row in the display column 901. The display column 910 is a display column for setting which column of the reference CSV file to collate with the inspection area.

[0067] The button 911 is a button for ending the display of the inspection area list screen. When the pressing of the button 911 is received, the display control unit 552 ends the display of the inspection area list screen. The display column 912 displays the file name of the reference CSV file used for data collation inspection. The check box 913 is a check box for determining whether to save the inspection settings displayed in the inspection area list as favorite settings. When the user presses the button 911 with the check box 913 checked, after ending the display of the inspection area list screen, the control unit 503 displays a favorite registration name setting screen described later via the display control unit 552. Note that the inspection settings that can be registered as favorite settings include, in addition to the settings described in the display columns 902 to 910 and the display column 912, the reference image data used for inspection and the coordinate information of each inspection area.

[0068] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure in the inspection apparatus 120 when an operation to start inspection setting is performed on the inspection apparatus 120. When the control unit 503 of the inspection apparatus 120 receives an operation from the inspection setting screen and the inspection area list displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505, the control unit 503 of the inspection apparatus 120 executes various processes for performing inspection setting. The various processes for performing inspection setting are realized by the control unit 503 in the CPU 221 of the inspection apparatus 120 executing a predetermined program corresponding to the flowchart of FIG. 10.

[0069] In S1001, the control unit 503 determines whether or not it has received an instruction from the user to read the settings registered as favorite settings. The determination as to whether or not the read instruction has been received is made based on whether the button 814 has been pressed. If the button 814 has been pressed (when S1001 is Yes), the process proceeds to S1002. If the button 814 has not been pressed (when S1001 is No), the process proceeds to S1004.

[0070] In S1002, the control unit 503 displays a screen for the user to select favorite settings from the settings registered as favorite settings, and determines whether a favorite setting has been selected. FIG. 11(a) is a diagram showing an example in which in S1002, the control unit 503 displays, on the operation unit / display unit 505, a screen 1100 for selecting a favorite setting to be used for inspection via the display control unit 552 from among the settings registered as favorite settings.

[0071] The setting column 1101 is a box for temporarily displaying the favorite settings selected by the user. When the user presses the setting column 1101, the registered favorite settings are displayed in a pull-down format below the box. The user can select the favorite setting to be used for the inspection from among these. The display column 1102 indicates the favorite setting selected by the user from among the registered favorite settings displayed in the above-described pull-down format, and highlights the favorite setting selected by the user. In Fig. 11(a), a state where a favorite setting named "Favorite 5" is selected by the user is shown.

[0072] The button 1103 is a button for determining the favorite setting to be used for the inspection. When the user presses the button 1103, the screen transitions to the confirmation screen for the favorite setting to be described later in Fig. 11(b), and the process proceeds to S1003. The button 1104 is a button for canceling the selection of the favorite setting to be used for the inspection. When the user presses the button 1104, the process proceeds to S1004.

[0073] In S1003, the control unit 503 displays, via the display control unit 552, a favorite setting confirmation screen 1120 shown in FIG. 11(b). In FIG. 11(b), the display column 1105 is a box indicating the favorite setting name determined by the user. The display column 1106 is a table specifically showing the favorite settings used for inspection, and the content shown in the table is the same as the inspection setting list described with reference to FIG. 9. The display column 1107 is the file name of the reference CSV file included in the favorite setting. The button 1108 is a button for determining to use the selected favorite setting in the inspection. When the user presses the button 1108, the control unit 503 determines the favorite setting to be used in the inspection as the selected favorite setting, and the process proceeds to S1005. The button 1109 is, similar to the button 1104, a button for canceling the selection of the favorite setting used in the inspection. When the button 1104 is pressed by the user, the process proceeds to S1004. In S1004, the control unit 503 displays, via the display control unit 552, an inspection setting screen reflecting the inspection settings at the time of S1001 on the operation unit / display unit 505, and the process proceeds to S1005.

