Image forming apparatus and image forming system

Abstract

To provide an image forming device capable of printing an original and a translation side by side while ensuring a sufficient margin for inserting the translation. [Solution] The system has a display means for displaying options for margin creation methods, which are methods for creating margins in a scanned document for placing character strings in a second language, and a reception means for receiving from a user the selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display means and generating margin setting reception information, and determines the placement of character strings in the second language based on the margin setting reception information.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and an image forming system for forming an image on a sheet. [Background technology]

[0002] In a conventional image forming apparatus, a technique has been proposed in which a translation of a scanned document is created and the document and the translation are printed side by side. Furthermore, Patent Document 1 proposes a technique in which the user can specify the layout of the document and the translation. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-288169 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Even if the user can specify the layout of the original document and the translation, as in Patent Document 1, if the original document does not have enough space to insert the translation, there is a concern that the characters may be difficult to see or the translation may not fit.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that can print an original document and a translation side by side while ensuring a sufficient margin for inserting the translation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises a reading means for reading a document and generating image data, a character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means and generating a string of characters in a first language, and an acquisition means for acquiring a string of characters in a second language translated from the string of characters in the first language generated by the character recognition means, and is capable of printing paper on which the string of characters in the second language is written together with the read document, and is characterized in that the image forming apparatus comprises a display means for displaying options of margin creation methods, which are methods for creating margins in the read document for placing the string of characters in the second language, and a reception means for receiving from a user a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display means and generating margin setting reception information, and determines the placement of the string of characters in the second language based on the margin setting reception information.

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, another image forming apparatus of the present invention is an image forming apparatus having a reading means for reading a document to generate image data, and a character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language, and further having a summarizing means for summarizing the character string in the first language to generate a summary character string, and an acquiring means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the summary character string, and further having a display means for displaying options of margin creation methods which are methods for creating margins in the read document for arranging the character string in the second language, and an accepting means for accepting from a user a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display means and generating margin setting acceptance information, and is characterized in that the image forming apparatus determines the arrangement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information, and is capable of printing paper on which the character string in the second language is written together with the read document.

[0008] In addition, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the image forming system of the present invention comprises a reading means for reading a document and generating image data, a character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means and generating a character string in a first language, and an acquisition means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the character string in the first language generated by the character recognition means, and is an image forming system capable of outputting an image in which the character string in the second language is written together with the read document, and further comprises a display means for displaying options of margin creation methods which are methods for creating margins in the read document for placing the character string in the second language, and a reception means for receiving from a user a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display means and generating margin setting reception information, and determining the placement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting reception information.

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, another image forming system of the present invention is an image forming system having a reading means for reading a document and generating image data, and a character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a string of characters in a first language, and further having a summarizing means for summarizing the string of characters in the first language to generate a summary string, and an acquiring means for acquiring a string of characters in a second language translated from the summary string, and further having a display means for displaying options of margin creation methods which are methods for creating margins in the read document for arranging the string of characters in the second language, and an accepting means for accepting from a user a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display means and generating margin setting acceptance information, and is characterized in that the image forming system determines the arrangement of the string of characters in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information, and is capable of printing paper on which the string of characters in the second language is written together with the read document. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can print an original document and a translation side by side while ensuring a sufficient margin for inserting the translation. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows an image forming apparatus. [Figure 2] Overall configuration diagram of the system in Example 1 [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] Data flow diagram for Example 1 [Figure 5] Flowchart in Example 1 [Figure 6] Print layout selection screen in Example 1 [Figure 7] Overall configuration diagram of the system in Example 2 [Figure 8] Data flow diagram in Example 2 [Figure 9] Print layout selection screen in Example 2 [Figure 10] Flowchart in Example 2 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] [Example 1] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an image forming apparatus 101 and an operation unit 211 according to this embodiment, and Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an image forming system including the image forming apparatus 101 according to this embodiment. The image forming apparatus 101 is connected to a network 100. The network 100 may be configured to be connected by wire, or may be configured to be connected wirelessly to an access point (not shown).

