Image processing device, image processing method, program, and recording medium

Abstract

To allow a user to comfortably perform an order operation for a print article even when a network band is tight.SOLUTION: In an image processing device, an image processing method, a program, and a recording medium of the present invention, an instruction receiving unit receives an input of an instruction to select a print commercial material and an instruction to select an image to be applied to the print commercial material, and a first image processing unit applies the image to the print commercial material based on the image received from the instruction receiving unit via a global network to generate a first image that becomes a print article. Then, a transmission determination unit determines whether to print the image or the first image based on information about the print commercial material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image processing device, an image processing method, a program, and a recording medium for editing and creating print products such as postcards, photo prints, and photo books on a server on a cloud. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventional image processing devices for creating print products include stand-alone order acceptance devices (store machines) installed in stores such as photo shops. Stand-alone order acceptance devices are required to accept desired print materials and images to be applied to the print materials from users and to perform image processing on the images, which requires high processing power. Therefore, the order acceptance device needs to be an expensive device with high processing power, and introducing a large number of order acceptance devices in a store requires a large amount of money.

[0003] In response to this, in order to reduce the introduction costs of order reception machines, an image processing device has been proposed that is equipped with a server on the cloud that performs image processing on images, which requires high processing power, and that is equipped with a cloud-based kiosk terminal as an order reception machine in stores.

[0004] In a conventional image processing device using a cloud-based kiosk terminal, an order receiving machine in a store receives a desired print product and an image to be applied to the print product from a user, and then transmits (uploads) the print product and the image from the store via a network to a server on the cloud. Meanwhile, the server applies the image to the print product to create a print product. The print product is then received (downloaded) from the server via the network to the store or print lab (print production factory), where it is printed.

[0005] Here, Patent Documents 1 to 4 are prior art documents that serve as references for the present invention.

[0006] Patent document 1 describes a method for reducing communication traffic between an album orderer terminal and an album creation device by automatically selecting multiple candidate images to be used in creating an album and transmitting them from the album orderer terminal to the album creation device. Patent Document 2 describes a method for reducing communication traffic by creating an album sample using low-quality images, and then receiving high-quality images of the images used to create the album and arranging them in the album. Patent document 3 describes identifying a first portion of multimedia data to be processed within a mobile phone and a second portion of multimedia data to be processed within a remote server depending on factors that affect the quality of service usage, and executing the first portion within the mobile phone and the second portion within the remote server. Patent Document 4 describes a method in which photo image data is uploaded from a mobile phone to a server, where it is converted into album image data with a layout applied, and then downloaded to the mobile phone, and the album image data is printed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-193616 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-194966 [Patent Document 3] Special Publication No. 2008-502249 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-117308 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, in conventional image processing devices that use cloud-based kiosk terminals, images are sent from the store's order receiving device to a cloud server, and so usability when a user orders a print product varies greatly depending on the bandwidth of the network connecting the store's order receiving device and the cloud server. When there is not enough network bandwidth, it takes longer to send the image, which reduces usability accordingly, and when the user's order operation takes longer, they often give up on placing the order.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide an image processing device, an image processing method, a program, and a recording medium that allow a user to comfortably order a print product even when there is limited bandwidth on the network. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a computer system including a first processor and a second processor, The first processor receives input of an image and instructions for image processing to be performed on the image; the second processor, based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the first processor via the global network, performs a first image processing on the image corresponding to the image processing instruction to generate a first image after image processing; The first processor determining whether to transmit the image and the image processing instructions to a second processor based on the type of the image processing instructions; An image processing device is provided that, when it is determined that an image and an instruction for image processing are to be transmitted to a second processor, controls the image and the instruction for image processing to be transmitted to the second processor.

[0011] Here, the first processor preferably determines to send the image and the image processing instruction to the second processor when the image processing instruction is an image processing instruction other than image processing for enlarging, reducing, rotating or moving the image.

[0012] Furthermore, the first processor preferably determines not to transmit the image and the image processing instruction to the second processor if the image processing instruction is an image processing instruction to enlarge, reduce, rotate or move the image.

[0013] In addition, when it is determined that the first processor will not send the image and the image processing instructions to the second processor, it is preferable that the first processor applies second image processing corresponding to the image processing instructions to the image to generate a second image after image processing.

[0014] The first processor also Accepting an input of a plurality of images, and accepting an input of an image selected from at least one of the plurality of images and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image; It is preferable to determine whether or not to transmit the image and the image processing instructions to be applied to the image to the second processor based on the type of image processing instructions to be applied to the image.

[0015] It also has a printer, The first processor receives an input of an instruction to select a print product; a second processor applies the image to the print product and performs a first image processing on the image to generate a first image that will become the print product; It is preferable that the first processor controls the printer to print, based on the type of print product, an image from among the images that is the same as the image that will become the print product without the first image processing by the second processor, instead of an image that will become the print product without the first image processing by the second processor.