[0074] In S1005, the control unit 503 accepts an operation for setting the reference CSV file used for the data collation inspection from the inspection setting screen. In this embodiment, even when the control unit 503 reads the favorite setting and reflects it on the inspection setting screen in S1003 described above, the reference CSV file can be changed. In S1006, the control unit 503 accepts an operation for arranging the inspection area from the inspection setting screen. In this embodiment, the operation for arranging the inspection area is performed by the user operating the inspection area arrangement button 806.

[0075] In S1007, the control unit 503 determines whether the user has set the inspection area individually from the inspection setting screen or from the inspection area list screen. If the setting is made from the inspection setting screen, the process proceeds to S1008 and the processes from S1008 to S1011 are performed. If the setting is made from the inspection area list screen, the process proceeds to S1012 and the processes from S1012 to S1014 are performed.

[0076] In S1008, the control unit 503 receives a selection operation of an inspection area from the inspection setting screen. In the present embodiment, when the inspection area selection button 805 displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 is operated by the user, the selection operation of the inspection area is performed. In S1009, the control unit 503 receives a setting operation of the page range from the inspection setting screen. In the present embodiment, when the setting item 809 of the page range displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 is operated by the user, the setting operation of the page range is performed.

[0077] In S1010, the control unit 503 receives a setting operation for each type of inspection area from the inspection setting screen. In the present embodiment, when the setting item 810 for each type of inspection area displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 is operated by the user, the setting operation for each inspection area is performed. In S1011, the control unit 503 reflects the result of the setting operation performed by the user on the inspection setting screen on the inspection area list screen and synchronizes the display content. When the display content is synchronized, the process proceeds to S1015.

[0078] Next, the processing from S1012 to S1014 when settings are made from the inspection area list screen will be described. The inspection area list screen shown in FIG. 9 does not have a preview. Since the specified layout cannot be visually recognized on the inspection area list screen, the inspection area list screen does not accept a setting operation of the page range.

[0079] In S1012, the control unit 503 receives a selection operation of an inspection area from the inspection area list screen. In the present embodiment, the user operates the display field 901 displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 to perform a selection operation of the inspection area. In S1013, the control unit 503 receives a setting operation for each type of inspection area from the inspection area list screen. In the present embodiment, the user operates the display fields 907 to 910 of each set value displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 to perform a setting operation for each inspection area. In S1014, the control unit 503 reflects the result of the setting operation performed by the user on the inspection area list screen on the inspection setting screen and synchronizes the display content. When the display content is synchronized, the process proceeds to S1015.

[0080] In S1015, the control unit 503 determines whether the inspection setting by the user is completed. If the control unit 503 determines that the inspection setting is completed, the user presses the button 812, and the process proceeds to S1016. If the control unit 503 determines that the inspection setting is not completed, the user performs the selection operation of the inspection area in S1007 to continue the inspection setting process.

[0081] In S1016, the control unit 503 determines whether it is instructed by the user to register the inspection setting completed by the user in S1015 as a favorite setting. This determination is made based on whether the checkbox 815 is checked. That is, when the checkbox 815 is checked (when S1016 is Yes), the process proceeds to S1017. When the checkbox 815 is not checked (when S1012 is No), the process proceeds to S1019.

[0082] In S1017, the control unit 503 first displays a confirmation screen for the settings to be registered as favorites on the operation / display unit 505. FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the registration confirmation screen 1200 of the favorite settings displayed on the operation / display unit 505 in S1017. The setting field 1201 is a text box for setting the name of the favorite setting to be registered. The user can input the name of the favorite setting to be registered in the text box on the operation / display unit 505.

[0083] The display field 1202 is a table for displaying a list of the favorite settings to be registered. The inspection settings displayed here in a list are the settings determined in S1015. The format of the table is the same as that described with reference to FIG. 9, and each column is also the same as that described from display field 901 to display field 910. The display field 1203 is a box for displaying the file name of the reference CSV file for data collation inspection in the favorite setting to be registered. Note that these display fields 1202 and 1203 already have the inspection settings determined in S1015. Therefore, different from the operations on the inspection setting list screen described in FIG. 9, the settings of each inspection setting and the reference CSV file cannot be changed.

