Facsimile and static presentation processing – Static presentation processing – Attribute control
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-06
2004-07-06
Rogers, Scott (Department: 2624)
Facsimile and static presentation processing
Static presentation processing
Attribute control
C358S003010, C358S001180, C358S530000, C358S450000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06760125
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image processing method and device for outputting an output image to be output by an output device to another output device for checking or confirmation of the output image.
2. Prior Art
In general, in an output device of this kind, such as a display device (various types of displays or the like) and a printing device (various types of printers), a gray tone of each pixel of a monochrome (e.g. black and white) image is represented by a gradation value of the pixel. More specifically, a gray tone of each pixel is represented as a gradation value, based on image data (monochrome image data) representative of the monochrome image, and the pixel is output (displayed or printed) in a density corresponding to the gradation value, whereby the monochrome image is output.
On the other hand, the color of each pixel of a color image is represented by gradation values of respective basic colors for use in composing various colors. For the color of each pixel of a display image, for instance, three colors R (red), G (green), and B (blue) are defined as the basic colors, while for the color of each pixel of a print image, three primary colors C (cyan), M (magenta), and Y (yellow), and a color K (black) which is a mixture of the three primary colors C, M, and Y are defined as the basic colors. The color of each pixel of the color image is decomposed into gradation values indicative of respective gradation levels of the basic colors, based on image data (color image data) representative of the color image, and then, each pixel is output in a density corresponding to the gradation value on a basic color-by-basic color basis. As a result, the colors of the pixels of the color image are expressed by a so-called additive or subtractive color mixing process, and the color image formed of the colors is output.
A user sometimes wants to check e.g. an image (data) prepared for being output by an output device other than his own output device, by outputting the image by using his own output device. In such a case, if the output device other than his is of a type devised exclusively for handling monochrome images, and his own output device is of a type which is capable of handling color images, i.e. if the user wants to check a monochrome image data prepared for being output by the former device, by using the latter, there occurs no problem, because the latter can handle the monochrome image by decomposing its color into gradation values of the basic colors. However, if the user wants to check a color image represented by color image data, by using a device which can only handle monochrome images, it is required to represent each color of the color image only by a gradation value indicative of a gray tone of a monochrome unicolor corresponding to the color of the color image. More specifically, each color of the color image, which is decomposed into gradation values indicative of respective gradation levels of the basic colors for representation by the basic colors, is required to be represented only by a gradation value indicative of a gray tone of a monochrome unicolor.
A similar case occurs to a single identical image processing device e.g. when a user who uses an image processing device including a printing device capable of printing color images and a display device capable of displaying only monochrome images wants to check an image prepared (as a print image) for printing, by displaying the image before the printing. Especially when a plurality of candidates for a print image are registered, and the user wants to select and print a desired one of the registered images, he would like to check, by displaying an image to be printed before execution of the printing, whether or not the image is the desired one, because if an image other than the desired image is printed, not only time and labor spent on the printing but also a printing object material used for the printing come to nothing. Further, there is a case in which a result of printing to be effected on a printing object material (i.e. a layout of a print image, etc.) is desired to be checked in advance on the display, so as to avoid the waste mentioned above. Particularly, when a plurality of print images of different kinds are to be printed simultaneously, it is required to display the print images such that they can be discriminated from each other, so as to check the layout of the print image.
In these cases, however, if a print image formed of a plurality of colors is output as a monochrome image without further processing, and if the monochromes output in representation of the plurality of colors have the same gradation level, the boundaries dividing between the image elements which are originally distinguished from each other by the colors cannot be discerned, and hence the output image itself cannot be identified. Although the problem described in the above examples occurs when a color image is output as a monochrome image, the user suffers from the same problem when a monochrome image having multiple gradation values is output as a monochrome image having a smaller number or limited range of gradation values. More specifically, if a monochrome image having multiple gradation values is output in a manner adapted to the smaller number or limited range of gradation values without further processing, one or more boundaries dividing between a plurality of image elements which are originally distinguished by gray tones thereof can become unable to be discerned, which makes it impossible to identify the output image.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a first object of the invention to provide an image processing method and device which makes it possible to easily confirm that an image to be output by a first image-outputting device capable of outputting synthesized images each synthesized from a plurality of image elements such that the synthesized images are recognizable, by using a second image-outputting device capable of outputting the image elements such that they are recognizable only when each of them is output separately.
It is a second object of the invention to provide an image-forming method which makes it possible to easily check on whether a synthesized image to be output by a first image-outputting device capable of outputting synthesized images each synthesized from a plurality of image elements such that the synthesized images are recognizable is a desired image, by using a second image-outputting device capable of outputting the image elements such that they are recognizable only when each of them is output separately, without accompanying extra processing time or an increase in the capacity of memory only for checking on the synthesized image.
To attain the first object, according to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of processing an image to be processed by an image processing device having a first image-outputting device that is capable of outputting synthesized images such that the synthesized images are recognizable, each of the synthesized images being synthesized from image elements, and a second image-outputting device that is capable of outputting any of the image elements such that the any of the image elements is recognizable only when the second image-outputting device outputs the any of the image elements separately.
The method according to the first aspect of the invention is characterized by comprising the steps of:
storing the image elements of the each of the synthesized images, in a non-synthesized state, with a predetermined one of the image elements being set to a representative image element that symbolizes a corresponding one of the synthesized images; and
causing the second image-outputting device to output, in place of any one of the synthesized images, the representative image corresponding to the any one of the synthesized images.
To attain the above object, according to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided an image processing device, comprising:
a first image-outputting device
Hogan & Harston LLP
Rogers Scott
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