Raster Image Tile Rendering with Integer Pixel Width Adjustment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing image processing techniques for rendering raster images using tile drawing methods either result in images with varying tile sizes, leading to gaps or overlaps, or require large memory to store bitmap images at high resolution.

Innovation Solution

A method that adjusts tile drawing commands to ensure integer pixel widths in the coordinate system, generating new commands with scaling factors to maintain integer tile sizes and reduce memory usage by selecting appropriate tile coordinate transformation matrices based on tile positions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If tile drawing commands are used to repeatedly rasterize objects to generate a raster image, then the image can be generated efficiently, but the placement coordinates of tile edges may gradually shift, resulting in tiles with different sizes or gaps/overlaps between tiles

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveimage generation efficiencyVSAvoidtile size consistency
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by calculating and storing the cumulative sum of tile intervals before the actual tile drawing process. This pre-computed cumulative sum array allows the system to directly determine the starting coordinate of each tile without iterative addition during rendering, thereby eliminating coordinate drift while maintaining efficient tile-based rendering. The cumulative sum is calculated in advance based on the tile interval array, ensuring that each tile's position is precisely determined from the beginning.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Manufacturing precision

If bitmapped tile images scaled to raster image resolution are arranged, then tile size consistency is maintained, but a large amount of memory is required to hold the bitmap image during rendering

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetile size consistencyVSAvoidmemory usage
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies segmentation by dividing the tile drawing process into independent tile units that are rendered separately rather than requiring the entire bitmap to be held in memory simultaneously. Each tile is drawn based on its path data and the pre-computed cumulative sum coordinates, allowing memory to be released after each tile is rendered. This segmented approach maintains precise tile positioning while dramatically reducing peak memory requirements compared to holding the complete scaled bitmap in memory.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS10540793B2Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and storage medium
Publication Date: 2020.01.21 CANON KK
  • US10540793B2 patent drawing
  • US10540793B2 patent drawing
  • US10540793B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A method for generating a raster image according to a tile drawing command includes acquiring a tile drawing command for repeatedly rasterizing a specified object, determining whether an interval in which the object is repeated in a predetermined direction based on the acquired tile drawing command is an integer pixel width in a coordinate system of the raster image, generating, based on the acquired tile drawing command, another tile drawing command for repeatedly rasterizing the object in the predetermined direction in an interval of an integer pixel width in the coordinate system, wherein the generated another tile drawing command includes a plurality of pieces of information corresponding to a plurality of scaling factors, scaling, based on the another tile drawing command, the object to repeatedly rasterize the object in the predetermined direction.