Image processing device, method for controlling the image processing device, and program

Abstract

This invention provides a technology that can achieve the desired results in specific color erasure copying. [Solution] The image processing device is characterized by comprising: identification means for identifying chromatic characters within a document; setting means for setting a character area encompassing chromatic characters when chromatic characters are identified within the document; and conversion means for converting the character area to a predetermined color.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an image processing apparatus, a control method for an image processing apparatus, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] As a function of a multifunction printer, a specific color erasure function is known that generates an image in which only a specific color portion is erased from a read document image and prints and outputs it.

[0003] For example, when copying text in which an important portion is in red characters using this function, it is possible to print and output text in which only the important portion has become blank, and thus this output can be used as a simple test paper or the like.

[0004] Also, in Patent Document 1, a technique for utilizing this function for the purpose of improving security such as preventing leakage of the content of important portions in a document by not outputting confidential portions (specific color portions) is disclosed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In the specific color erasure function, a technique for obtaining a desired result is required.

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a technique for obtaining a desired result in the specific color erasure function.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] An image processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present disclosure is characterized by comprising: identification means for identifying chromatic characters within a document; setting means for setting a character area encompassing the chromatic characters when the chromatic characters are identified within the document; and conversion means for converting the character area to a predetermined color. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to this disclosure, a technology can be provided that can obtain desired results in a specific color erasure function. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] Block diagram showing the printer hardware configuration. [Figure 2] This is a schematic diagram of a printer. [Figure 3] These are image data before and after color erasure copying. [Figure 4] This is a flowchart for changing the color of the entire text area to white. [Figure 5] This is an explanatory diagram of the character area. [Figure 6] This is image data before and after color conversion to white. [Figure 7] This is a flowchart for color-changing the entire text area to the background color. [Figure 8] This shows the image data before and after color conversion to the background color. [Figure 9] These are image data before and after color erasure copying. [Figure 10] This is a flowchart illustrating the process of assigning identification symbols to character areas and converting their colors. [Figure 11] These are image data before and after color conversion. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] <Embodiment 1> This embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Below, the configuration of an inkjet printer 100, which is an example of an image processing device, will be described.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of printer 100.

[0013] Printer 100 includes a ROM 101, a RAM 102, a CPU 103, a network communication unit 104, a display unit 105, an operation unit 106, a scanner unit 107, and a print unit 108 that performs printing processing.

[0014] Host device 110 is communicably connected to printer 100. A print job is generated from original data serving as a source of a recorded image, such as an electronic file such as a document file or an image file, using a print driver provided in host device 110. A print job refers to data including image data converted into a predetermined data format (for example, data representing an image in RGB or CMYK) and print settings. The print settings include information necessary for printer 100 to perform a printing operation, such as print quality or print paper size.

[0015] ROM 101 stores fixed data such as a control program executed by CPU 103, a data table, and an OS program. In the present embodiment, each control program stored in ROM 101 performs software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt processing under the management of the embedded OS stored in ROM 101.

[0016] RAM 102 is composed of a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) or the like that requires a backup power supply. RAM 102 is also used as a main memory and a work memory of CPU 103, and stores a reception buffer for temporarily storing a print job received by network communication unit 104, various types of information such as current time information, and display language settings.

[0017] The CPU 103 is a system control unit and a central processing unit for controlling each part within the printer 100. The network communication unit 104 communicates with the host device 110 via a network such as a LAN or USB to receive commands such as print instructions and scan instructions, receive print jobs, and transmit scan data.

[0018] The display unit 105 is composed of an LED (light-emitting diode), an LCD (liquid crystal display), etc., and is used to display data and notify the state of the printer 100. The operation unit 106 consists of switches, hard keys, etc. for the user to perform various input operations.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the printer 100. It is also possible to adopt a form in which the display unit 105 functions as an operation unit for performing input operations, such as the touch panel 201 shown in FIG. 2. In the printer 100, the scan function is realized by the scanner unit 107, and the print function is realized by the print unit 108.

[0020] The CPU 103 controls the scanner unit 107 to optically read the document set on the glass-like transparent document table 202 and convert it into electronic data. Further, the image data converted into the specified file format is transmitted to an external device via the network or stored in the RAM 102. In this embodiment, a flat-bed type scanner using a document table is used, but an automatic document feeder type that automatically feeds the document loaded on the document loading tray to the document feeder and reads the document may also be used.