[0016] The first processor also Accepts input of instructions to select the print product to which the image will be applied, A third image processing is performed to reduce the resolution of the image based on the minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for each type of print product, and a third image after the resolution change is generated; Preferably, the third image is controlled to be transmitted as an image to the second processor.

[0017] The present invention also provides a method for processing an image, the method comprising: receiving, by an instruction receiving unit, input of an image and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image; a step in which a first image processing unit performs first image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the instruction receiving unit via the global network, thereby generating a first image after image processing; a transmission determination unit determining whether to transmit the image and the image processing instruction to the first image processing unit based on the type of the image processing instruction; An image processing method is provided, which includes a step of controlling the instruction receiving unit to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit when the transfer control unit determines to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit.

[0018] Here, if the image processing instruction is an instruction for image processing other than image processing for enlarging, reducing, rotating or moving the image, it is preferable to determine that the image and the image processing instruction are to be sent to the first image processing unit.

[0019] Furthermore, if the image processing instruction is an instruction to enlarge, reduce, rotate or move an image, it is preferable to determine not to transmit the image and the image processing instruction to the first image processing unit.

[0020] and a step in which the second image processing unit performs second image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the instruction receiving unit to generate a second image after image processing; It is preferable that the method further includes a step of controlling the instruction receiving unit to send the image and image processing instructions to the second image processing unit when the transfer control unit determines not to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit.

[0021] Also, the instruction receiving unit receives input of a plurality of images, and receives input of one image selected from at least one of the plurality of images and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the one image; It is preferable that the method further includes a step in which the transmission decision unit decides whether to transmit the image and the instructions for image processing to be applied to the image to the first image processing unit based on the type of instructions for image processing to be applied to the image.

[0022] Also, an instruction receiving unit receives an input of an instruction to select a print product; a first image processing unit applying an image to a print product and performing first image processing on the image to generate a first image that will become the print product; It is preferable that the method includes a step in which the print control unit controls the printer to print, based on the type of print product, an image from among the images that is the same as the image that will become the print product without the first image processing being performed by the first image processing unit, instead of an image that will become the print product without the first image processing being performed by the first image processing unit.

[0023] Also, a step in which an instruction receiving unit receives an input of an instruction to select a print product to which the image is applied; a step in which a second image processing unit performs third image processing to reduce the resolution of the image based on a minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for each type of print product, and generates a third image after changing the resolution; It is preferable that the method further includes a step in which the transfer control unit controls the instruction receiving unit to transmit the third image as the image to the first image processing unit.

[0024] The present invention also provides a program for causing a computer to execute each step of the image processing method described above.

[0025] The present invention also provides a computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for causing a computer to execute each step of the image processing method described above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0026] In the present invention, whether or not to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit is determined based on the type of image processing instruction, and only when it is determined that the image and image processing instructions are sent to the first image processing unit, are the image and image processing instructions sent to the first image processing unit, and the image is controlled so that image processing is performed on the image by the first image processing unit. As a result, according to the present invention, the amount of image transfer can be reduced and the amount of bandwidth used on the global network can be reduced, so that even when there is limited bandwidth on the global network, usability can be improved and users can comfortably order print products. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0027] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an image processing device according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a block diagram of a first specific example illustrating the configuration of an image processing device of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram of an embodiment illustrating a web browser screen on which a list of images is displayed. [Figure 5] 5 is a conceptual diagram of an embodiment illustrating a web browser screen on which a first image after image processing by a first image processing unit is displayed in the list of images shown in FIG. 4. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a conventional image processing apparatus that uses a cloud-based kiosk terminal. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a second specific example of the configuration of an image processing device according to the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a third specific example of the configuration of an image processing device according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An image processing apparatus, an image processing method, a program, and a recording medium according to the present invention will be described in detail below based on preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention. The image processing device 10 shown in Fig. 1 is a device that uses a cloud-based kiosk terminal and includes an image processing server 12 on the cloud. The image processing server 12 also includes an edit processing unit 14 and a first image processing unit 16. The image processing device 10 is provided in a store with an order receiving unit 18, a print control unit 20, and a printer 22. The order receiving unit 18 includes an instruction receiving unit 24, a transmission determination unit 26, a transfer control unit 28, and a second image processing unit 30. The store's order receiving unit 18, i.e., the instruction receiving unit 24, the transmission decision unit 26, the transfer control unit 28 and the second image processing unit 30, and the print control unit 20 are examples of the first processor of the present invention, and the editing processing unit 14 and the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud are examples of the second processor of the present invention.