[0084] Button 1204 is a button for finalizing the registration of the favorite setting. When the user presses button 1204, the favorite registration can be finalized. Button 1205 is a button for canceling the registration of the favorite setting. When the user presses button 1205, the favorite registration can be canceled and the inspection setting can be performed again.

[0085] Return to the description of S1017. The control unit 503 determines whether or not the registration instruction to the favorite setting by the user has been confirmed. The determination is made based on which of the aforementioned buttons 1204 or 1205 has been pressed. When button 1204 is pressed (when S1017 is Yes), the control unit 503 determines that the registration instruction has been confirmed, and the process proceeds to S1018. On the other hand, when button 1205 is pressed (when S1017 is No), the control unit 503 determines that the registration instruction has been canceled, and the process returns to S1001.

[0086] In S1018, the control unit 503 saves the favorite setting (template) confirmed in S1017 in the memory unit 504, and the process proceeds to S1019. In S1019, the control unit 503 saves the inspection setting used in the inspection job confirmed in S1015 in the memory unit 504, and ends the process flow of the flowchart shown in FIG. 10. In the process flow described in FIG. 10, when the favorite setting already registered in S1012 to S1004 is read and set, the process may be performed as follows. For example, it is also possible to determine the inspection setting used for the inspection job in S1019 and save it in the memory unit 504 without executing the processes of S1005 to S1018 after S1004.

[0087] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing procedure of the inspection execution process described in S604 of FIG. 6. The inspection execution process is realized by the control unit 503 and the inspection processing unit 514 in the CPU 221 of the inspection apparatus 120 executing a predetermined program corresponding to the flowchart of FIG. 13.

[0088] In S1301, the control unit 503 acquires the data used for printing via the communication unit 502 and stores it in the memory unit 504. Next, the control unit 503 performs preprocessing from S1302 to S1304. The control unit 503 performs processing on the reference image using the reference image received from the image forming apparatus 110 held in the memory unit 504 via the communication unit 502. The processing is a process independent of the sheet, and the processing result is stored in the memory unit 504 again.

[0089] In S1302, the control unit 503 performs color conversion on the reference image. The color conversion unit 507 converts the reference image into a color space common to the sheets, and the process proceeds to S1303. In S1303, the control unit 503 performs resolution conversion on the reference image. The resolution conversion unit 508 converts the reference image to be processed into the resolution required for inspection. When the resolution conversion is completed, the process proceeds to S1304.

[0090] In S1304, the control unit 503 stores the resolution-converted reference image in the memory unit 504 together with the ID. The ID is included in the inspection control information, and it suffices that the reference image can be uniquely determined. For example, it may be a character string consisting of numbers such as "202208010001". Assume that the input reference image is a CMYK image with a main scan of 1200 DPI and a sub-scan of 1200 DPI. By preprocessing, both the main scan and the sub-scan are converted into RGB images with 300 DPI, and the image size becomes very small. Specifically, the resolution is reduced to 1 / 16 and the number of channels is reduced by 1 channel. Therefore, the capacity of the memory unit 504 can be kept small.

[0091] Next, in S1305 to S1307, the control unit 503 performs preprocessing on the reference image so that the reference image can be compared with the scan image (inspection image). The control unit 503 selects an image pair of the scan image to be processed and the reference image using the inspection control information held in the image forming apparatus 110 stored in the memory unit 504 via the communication unit 502. Here, the reference image is acquired from the memory unit 504 based on the ID described in the inspection control information. Then, color conversion is performed according to the sheet so that the scan image and the reference image can be compared based on the sheet information used for printing transmitted from the controller 210. Here, since the sheet information used for printing is not determined until the print job is executed, it is notified after the print job is executed.