[0021] The print unit 108 forms an image on a recording medium such as paper using a coloring agent such as ink based on the information stored in the ROM 101 and the RAM 102 or the print job received from the host device 110, and outputs the print result. The print unit 108 is provided with print heads corresponding to each color of yellow, cyan, magenta, and black. Each print head ejects the corresponding color coloring agent to form an image.

[0022] The print result formed by the print unit 108 is discharged from the print result output port 203. The copy function is realized by transferring the image data read and generated by the scanner unit 107 to the print unit 108, and the print unit 108 recording the image on a recording medium based on that image data.

[0023] The parts described above are interconnected by bus 109, enabling them to send and receive data to and from each other. Alternatively, this can be achieved by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of this embodiment to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and by having one or more processors in the computer of that system or device read and execute the program. Furthermore, it can also be achieved by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions.

[0024] The printer 100 of this embodiment is capable of scanning a document and generating an image of the document converted to predetermined colors. It is also capable of printing to a recording medium using the image of the document that has been scanned and converted to predetermined colors. Hereafter, the embodiment will be described using the specific color erasure copy function, which is one of the specific color erasure functions, as an example. Specific color erasure copy is a function that erases chromatic colors as specific colors and makes a copy. In this embodiment, "chromatic color" is a general term for chromatic parts and chromatic characters in the document. Furthermore, "chromatic part" refers to the pixel parts in the document that use colors other than white, black, and gray, and "chromatic character" refers to the character in the document that uses colors other than white, black, and gray. In addition, in the following description, the term "achromatic" may be used in the opposite sense of "chromatic." "Achromatic" refers to the pixel parts and characters in the document that use white, black, and gray. Furthermore, "achromatic areas" refer to pixel portions in the original document that use either white, black, or gray, and "achromatic characters" refer to characters in the original document that use either white, black, or gray.

[0025] As mentioned above, the specific color erasure copy function is a feature of a multifunction printer that generates and prints an image from which only the specific color portion of the scanned original document has been erased. In this embodiment, "specific color" refers to the color that is erased in the specific color erasure copy function. Colors that are not erased in the specific color erasure copy function are called "non-specific colors." In the following explanation, we will assume that the specific color is a chromatic color.

[0026] Typical color-removal copying functions work by converting chromatic pixels in the scanned original image to achromatic white pixels. Therefore, if the background of the area represented by the specific color includes areas that are not white, the desired result may not be obtained with this function. An example of not obtaining the desired result is illustrated in Figure 3.

[0027] Figure 3 shows image data before and after specific color erasure copying. Image data 301 shows the image data before specific color erasure copying (before color conversion), and image data 302 shows the image data after specific color erasure copying (after color conversion). The shaded areas in the figure indicate a background of a non-specific color. Uppercase letters in the figure indicate specific color characters, and lowercase letters indicate non-specific color characters. When a document has a structure in which specific color characters overlap on a non-specific color background, as shown in the first line of image data 301, converting the specific color characters to white using this function results in a series of white characters, as shown in the first line of image data 302. Ideally, the content of the specific color characters in the converted document should be invisible, but with this function, only the color of the characters changes, and the content remains visible.

[0028] In this embodiment, color erasure is performed not only on the chromatic character portion but also on the entire character area encompassing the character portion. This ensures that after specific color erasure copying, chromatic characters do not remain as white characters on a grayscale background, and the user is expected to obtain the desired result. The details of the embodiment will be described below. In this embodiment, color erasure refers to color conversion to white pixels.

[0029] Figure 4 is a flowchart for converting the entire text area to white in this embodiment. The processing in this flowchart is realized when the CPU 103 of the printer 100 loads the program stored in ROM 101 into RAM 102 and executes it. This flowchart starts when the user places a document on the document glass 202 and issues a scan or copy command to the printer 100. In the description of each process in this flowchart, the symbol "S" indicates a step in that flowchart, and the same applies to subsequent figures.

[0030] In S401, the CPU 103 optically reads the document placed on the document glass 202 by scanning and converts it into electronic data. Then, it stores the image data converted to the specified file format in the RAM 102. In this embodiment, the image data is data in which each pixel is represented by RGB.