[0030] In the store, a transmission determination unit 26 and a transfer control unit 28 are sequentially connected to an instruction receiving unit 24, and the transfer control unit 28 is connected to the instruction receiving unit 24. The instruction receiving unit 24 is also connected to a second image processing unit 30, and further connected to a print control unit 20 via a local network 32 within the store. The print control unit 20 is connected to a printer 22. The instruction receiving unit 24 is also connected to each of an edit processing unit 14 and a first image processing unit 16 on the cloud via a global network 34 such as the Internet and telephone lines. On the cloud, the edit processing unit 14 is connected to a first image processing unit 16, and the first image processing unit 16 is connected to a print control unit 20 of the store via a global network 34.

[0031] In the store, the order receiving unit 18 is a cloud-based kiosk terminal that receives orders for print products from users. The order receiving unit 18 has lower processing power than the image processing server 12 on the cloud, and is configured using an inexpensive personal computer or the like. In the order receiving unit 18, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives various instructions from the user regarding the ordering of print products on a UI (User Interface) screen for performing editing work displayed on the screen of a web browser running on this instruction receiving unit 24. The instruction receiving unit 24 receives, for example, inputs from the user, such as an instruction to select a print product, an instruction to select an image or the like to be applied to this print product, and an instruction for image processing to be applied to this image. The print product represents the type of product for producing various print products such as photo prints, calendars including photos, photo books (photo albums), and the like. Image processing instructions are not particularly limited, but include, for example, enlarging, reducing, rotating, and moving an image, as well as various other image processing such as applying a filter to an image, combining a stamp with an image, cropping an image, and combining multiple images.

[0032] The transmission decision unit 26 decides whether or not to transmit the image and image processing instructions also accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24 to the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud, based on the type of image processing instruction accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24. The transmission decision unit 26 decides to send the image and the image processing instruction to the first image processing unit 16 if the image processing instruction is an image processing instruction that requires high processing power, for example, an image processing instruction other than image processing of enlarging, reducing, rotating or moving an image. On the other hand, if the image processing instruction is an image processing instruction that does not require high processing power, for example, an image processing instruction to enlarge, reduce, rotate or move an image, the transmission decision unit 26 decides not to send the image and the image processing instruction to the first image processing unit 16.

[0033] When the transmission decision unit 26 decides to transmit the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16, the transfer control unit 28 controls the instruction receiving unit 24 to transmit the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16. On the other hand, when it is decided not to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16, the transfer control unit 28 controls the instruction receiving unit 24 to send the image and image processing instructions to the second image processing unit 30.

[0034] The second image processing unit 30 generates a processed second image by performing second image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and image processing instruction received from the instruction receiving unit 24. That is, the second image processing unit 30 generates a second image when the image processing instruction is an instruction for image processing to enlarge, reduce, rotate, or move the image.

[0035] The print control unit 20 controls printing by the printer 22 . The print control unit 20 controls, for example, the printer 22 to print the first image after image processing that becomes a print product received from the first image processing unit 16. The print control unit 20 can also control the printer 22 to print the second image generated by the second image processing unit 30 or the image (local image) received by the instruction receiving unit 24 as a print product.

[0036] The printer 22, under the control of the print control unit 20, prints each of the local image, the first image after image processing, and the second image after image processing.

[0037] In the cloud, the image processing server 12 performs various image processing operations on the image based on instructions from the user to create the final print product. The image processing server 12 has higher processing power than the store's order reception unit 18 and is configured as an expensive personal computer or workstation. In the image processing server 12, the editing processing unit 14 provides a UI screen for the user to edit the print product on the screen of a web browser running on the instruction receiving unit 24. This UI screen includes a UI screen for the user to select a desired print product from a plurality of print products, a UI screen for selecting an image to be applied to the print product, a UI screen for displaying an image or a list of images, a UI screen for selecting image processing to be applied to the image, and the like.

[0038] The first image processing unit 16 performs image processing corresponding to the editing work on the image based on the editing work performed by the user. The first image processing unit 16 performs first image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and image processing instruction received from the store's instruction receiving unit 24, to generate a first image after image processing. That is, the first image processing unit 16 generates a first image after image processing when the image processing instruction is an instruction for image processing other than image processing for enlarging, reducing, rotating, or moving the image. The edit processing unit 14 and the first image processing unit 16 are realized by, for example, a web application that runs on a web browser.

[0039] Next, the operation of the image processing device 10 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0040] First, in the store, the order receiving unit 18 receives an order for a print product from a user. The user performs editing work on the desired print product on a UI screen for performing editing work displayed on the screen of a web browser running on the instruction receiving unit 24. For example, the user selects the desired print product and print product size from among a plurality of print products, selects an image to be applied to the print product from images stored on a recording medium such as an SD (Secure Digital) card owned by the user, and performs editing work such as applying the selected image to the print product and performing various image processing on the image.