[0092] In S1305, the control unit 503 performs color conversion processing in accordance with the sheet type in the sheet type corresponding unit 511. The reference image converted to the common color space of the sheets in S1302 is converted to the color space read by the inspection sensor 403 in accordance with the sheet type so as to enable accurate collation determination. In S1306, the control unit 503 rotates the image in accordance with the orientation of the sheet in the sheet type corresponding unit 511. The orientation of the sheet is acquired from the inspection control information and rotated so as to match the orientation of the scanned image.

[0093] In S1307, the control unit 503 aligns the positions of the scanned image and the reference image obtained in S1301. The alignment unit 510 executes processing using the scanned image and the reference image, and the alignment unit 510 obtains affine transformation parameters. Then, the image deformation unit 509 performs correction processing on the reference image using the affine transformation parameters obtained from the alignment unit 510, makes the coordinate system the same as that of the scanned image, and makes the reference image an image that can be used in collation.

[0094] In S1308, the control unit 503 performs pattern collation processing using the scanned image and the reference image obtained in S1307. First, the control unit 503 executes processing on the scanned image and the reference image in the collation unit 512. In S1309, the control unit 503 executes character string recognition processing on the area 803 (character string inspection area) and code recognition processing on the area 804 (code inspection area) based on the inspection settings specified in S603. The recognition results are held in the memory unit 504 in association with the inspection areas to be recognized.

[0095] In S1310, the control unit 503 collates the correct character strings corresponding to the respective inspection areas described in the reference CSV described in the explanation of the setting item 807 with the recognition data held in the memory unit 504 in S1309. In S1311, the control unit 503 displays the inspection processing result on the operation unit / display unit 505.

[0096] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the inspection result display in S1311. The inspection result display shown in FIG. 14 is displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505. Button 1401 is an inspection stop button. When the user presses button 1401, the control unit 503 stops the inspection job currently being executed. Area 1402 is an inspection area display where the inspection area of the currently selected scan image (inspection image) can be previewed.

[0097] Display column 1403 is an inspection result table showing a list of inspection results of the performed inspections. Information for uniquely identifying the inspection area, such as "Inspection NO" indicating which inspection area on the page, "Page NO" indicating which page number, "Part NO" indicating which part number, and "Side NO" indicating whether it is the front or back side, is displayed. Further, information indicating whether the inspection area is of which inspection type, either a pattern inspection or a data verification inspection (character string or barcode), the inspection result for the inspection area for each inspection type, and the detailed cause when the inspection result is NoGood (NG) are displayed. Here, the inspection results for each inspection area described with reference to FIG. 9 are respectively displayed from inspection NO1 to NO3. Also, since the inspection result of the area 804 (code inspection area) corresponding to NO3 is inconsistent with the correct data described in the reference CSV file and the recognition result in S1309, it indicates that the inspection is NoGood (NG).

[0098] Button 1404 is a completion button for the inspection process. When the user presses button 1404, the control unit 503 saves the inspection result in the memory unit 504 and the inspection process ends. Display column 1405 is a box showing the file name of the reference CSV file used for the inspection. Note that since the reference CSV file displayed in display column 1405 indicates the file that has already been used for the inspection process, the reference CSV file cannot be changed on this screen.

[0099] The check box 1406 is a check box for the user to indicate whether to register the inspection settings used in the inspection as a favorite setting. When the user presses the button 1404 to complete the inspection process with the check box checked, the inspection settings are registered as a favorite setting according to the processing flow described later in FIG. 13.

[0100] Return to the description of FIG. 13. In the subsequent S1312, the control unit 503 determines whether the user has instructed to register the inspection settings used in the inspection job whose results were displayed in S1311 as a favorite setting. This determination is made based on whether the favorite registration check box 1406 is checked. That is, if the check box 1406 is checked (when S1312 is Yes), the process proceeds to S1313. If the check box 1406 is not checked (when S1312 is No), the processing flow shown in FIG. 13 ends.