[0031] In S402, the CPU 103 extracts the chromatic areas from the document placed on the document glass 202. Specifically, the CPU 103 determines whether each pixel with the corresponding pixel values ​​(R, G, and B values) in the electronic data stored in the RAM 102 is chromatic or not. The CPU then extracts the chromatic areas by saving the coordinate information of all pixels determined to be chromatic in the RAM 102. As for the method of determining whether a pixel is chromatic or not, for example, a pixel with R, G, and B values ​​all being the same, such as (0,0,0) or (100,100,100), may be determined to be an achromatic pixel. Alternatively, a pixel with at least one different R, G, or B value may be determined to be a chromatic pixel.

[0032] In S403, the CPU 103 extracts the colored character portion. Specifically, in S401, the CPU 103 performs character recognition from the electronic data stored in the RAM 102. In this embodiment, the CPU 103 performs character recognition by executing an optical character recognition (OCR) control program stored in the ROM 101.

[0033] In OCR character recognition, CPU 103 first performs layout analysis on the image data, classifying it into components such as vertical text sections, horizontal text sections, image sections, and ruled line sections. Next, CPU 103 performs line extraction and character extraction on the document sections. Then, it normalizes the size of each extracted character. Finally, it extracts features such as the direction component of the line segments that make up the character, and recognizes the character by matching the extracted features with the character pattern. Characters recognized by OCR that also contain chromatic pixels can be extracted as chromatic character sections.

[0034] In S404, CPU103 sets up a character area (a region containing multiple characters) for the chromatic characters extracted in S403. Figure 5 illustrates the setting of the character area.

[0035] Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram of the character area in this embodiment. Image data 401 shows image data obtained by scanning the original document, image data 502 shows image data in the state where chromatic characters have been recognized by OCR, and image data 503 shows image data in the state where the character area has been set. In image data 501, for example, lowercase alphabet letters (d, e) are achromatic characters, and uppercase alphabet letters (A-C, F-L) are chromatic characters.

[0036] The dotted line frames 504 surrounding each character shown in image data 502 indicate the character portion recognized as a chromatic character; all characters except lowercase alphabets are recognized as chromatic characters. Note that the dotted line frames 504 do not actually exist in the image data and are shown in a visible form for illustrative purposes.

[0037] In defining the character area for a single character, for a character recognized as a colored character by OCR, the character area is defined as the area encompassing that character and a specific distance to the top, bottom, left, and right.

[0038] Furthermore, the dotted line frame 505 in Figure 4 represents a character area formed by concatenating multiple character parts shown in the image data 503. In this embodiment, the concatenation of character parts is based on information obtained in advance by OCR layout analysis, such as whether the document is vertical or horizontal, and the coordinate information of each character part. If it is a vertical document, the character area is set by concatenating vertical character parts if they are determined to be within a predetermined distance in terms of coordinates, and if it is a horizontal document, the character area is set by concatenating horizontal character parts if they are determined to be within a predetermined distance in terms of coordinates. In this embodiment, the predetermined distance is the number of pixels for one character, but is not limited to this. Also, there is no limit to the length of the character area as long as it is set as an area containing one or more characters. In the example of image data 501, it is recognized as a horizontal document, and the horizontal characters are concatenated. A~C, F~G, and H~L, which are within the predetermined distance, are concatenated, respectively. Note that the dotted line frame 505 does not actually exist in the image data, but is shown in a visible state for explanatory purposes.

[0039] Returning to the explanation of the flowchart in Figure 4, in S405, the CPU 103 performs color conversion on the chromatic areas and character areas. That is, it performs color conversion on the pixels of the chromatic areas and character areas extracted in S402 and S404 to generate image data with RGB values ​​converted to (255,255,255).

[0040] Here, we will explain an example of color conversion using Figure 6.

[0041] Figure 6 shows the image data before and after color conversion to white in this embodiment. Image data 601 shows the image data before color conversion, and image data 602 shows the image data after color conversion. Image section 603 shows a chromatic image. Shaded section 604 shows an achromatic (gray) background. Uppercase letters in the figure represent chromatic characters, and lowercase letters represent achromatic characters.

[0042] In the image data 601, the parts extracted for color conversion are the chromatic image portion 603 and the chromatic text portion. As a result of the color conversion, as shown in image data 602, the chromatic portion and the chromatic text portion (uppercase alphabet) are converted to white. Furthermore, since the chromatic text portion is color-converted across the entire text area, as shown in text area 605, even chromatic text against a grayscale background becomes invisible, thus achieving the desired result.