[0041] In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives input from the user, such as an instruction to select a print product, an instruction to select an image to be applied to the print product, and an instruction for image processing to be applied to the image (step S1).

[0042] When the instruction receiving unit 24 receives from the user an image and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image (Yes in step S2), the transmission decision unit 26 decides whether or not to transmit the image and the image processing instruction received by the instruction receiving unit 24 to the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud based on the type of the image processing instruction (step S3).

[0043] As a result, when the transmission decision unit 26 decides to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16 (Yes in step S4), the transfer control unit 28 controls the instruction receiving unit 24 to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16 (step S5).

[0044] In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 transmits the image and an instruction for image processing to the first image processing unit 16 via the global network 34 (step S6).

[0045] Next, the first image processing unit 16 performs the first image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the store's instruction receiving unit 24, to generate a first image after image processing (step S7). Since the image processing server 12 has high processing power, the first image processing unit 16 can perform the first image processing that requires high processing power on the image. The first image processing unit 16 transmits the processed first image to the store's instruction receiving unit 24 or the store's print control unit 20 via the global network 34. Alternatively, the first image processing unit 16 can transmit the processed first image to a print lab via the global network 34.

[0046] On the other hand, if it is decided not to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16 (No in step S4), the transfer control unit 28 controls the instruction receiving unit 24 to send the image and image processing instructions to the second image processing unit 30 (step S8).

[0047] In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 transmits the image and an instruction for image processing to the second image processing unit 30 (step S9).

[0048] Next, the second image processing unit 30 performs second image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the instruction receiving unit 24, to generate a second image after image processing (step S10). The order receiving unit 18 has low processing capacity, but the second image processing unit 30 is capable of performing second image processing on the image, which does not require high processing capacity. The second image processing unit 30 transmits the processed second image to the instruction receiving unit 24.

[0049] If the instruction receiving unit 24 does not receive an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image from the user, that is, if there is no instruction for image processing (No in step S2), the transfer control unit 28 does not control the instruction receiving unit 24 (step S11). In this case, no image processing is performed on the image.

[0050] The user can view the image accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24, the first image after image processing received from the first image processing unit 16, and the second image after image processing received from the second image processing unit 30 on the screen of a web browser running on the instruction accepting unit 24. The user can also further edit the image to complete the final print product, and then order the print product.

[0051] When a print product is ordered, under the control of the print control unit 20, for example, the first image received from the first image processing unit 16 after image processing to become the print product is printed by the printer 22 (step S12). Alternatively, the print control unit 20 can also perform control so that the second image generated by the second image processing unit 30 or the image (local image) accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24 is printed as the print product.

[0052] In this way, in the image processing device 10, it is determined whether or not to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16 based on the type of image processing instruction, and only when it is determined to send the image and image processing instructions to the first image processing unit 16, i.e., only in the case of image processing that requires high processing power, are the image and image processing instructions sent to the first image processing unit, and the image is controlled so that image processing is performed on the image by the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud. As a result, the image processing device 10 can reduce the amount of image transfer and the bandwidth usage of the global network 34, thereby improving usability even when there is limited bandwidth on the global network 34, and allowing users to comfortably order print products.

[0053] Next, a specific example of the image processing apparatus of the present invention will be described. First, a first specific example will be described.

[0054] Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a first specific example showing the configuration of an image processing device of the present invention. Although not shown, the image processing device shown in Fig. 3 further includes a local image control unit 36 ​​in addition to the order receiving unit 18 of the image processing device 10 shown in Fig. 1. That is, in the image processing device shown in Fig. 3, only the instruction receiving unit 24 and the local image control unit 36 ​​are shown in the store, and the edit processing unit 14 and the first image processing unit 16 are shown on the cloud, with other components not shown.

[0055] The local image control unit 36 ​​performs control so that the images (local images) accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24 are displayed on a UI screen of a list of images displayed on the screen of a web browser running on the instruction accepting unit 24.

[0056] When a user selects an image to be applied to a print product from among images stored on a recording medium such as an SD card, a list of images (thumbnail images) is displayed on the image list UI screen, as shown in Figure 4.

[0057] In conventional image processing devices using cloud-based kiosk terminals, image processing is performed on images by a cloud-based server, so all images stored on a recording medium are typically transmitted from the cloud-based kiosk terminal to the cloud-based server, and then all images are received from the cloud-based server to the cloud-based kiosk terminal in the store. The received images are then displayed on a UI screen of a web browser running on the cloud-based kiosk terminal. Therefore, the larger the number of images, the longer the image transfer time and the longer it takes for the image list to be displayed.