[0101] In S1313, the control unit 503 displays a favorite setting registration confirmation screen 1200 using FIG. 12. Next, the control unit 503 determines whether the registration of the favorite setting has been confirmed on the displayed registration confirmation screen 1200. This determination is made based on which of the above-described button 1204 or button 1205 has been pressed. When button 1204 is pressed (when S1313 is Yes), the control unit 503 determines that the registration instruction has been confirmed, and the process proceeds to S1314. On the other hand, when button 1205 is pressed (when S1313 is No), the control unit 503 determines that the registration instruction has been canceled, and the process returns to S1311. However, the processing when S1313 is No may not return to S1311 as described above, but may end the processing flow shown in FIG. 13 without registering the favorite setting. In S1314, the control unit 503 saves the favorite setting (template) confirmed in S1313 in the memory unit 504, and the processing flow shown in FIG. 13 ends.

[0102] By implementing this embodiment with the above configuration, it becomes possible to register the inspection settings used in the inspection job as favorite inspection settings at any timing among the creation of a new inspection job, the duplication of an inspection job, the confirmation of inspection settings, and the result confirmation after inspection execution. Further, when applying the registered favorite inspection settings to subsequent inspection jobs, it becomes possible to change and set the reference CSV file of the collation data used for the data collation inspection from that at the time of favorite registration. By controlling the inspection apparatus 120 in such a manner, it becomes possible to easily perform the inspection settings of the printed matter when the printed data to be inspected is the same as that at the time of favorite registration. Furthermore, even when the layout of the printed data is the same as that at the time of favorite registration but the data to be subjected to the data collation inspection is different, the inspection can be performed merely by changing the reference CSV file.

[0103] Furthermore, when the reference CSV file set as a favorite is different from the reference CSV file used in the inspection job, candidates for the reference CSV file may be displayed in a pull-down menu. It becomes possible to select the reference CSV file corresponding to the inspection job from the reference CSV files displayed in the pull-down menu by user operation. Also, the content of the reference CSV file selected in the pull-down menu may be displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505. The user can confirm the content of the selected reference CSV file and can surely select the reference CSV file corresponding to the inspection job. Also, when the reference CSV file used in the inspection job does not exist among the reference CSV files stored in the memory unit 504, the control unit 503 may display a message indicating that "there is no corresponding reference CSV file" on the operation unit / display unit 505.

[0104] In this embodiment, the description has been made assuming that the patterns are the same, but this is merely an example. This embodiment is applicable even when the patterns are different. That is, the template for setting the details of the inspection settings is created only for the data matching inspection. It is also possible to execute the data matching inspection using the template. Also in this case, the reference CSV file corresponding to the inspection job can be appropriately selected, and the settings of the template can be easily changed. Therefore, it is possible to improve the usability when setting the inspection settings for the inspection using the template.

[0105] [Modification Example of the First Embodiment] In the first embodiment, a modification example regarding the registration process of the favorite setting described with reference to S1017 to S1018, S1313 to S1314, and FIG. 12 will be described.

[0106] As a modification example, when there is an already registered favorite setting that is the same as the favorite setting instructed to be registered in S1018 or S1314 among the already registered favorite settings, it is also possible to control so as not to perform the favorite registration with a new name. The determination as to whether the favorite settings are the same is made by the control unit 503 comparing the inspection settings instructed to be registered in S1018 or S1314 via the determination unit 554 with each of the already registered favorite settings, and determining whether all the included inspection settings are the same. By implementing the present disclosure in this way, it is possible to control so that a plurality of favorite settings consisting of the same inspection settings are not registered. Therefore, it is possible to improve the usability when setting the inspection using the template.

[0107] [Second Embodiment] Here, by appropriately implementing the present disclosure, in addition to the effects described in the first embodiment, it will be described with reference to the drawings that the selection of the reference CSV file used for the collation check can be made more conveniently. Specifically, it will be described that even when the reference image data and layout included in the already registered favorite settings are the same, but the data printed in each area to be collated is different, the corresponding reference CSV file can be selected. In the description of this embodiment, the description of the parts having the same configuration and processing procedure as those in the first embodiment will be omitted, and only the different parts will be described.