[0043] Returning to the explanation of the flowchart in Figure 4, in S406, the CPU 103 performs the desired processing on the image data generated in S405. If the trigger for starting this flow was a scan instruction, the image data is sent to the host device 110; if it was a copy instruction, the image data is transferred to the print unit 108, after which the print unit 108 records the image on the recording medium based on the image data. After that, the CPU 103 terminates the processing of this flowchart.

[0044] Through the above process, it becomes possible to obtain the desired result even when applying the color erasure copy function to a document in which chromatic text is superimposed on a grayscale background.

[0045] In this embodiment, color conversion was performed on both the chromatic area and the text area. However, the user may be allowed to choose whether to perform color conversion only on the chromatic area or on both the chromatic area and the text area.

[0046] For image data that includes areas where chromatic text overlaps a gray background, as shown in image data 601 in Figure 6, the desired result cannot be obtained without color-converting both the chromatic area and the text area. On the other hand, for image data where the background color is entirely white, the desired result can be obtained by color-converting only the chromatic area. Therefore, the user may be allowed to select between these options depending on the document being scanned.

[0047] As described above, this embodiment provides a technique for obtaining desired results in specific color erasure copying. Specifically, color erasure is performed not only on the chromatic character portion but also on the entire character area including the character portion. As a result, after specific color erasure copying, the chromatic character does not remain as white text on a grayscale background, and the desired result is obtained. In this embodiment, as an example, the portion to which the color conversion was applied was shown to become white, but in reality, this is not the only option. For example, the color conversion may be done to a chromatic color such as gray or light yellow, as long as the color conversion does not result in a series of white characters as shown in the first row of image data 302 in Figure 3.

[0048] <Embodiment 2> In Embodiment 1, a color-erasing copy was achieved that could obtain the desired result for originals with chromatic characters superimposed on a grayscale background by converting all pixels in the character area to white. However, the same effect as in Embodiment 1 can be obtained by making all pixels in the character area the same color as the background. This will be explained below in this embodiment.

[0049] Figure 7 is a flowchart for color-changing the entire text area to the background color in this embodiment. The processing in this flowchart is realized when the CPU 103 of the printer 100 loads the program stored in ROM 101 into RAM 102 and executes it. This flowchart is initiated when the user places a document on the document glass 202 and issues a scan or copy command to the printer 100.

[0050] Since steps S701 to S704 and S707 are the same processes as those described in Embodiment 1 for steps S401 to S404 and S406, their explanation will be omitted.

[0051] In S705, CPU103 extracts a background color for each character area set in S704. That is, it determines the background color from the statistical values ​​of the pixels other than the pixels of the chromatic characters contained within the character area (the pixels that constitute the background), and performs this for all character areas. For example, the mode or mean may be used as the statistical value.

[0052] In S706, CPU103 performs color conversion for the chromatic areas and the character areas. For the color conversion of the chromatic areas, the same process as in S405 is performed, and for the color conversion of the character areas, image data is generated in which all pixels in the character area are color-converted to the background color extracted in S705.

[0053] Figure 8 shows the image data before and after color conversion to the background color in this embodiment. Image data 801 shows the image data before color conversion, and image data 802 shows the image data after color conversion. Image section 803 shows a chromatic image. Shaded section 804 shows an achromatic (gray) background. Uppercase letters in the figure represent chromatic characters, and lowercase letters represent achromatic characters.

[0054] In the image data 801, the parts extracted for color conversion are the chromatic image portion 803 and the chromatic text portion. As a result of the color conversion, the chromatic portion is converted to white, as shown in the image data 802. The chromatic text portion is converted to the background color, so the area shown in the dotted line frame 806 is converted to the background color white, and the area shown in the dotted line frame 805 is converted to the background color gray. As a result, the content of the chromatic text against the achromatic background becomes invisible, and the desired result is obtained. Note that the dotted line frames 805 and 806 do not actually exist in the image data, but are shown in a visible state for illustrative purposes.

[0055] As explained above, even when applying the color erasure copying function to a document where colored text is superimposed on a grayscale background, the desired result can be obtained.

[0056] <Embodiment 3> In this embodiment, new problems that arise when implementing embodiments 1 and 2, and solutions to those problems, will be explained with reference to Figure 9.