[0013] The image forming apparatus 101 can communicate with a translation server 102 via a network 100. The translation server 102 publishes an API (Application Programming Interface) for translation, and has the function of returning the translation result of the string to be translated by passing the string to the API and the source and target languages. The translation server 102 is an example of an external device with a translation function.

[0014] 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of image forming apparatus 101. Image forming apparatus 101 is mainly composed of control unit 210, operation unit 211, reading unit 212, printing unit 214, and communication unit 215. Control unit 210 has a CPU (for example, a one-chip microcomputer incorporating ROM, RAM, etc.) and controls operation unit 211, reading unit 212, storage unit 213, printing unit 214, and communication unit 215. Control unit 210 also has an OCR (Optical Character Recognition / Reader) that recognizes character strings from image data and converts them into character string data.

[0015] The operation unit 211 is, for example, a touch panel display. The touch panel display functions as a display device that displays information to the user and as an input device that detects operations from the user. By touching keys (e.g., setting item keys corresponding to functions, selection item keys corresponding to setting values ​​of the setting items, etc.) on the screen displayed on the touch panel display, the user's finger is detected, the position is identified, and the setting conditions corresponding to the item keys are input. The control unit performs processing in accordance with the user's touch operation.

[0016] The reading unit 212 is, for example, an image scanner. The image scanner serves as a reading unit and acquires image data. The image data collected by the image scanner is corrected, analyzed, and converted by a control unit.

[0017] The storage unit 213 permanently stores data using flash memory. Flash memory is an electrically erasable non-volatile memory, and data can be electrically written to and erased from it. While the storage means in this embodiment is assumed to be flash memory, auxiliary storage devices such as SSDs, HDDs, and eMMCs may also be used.

[0018] The printing unit 214 can print image data read by an image scanner, print data sent from a host computer, and the like on paper.

[0019] The communication unit 215 transmits and receives various data (e.g., character strings) to and from an external device (in this embodiment, a translation server). Information can be obtained from the Internet via appropriate protocols and gateways to provide network connectivity.

[0020] 4 is a data flow diagram in this embodiment. The reading unit 212 converts original text read by an image scanner using reading means 301 into image data 302. The operation unit 211 has reception means 311 and display means 312. The display means 312 displays options for margin creation methods 305 on a touch panel display. The reception means 311 detects a user's touch operation and generates reception information 310, which is the result of the margin creation method selection.

[0021] The control unit 210 has character recognition means 303, translation instruction means 308, translation means 309, margin setting acceptance information 307, print data generation means 313, and acquisition means 341. The character recognition means 303 generates a first language character string 304 by extracting a predetermined character string such as an ASCII code string from image data 302 read by the reading unit. The margin setting acceptance information 307 receives acceptance information 310 from the operation unit 211. Furthermore, the translation instruction means 308 passes the first language character string 304, as well as the first and second languages ​​desired by the user, to the translation means 309 of the communication unit 215. The acquisition means 341 acquires a second language character string 340 resulting from translation by the translation server 102. The print data generation means 313 generates print data 342 in which the first language character string 304 and the second language character string 340 are arranged based on the margin setting acceptance information 307.

[0022] The communication unit 215 transmits the character string 304 in the first language received from the translation instruction means 308 to the translation server 102. The communication unit 215 also passes the translation result from the translation server 102 to the acquisition means 341. The printing unit 214 has a printing means 306. The printing means 306 receives print data 342 from the control unit and performs printing.

[0023] FIG. 6 is an example of a screen displayed on the touch panel display for specifying a layout when printing an original text and a translation in this embodiment. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the original text and the translation will be printed on a single sheet of recording material, and multiple options are displayed. The first option is a paper size enlargement display 501 that enlarges the paper. The paper size enlargement display 501 is a layout option for printing the original text and the translation on the same side on paper that is larger than the image size of the original text, while leaving the image size of the original text unchanged. The second option is a paper size maintenance display 502 that maintains the paper size. The paper size maintenance display 502 is a layout option for printing the original text and the translation on the same side, while reducing the image size of the original text, while leaving the paper size of the original text unchanged. In addition to the layout, a button 504 to proceed to the next screen and a back button 503 to return to the previous translation language selection are displayed.