[0108] FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing procedure of the inspection setting process in this embodiment. In response to an operation from the inspection setting screen and the inspection area list displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 of the inspection apparatus 120, the control unit 503 of the inspection apparatus 120 executes various processes for performing the inspection setting.

[0109] Following the processes of S1001, S1002, and S1003 described with reference to FIG. 10 in the first embodiment, the process proceeds to S1501. In S1501, the control unit 503 executes a process for automatically selecting and setting the reference CSV file used for the inspection.

[0110] FIG. 16(a) is a flowchart for explaining the detailed processing procedure of the reference CSV file automatic selection process in S1501. The reference CSV file automatic selection process is realized by the control unit 503 in the CPU 221 of the inspection apparatus 120 executing a predetermined program corresponding to the flowchart in FIG. 16(a). First, when an operation is received from the inspection setting screen and the inspection area list displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 of the inspection apparatus 120, the control unit 503 of the inspection apparatus 120 executes various processes for performing the inspection setting.

[0111] In S1601, the control unit 503 determines whether the user has instructed the automatic selection of the reference CSV file. FIGS. 17A to 17C are diagrams showing an inspection setting screen in the present embodiment. In addition to the components of the screen described with reference to FIGS. 8A to 8C, an automatic selection button 1701 for automatically selecting the reference CSV file used for the collation inspection is arranged. The determination in S1601 is made by determining whether the automatic selection button 1701 has been pressed in the control unit 503. That is, when the automatic selection button 1701 is pressed by the user (when S1601 is Yes), the process proceeds to S1602. When the automatic selection button 1701 is not pressed by the user (when S1601 is No), the processing flow shown in FIG. 16(a) ends.

[0112] In S1602, based on the favorite setting read in S1017, the control unit 503 executes a character string recognition process and a code recognition process on the area 803 (character string inspection area) and the area 804 (code inspection area), respectively, and the process proceeds to S1603. In S1603, the control unit 503 searches whether a reference CSV file in which the display column 910 of the column to be collated corresponding to the results of the character string recognition and the code recognition for each inspection area executed in S1602 matches exists among the registered favorite settings. As a result of the search, if the corresponding reference CSV file exists (when S1603 is Yes), the process proceeds to S1604. If the corresponding reference CSV file does not exist (when S1603 is No), the process proceeds to S1605.

[0113] In S1604, the control unit 503 sets the reference CSV file searched in S1603 as the collation inspection data to be used for the inspection in the setting item 807 and ends the processing flow shown in FIG. 16(a). In S1605, since there is no reference CSV file corresponding to the current inspection among the registered favorite settings, the control unit 503 notifies the user that a new one will be created and set. When the notification is made, the processing flow shown in FIG. 16(a) ends.

[0114] FIG. 17D is a diagram showing an example of a notification in S1605. A notification is made by displaying a notification message 1702 on the inspection setting screen. The notification may be made by other methods. By implementing the present invention by the method described above, when the data of the collation inspection used for inspection is in the reference CSV file used for the favorite setting registered so far, it can be automatically searched and set, so that the inspection setting can be executed more simply.

[0115] [Modification Example of the Second Embodiment] As a modification example of the present embodiment, an example of automatically generating an appropriate reference CSV file when no appropriate reference CSV file is found in S1603 will be described.

[0116] FIG. 16(b) is a flowchart in this modification example for explaining the detailed processing procedure of the reference CSV file automatic selection process in S1501. This process is realized by the control unit 503 in the CPU 221 of the inspection apparatus 120 executing a predetermined program corresponding to the flowchart in FIG. 16(b). First, when operations are received from the inspection setting screen and the inspection area list displayed on the operation unit / display unit 505 of the inspection apparatus 120, the control unit 503 of the inspection apparatus 120 executes various processes for performing inspection settings.