[0058] In contrast, in the image processing device shown in Figure 3, when a list of images is displayed, the list of images (local images) is displayed under the control of the local image control unit 36, without sending or receiving images between the instruction receiving unit 24 and a server on the cloud.

[0059] In this case, the user attempts to display a list of images stored in the recording medium on the UI screen for the list of images. In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives input of a plurality of images stored in the recording medium. Next, the instruction receiving unit 24 displays on the screen of the web browser the UI screen of the list of images received from the editing processing unit 14. At this point, the list of images is not displayed on the UI screen of the list of images.

[0060] Next, the local image control unit 36 ​​performs control so that a list of local images is displayed on the UI screen of the image list. The local image control unit 36 ​​creates an encoded image by encoding the local image using an encoding method such as, but not limited to, base64, or obtains the file path of the local image. Then, the local image control unit 36 ​​can display a list of local images by embedding the encoded image as each image included in the image list in the source code of the UI screen of the image list, for example, in the img (Image) tag of the DOM (Document Object Model), or by replacing it with the file path of the local image.

[0061] This allows a list of local images to be displayed without transferring images between the instruction receiving unit 24 and the first image processing unit 16 of the image processing server 12 on the cloud, thereby allowing the list of images to be displayed quickly.

[0062] Next, the user selects, for example, one image from the list of images displayed on the UI screen of the image list, and selects the image processing to be performed on this one image. In response to this, the order receiving unit 18 receives input of an image selected by the user from the plurality of images included in the image list, and an instruction for image processing to be performed on this image.

[0063] If the image processing instruction is an instruction for image processing that requires high processing power, as described above, the first image processing unit 16 applies the first image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction to a single image, and a first image after image processing is generated. For example, if the image processing instruction is to composite a heart-shaped stamp onto the upper right image shown in Figure 4, the first image processing unit 16 performs the process of composite a heart-shaped stamp onto the upper right image, and the first image after image processing is generated. As a result, in the list of images displayed on the UI screen for the image list, the first image after image processing, onto which the heart-shaped stamp has been superimposed, is displayed, as shown by the image in the upper right corner of Fig. 5 surrounded by a frame. That is, in the list of images, the local image and the first image after image processing are displayed together.

[0064] On the other hand, if the image processing instruction is an instruction for image processing that does not require high processing power, the second image processing unit 30 applies second image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction to the image, and a second image after image processing is generated. As a result, the second image after the image processing is displayed in the list of images displayed on the UI screen of the image list. That is, the local image and the second image after the image processing are displayed together in the list of images.

[0065] This reduces the amount of image transmission (upload amount) and the bandwidth usage of the global network 34, thereby improving usability and allowing users to comfortably order print products even when there is limited bandwidth on the global network 34. Also, the instruction receiving unit 24 can display the local image and the first and second images after image processing.

[0066] Although the example described above is one in which a list of images is displayed, this is not limited to this, and the same applies to cases in which at least one of a plurality of images is displayed and image processing is performed on one image selected by the user from among the displayed images.

[0067] Next, a second specific example will be described.

[0068] Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a conventional image processing device using a cloud-based kiosk terminal. The image processing device shown in Fig. 6 includes an image processing unit 56, an image storage unit 80, and an order information generation unit 82 on the cloud, and an instruction receiving unit 64, a print control unit 60, and a printer 62 in the store.

[0069] In the image processing device shown in Figure 6, when a user orders a print product, he or she selects the desired print product from among a plurality of print products, and selects an image to be applied to the print product from among the images stored on the recording medium. In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 64 receives input from the user of the print product and an image to be applied to this print product, and transmits this input to the image processing unit 56 on the cloud. This image is stored in the image storage unit 80 under the control of the image processing unit 56.

[0070] Next, the user performs various editing operations, and after completing the editing operations for the final print product in which the image is applied to the print product, finalizes the order for the print product. In response to this, the image processing unit 56 applies the image to the print product based on the editing work by the user and performs image processing corresponding to the editing work on the image to generate a processed image that will become the print product. This processed image that will become the print product is stored in the image storage unit 80 under the control of the image processing unit 56. Note that, depending on the type of print product, such as a photographic print, there are some print products for which image processing is not performed by the image processing unit 56. Such print products are stored in the image storage unit 80 on the cloud in the state in which they are received from the instruction receiving unit 64 of the store. Next, the order information generating unit 82 generates order information including information on the storage location of the print product stored in the image storage unit 80 by the image processing unit 56, and transmits this order information to the print control unit 60 of the store. The storage location information is not particularly limited, but for example, the storage location of the print product can be specified by a URL (Uniform Resource Locator).

[0071] Next, the print control unit 60 receives (downloads) the print product from the storage location of the print product included in the order information. That is, the print control unit 60 receives the print product that has been subjected to image processing by the image processing unit 56 from the image storage unit 80 on the cloud. Then, the print control unit 60 causes the printer 62 to print the print product.