[0024] [Flowchart explanation] 5 is a flowchart of the translation process according to this embodiment. The following describes a flow in which a user specifies a layout for printing an original text in a first language and a translated text in a second language on the same page, and then prints the layout.

[0025] In S401, the control unit 210 reads an original written in a first language using the reading means 301, and generates image data 302. In S402, the control unit 210 performs character recognition on the image data 302 generated in S401 using the character recognition means 303, and generates a character string 304 in the first language. In S403, the control unit 210 displays options for the first language, which is the language from which to translate, on the display means 312 (not shown). In S404, if one of the first languages ​​displayed on the operation unit 211 is selected, the process proceeds to S405. In S405, the control unit 210 displays options for the second language, which is the language to which to translate, on the display means 312 (not shown). In S406, if one of the second languages ​​displayed on the operation unit 211 is selected, the process proceeds to S407. In S407, the control unit 210 passes the first language selected in S404, the second language selected in S406, and the character string 304 in the first language to the communication unit 215, and the communication unit 215 passes them via communication to the translation server 102, instructing it to translate. In S408, the control unit 210 uses the acquisition means 341 to acquire the character string 340 in the second language, which is the translation result of the translation server 102.

[0026] In S409, the operation unit 211 displays the margin creation method 305 on the display means 312. Here, one example of a margin creation method in this embodiment is a print layout in which the printing paper size is made larger than the paper size of the read image data 302, and the translation is written in the resulting margin. Another example is a print layout in which the read image data 302 is reduced to the print paper size without changing it, and the translation is written in the resulting margin. As a specific example of a print layout in which the printing paper is enlarged, if the original text is A4 size, using A3 paper as the printing paper and keeping the size of the original text as A4 size will provide a large margin for arranging the translation. Then, a layout in which the translation is A4 size and the original text and the translation are arranged on the same surface is used. As a specific example of a print layout in which the image data 302 is reduced, if the original text is A4 size and the printing paper is A4 size, a layout in which the original text is reduced to A5 size and the translation is A5 size and the original text and the translation are arranged on the same surface is used.

[0027] Another method is to use the largest size paper stored in the paper storage tray of the image forming device as the print paper, and arrange the image data 302 and translation on the same side of the paper to match that size. A specific example of this case is when the image forming device has two trays, with Letter-size paper (279.4 mm x 215.9 mm) stored in the first paper storage tray and Legal-size paper (355.6 mm x 215.9 mm) stored in the second paper storage tray. Then, the Legal-size paper stored in the second paper storage tray is used as the print paper, and the original text and translation are arranged on a size that halves the Legal size.

[0028] If the Confirm button is pressed in S410, the control unit 210 confirms the print layout and proceeds to S412. If the Confirm button is not pressed in S410, the control unit 210 proceeds to S411, and if the Back button is pressed in S411, the process ends without printing. If the Back button is not pressed in S411, the process returns to S410. In S412, the control unit 210 creates print data 342 in which the original text and translation are laid out on the same surface according to the selected layout. In S413, the printing unit 214 prints the print data 342 using printing means 306, and the process ends.

[0029] According to this embodiment, an image forming apparatus can be provided that can enlarge the printing paper size or reduce the original text to create sufficient margins, and print the translated text at a sufficient size to make it easy to read.

[0030] In addition, the technology of this embodiment can be similarly applied not only to printing an image of the original text and translation side by side on paper, but also to making it possible to output an image of the original text and translation side by side as data within an image forming device.

[0031] [Example 2] In the first embodiment, the size of the original text and the translation text is adjusted according to the printing paper size to create a margin, making the translation easier to read, whereas in the present embodiment, the original text is summarized to reduce the amount of translation text, thereby reducing the amount of margin for the translation text, which is different from the first embodiment. Note that in the following explanation, the same reference numerals are used for the same configurations and controls as in the first embodiment, and explanations thereof will be omitted.

[0032] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an image forming system including an image forming apparatus 101 according to a second embodiment. A summary server (summarization means) 103 exposes an API for language processing, such as a generation AI, and has the function of generating a summary string from the summary target string by passing the target string and a prompt that serves as a summary condition to the API. The summary server 103 is an example of an external device having a summary processing function. The image forming apparatus may also be provided with a function equivalent to the summary server 103.