[0057] Figure 9 shows image data before and after color conversion, including blank lines and underlines. Image data 901 shows the image data before color conversion, and image data 902 shows the image data after color conversion. Parentheses 903 indicate achromatic parentheses. In addition, uppercase letters in the figure indicate chromatic characters, and lowercase letters indicate achromatic characters.

[0058] In embodiments 1 and 2, since chromatic characters or character areas are converted to white or the same color as the background, there is a problem that it becomes impossible to tell where the characters or images were located before the color conversion simply by looking at the image data after the color conversion. Just by looking at the image data 902 after the color conversion, it is not possible to determine whether the blank spaces shown in the dotted line frame 904 are areas where the chromatic color has disappeared due to the color conversion or areas that were originally blank. For example, if the output after color conversion is used as a test paper, it becomes inconvenient because it is not possible to determine whether the blank spaces on the output are areas where answers should be written or whether they were originally blank.

[0059] In addition, there is a problem in that when converting the color of a text area, if data other than chromatic characters is included within the text area, that data is also converted and disappears. As shown by the dotted line frame 905, even though the parentheses 903 are not chromatic, they disappear along with the chromatic characters during the color conversion because they are included within the text area. For example, if the output after color conversion is used as a simple test sheet, the identification marks that explicitly indicate where answers should be written, such as parentheses and underlines, disappear, making it inconvenient when writing answers. Note that the dotted line frames 904 and 905 do not actually exist in the image data and are illustrated in a visible state for the sake of explanation.

[0060] Therefore, in this embodiment, image data is generated in which marks or identification symbols are added to the areas where color conversion has been performed.

[0061] Figure 10 is a flowchart of the process of assigning identification symbols to a text area and converting its color in this embodiment. The processing in this flowchart is realized when the CPU 103 of the printer 100 loads the program stored in the ROM 101 into the RAM 102 and executes it. This flow starts when the user places a document on the document glass 202 and issues a scan or copy command to the printer 100.

[0062] Regarding S1001-S1006 and S1008, the processing is the same as S701-S706 and S707 respectively, so the explanation will be omitted.

[0063] In S1007, the CPU 103 assigns an identification symbol to each character area. In this embodiment, an example of assigning an underline as the identification symbol is shown, but the identification symbol is not limited to this. It may also be a rectangular border surrounding the character area, or a dot or arrow may be placed near the character area.

[0064] Figure 11 shows image data in which identification symbols have been added to the color conversion areas of this embodiment. Image data 1101 shows the image data before color conversion, and image data 1102 shows the image data after color conversion. Also, parentheses 1103 indicate achromatic parentheses. Furthermore, uppercase letters in the figure indicate chromatic characters, and lowercase letters indicate achromatic characters.

[0065] As shown by the dotted lines 1104 and 1105, even from the color-converted image data 1102, it is possible to determine whether an area has lost its chromatic color due to the color conversion or was originally blank by covering it with an underline, which is an identification code. Since dotted line frame 1104 contains an underline, it can be determined that the area has lost its chromatic color, and since dotted line frame 1105 does not contain an underline, it can be determined that the area was originally blank.

[0066] As shown by the dotted line frame 1106, identification symbols that have disappeared along with the colored characters due to being included in the character area can be replaced by assigning new identification codes. The user may be given the option of whether or not to assign identification symbols. Furthermore, parentheses may be added as identification symbols to the area after color conversion. That is, the parentheses 1103 before color conversion are erased by the color conversion, but parentheses may be added again to the dotted line frame 1106 after color conversion.

[0067] Furthermore, the above-mentioned identification symbols may be applied not only to chromatic characters but also to the chromatic parts after color conversion. For example, a rectangular dotted line may be added to areas that were chromatic before color conversion to indicate that they were chromatic. Also, the identification symbols applied to chromatic characters and chromatic parts may be the same or different. The system may be configured to allow the user to set what kind of identification symbols to apply.

[0068] As explained above, according to this embodiment, by assigning an identification symbol to the area where color conversion has occurred, it is possible to clearly identify which area has undergone color conversion. Furthermore, embodiments 1, 2, and 3 described above can be used interchangeably depending on the application.

[0069] <Other Embodiments> The embodiments described above illustrate an example of color conversion of all chromatic areas and chromatic characters within a document, but are not limited to this. For example, there may be a form in which only the chromatic areas are color-converted, or a form in which only the chromatic characters are color-converted. In addition, there may be a form in which only a part of the chromatic areas, a part of the chromatic characters, or a part of both are color-converted. Furthermore, these settings may be determined by user operation.