[0072] In this way, in the conventional image processing device, all print products are received from the image storage unit 80 on the cloud to the print control unit 60 in the store and printed.

[0073] Fig. 7 is a block diagram of a second specific example showing the configuration of an image processing device of the present invention. Although not shown, the image processing device shown in Fig. 7 further includes a first image storage unit 38 in addition to the order receiving unit 18 of the image processing device shown in Fig. 1, and further includes a second image storage unit 40 and an order information generation unit 42 in the image processing server 12. That is, in the image processing device shown in Fig. 7, only the instruction receiving unit 24, first image storage unit 38, print control unit 20, and printer 22 are shown in the store, and only the first image processing unit 16, second image storage unit 40, and order information generation unit 42 are shown on the cloud, with other components not shown.

[0074] The first image storage unit 38, under the control of the instruction receiving unit 24, stores the image (local image) received by the instruction receiving unit 24. Under the control of the first image processing unit 16, the second image storage unit 40 stores the image received from the instruction receiving unit 24 and the first image after image processing that will become the print product. The order information generation unit 42 generates order information based on the order confirmation instruction received from the instruction receiving unit 24. The order information includes, for example, the name of the ordered print product, the number of prints, and the storage location of the print product. The order information generation unit 42 is realized by a web application.

[0075] In the image processing device shown in Figure 7, when a user orders a print product, the user selects the desired print product from among multiple print products on a UI screen for performing editing work displayed on the screen of a web browser running on the store's instruction reception unit 24, and selects an image to be applied to the print product from among images stored on the recording medium. In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives input from the user of the print product and an image to be applied to the print product. This image is stored in the first image storage unit 38 under the control of the instruction receiving unit 24. Next, the instruction receiving unit 24 transmits the image to be applied to the print product to the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud. This image is stored in the second image storage unit 40 under the control of the first image processing unit 16.

[0076] Next, the user performs various editing operations, and after completing the editing operations for the final print product in which the image is applied to the print product, finalizes the order for the print product. In response to this, the first image processing unit 16 applies the image to the print product based on the editing work by the user and performs first image processing corresponding to the editing work on the image to generate a first image after image processing that will become the print product. This first image after image processing that will become the print product is stored in the second image storage unit 40 under the control of the first image processing unit 16. As described above, print products that have not undergone image processing by the first image processing unit 16 are stored in the second image storage unit 40 on the cloud in the state in which they are received from the instruction receiving unit 24 of the store. Next, the order information generation unit 42 generates order information including information on the storage location of the print product stored in the second image storage unit 40 by the first image processing unit 16, and transmits this order information to the print control unit 20 of the store.

[0077] Based on the type of print product (print merchandise) included in the order information, the print control unit 20 controls the printer 22 to print a local image that is the same as the image that will become the print product, from among the local images stored in the store's first image memory unit 38, instead of a print product that does not undergo image processing that requires high processing power, such as a photographic print, in other words, an image that will become the print product without first image processing by the first image processing unit 16. The print control unit 20 is not particularly limited, but for example, when printing a local image stored in the store's first image storage unit 38 instead of an image of the print product stored in the second image storage unit 40 on the cloud, the print control unit 20 replaces the storage location of this print product in the order information from the storage location of the image of the print product stored in the second image storage unit 40 on the cloud to the storage location of the local image stored in the store's first image storage unit 38, which is the same image as the print product.

[0078] Next, the print control unit 20 receives (downloads) the print product from the storage location of the print product included in the order information. That is, the print control unit 20 receives from the second image storage unit 40 on the cloud a first image that will become the print product after the first image processing has been performed by the first image processing unit 16, and receives from the first image storage unit 38 of the store an image that will become the print product without the first image processing by the first image processing unit 16, i.e., a local image that is the same as the image of the print product. Then, the print control unit 20 causes the printer 22 to print these print products.

[0079] In this way, in the image processing device of the second specific example, print products that have not undergone the first image processing by the first image processing unit 16 are received and printed from the first image storage unit 38 in the store, not from the second image storage unit 40 on the cloud. This reduces the amount of image reception (download amount) and the bandwidth usage of the global network 34, so that even when there is limited bandwidth on the global network 34, usability can be improved and users can comfortably order print products.

[0080] Next, a third specific example will be described.

[0081] Fig. 8 is a block diagram of a third specific example showing the configuration of an image processing device of the present invention. Although not shown, the image processing device shown in Fig. 8 further includes a product DB (Database) 44 in addition to the image processing server 12 of the image processing device shown in Fig. 1. That is, in the image processing device shown in Fig. 8, only the instruction receiving unit 24 and second image processing unit 30 are shown in the store, and only the first image processing unit 16 and product DB 44 are shown on the cloud, with other components not shown.