[0033] 8 is a block diagram of the second embodiment. The control unit 210 has a summary instruction means 350 and a summary acquisition means 352. The summary instruction means 350 passes the first language character string 304 to the communication unit 215. The summary acquisition means 352 acquires a summarized summary character string 353, which is the result of summarizing the first language character string 304 in the summary server 103. The number of characters in the summarized summary character string 353 is fewer than that of the first language character string 304.

[0034] The communication unit 215 transmits and receives various data (e.g., character strings) between external devices (in this embodiment, the translation server and the summary server). The communication unit 215 transmits the character string 304 in the first language received from the summarization instruction means 350 to the summary server 103. The summary acquisition means 352 acquires the summarized summary character string 353, which is the result of summarization by the summary server 103. The translation instruction means 308 passes the summarized summary character string 353 to the translation means 309 of the communication unit 215.

[0035] Figure 9 shows an example of a screen displayed on a touch panel display for specifying the layout when printing the original text and translation in this embodiment. The first option is a balloon display 701, which translates the summarized original text and displays it in a balloon. The second option is a comparison display 702, which allows the summarized original text and translation to be compared side by side. The original text summary may be compared by section, paragraph, or sentence. In addition to the print layout options, a button 704 to proceed to the next screen and a back button 703 to return to the previous translation language selection are displayed.

[0036] 10 is a flowchart according to this embodiment. In S450, the control unit 210 passes the first language character string 304 and the user's desired first language to the summary server 103 via communication and instructs the summary server 103 to summarize. In S451, the control unit 210 uses the summary acquisition means 352 to obtain the summarized summary character string 353, which is the summary result from the summary server 103. In S452, the control unit 210 passes the summarized summary character string 353 and the user's desired first and second languages ​​to the communication unit 215, and the communication unit 215 instructs the translation server 102 to translate the summarized character string 353 via communication. In S453, the operation unit 211 displays the margin creation method 305 on the display means 312.

[0037] According to this embodiment, in order to reduce the amount of translation, the original text is summarized before translation, which reduces the amount of white space required to publish the translation. This reduces the amount of reduction in the original text, making it possible to generate a document that is easy to read even when the original text and translation are written side by side.

[0038] In this embodiment, the same effect can be obtained by summarizing the character strings that are directly translated from the original text. Furthermore, the original text may be summarized to reduce the number of characters, thereby making it possible to secure more space.

[0039] In addition, the technology of this embodiment can be similarly applied not only to printing an image of the original text and translation side by side on paper, but also to making it possible to output an image of the original text and translation side by side as data within an image forming device.

[0040] [Note] The disclosure of the present embodiment also includes the following configuration examples and method examples.

[0041] (Item 1) a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; an acquisition means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the character string in the first language generated by the character recognition means; and an image forming apparatus capable of printing a sheet on which a character string in the second language is written together with a scanned document, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and an image forming apparatus that determines an arrangement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information;

[0042] (Item 2) Item 1, the image forming apparatus according to item 1, The image forming apparatus is characterized in that the acquisition unit acquires, from an external device, the character string in the second language that has been translated by the external device.

[0043] (Item 3) The image forming apparatus according to items 1 and 2, a translation means for translating the first language into the second language; The image forming apparatus is characterized in that the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language translated by the translating unit.

[0044] (Item 4) The image forming apparatus according to items 1 to 3, The image forming apparatus is characterized in that the margin creating method creates the margin by making the size of the paper to be printed larger than the size of the paper of the document.

[0045] (Item 5) The image forming apparatus according to any one of items 1 to 4, The image forming apparatus is characterized in that the margin creating method sets the size of the paper to be printed to be the same as the size of the paper of the document, and reduces the image data to create the margin.

[0046] (Item 6) The image forming apparatus according to any one of items 1 to 5, An image forming apparatus, wherein the character string in the first language and the character string in the second language are printed on the same side of a sheet of paper.

[0047] (Item 7) a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; An image forming apparatus having a summarization means for summarizing the character string in the first language to generate a summary character string; and acquiring means for acquiring a second language string translated from the abstract string, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and An image forming apparatus characterized in that it determines the placement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information, and is capable of printing paper on which the character string in the second language is written along with the scanned original.