[0070] This disclosure can also be implemented by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and by having one or more processors in the computer of that system or device read and execute the program. It can also be implemented by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

[0071] Furthermore, this disclosure includes the following components. (Composition 1) A means for identifying colored characters within a manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting means for setting a character area that includes the colored characters, A conversion means for converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, An image processing apparatus characterized by comprising: (Configuration 2) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 1, characterized in that the predetermined color is white. (Composition 3) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 1, characterized in that the predetermined color is the background color corresponding to the character area. (Composition 4) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 3, characterized in that the conversion means determines the background color from statistical values ​​of pixels other than pixels of chromatic characters included in the character area. (Composition 5) The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, characterized in that the conversion means further adds symbols to the portion converted to the predetermined color. (Composition 6) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 5, characterized in that the aforementioned symbol includes an underline, a border, an arrow, or parentheses. (Composition 7) The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 6, characterized in that the aforementioned chromatic characters indicate the portion of the characters in which colors other than white, black, and gray are used. (Composition 8) The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 7, characterized in that the identifying means identifies the chromatic characters using optical character recognition. (Composition 9) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 8, characterized in that the identifying means sets pixels at a predetermined distance from the identified chromatic character as the character portion. (Composition 10) The image processing apparatus according to configuration 9, characterized in that when the character portions are located within a certain distance of each other, they are connected to form a character area. (Composition 11) The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 10, characterized in that the conversion means converts the chromatic area and the character area to the predetermined color. (Composition 12) The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 10, characterized in that the conversion means converts at least one of the chromatic area or the character area to the predetermined color. (Composition 13) The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 10, characterized in that the conversion means converts a part of the chromatic area, a part of the character area, or a part of both to a predetermined color. (Composition 14) The image processing apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 13, further comprising a scanning means for reading the original document and generating an image of the original document converted to a predetermined color by the conversion means, or an execution means for reading the original document and performing printing on a recording medium using the image of the original document converted to a predetermined color by the conversion means. (Composition 15) A step to identify colored characters within the manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting step is made to set a character area that includes the colored characters. A conversion step of converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, A control method for an image processing apparatus, characterized by comprising: (Composition 16) A program that operates in an image processing device, wherein the image processing device A means for identifying colored characters within a manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting means for setting a character area that includes the colored characters, A conversion means for converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, A program characterized by being designed to function as such.

Claims

1. A means for identifying colored characters within a manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting means for setting a character area that includes the colored characters, A conversion means for converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, An image processing apparatus characterized by comprising:

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the predetermined color is white.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the predetermined color is the background color corresponding to the character area.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the conversion means determines the background color from statistical values ​​of pixels other than the pixels of chromatic characters included in the character area.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the conversion means further adds symbols to the portion converted to the predetermined color.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the aforementioned symbol includes an underline, a border, an arrow, or parentheses.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the aforementioned chromatic characters indicate the portion of a character in which pixels other than white, black, or gray are used.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the identifying means identifies the chromatic characters using optical character recognition.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that the identifying means sets pixels at a predetermined distance from the identified chromatic character as the character portion.

10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 9, characterized in that when the character portions are located within a certain distance of each other, they are connected to form a character area.

11. The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the conversion means converts the chromatic area and the character area to the predetermined color.

12. The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conversion means converts at least one of the chromatic area or the character area to the predetermined color.

13. The aforementioned identification means further identifies the chromatic parts, which are pixel parts other than white, black, and gray. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the conversion means converts a part of the chromatic area, a part of the character area, or a part of both to a predetermined color.

14. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a scanning means for reading the original document and generating an image of the original document converted to a predetermined color by the conversion means; or an execution means for reading the original document and performing printing on a recording medium using the image of the original document converted to a predetermined color by the conversion means.

15. A step to identify colored characters within the manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting step is made to set a character area that includes the colored characters. A conversion step of converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, A control method for an image processing apparatus, characterized by comprising:

16. A program that operates in an image processing device, wherein the image processing device A means for identifying colored characters within a manuscript, If the colored characters are identified within the aforementioned manuscript, a setting means for setting a character area that includes the colored characters, A conversion means for converting the aforementioned character area to a predetermined color, A program characterized by being designed to function as such.

Images