[0082] The product DB 44 stores various information related to print products, including the type of print product and the minimum required resolution of the image for printing, which is set for each type of print product.

[0083] The resolution of an image taken by a smartphone camera or a digital camera is, for example, about 3000 x 4000 pixels, and the data capacity is about 5 MB to 10 MB. In contrast, for example, in the case of an L-size photo print, the minimum required resolution of the image for printing is 1050×1500 pixels, and in the case of a 2L-size photo print, the minimum required resolution is 1500×2130 pixels. Therefore, the image can be reduced to a resolution equal to or higher than the minimum required resolution of the image for printing set according to the type of print material, but smaller than the resolution of the image accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24, and then transmitted.

[0084] In this case, the user selects the print product to which the image will be applied from among multiple print products on a UI screen for performing editing work displayed on the screen of a web browser running on the store's instruction receiving unit 24. In response to this, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives an input of an instruction to select a print product from the user. Next, the first image processing unit 16 acquires, from the product DB 44, the minimum required resolution of the image for printing that is set for this print product, based on the type of print product received from the instruction receiving unit 24. Next, the instruction receiving unit 24 receives from the first image processing unit 16 the minimum required resolution of the image to be printed.

[0085] Next, the second image processing unit 30 performs third image processing to reduce the resolution of the image based on the minimum required resolution of the image for printing received by the instruction receiving unit 24, and generates a third image after the resolution has been changed. In other words, the second image processing unit 30 reduces the resolution of the image based on the minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for each type of print product so that the resolution is equal to or greater than the minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for the print product accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24, but smaller than the resolution of the image accepted by the instruction accepting unit 24.

[0086] Next, the transfer control unit 28 controls the instruction receiving unit 24 so that the third image is sent to the first image processing unit. Then, the instruction receiving unit 24 transmits the third image with reduced resolution to the first image processing unit 16 on the cloud.

[0087] In addition, in the case of print products such as photo books, which contain multiple images on one page (one frame), for example, the minimum required resolution of the image for printing can be obtained for each page, and the resolution of each image contained on each page can be reduced and transmitted based on the minimum required resolution of the image for printing on each page.

[0088] This reduces the image data volume and the bandwidth usage of the global network 34, so that even when there is not enough bandwidth on the global network 34, usability can be improved and the user can comfortably order print products.

[0089] In the device of the present invention, the hardware configuration of the processing units that execute various processes, such as the edit processing unit 14, first image processing unit 16, print control unit 20, instruction receiving unit 24, transmission determination unit 26, transfer control unit 28, second image processing unit 30, local image control unit 36, and order information generation unit 42, may be dedicated hardware or various processors or computers that execute programs. Furthermore, the first image storage unit 38, second image storage unit 40, and product DB 44 may be configured with memory such as semiconductor memory, HD (Hard Disk Drive), or SSD (Solid State Drive).

[0090] Various types of processors include CPUs (Central Processing Units), which are general-purpose processors that execute software (programs) and function as various processing units, programmable logic devices (PLDs), which are processors whose circuit configuration can be changed after manufacture, such as FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), and dedicated electrical circuits, such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), which are processors with circuit configurations designed specifically for performing specific processes.

[0091] A single processing unit may be configured with one of these various processors, or may be configured with a combination of two or more processors of the same or different types, for example, a combination of multiple FPGAs, or a combination of an FPGA and a CPU, etc. Also, multiple processing units may be configured with one of the various processors, or two or more of the multiple processing units may be combined into one processor.

[0092] For example, as typified by server and client computers, one processor is configured by combining one or more CPUs and software, and this processor functions as multiple processing units. Another form is the use of a processor that realizes the functions of an entire system including multiple processing units on a single IC (Integrated Circuit) chip, as typified by system-on-chip (SoC).

[0093] Furthermore, the hardware configuration of these various processors is, more specifically, an electric circuit that combines circuit elements such as semiconductor elements.

[0094] The method of the present invention can be implemented by, for example, a program that causes a computer to execute each step. Also, a computer-readable recording medium on which this program is recorded can be provided.

[0095] Although the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0096] 10 Image processing device 12 Image Processing Server 14 Editing Processing Unit 16 First image processing section 18 Order Reception Department 20, 60 Print control unit 22, 62 printers 24, 64 Instruction Reception Department 26 Transmission decision unit 28 Transfer control section 30 Second image processing unit 32 Local Network 34 Global Network 36 Local Image Control Unit 38 First image storage unit 40 Second image storage unit 42, 82 Order information generation unit 44 Product DB 56 Image processing section 80 Image storage unit

Claims

1. a first processor and a second processor, the first processor accepts input of an instruction to select a print product and an instruction to select an image to be applied to the print product; the second processor applies the image received from the first processor via a global network to the print product to generate a first image that will become the print product; The first processor performs control to determine whether to print the image or the first image based on information about the print product.