[0048] (Item 8) a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; an acquisition means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the character string in the first language generated by the character recognition means; and An image forming system capable of outputting an image in which a character string in the second language is written together with a scanned document, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and an image forming system that determines the layout of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information;

[0049] (Item 9) Item 9. The image forming system according to item 8, The image forming system is characterized in that the acquiring unit acquires, from an external device, the character string in the second language that has been translated by the external device.

[0050] (Item 10) The image forming system according to items 8 to 9, a translation means for translating the first language into the second language; The image forming system is characterized in that the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language translated by the translating unit.

[0051] (Item 11) The image forming system according to items 8 to 10, The image forming system is characterized in that the margin creating method creates a margin by making the output image size larger than the paper size of the original.

[0052] (Item 12) The image forming system according to any one of items 8 to 11, The image forming system is characterized in that the margin creating method makes the size of the output image the same as the paper size of the document, and creates the margin by reducing the image data.

[0053] (Item 13) The image forming system according to any one of items 8 to 12, An image forming system, characterized in that the character string in the first language and the character string in the second language are written on the same side of an output image.

[0054] (Item 14) a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; An image forming system having: a summarization means for summarizing the character string in the first language to generate a summary character string; and acquiring means for acquiring a second language string translated from the abstract string, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and An image forming system characterized in that the arrangement of the character string in the second language is determined based on the margin setting acceptance information, and paper on which the character string in the second language is written is printed together with the scanned original. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 100 Network 101 Image forming device 102 Translation Server 103 Abstract Server 210 Control Unit 211 Operation section 212 Reading unit 213 Storage section 214 Printing Department 215 Communications Department

Claims

1. a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; an acquisition means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the character string in the first language generated by the character recognition means; and an image forming apparatus capable of printing a sheet on which a character string in the second language is written together with a scanned document, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and an image forming apparatus that determines an arrangement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information;

2. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language that has been translated by an external device from the external device.

3. a translation means for translating the first language into the second language; 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language translated by the translating unit.

4. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the margin creating method creates the margin by making the size of the paper on which the printing is performed larger than the size of the paper on which the document is printed.

5. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the margin creating method comprises making the size of the paper on which the image is printed the same as the size of the paper on which the document is printed, and reducing the image data to create the margin.

6. 6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the character string in the first language and the character string in the second language are printed on the same side of a sheet of paper.

7. a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; An image forming apparatus having a summarization means for summarizing the character string in the first language to generate a summary character string; and acquiring means for acquiring a second language string translated from the abstract string, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and An image forming apparatus characterized in that it determines the placement of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information, and is capable of printing paper on which the character string in the second language is written along with the scanned original.

8. a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; an acquisition means for acquiring a character string in a second language translated from the character string in the first language generated by the character recognition means; and An image forming system capable of outputting an image in which a character string in the second language is written together with a scanned document, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and an image forming system that determines the layout of the character string in the second language based on the margin setting acceptance information;

9. 9. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language translated by an external device from the external device.

10. a translation means for translating the first language into the second language; 9. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the acquiring unit acquires the character string in the second language translated by the translating unit.

11. 9. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the margin creating method creates the margin by making the output image size larger than the paper size of the document.

12. 9. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the margin creating method makes the size of the output image the same as the paper size of the document, and creates the margin by reducing the image data.

13. 13. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the character string in the first language and the character string in the second language are printed on the same side of an output image.

14. a reading means for reading an original and generating image data; character recognition means for performing character recognition on the image data generated by the reading means to generate a character string in a first language; An image forming system having: a summarization means for summarizing the character string in the first language to generate a summary character string; and acquiring means for acquiring a second language string translated from the abstract string, a display means for displaying options of a margin creation method, which is a method for creating a margin in a read document for arranging a character string in the second language; a receiving unit that receives a selection of the margin creation method displayed on the display unit from a user and generates margin setting reception information; and An image forming system characterized in that the arrangement of the character string in the second language is determined based on the margin setting acceptance information, and paper on which the character string in the second language is written is printed together with the scanned original.

Images