[0117] If the determination in S1603 described above is No, in this modified example, the process proceeds to S1606. In S1606, the control unit 503 generates an appropriate reference CSV file based on the results of the character string recognition process and the code recognition process in S1602 and the information in the display column 910 of the column for collating the favorite settings read in S1017. More specifically, for each inspection area to be collated, it is described in the column based on the information in the display column 910 of the column for collating the character string recognition result or the code recognition result by S1602. Further, collation data is created in CSV format to automatically generate a reference CSV file, and the generated reference CSV file is set in the setting item 807 as the collation inspection data used for inspection, and the processing flow shown in FIG. 16(b) ends.

[0118] In the above description, the automatic generation of the reference CSV file has been described, but it is not limited to this. It is also possible to automatically register the inspection settings using the automatically generated reference CSV file as a favorite setting (template).

[0119] As described above, even when the data for the data collation inspection used in the inspection is not in the reference CSV files used for the favorite settings registered so far, an appropriate reference CSV file can be automatically generated and set. Thereby, the usability when setting up an inspection using a template can be further improved.

[0120] The present disclosure can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and having one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0121] The disclosure of the above-described embodiments includes the following configurations.

[0122] An information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, comprising: a storage means for storing, in association with a template summarizing the contents of inspection settings, data of a correct answer string used in the data matching inspection for determining, as a type of the inspection, whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet by comparing it with the correct answer string; a setting means for performing the inspection setting based on the template selected by the user from the templates stored in the storage means; and a control means for controlling a user interface screen for allowing the user to make the selection, wherein the control means displays, on the user interface screen, the data of the correct answer string associated with the template selected by the user in a modifiable manner. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

[0123] In the information processing apparatus according to Configuration 1, when the control means determines that the data of the correct answer string used in the data matching inspection is not in the template stored in the storage means, the setting means sets the data of the newly prepared character string as the data of the correct answer string used in the data matching inspection.

[0124] In the information processing apparatus according to Configuration 2, when the control means determines that the data of the correct answer string used in the data matching inspection is not in the template stored in the storage means, the control means stores the data of the newly prepared character string in the storage means in association with a template summarizing the contents of the inspection setting. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

[0125] In the information processing apparatus according to Configuration 1, the setting means automatically changes the data of the correct answer string corresponding to the data matching inspection. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

[0126] Configuration 5: When the control means determines that the data of the correct string used in the data matching check is present in the template stored in the storage means, the setting means sets the data of the correct string used in the template as the data of the correct string corresponding to the data matching check. The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 4, characterized in that.

[0127] Configuration 6: When the control means determines that the data of the correct string used in the data matching check is not present in the template stored in the storage means, the control means notifies that the data of the correct string corresponding to the data matching check is not stored in the storage means. The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 4, characterized in that.

[0128] Configuration 7: The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 6, characterized in that the control means displays the content of the notification on the user interface screen.

[0129] Configuration 8: When the control means determines that the data of the correct string used in the data matching check is not present in the template stored in the storage means, the setting means sets a newly prepared string as the data of the correct string corresponding to the data matching check. The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 4, characterized in that.

[0130] Configuration 9: The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 8, characterized in that the control means automatically stores the data of the newly prepared string in the storage means in association with a template summarizing the content of the inspection settings.

[0131] Configuration 10: The content of the inspection settings includes area information of the data of the correct string. The information processing apparatus according to any one of Configurations 1 to 9, characterized in that.

[0132] Configuration 11: An information processing apparatus having receiving means for receiving a scanned image of the printed sheet, and extracting means for extracting a character string from the scanned image, wherein in the data collation check, it is determined whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet by collating the character string extracted by the extracting means with the correct character string prepared in advance. The information processing apparatus according to Configuration 1, characterized in that.

[0133] Configuration 12: A control method for an information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, including a data collation check for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet by collating it with a correct character string as a type of the inspection. When included, a step of storing the data of the correct character string used in the data collation check in a storage means in association with a template summarizing the contents of the inspection settings; a step of performing the inspection settings based on a template selected by a user from the templates stored in the storage means; and a step of controlling a user interface screen for causing the user to make the selection. In the step of controlling, the data of the correct character string associated with the template selected by the user is displayed on the user interface screen so as to be modifiable. A control method for an information processing apparatus, characterized by this.