2. Equipped with a printer, The first processor The image processing device according to claim 1 , wherein when it is determined based on the information on the print product that the image is to be printed, the image processing device controls the printer to print the image.

3. Equipped with a printer, The first processor 2. The image processing device according to claim 1, wherein when it is determined to print the first image based on the information of the print product, the image processing device controls the printer to print the first image received from the second processor via the global network.

4. 4. The image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the first processor accepts input of an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image, and if the instruction for image processing is an instruction for image processing other than enlarging, reducing, rotating, or moving the image, decides to send the image and the instruction for image processing to the second processor.

5. 5. The image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the first processor accepts input of an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image, and if the instruction for image processing is an instruction for image processing to enlarge, reduce, rotate or move the image, determines not to send the image and the instruction for image processing to the second processor.

6. 6. The image processing device according to claim 5, wherein when it is determined not to send the image and the image processing instruction to the second processor, the first processor performs second image processing on the image corresponding to the image processing instruction to generate a second image.

7. The first processor Accepting an input of a plurality of images, and accepting an input of one image selected from at least one of the plurality of images and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the one image; The image processing device according to claim 6 , further comprising: a processor configured to determine whether to transmit the image and the image processing instructions to be applied to the image to a second processor based on the type of image processing instructions to be applied to the image.

8. Equipped with a printer, 8. The image processing device of claim 6, wherein the first processor controls the printer to print, based on the information of the print product, an image from the images that will become the print product without the first image processing performed by the second processor in response to the image processing instruction, instead of an image that will become the print product without the first image processing performed by the second processor.

9. The first processor a third image processing step for reducing the resolution of the image based on a minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for each piece of information on the print product, thereby generating a third image after changing the resolution; The image processing device according to claim 6 , further comprising control to transmit the third image to the second processor as the image.

10. an instruction receiving unit receiving input of an instruction to select a print product and an instruction to select an image to be applied to the print product; a step in which a first image processing unit applies the image to the print product based on the image received from the instruction receiving unit via a global network, thereby generating a first image that becomes a print product; a step in which a print control unit determines whether to print the image or the first image based on information about the print product.

11. 11. The image processing method according to claim 10, further comprising the step of: when it is determined based on the information on the print product that the image is to be printed, the print control unit controls a printer to print the image.

12. The image processing method of claim 10, further comprising a step of controlling the print control unit to print the first image received from the first image processing unit via the global network by a printer when it is determined to print the first image based on the information of the print product.

13. 13. An image processing method according to claim 10, further comprising: receiving input of an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image; and, if the instruction for image processing is an instruction for image processing other than enlarging, reducing, rotating, or moving the image, determining to send the image and the instruction for image processing to the first image processing unit.

14. 14. An image processing method according to claim 10, further comprising: receiving input of an instruction for image processing to be performed on the image; and, if the instruction for image processing is an instruction for image processing to enlarge, reduce, rotate, or move the image, determining not to send the image and the instruction for image processing to the first image processing unit.

15. a second image processing unit performing second image processing corresponding to the image processing instruction on the image based on the image and the image processing instruction received from the instruction receiving unit to generate a second image; 15. The image processing method of claim 14, further comprising: when a transfer control unit determines not to send the image and the image processing instruction to the first image processing unit, controlling the instruction receiving unit to send the image and the image processing instruction to the second image processing unit.

16. the instruction receiving unit receiving an input of a plurality of images and receiving an input of one image selected from at least one of the plurality of images and an instruction for image processing to be performed on the one image; The image processing method according to claim 15, further comprising a step in which a transmission determination unit determines whether or not to transmit the one image and the instructions for image processing to be applied to the one image to the first image processing unit based on the type of instructions for image processing to be applied to the one image.

17. 17. The image processing method of claim 15 or 16, further comprising a step in which the print control unit controls the printer to print, based on the information on the print product, an image from among the images that is the same as the image that will become the print product without the first image processing performed by the first image processing unit, instead of an image that will become the print product without the first image processing performed by the first image processing unit corresponding to the image processing instruction.

18. a step in which the second image processing unit performs third image processing to reduce the resolution of the image based on a minimum required resolution of the image for printing set for each piece of information on the print product, and generates a third image after changing the resolution; The image processing method according to claim 15 , further comprising: a step in which the transfer control unit controls the instruction receiving unit to transmit the third image as the image to the first image processing unit.

19. 19. A program for causing a computer to execute each step of the image processing method according to any one of claims 10 to 18.

20. 19. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for causing a computer to execute each step of the image processing method according to any one of claims 10 to 18.

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