[0134] Configuration 13: A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing apparatus according to any one of Configurations 1 to 11.

[0135] An inspection system including a printing device that performs printing on a sheet based on image data specified in a print job, and an information processing device for inspecting the printed sheet, and further including an inspection device that performs the inspection on the printed sheet, wherein the information processing device includes storage means for storing, in association with a template summarizing the contents of inspection settings, data of a correct answer string used in the data matching inspection for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet as a type of the inspection; setting means for performing the inspection settings based on a template selected by a user from among the templates stored in the storage means; and control means for controlling a user interface screen for causing the user to make the selection, and the control means displays, on the user interface screen in a modifiable manner, the data of the correct answer string associated with the template selected by the user. An inspection system characterized by this.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, wherein when the inspection includes a data matching inspection for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet as a type of the inspection by matching with a correct character string, storage means for storing the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection in association with a template summarizing the contents of inspection settings; setting means for performing the inspection settings based on a template selected by a user from the templates stored in the storage means; control means for controlling a user interface screen for allowing the user to make the selection; comprising: the control means displays the data of the correct character string associated with the template selected by the user on the user interface screen so as to be changeable; An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the control means determines that the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection is not in the templates stored in the storage means, the setting means sets the data of a newly prepared character string as the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when the control means determines that the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection is not in the templates stored in the storage means, the control means stores the data of the newly prepared character string in the storage means in association with a template summarizing the contents of the inspection settings.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting means automatically changes the data of the correct character string corresponding to the data matching inspection.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when the control means determines that the data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection is in the templates stored in the storage means, the setting means sets the data of the correct character string used in the template as the data of the correct character string corresponding to the data matching inspection.

6. When the control means determines that the data of the correct character string used in the data collation check is not in the template stored in the storage means, the control means notifies that the data of the correct character string corresponding to the data collation check is not stored in the storage means. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that the control means displays the content of the notification on the user interface screen.

8. When the control means determines that the data of the correct character string used in the data collation check is not in the template stored in the storage means, the setting means sets the newly prepared character string as the data of the correct character string corresponding to the data collation check. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that the control means automatically associates the data of the newly prepared character string with a template summarizing the content of the inspection setting and stores it in the storage means.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the content of the inspection setting includes area information of the data of the correct character string.

11. Receiving means for receiving a scanned image of the printed sheet that has been scanned; Extracting means for extracting a character string from the scanned image, and In the data collation check, it is determined whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet by collating the character string extracted by the extracting means with the previously prepared correct character string. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that.

12. A control method for an information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, When the inspection includes a data collation check for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet by collating it with a correct character string as the type of inspection, the data of the correct character string used in the data collation check is associated with a template summarizing the content of the inspection setting and stored in a storage means; A step of performing the inspection setting based on a template selected by a user from the templates stored in the storage means; A step of controlling a user interface screen for causing the user to make the selection; Comprising A control method for an information processing apparatus, comprising: in the step of controlling, displaying, on the user interface screen, data of the correct character string associated with the template selected by the user so as to be modifiable.

13. A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing apparatus according to any one of Claims 1 to 11.

14. An inspection system including a printing apparatus that performs printing on a sheet based on image data specified in a print job, an information processing apparatus for inspecting a printed sheet, and an inspection apparatus that performs the inspection on the printed sheet, wherein the information processing apparatus includes storage means for storing, in association with each other, data of the correct character string used in the data matching inspection for determining whether a specific character string is correctly printed on the printed sheet as the type of inspection, and a template summarizing the contents of the inspection settings; setting means for performing the inspection setting based on a template selected by the user from among the templates stored in the storage means; control means for controlling a user interface screen for causing the user to make the selection; and is provided with wherein the control means displays, on the user interface screen, data of the correct character string associated with the template selected by the user so as to be modifiable. An inspection system characterized by the above.

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